Forum Activity for @peace-shalom

Does only dry hair form dreadlocks?

Dreads Hair and Scalp Health

Washing your hair with water "is" washing your hair. And if you do it right water will get you clean.

Obviously you need to get your hair dry, or it will stink. You can't have perpetually wet hair.

I have washed my hair with only water for as long as I can remember, at least 5 years. My hair is clean and does not stink. Occasionally I might lightly rub my hair with some fragranced olive oil to add a slight scent and it will stay in for days. Not very much oil though... Like literally no more than 1 or 2 drops... Then it will wash out, but the fragrance will hold longer than even a shampoo would.

Do you mean to ask if not washing your hair "with shampoo" decreases the time it takes for the knotting process.
In other words does washing with only water speed up dreading process very much?

Can you clarify your question?

Dealing with the negativity...

General Talk

For me,
I am a very spiritual/religious person. From what I believe (Hebrew scriptures), it helps me to know that God looks at the heart, not on the outward appearances. And so I believe that people who judge on the outward appearance instead of the heart, are people who are not close to God and thus are not to be listened to.

These are scriptures that come to mind:

1 Samuel 16:7
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֶל־שְׁמוּאֵ֗ל אַל־תַּבֵּ֧ט אֶל־מַרְאֵ֛הוּ וְאֶל־גְּבֹ֥הַּ קוֹמָת֖וֹ כִּ֣י מְאַסְתִּ֑יהוּ כִּ֣י ׀ לֹ֗א אֲשֶׁ֤ר יִרְאֶה֙ הָאָדָ֔ם כִּ֤י הָֽאָדָם֙ יִרְאֶ֣ה לַעֵינַ֔יִם וַיהוָ֖ה יִרְאֶ֥ה לַלֵּבָֽב׃
But the ETERNAL said to Samuel, “Pay no attention to his appearance or his stature, for I have rejected him. For not as man sees [does the ETERNAL see]; man sees only what is visible, but the ETERNAL sees into the heart.”
---This is about finding the right man to be king, and when Samuel thought he had found the one who outwardly looked like he should be king.

2 Samuel 14:25
וּכְאַבְשָׁל֗וֹם לֹא־הָיָ֧ה אִישׁ־יָפֶ֛ה בְּכָל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְהַלֵּ֣ל מְאֹ֑ד מִכַּ֤ף רַגְלוֹ֙ וְעַ֣ד קָדְקֳד֔וֹ לֹא־הָ֥יָה ב֖וֹ מֽוּם׃
No one in all Israel was so admired for his beauty as Absalom; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head he was without blemish.
---This is describing a deadlocked man. He had to start cutting his hair once per year because his locks started to weigh up to 5 pounds. He was the most attractive man.

Numbers 6:5
כָּל־יְמֵי֙ נֶ֣דֶר נִזְר֔וֹ תַּ֖עַר לֹא־יַעֲבֹ֣ר עַל־רֹאשׁ֑וֹ עַד־מְלֹ֨את הַיָּמִ֜ם אֲשֶׁר־יַזִּ֤יר לַיהוָה֙ קָדֹ֣שׁ יִהְיֶ֔ה גַּדֵּ֥ל פֶּ֖רַע שְׂעַ֥ר רֹאשֽׁוֹ׃
Throughout the term of his vow as nazirite, no razor shall touch his head; it shall remain consecrated until the completion of his term as nazirite of the ETERNAL, the hair of his head being left to grow untrimmed.
---Part of the sign of a nazyrite is not to cut your hair and is actually a part of being holy/concecrated to God.


So for me, people who are negative about it - it is a way of seeing into their heart...it is a good way to discern people to see how shallow they are etc. This is just what I believe. I am not saying you have to believe the same things. Hope it is encouraging though!

How long did it take your hair to lock up using freeform?

Dreading Methods

Your hair looks similar to mine. Probably stop using the shampoo and just massage the roots in the shower with plain old water but not too hot of temperature, I think the colder you can stand it the better, especially for a final rinse.
My hair is shorter and hasn't dreaded yet. I stopped combing/brushing it a about a week ago, but I'm still "coming"it with my fingers.

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Alternative Lifestyles and Subcultures

How often do you guys get shot at by the forest service or whatever they are that shoot you with pepper-painball guns?
Have they always done that?
Does it happen everywhere you go or is it just in some parts of the country? Do they attack everyone, or just some of you?

