It’s interesting to note how many of my friends who are Baal teshuvas have told me that the concept of today’s wigs never made any sense to them. Why bother covering your own hair with someone else’s nice hair? This is modest?? It’s actually one of the first questions asked at many kiruv events.
These friends of mine who were involved in the entertainment business before they became frum saw how wigs were used as a beautifying agent- a deception to make women appear glamorous and provocative to men- and actresses/singers/models don’t only wear long wigs, short wigs can be stunning too and sometimes more flattering on the women wearing them. Women know this very well, which is why they are so attached to their sheitels which transform them from plain Jane to Marylyn Monroe lookalike. Just put on a sheitel and the compliments pour in on how gorgeous and young you look. Modest indeed.
Long, short – if the wig looks natural it’s provocative- it will provoke men by beautifying the woman wearing it. There’s no tichel or snood in the world that will have the same effect on men as a nice natural looking wig.
Todays wigs are all natural looking! They all look like hair, beautiful hair, and anyone with open eyes and a truth seeking heart understands that hair is one of the most attractive features of a woman!
That’s exactly why a married woman is supposed to be covering her hair in front of men. So they doesn’t notice how beautiful she is- her main beauty is supposed to be reserved for her husband only- at home.
Every other area of modesty is safe to talk about it- but the wigs- forget it! When someone starts to point out the hypocrisy of most of the sheitels frum women and men start screaming in defense of the wigs. Clearly there’s something quite big about this topic- could it be that the sheitels today are a vehicle of the yetzer hora? Knowing how powerful the mitzvah of kisui rosh is, he’s blinded the frum population to the total sheker of these wigs. He’s even made it that natural looking wigs are the accepted social norm in frum society- with many husbands sporting beards, Peyos and tzitzus and wives with perfect shiny bouncy highlighted curls (of all lengths and colors) – quite a strange juxtaposition.
(Interestingly the word sheitel and the word Satan have the same gematria….)