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Page 3 of 4
The Navi (Prophet) says, "The crown of our head has fallen; woe unto us for we have sinned" (Eicha/Lamentations 5:16). Due to our sins and lack of kedusha, the crown of our heads - the beautiful mitzvah of kisuy saarot - has fallen. The crown is however not broken. It is up to us to pick it up and return it once again to its rightful place. With that we will awaken once again within ourselves the deep rooted feelings for real tzniut and kedushat Yisrael (holiness of Israel).
After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye walk in their ordinances. (Leviticus 18:3. cf. also Deuteronomy 12:29-32 and 2 Kings 17:13-15.)
The LORD has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated his guests ... and on the day of the LORD's sacrifice, I will punish ... all who array themselves in foreign attire. (Zephaniah 1:8) We are NOT to look like our neighbors. Jewish law mandates that we be outwardly visible/identifiable as Jews. That we not wear what foreigners wear.
All of the honor of the daughter of the King is within. (Tehillim 45:14) This verse teaches that we should set as focus our inward beauty and de-emphasize our outward appearance.
Now, we know biblically and even talmudically WHY and WHO covers their hair, let us examine some more reasons given for the hair covering. Yes, I DON'T say women wear head coverings, because he men wear head coverings, the women wear hair coverings.
Women who are or have been married (widows and divorcees) are required to cover their hair. A woman who has never been married does not have to.
The Source
The Talmud in Kesuvos 72a states that the source for this prohibition is from BaMidbar (Numbers) 5:18 which deals with the laws of a sotah - a suspected adulteress - and states, "The priest shall stand the woman before God and uncover her hair...". Rash'i (Rabbi Shlomo Yitchaki, 1040-1105, author of the primary commentary on the Talmud) provides two explanations for the Talmud's conclusion, one, that from the fact that she is punished midah kneged midah (measure for measure) for exposing her hair to her paramour we see that this is prohibited and, two, from the fact that we expose her hair we see that under normal conditions a Jewish woman's hair should be covered.
Now, moving on to reasons for tzniut/modesty in general.
Reason 1) By covering her hair, the Bat Israel/daughter of Israel demonstrates submission to G-d's wishes: When wearing a haircovering a woman conceals this natural source of attraction from the eye of the public and thereby demonstrates that she is a servant of G-d. She places His wish, that an eshet ish (a married woman) covers her hair and conceals it from the view of the public, above her own natural desire to look attractive and enhance her appearance by displaying her natural hair.
Reason 2) She demonstrates the purity of Jewish family life: The haircovering symbolizes the kedusha (holiness) of the Jewish family, in which the wife dedicates her life to her husband to the near-total exclusion of any form of contact with other men. She therefore withholds the chen (beauty) of her hair from the view of the general public.
Reason 3) It is a source of Yirat Shamayim (Fear of Heaven): When this mitzvah (commandment) is kept properly and with the correct attitude it imparts considerable Yirat Shamayim to the person. Men cover their head with a yarmulke (kippah) or hat in line with the recommendation of Chazal (our Sages), "Cover your head so that you shall experience the fear of Heaven" (Shabbat 156b). If covering just part of the head as is practiced by men has such an effect, how much more must covering the complete head have a deep and far reaching effect on a woman's Yirat Shamayim.
Reason 4) It is a source of Kedusha (holiness) and inspiration: Considering that the head is the most distinguished and most significant part of the human body as Chazal say, "The head is king over all the limbs" (Shabbat 61a), the influence of kedusha that is transmitted to the whole person by a mitzvah done continuously with the head must be immeasurable. Significantly, Chazal say that when a man wears tefillin (phylacteries) he has a special defense against serious sin (Menachot 43b). Accordingly, a woman who lacks the outstanding mitzvah of kisuy saarot (hair covering) because she does not fulfill its halachic requirements, withholds from herself a vital source of spirituality and inspiration.
Reason 5) It protects from illness and pain: Who can assess the physical advantage, in protecting the person from illness and pain, that is gained from an unceasing mitzvah such as kisuy saarot. Chazal have taught us that a person is protected while he fulfills a mitzvah, as they say, "While a mitzvah is being carried out it shields and safeguards the person" (Sotah 21a). Hence, a mitzvah that is done over many hours of the day is highly prized source of protection. Similarly, the  mezuzah (doorpost - encased tiny parchment scroll on upon - Devarim/Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21), which is an ongoing mitzvah fulfilled at all times, is singled out by Chazal as a mitzvah which offers exceptional protection to people (Shabbat 32b).
Reason 6)While a man adorns his head with tefillin for about an hour a day, a woman has the merit to adorn her head with an article of mitzvah throughout the length of the day. In fact, one of the great Rabbanim of our generation, Hagaon Rav Shimon Schwab zt'l, once said that women are not obligated in the mitzvah of tefillin because they wear "their tefillin" throughout all hours of the day. They therefore do not require the added sanctification of tefillin as in the case of men.
Since the haircovering plays such an important role, it is only fitting that it displays the inner refinement and sensitivities of the Bat Yisrael. It should therefore be an article of clothing which adds luster and aristocracy to the royal status of the Jewish woman who is a Bat Melachim (a Princess)
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