Ancient Buddhist
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How did ancient buddhist monks shave ?
How did ancient buddhist monks shave there head and beard?
When Buddha created the monastic sangha (around 475 B.C.E.) both metal razors and scissors were available.
The Buddha probably cut his own curly locks with scissors -- hence he is always portrayed with tight, spiraling ringlets of hair. He called hair "ignorance grass" because humans spend a lot of time grooming it and obsessing about its appearance. We have the delusion that our appearance will produce happiness, approval, or some other reward.
It is thought that the earliest monks and nuns followed his example -- using scissors or knives to cut their hair close to the head, but not shaved smooth. Facial hair was often not a problem for these early monastics.
As time went on, ardent monastics (great combination of words!) began using a razor to remove all hair from their head.
As Buddhism moved from India to other Asian countries, the rituals around shaving diversified. In some countries, such as Tibet, monastics shave on the new and full moons -- roughly every two weeks. In other countries, such as Korea, monastics shave every few days, or whenever the hair becomes noticeable. I've seen monastics use electric razors, as well as traditional razors for this.
Traditionally, a monastic first cuts their hair ("receives the tonsure") when they take the novice precepts. Their teacher (sometimes called a "precepts master") will shave the hair as part of the ordination ceremony. Sometimes it's a literal shaving of the head; other times it's symbolic, as the new monastic has already shaved all or most of their hair.
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