Rabbi Pinchas Winston has written a superb shiur on Parshas Nasso, Why Cover Your Hair? that relates 'perah' (wild), 'pharah' 'peruah' uncovered, and 'parah' restrained (or unrestrained), and 'Paroah' "the very symbol of immorality and sensual living from which the Jewish People were to resist and flee!"
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Let me take his analogy a bit further (based on a personal viewpoint):
'Irony' and its definition -
* an outcome of events contrary to what was, or might have been, expected.
* the incongruity of this.
* an objectively sardonic style
'Pereh' is also used to describe Yishmael (pere adam, a wild creation) and his descendants, which includes that less than human clan residing in Aza.
Perhaps we could connect the 'wildness' of the 'perah' with the brazenness (going uncovered ‘peruah’) of married Jewish women not covering 'pharah' their hair?
And maybe there could be a further connection between 'peah', using foreign hair to cover one's own hair, which davka ends up looking like one's own hair, or better or much better, and 'perah' - wildness, which gives rise to sensual living and thus the immorality of 'paroah'? Rabbi Winston in discussing Western society, elucidates how hair can symbolize sensuous living, narcissist behavior, and brings there a discussion from the Talmud.
[And contrary to what some may say, the teichel "was in use until Russian laws made it illegal for women to wear, enforced with great cruelty; it was these wicked laws which resulted in many women in Russia and Russian Poland to stop covering their hair." (Yerushalayim). And hence the phenomen of Rabbis’ wives when they arrived in America from Europe, wearing no head coverning]. An outward sign of a frum man is first and foremost his head covering, and then (depending where he resides) his tzitzis, tefillin, and on Shabbos his talis. Is there less of a distinction for women?
Contrary to some commentary, the softness of a scarf, worn properly with an undercover, creates a majestic appearance, and allows the head to be clear of hautiness, and more receptive to divine understanding, 'bina'. It is not the way of the modest Jewish woman to appear as if she is wearing her own hair, or mistaken for being uncovered altogether. It is her spiritual and halachic responsbility to do this properly. Western society has made “individual freedom” and the expression thereof (carried to great lengths) into an ‘idol’ of accumulation and gashmius (which includes designer this and that). It matters most delicately that men not be drawn to gaze at a woman. All learned men know this (Avoda Zarah 20a and Devarim 23:10). [Even Rav Winston alluded to this in his shiur.]
With that 'perah' on your head, you cannot possibly think rationally and resist the notion or suggestion that you just may be creating spiritual havoc among Klal Yisrael. Because of the sheitel, you are not able to connect your head (bina) to your body, covering your hair with hair that blinds your eyes from seeing your own brazenness in exposing your body in clingy tight material that shows every nook and cranny, even during pregnancy. What fashion will be invented next, to immitate your sisters, blinded to the downward spiral of fashion's pritzus. [ed. In no way does Rabbi Winston make a distinction of the type of covering. He even invites questions of clarification.]
Midrash Rabba says "R’ Joshua of Siknin said in R’ Levi’s name: Vayiven is written, signifying that He considered well from what part to create ‘her’ … from the modest part of man, for even when he stands [unclothed] that part is covered. And as He created each limb He ordered her, ‘be a modest woman’. G-d said to each limb of Chava 'be tznius' - to each limb." (Midrash Rabba, Bereshis XVIII 2).
“Vayiven” as Rabbi Winston explains, "is also in common with the word “bina” (understanding), referring to the woman’s extra intuitive understanding, which is particularly endowed at her marriage to man. She gains this extra insight … intricately dependent upon her covering her hair." There are coverings and there are coverings; intuitive understanding would lend itself to a ‘cover’ and not another layer of hair atop her own hair. A ‘sheitel’ is the antithesis and contradistinction to the spiritual intent of a Jewish woman covering her hair. It is just plain counter-intuitive!
Contrary to what some may say, there is a prevailing custom for women to cover their hair with a simple cloth cover (going back to Talmudic times and earlier as the parsha of the Sotah clearly shows). This was in effect for thousands of years, until the vicious antisemitism of the turn of the century. Western society, since the two world wars, has become an antithesis to modesty.
As the Rabbi states further on in his shiur, “there is a concept that, although the same mitzvos apply in all generations … some prove to be more of a test for one generation than for other generations. ‘Eretz Yisroel’ and ‘hair covering’ are proving to be tests of Jewish spirituality specifically in this post-way, glamour-oriented generation.”
Women, wake up, open your eyes, take off the sheitel, replace it with a modest covering, allow your 'bina yeseira' to breathe and guide you on the correct path, do not be pulled by 'designer fashion' or 'they're all wearing them' or 'I want to look pretty'. You should want to look like a bas Yisroel of Sarah Imeinu, Rochel Imeinu, and grow in Holiness, as Hashem has asked us, Sefer Vayikra, Parshas Kedoshim:
"Hashem spoke to Moses, saying:
Speak to the entire assembly of the
Children of Israel and say to them:
You shall be holy, for holy am I,
Hashem, your G-d."
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Here's another strange ironic twist we might take as a 'siman'.
The sub-humans (pere adam) kidnap young Jewish girls into marriage (and have been doing this over 20 or more years), make as many babies as they possibly can, and then raise those babies to be Shahids, to martyr themselves by killing Israelis. Isn't this a sordid twist of the imagination. [I heard this first-person account with my own ears at a presentation by Yad L'Achim]
Well maybe from this we can extrapolate a message that we Jews need to be more forgiving, understanding, and kind to our fellow Jews no matter at what level of frumkeit we find them. Instead of condemning them, reach out and share something beautiful about Shabbat, or even invite a not-yet observant Israeli to spend Shabbat with you and your family!
As the nations of the world spin their twisted anti-semitism into a rabid nuclear foaming storm, bent on irrational chaos, we Jews need to take history and bend it benevolently toward Hashem with the ways of pleasantness taught by our Torah, and save the world from destruction.
