The beard that saves. Judaism, Christianity and Islam encourage faithful believers to grow an environmentally friendly beard. Now with added eco-value.
Beards are timeless. Eons ago, a beard was an integral part of manhood for religious reasons and in the 21st century it still carries a sign of religiosity. We have seen the most iconic faces sport a stylish beard and the trend is still being passed down from father to son, generation to generation. Now that we know in Islam, the beard is in pursuit of a prophetic tradition, the question you’ll no doubt ask is, “Well, how is that connected to saving the environment?”
Growing a beard protects the earth’s resources by firstly cutting back on excessive water usage, currently a dwindling source of life in the Emirates. Although society promotes a clean-shaven look, growing a beard eliminates a need for not as eco-friendly grooming products. Ask yourself, is my bathroom eco-conscious? A properly maintained beard is also conducive to increased hygiene (in most men).
To encourage bearded living, Budweiser’s ‘Grow One. Save A Million’ campaign was an annual celebration of World Environment Day, 5th June, focusing on water management.
By asking adult men across America to not shave, the ‘Grow One. Save A Million’ program enabled consumers to save 5 gallons of water for each shave they skip.
“Every gallon of water that we save makes a difference to our communities, so when thousands of people get together for one common cause, great things can happen,” said Chad Pregracke, founder of Living Lands & Waters and the face of the program on Budweiser’s Facebook page.
“By pledging to skip shaving and ‘grow one,’ guys can literally wear their commitment to conserving our most valuable natural resource.”
Such environmentalism has a core place in the Islamic worldview of aesthetic harmony. A Muslim’s personal hygiene is easily incorporated in his daily routine of ‘Zuhd’ – an Arabic term loosely translated as ‘living lightly on the earth’, which defines how our low ecological footprint secures a healthy planet. Even ‘greywater’, the waste water after a shave, is recycled.
So, how is growing a beard eco-friendly?
- The average home uses nearly 11 gallons of water a day from running taps alone (faucets) and the average shave can use more than 3 gallons of water. Cutting out a morning shave significantly reduces this amount.
- Replacing brand named grooming products for environmentally friendly cleaners such as natural beard care shampoos means a beard produces ‘healthier’ waste into our water systems.
- Not only does a beard reduce product quantity and water used, it will reduce you annual bill, meaning it’s more affordable to maintain. FTW!
And to my sisters – recruit your men to save one, grow one!
Take more enviro-action:
Knit Your Own Sustainable ‘Sunnah’ Beard
How To Live A Car-Free Existence
6 Tips for Conserving Water in Israel and the Middle East
How To Wash Your Car In A Water-Parched Desert
Go Green This Ramadan – 6 Steps
I regret to say I don’t think the source of the wasted water is necessarily shaving-time. To me it’s the part where SO MANY GALLONS OF WATER ARE ‘SUPPOSEDLY’ NEEDED for shaving! The only reason for that could be the habit of turning on the faucet and letting it run unnecessarily while you are shaving, rather than turning it on only when you are rinsing.
That applies as well to all washing, teeth-brushing, dish-washing and clothes washing. The amount of water wasted in ALL those activities is tremendously more than is needed for the actual purpose.
We’ve been waste-trained now for generations! Probably ever since faucets (and flush toilets) entered middle class homes!
With surprisingly little effort and great results, bowls and wash-tubs of water can be used to perfect satisfaction in all the washings, including shaving.(….see all movies of pre-faucet times….. shaving, dish-washing, and all, were done with bowls of water, which can be refilled as needed.
ALMOST NEVER IS THERE A TRUE NEED FOR THE EXCESS FLUSHING AND RUNNING OF FAUCETS WE HAVE ACCUSTOMED OURSELVES TO IN THE ‘MODERN’ WORLD.
NOW THAT WE ARE, WE HAVE ONLY TO RETRAIN OURSELVES WITH A BIT OF PATIENCE AND CARE. (A sense of humor and some ingenuity and inventiveness for that would help, as well.)
Good luck to us earthlings in finding our way back to sustainability…….. in time…….