Asha Mandela’s dreadlocks, measuring at 55 feet in length, are longer than a bus. Even though her hair weighs nearly 42 pounds and could leave her paralyzed, Mandela says, “My hair has become part of me. It is my life. I will never cut it.”
Doctors have warned her that her neck has collapsed and she has a curvature in her spine due to her heavy hair.
It has taken her nearly 25 years to grow her hair this long and she deems it her “spiritual calling.” Much like the train of a bride’s gown, Mandela, 47, requires assistance to walk down the street with her hair unless she folds it up in a baby sling.
She holds the Guinness World Record for the longest dreadlocks and says that she would feel like a “zombie” without the locs. It takes her two days to wash and dry her hair.
Has she taken the expression “crowning glory” too far?
