The Beard

Question:
I have often wondered, why many religious Jews have long beards. Is this, like the Kipah, a means of identifying oneself as a Jew, or do they serve some other purpose?
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Answer:
There is more to the beard, than just identifying as a Jew. According to Kabbalah, the beard should not even be trimmed, rather it should be allowed to grow freely. Why?

Kabbalistically, our outer physical appearance, is a reflection, of our inner spiritual reality.
Our hands represent, our ability to give and receive; our feet symbolize, the power to progress. What does the beard represent?
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One of the greatest struggles in life, is to live up to our ideals. Many of us know, what is right, but find it difficult, to apply that knowledge to our daily lives. Often we do things that we know are wrong, but feel we "couldn't help ourselves".

For example, we know that it is wrong to lose our temper, but when we get annoyed at someone, we find it impossible to control our anger. Or we may know, that it is good to give charity, but never get around to actually giving.

Between theory and practice, there is a huge gulf. It is one thing, to have good intentions, but that is far, from actually doing good. It is like a dream; that without diligence, determination and hard work, it will always remain just a dream.

The greatest step we can take in our personal growth, is learning to bridge this gap, and implement our good intentions. _________
This is what the beard represents. The beard is hair, that grows down from the head, to the rest of the body. It is the bridge, between: mind and heart, thoughts and actions, theory and practice, good intentions and good deeds.

So we don't cut the beard, but rather let it flow freely, to create a direct flow, from the intangible ideals and philosophies in our minds, down into the deeds of our everyday life.