SHAVING DAILY
Today, in the morning I was trying to practice conscious
living while in the bathroom. I was doing all my toilet tasks in a slow
deliberate manner and trying to enjoy all the activities. These activities are
shaving my beard, brushing my teeth and taking a bath.
All these activities are part of my daily routine and have
become almost a second nature for me. In the mornings, I am generally rushed
for time as I have to reach my office early. So, I carry out these activities
without giving any thought and as fast as possible. My wife is always at hand
to remind me to hurry up as I may get late for the office. She is concerned
because she knows that I will forgo my breakfast to make up time whenever I am
late. She knows that missing breakfast is bad for my health may lead to my
suffering from diabetes in the long run.
I have become an expert in shaving my beard in shortest
possible time without any nicks and cuts. I am proud of my expertise in this
field as after practicing for almost a quarter of a century I can do this task
with my eyes closed, without the use of a mirror or without any light to see.
But today it was altogether a different matter. I was on
leave and thus not required to rush to the office. I had read an article on
conscious living and was trying to feel and enjoy all my activities. Today,
even my wife had allowed me time to enjoy myself in the washroom after I agreed
to use the bathroom in the guest room of our house thus not hindering her
freedom in any manner. As we had been invited to a brunch by our neighbours,
she was not under any pressure to finish her task of serving me the breakfast
before the arrival of the maid for house cleaning.
It happens very rarely in
our lives when all the stars are in our favour. When all our stars align
in an auspicious manner, we can be sure
that something magical will take place. After all, Newton also discovered
gravity while sitting under an apple tree free from all pressures of the world.
Similarly, I had my “eureka” moment while trying to raise
lather with shaving brush after applying shaving cream on my face.
The enlightenment dawned on like Buddha. I realised that I
have been enslaved by the shaving material producing companies. I have been
conditioned to shave daily; to use their products daily so that I create a
demand these products. This habit of mine helps them to sell their products
like the shaving cream, shaving brush, shaving razor and after shave lotions to
me and to make their profit.
These companies have slowly so moulded the way of life of
humans that we don’t feel comfortable without shaving daily. This has been done
through a sustained advertising campaign over the years. Now a person is not
seen as well groomed if he has not shaved in the morning. The companies are now
advocating that we should now shave a second time in the evening in case we are
attending a social function.
This habit of shaving is costing us dearly. The humongous
amount of water is wasted in shaving all over the world. Just imagine the
amount of energy that is being wasted to pump in this water to our bathrooms
and carbon footprint of the same. Imagine the huge amount of chemicals from
shaving cream that is being pumped into our water streams or ground water. We
are now using disposable razors. It is mind boggling to even think of the
amount of waste that is being generated by our disposal of razors daily. These
razors are made from plastic, a non-bio-degradable material that is going to
pollute our lovely planet and continue to do so some many decades.
God has given beard to men for a reason but in case the
modern man wants to play God, he can do so by removing the beard and shaving
once in a week or so. This will keep us well groomed as well as save the
planet. A change of this habit will give us more time to enjoy life in the
mornings.
So today, I have decided to shave once in a week on Sundays
and to reduce my carbon footprint. Let us all join in this movement and save
the planet from global warming and save
ourselves from being fooled by the big bad boys of shaving industry.
