Alcohol content in Perfumes/Deos

I believe there is some amount of alcohol content in most of the perfumes/deo(s).
Hence is it in line with Gurmat to use such things?

How about the practical aspect of the need of such things in our day-to-day life?

Thanks,
-JP

jpsingh77 jee, most Singhs I know do not use any deodorants/cologne/perfumes etc. If one is having a full proper ishnaan and wearing clean clothes everyday, just how much of a smell can one produce? No need to be too self concious. It's too many chemicals anyway; trying to stop yourself perspiring, inhaling all those fumes etc, it's just asking for health problems.

In India, especially in the hot weather, Singhs use talcum powder (corn starch) to stay fresh and dry.

i wear perfume everyday, of course i shower too, but i am guilty of not denying myself the luxury of wearing perfume ..and funny i thought of asking the same question couple of weeks ago. i used to know someone who wore cologne himself and he's a singh who is very devout.

i think, there's nothing wrong in wearing perfume/cologne. if you are concerned about the alcohol content of it or if you have concerns about any of the other chemicals being used in the fragrances, there are fragrances which are organic which are available, they are more expensive i believe, they do not contain alcohol and you can use them. or another alternative is natural oils.

there's the amouage line, if you want to try that, although they are expensive. but are better than the other branded fragrances and do contain higher quantities of 'fragrance oils'.

Regardless of what individual views are, this is what Sri GuruBani ji reminds us of:

ਜਿਹਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿਸੁਗੰਧਤਤਨਿਲਾਵਹਿ ॥
ਤਿਸਕਉਸਿਮਰਤਪਰਮਗਤਿਪਾਵਹਿ ॥

Chota veer

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa
Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

Generally the clothes that we wear get the odour of the food and spices very quickly in the homes where the cooking includes the use of lot of spices. Daas has experienced this a lot as even if I go into the kitchen when singhni is making parshada wearing fresh clothes they catch the odour very quickly.

I think in the western countries this became a big issue as the western cooking involves very few spices (generally limited to salt and pepper). Anyone from Indian subcontinent was seen to be SMELLY. Although in India this is not the case as you won't find the difference as everyone has the same odour. So this is where the use of Deo's and Perfumes has become an obsession.

Daas never saw anyone using these things in India. If we follow sarablog bibek rehat and cook the food with simple salt and avoid using too many spices this issue may never occur.

Havind said this, there is a medical condition where some people suffer from excessive perspiration thus giving a very strong odour. In such case medical advise should be sought. Generally Deo;s etc should be avoided. But in such cases doctors advise use of special deo's which contain chemicals to close the excessive pours.

So its upto the individual to make a choice. Best will be to avoid such things...

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If one is having a full proper ishnaan and wearing clean clothes everyday, just how much of a smell can one produce?

every person is different. some do not smell much, others smell quite a lot. in summer of course, we sweat a lot more. the fact that most sikhs eat dairy, onions, and garlic contributes to such body odor as well. perhaps if we bathe and change clothes several times a day we would be ok, but for most working people, this is not possible.

there is nothing wrong with wearing deodorant. and since very few deodorants contain alcohol this shouldn't be an issue either.

perfumes are different and my feeling is that they're like jewelry, for show, so aren't necessary. i don't think the two items are in the same category at all.

why do some sikhs make such a huge deal out of things like perfumes or jewelry or the colour of your clothes???? people are so judgemental and how some people look down at others when they aren't doing the same thing as them. people are allowed to be different, let them be and get on with your own life.

perfumes are not like jewelry, and jewelry is not for show, 1kaur. i have both of them, guess im a show off now? jewelry can be worn to show off "im rich" but sometimes it is worn because of sentimental value, memories and thoughts are linked to it....if somebody wants to smell good and they wear perfume for it then let them, it's none of your business to be making such huge ass issues over things like that. people stop trying to over analyze things and always start picking faults and reasons/motives behind things like perfume, jewelry, colour of clothes.

God was so wrong to putting fragrances in flowers too then???!!!! (sarcasm)

kind note to admin: please do not delete this post and do post it, kindly. many thanks.

I guess the next topics would be...

if we can use bath soap
if we can use the facial/hand creams
if we can use hand sanitizers (yes those do have some sort of alcohol in them)
if we can use hand-wash soap (to wash our hands)
what kind of hair oil we are allowed
what detergent we can wash our clothes in
can we use a washing machine and dryer or do we hand-wash everything and then air-dry it
which toothpaste is appropriate
do we wear only non-leather footwear and belts
are wrist watches allowed

Thanks

Bhai sahib there's nothing wrong with questioning the use of any of the things you just mentioned. Absolutly no need for perfume, and some of the things you have mentioned like leather, no need to wear it especially since it's made from animal skin...Thanks

Mehtab Singh Jeo,

I wanted to get clarification for the deo/alcohol use as I noticed alcohol mentioned as one of the contents.
If you are not willing to give any thought to it, please feel free not to post any comment.
But there is ABSOLUTELY NO RESON to be sarcastic about it, as the post was made in good faith and not for the sake of argument!

In my humble opinion, it is better to clarify things rather than let any doubt linger in your mind.

Bhul chuk maaf!

-JP

Agreed

Let's stick with answering questions rather than being negative about it.

Let's keep the negativity away from this forum.

For a while now, there has been a little negativity here

Vaheguroo Jee

i don't think mehtab singh was negative. there are NO HARD rules that you can't wear perfume. it all comes down to personal choice. this is just getting silly.....

if you wanna wear it, wear it, and if you don't wanna, then don't. simple.

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I wanted to get clarification for the deo/alcohol use as I noticed alcohol mentioned as one of the contents.
If you are not willing to give any thought to it, please feel free not to post any comment.
But there is ABSOLUTELY NO RESON to be sarcastic about it, as the post was made in good faith and not for the sake of argument!

You are just presuming that I was being sarcastic. How do you know that I didn't put those as genuine questions?

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Let's keep the negativity away from this forum.

For a while now, there has been a little negativity here

How does having a different opinion tantamount to negativity?

And as far as opinion is concerned, here is my "non-sarcastic" worthless thought without adding any further "negativity".

Alcohol is in most ointments that are used to cure wounds. The medicines we consume even have things like cow's urine, scorpion's poison (in drop amounts) to cure diseases. A cough syrup has a good amount of alcohol to put a patient to sleep, same goes for pain killer. It all comes down to intention. If my intention by wearing a cologne/perfume is to attract someone of the opposite gender, then shame on me. If it is because inspite of a proper bath, I sweat and then stink, then its a majbooree to wear perfume/cologne. "piyasi chatrik" jee's response has been the best so far. You can use powder as another Gurmukh suggested. These days the perfumes/colognes are for several purposes besides just eliminating body odor. Again, it all depends on your intention. Best would be to avoid it, because you may have a clear intention, but someone else around you may perceive it as something else.

So here was my "attempted positive" and "non-sarcastic" response.

smell is the first thing the brain reacts to. smelling repulsive things can make one want to vomit or make em sick....fragrances help in improving moods at certain times....ie. i have to use natural oils to relieve my migranes


peace...