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Summary of Question:	Braces
Category:	Other
Date Posted:	Monday, 8/22/2005 7:52 PM MDT

If a Sikh isnt allowed to cut their hair and change their body then how is a sikh permitted to have braces and change their appearance in that way?

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Sikhs are not told that our appearance can not change. After all, every day of your life you look slightly different, no matter how much you might try!

The question then, is how braces and hair relate. Braces correct physical issues in the body, such as overbite. They also can be used for vain reasons, such as to look better. Braces are not specifically mentioned by Guru Gobind Singh either. :)

However, Sikhs believe that Guru Gobind Singh did specifically address the beauty of maintaining the hair. He made it one of the five symbols of commitment to his path that were gifted to the Khalsa on Baisakhi Day.

All of the potential practical and spiritual benefits of the kesh are addressed elsewhere on this forum. But the basic answer is - Guru Gobind Singh asked this of his Sikhs.