Thai hairdressers closed on Wednesday?
A while back I wrote a piece about the fact that hairdressers are closed on a Buddhist holiday, Makha Bucha. From the origins of this holiday I could not find any indications that the non-cutting had a religious origin.
A few days ago I thought it was time to combat the heat by cutting my hair extremely short. On Wednesday I had transport, so I asked to take me to the hairdresser. That is not possible, was the answer of my Thai driver, because the hairdressers are closed today. I was sure it wasn't a Thai holiday so I asked for an explanation. It's Wednesday, was the short explanation. Hairdressers in Thailand are closed on Wednesdays.
I have never discovered this by chance in the forty years that I have been coming here or living here. I wonder why only hairdressers have such a day off. Buddha helps. Two days later I see a piece on Thaisvisa.com. Admittedly about Phuket, but it gives an explanation. According to a Thai who has studied history, the origin does not lie in religion, but in the royal family. His grandfather once told him that the king always had his hair cut on Wednesdays and then you can understand that it is not appropriate for ordinary Thais to go to the hairdresser on that same day. They would take something from the king that was meant only for him. That would bring bad luck.
Another explanation would be that Wednesday would be the day of agriculture, the day when everything grows. Cutting the hair is just the opposite. So that's not on that day.
Another statement. Monks have their heads shaved on Wednesdays. So hairdressers go to the temple on that day and have to close their shop. Monks do this because Buddha was born on Wednesday. Most religious festivities therefore take place on Wednesdays.
In short, cutting on Wednesday brings bad luck according to the elderly. Younger Thais no longer fear this bad luck, so the use will eventually disappear. In any case, I now know that I will skip Wednesdays for the time being, when I want to get my hair cut or at least edited with the clippers.
I see the hairdresser is open here today. I estimate him to be about 30 years old, so maybe he is already a new generation. I've never really paid attention to it, but I'll keep an eye out for it in the future.
Coincidentally, I also wanted to have my hair touched up with the clippers and razor today. (It doesn't look like much anymore, but I like to keep it very short)
My wife says "Not now, do it later".
Are you standing there, hairdresser is open but you are not allowed to go.
Could one of the listed reasons be the cause, I wondered after reading your article.
So I went to my wife and asked her if it had to do with any of these things.
No she said. It's just short enough.
Pilgrim,
Still married to the same.
Now I'm completely bald except for some darts that are stubborn. 😉
This is the story I heard:
That hairdressers are closed on Wednesday is a misunderstanding. Most are open as usual, but many only offer treatments on Wednesdays such as massage, nail painting, curling, washing and styling.
My wife once explained to me that this has nothing to do with Buddhism, but with bad luck. There is an old Thai medieval saga about a princess whose heart was broken because a prince chose another and she killed herself with a knife out of heartbreak. This was on a Wednesday and from then on no one took up a knife or scissors because it would bring bad luck.
In the Netherlands I never go to the hairdresser, I have to make an appointment and it is quite expensive and uncomfortable, then my wife takes a clipper over it, and I am back to normal within 5 minutes.
Here in Thailand I go to the village hairdresser as standard once a month, I think that's great by the way, it's just a party for me, that hairdresser still has those old red loungers, just like here in the Netherlands, I let myself be then give it a big turn, ie cut, shave, still with such a large razor that is first sharpened before it is put on your throat, after this you will be sprinkled with scented water from such a silver perfume bottle with such a red rubber squeeze ball at the bottom, and as a finishing touch the free shoulder massage haha wonderful, and all this under the supervision of somewhat older Thai villagers, of whom I generally receive a compliment, such as suai mak mak.
Anyway, my wife always says not good on Wednesday and in the Netherlands she would rather not cut my hair on Wednesday, and of course I asked her why this was not good, and then the answer was not good for happiness.
And because in Thailand you are associated with happiness a lot of things, I never actually asked and I was like okay it must be and then I respect that, after all it is all well intentioned because they want you to be lucky, always nice right? if someone wishes you that.
Well, it's just Thai superstition.
Some hairdressers are closed, others are not.
The superstition is that you don't get your hair cut on Wednesday. Then, according to superstition, it will never be anything with your hair again. (Should have known sooner).
But women do have their hair washed and blow-dried.
berthy
On the grans of Pattaya and Jomtien: Pratamnak soi 5 at RELAX beauty salon just had my hair shaved. The massage was also in full effect. So no problem. Well recommended for compatriots and our southern neighbours
I often go on Wednesdays, because then there are no beach chairs. In Pattaya Soi Hollywood just open
Here too the hairdresser is open on Wednesdays, never have to wait on Wednesdays, often I am the only one, it seems that there are also people who do not get a haircut on Thursdays, it has to do with superstition, that is what I understood .
References are made to ancient legends, superstitions, Buddhism…. This hairdressing tradition cannot be very old because it is based on the division of the week into 7 days. Very western!
Butcher you are right about that division of days. When I first came here everything was open every day and there was no closing time, that was up to them. Nowadays everything closes on Sunday, day of rest, but Buddhism has no Sunday or this day as a day of rest. I sometimes make the mistake that I don't think about that and then want to buy something and close everything. Sunday is a Christian day. Just like Christmas, people had never heard of it and now?
According to Wiki, the old Thai lunar calendar was replaced in 1888 by a "solar calendar" that more or less corresponds to the Gregorian. So a 7 day week etc. I don't know much more about it after a somewhat superficial search on my part. So this hairdressing tradition will probably not be older than 1888. Incidentally, not a professional group that is known for being very developed. Maybe all this Wednesday stuff is just "barber talk"