Soundarya Lahiri And Inner Beauty TOI-ST

3 Jun 2003, 0001 hrs IST, Sri Sri Ravishankar

Consciousness is beauty and Creation is an expression of
consciousness. Beauty is present in all creation. Eastern philosophy
believes beauty is the nature of things, while western thought sees it
as perception. Perhaps beauty is both subjective and objective.

The East emphasises subjectivity; it sees beauty as the nature of
existence — as Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram, an objective phenomenon. In
the West, where objectivity is emphasised, beauty is seen as a
subjective phenomenon. But as the old proverb goes, beauty lies in the
eyes of the beholder. Beauty bridges the subject-object divide.

Be calm and serene; turn within and you can get a glimpse of beauty.
Every experience of beauty is happening within, and is superimposed on
the object outside. Beauty is a state of mind. If your mind is calm
and collected, it perceives beauty everywhere. If agitated, even the
most beautiful things can annoy. Perception of beauty varies with the
level of intelligence. For an average person, garments and accessories
are the symbols of beauty. For the more sensitive, the sparkle in your
eyes or a smile on your face is beautiful. Others see beauty in
innocence. A child captivates your attention with its innocence and
smile.

For the intellectually inclined, beauty lies in intelligence. However
good looking a person is, she will not be found attractive for long if
she lacks wit and intelligence. Whenever the mind is captivated, it is
close to the Self or pure consciousness. That's why temple idols are
decorated with clothes and jewellery and the room is enhanced with
incense, flowers and food is offered to lure the mind away from the
five senses and make it still.
Dispassion to one's Self, dedication to society and devotion to God is
the secret of undying beauty. Without dispassion, beauty is
short-lived. But possessiveness turns beauty into a mirage. Devotion
and wonderment is simply appreciating beauty without possessiveness.
You see a beautiful painting and you want to own it, you want to take
it home with you, but then you hang it on your wall and after a while
you don't even look at it.

Adi Shankara in the Soundarya Lahiri — 'Waves of Beauty', speaks of
the god of love, Kama, aiming at you with five flower arrows which aim
to awaken the five senses, giving rise to a 'wave' of beauty which
creates bliss — you start appreciating everything from a thorn to a
snail to even a sea urchin. The rishis have always adored beauty and
made it a characteristic of the Divine. Satyam or truth, Shivam or
benevolence, tranquillity and divinity, and Sundaram or beauty.

Shyness enhances beauty while shame kills it. Valour enhances beauty;
arrogance des-troys it. There is a certain beauty in maturity — so
looking beautiful is not the sole prerogative of the young. Often
beauty is recognised only when it is uncommon. But to nature lovers,
everything in nature is beautiful. Beauty is not just in the flowers;
it is in the thorns of a cactus, too.

Beauty creates a thrill, it wakes up the sleeping consciousness.
Beauty can also bring ecstasy and draw you into deep meditation.
Beauty is not limited to excitement and activity, it also permeates
sleep. Look at a sleeping baby, Buddha or Vishnu. There is un-
fathomable beauty there. Not just knowledge but even ignorance,
foolishness has a certain beauty.
To be able to perceive truth or beauty in creation, calmness is
essential. An agitated mind can neither see the truth nor appreciate
beauty. That's why Satyam, Shivam and Sundaram always go together. The
whole of Creation is nothing but 'Waves of Beauty'.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1962.cms

Waves of divine beauty TOI-SE

BHANUMATI NARASIMHAN

The nature of the Self is described as Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram:
Truth, Tranquillity and Innocence, and Beauty.

Spirituality is a journey from the outer world of names and forms to
the subtle world of energies, to the innermost core of our being, the
Self.

Satyam or Truth is multidimensional, unchanging in time and space. It
is the substratum, the basis of entire creation. Shivam is the
embodiment of calmness and tranquillity, innocence and benevolence.
Shiva is always mentioned along with Shakti. Shakti is the primordial
energy responsible for entire creation. Energy is the feminine aspect
and is addressed as Mother Divine, the Devi. Like the sea and the
waves, though seemingly separate, they are essentially the same. Like
the light and the lamp, dancer and the dance, Shiva and Shakti, the
creation and the creative impulse are inseparable.

Sundaram is beauty. We move from recognising beauty outside to beauty
within. Adi Shankaracharya in his composition Saundarya Lahiri (Waves
of Beauty), glorifies the incomparable beauty of the Divine Mother.
Here he speaks of Apangat or Kama, the god of love, an archer with a
bow and five flower arrows. When Apangat hits you with his arrow of
flowers, a wave of beauty is created inside you.

The five flowers represent the five senses through which you
experience something that is beyond the senses. You experience a wave
of beauty rising deep inside you; you have dissolved into the
formless. Rather, you are formless. You have come back to your nature.

When you look at beautiful scenery, your eyes shut and you sink into
that ocean of beauty. When you smell a fragrant flower, the flower
remains outside, the fragrance disappears in a void, and you drop into
being. That is beauty. When you hear beautiful music, you become fully
immersed in it and you no longer know what is being played. You are
lost in the formless divinity within.

In this way, Adi Shankara has described the beautiful journey from the
gross to the subtle, the outer to the inner, the form to the formless,
and the limited to the infinite, non-dual consciousness.

Established in such a state, you start appreciating everything from a
thorn to a snail and a sea urchin. Dispassion to one's Self,
dedication to society and devotion to God is the secret of undying
beauty. Without dispassion, beauty is short-lived. Possessiveness
turns beauty into a mirage. Devotion and wonderment is simply
appreciating beauty without possessiveness. You see a beautiful
painting and you want to own it, you want to take it home with you,
but then you hang it on your wall and after a while you don't even
look at it. Adi Shankaracharya was an embodiment of dispassion. He
could fully cognise and experience beauty in entire creation.

Beauty creates a thrill; it wakes up the sleeping consciousness.
Beauty can also bring ecstasy and draw you into deep meditation.
Meditation is complete relaxation, like a cool shower for the mind. It
is the act of getting in touch with your own divinity, getting back to
your nature. Your nature is truth, innocence and beauty.

To be able to perceive truth or beauty in creation, calmness is
essential. An agitated mind can neither see the truth nor appreciate
beauty. That's why Satyam, Shivam and Sundaram always go together. The
whole of Creation is nothing but 'Waves of Beauty'.

(The writer is director, Women & Child Welfare Programmes, The Art of
Living Foundation.)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-4335256,prtpage-1.cms