Peyos/Beard

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05 May 2008 13:46 #300 by Daniel
Peyos/Beard was created by Daniel
Was "extra peyos" (what many put behind their ear's) a Minhag in Ashkenaz? I would assume not (although perhaps among individuals like the Rabbanim? Many of them seem to have had). How about shaving / growing a beard? Was this common among the Rabbanim / regular population, only married etc. Does this perhaps go with the times? For example, before Reform did people had beards and after they did not? Even among the Rabbanim that had beards, many had the typical “German Rabbi” type beard like R’ Breuer and R’ Yonah Mertzbach (I think), which obviously requires one to shave.

Thank You

Daniel

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05 May 2008 17:38 #302 by Michael
Replied by Michael on topic Peyos/Beard
There are many pictures of people in Ashkenaz with Peyos (especially Rabbonim), some behind their ears and some outside (usually those who had a beard had their Peyos outside and those who didn't have a beard had their Peyos behind their ears). It was very much accepted in Ashkenaz to have big Peyos, unlike the beard that wasn't considered as important. In the picture of Harav Hirsch you can see he had Peyos behind his ears, R' Wolf Heidenheim had big Peyos etc.
Shaving the beard was very common in Ashkenaz for many generations (a lot before the time of the reform), and all the different types of beards were used. The Trumas Hadeshen says he was Makpid to have 40 hairs of beard on his chin, so it's clear that he didn't leave all of his beard.

Michael FRBSH

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09 Jan 2014 01:45 #2340 by AlexF
Replied by AlexF on topic Peyos
According to Minhag Ashkenaz, from where are the peyos grown exactly?

Alex Fiedler

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20 Jan 2014 02:44 #2346 by Michael
Replied by Michael on topic Peyos
According to Halocho, we see the Chassam Sofer (Chaddoshos Jerusalem תשמט Siman ל) holds one should not shave his beard above the place the lower jaw touches the upper jaw, (the bottom end of the ear). He mentions there that there is no need to grow the hair of the Peyos to get to the bottom of the ears, and those who do so have a mistake in the understanding of the Halocho, but even though he says that he continues that one who does so קדוש יאמר לו, and adds that him and his family do so too. See also Rav Hirsch's commentary on Vayikro (פרק י"ט פסוק כ"ז). That was the minhag until the 19th century (to have long Peyos). Until the 19th century many had the Peyos outside their ears, and at the 19th century behind the ears. At the 20th century most people didn't have long Peyos at all (but didn't shave the beard above the ear, as written above).
See also Yosef Ometz (page 344) about the place the Peyos start above the ears.

Michael FRBSH
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