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Alternative Lifestyles and Subcultures

Interesting. I am just wondering mainly about the legality of this. I am not a lawyer, but I bet this raises a lot of legal issues with land usage and ownership rights etc. Do you have any legal precedence for this? Seems like this raises the fundamental issue of private property rights. Like if nobody is using it can people have the right to claim it for a better use than just sitting empty. Like Native Americans were basically kicked out of their land and now who "owns" it?

crochet dreads recovery recommendations

crochet and dread tools recovery

Is twist and rip okay to "start" the dread sections? Before I found this site I asked a dreadlocks salon person, and she actually recommended the twist and rip method as opposed to crochet. She has dreadlocks herself....But.... She said if you just go all natural you can't wash your hair and she emailed me these horrible looking dreadlocks pictures super matted and loopy and clumped and said that's what will happen.
Obviously you have done all natural and have washed your hair.
But...
I think the issue is people don't want to look sloppy so they opt for crochet and wax and all these products, which ultimately don't help us in the long run. I guess what I am looking for, and probably many others is a way to stay somewhat presentable in the early formation stages. We don't to develop "bad" dreads and we want our hair to be healthy and strong for the long run. But many of use have jobs where we really can't show up looking like we are homeless, know what I mean?
I read my employee handbook from work and it directly says in it I must look clean and have washed hair etc.
I am still growing my hair out to "start" the dread journey at some point. But I'm sure many are in the boat of not knowing where to turn stuck in the crochet cycle of endless maintenance.

How do you dry? What do you think about blow drying? Using a blow dryer okay?

General Questions

What's the best method for drying hair? And if trying to get lhair to lock up? What about using a blow dryer?

Has anyone taken the Nazarite vow?

Alternative Lifestyles and Subcultures

I am not claiming to be an authority on the subject, but as a Karaite Jew, my current understanding of the vow of the Nazarite still allows you to eat "clean" meat on occasion. So saying the diet restrictions involves a 100% vegan/vegetarian diet is not 100% accurate. The dietary part of the vow is to abstain from grapes and alcohol in addition to the normal dietary law of no unclean things. The Nazarite would still eat the lamb on Passover. Part of the Nazarite vow is not to go near dead bodies of humans. But how I understand it, this does not apply to dead animals. Some may disagree with me though and say it applies also to dead animals, but dead animals are very frequent, like you would have to never wear a leather belt or sit on a leather couch etc.

Edit:

I now currently believe that yes a vegan diet is part of the vow. 

I honestly believe the texts requiring eating meat and sacrifices are corruption to the scriptures and the prophets wrote of this:

Jeremiah, Isaiah and Micah taught againt killing of animals. Thus the Cain and Abel story was reversed.
Ecclesiastes 5:1
Micah 6:6-8
Isaiah :11-20
Jeremiah 7:22, 8:8

updated by @peace-shalom: 07/06/18 01:33:41PM

Greetings! I want to start dreads

Introduce Yourself

I am aware of the Nazarite vow. Not sure I am ready to take it completely at this moment in my life as it is very serious. It probably won't hurt to adopt more and more of the Nazarite lifestyle though, and the hair is one of those things. Its One step closer. I already am a vegan now, but I do enjoy grapes and wine, and beer and strong drinks like Vodka, Whiskey, and Rum. So cutting out the alcohol is really the only other thing, which I'm not completely opposed to, I just not quite ready yet. I do like what you said though - I do feel it brings me closer to God. Today I didn't comb my hair, I just washed the roots in the shower, and pat-dried my head with a towel. It looked pretty good, sorta curly and stylish; my sister actually said she liked it. It's a strange feeling to be able to start to see my hair again without using a mirror. Haven't had my hair this long since I was a kid.

updated by @peace-shalom: 07/20/18 01:20:05PM

How much do your dreads/dreadlocks weigh?

General Questions

That's really interesting.
According to a 2,500 year-old Hebrew scripture there was a man named Abshalom who had 5 pounds of hair. He was a Nazarite and it got to the point where he cut his hair once per year because the weight would be too heavy for him.

I also find it fascinating that the scripture records him as being the most praiseworthy for his beauty in all of Israel.

Obviously, the only possible way that anyone could have 5 pounds of hair would be in some form of dreadlocks.

And so this tells me that according to the scripture, dreadlocks are beautiful. This makes me want to get them more than ever. (as I am a Karaite)

וּכְאַבְשָׁל֗וֹם לֹא־הָיָ֧ה אִישׁ־יָפֶ֛ה בְּכָל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְהַלֵּ֣ל מְאֹ֑ד מִכַּ֤ף רַגְלוֹ֙ וְעַ֣ד קָדְקֳד֔וֹ לֹא־הָ֥יָה ב֖וֹ מֽוּם׃
No one in all Israel was so admired for his beauty as Absalom; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head he was without blemish.
וּֽבְגַלְּחוֹ֮ אֶת־רֹאשׁוֹ֒ וְֽ֠הָיָה מִקֵּ֨ץ יָמִ֤ים ׀ לַיָּמִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יְגַלֵּ֔חַ כִּֽי־כָבֵ֥ד עָלָ֖יו וְגִלְּח֑וֹ וְשָׁקַל֙ אֶת־שְׂעַ֣ר רֹאשׁ֔וֹ מָאתַ֥יִם שְׁקָלִ֖ים בְּאֶ֥בֶן הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃
When he cut his hair—he had to have it cut every year, for it grew too heavy for him—the hair of his head weighed two hundred shekels by the royal weight.

2 Samuel 14:25-26