Cures for Baldness and Disposal of Hair: Mythological and Cultural Connections in Indo-European Traditions

    February 2014 in “ Harvard University Press eBooks ”
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    TLDR The document describes how hair and plants are symbolically linked in Indo-European traditions, leading to practices like burying hair to promote plant growth and using plants to treat baldness.
    The document from 2014 examines the mythological and cultural connections between hair and vegetation in Indo-European traditions, highlighting two main beliefs: one that plants originated from the hair of a primordial being and another linking plants to the body of a primordial animal. It details the symbolic and linguistic parallels between hair and plants, as well as historical practices of disposing of hair clippings by burying them to promote vegetation growth and prevent vermin. Additionally, the document describes traditional remedies for baldness, such as burying hair with plants or applying vegetable matter to the scalp, which were believed to encourage hair growth. These practices were rooted in the idea that hair and vegetation are part of a cosmic cycle of transformation.
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