Natural Beauty Products and Beauty Enhancement

Beauty can defined in a variety of ways; to some it simply means the state of being pleasant to the eyes while to others it is something that brings a feeling of sweetness to the heart. To others still, it could be a sound or touch that soothes the soul however; true beauty in the actual sense encompasses all these and even more, for instance a person can be pleasant in appearance but in speech and action the reverse may be the case surely that person can not be truly described as beautiful, let us say you were asked by the police to describe a thug who just mugged you at gunpoint certainly beautiful will not come up in your description of the thug regardless of how good looking he appears to be.

Now we know what beauty truly is the next step is to establish how we get it or where it comes from. The simple truth is everything was created beautiful, beauty is within us, and it is all around us as nature has bestowed us with so much of it. As a matter of fact our very nature as human beings is beautiful and for some beauty is displayed effortlessly while others need to do a bit to let it show. That not withstanding, everything, everyone is inherently beautiful. Take a piece of diamond for instance until it is cut and polished it could just as well be a piece of rock. Gold and silver have to be refined to bring out their true beauty, it is in us all to be beautiful but to attain true, total and all-encompassing beauty there must be some form of enhancement. This reminds me of the story of Cinderella and her ugly stepsisters. The stepsisters had the best of external adornment but they refused to enhance it with that which come from within hence they were described as ugly, Cinderella on the other hand had beauty within her which made it easy for the fairy godmother to turn her into a real gem. So if we are all inherently beautiful, why then do we need to enhance it? The simple truth is that, it adds value to our being and when this value is added people tend to appreciate us more, people want to love us more and I do not know of any person in this life who does not want to be loved and appreciated. Many manufacturer, advertisers and marketers understand this concept that is why the manufacturer wants to produce the best quality of a product and advertisers and marketers ensure it is well packaged and displayed to the public. How then can we enhance our inherent beauty and attain that true, total and all encompassing beauty?

1. The first key is in our attitudes, we must recognise we are inherently beautiful and let that be reflected in our attitude to life, to people around us, to the world we live in and everything in it. No one could pick up a certain piece of rock and if he does not recognise that if cut and polished that rock is a gem he may just toss it into a pond. In the same vein if we do not realise this beauty is in us there is a tendency that our attitude to life and various issues will be wrong consequently we devalue ourselves in our relationships, work places and all other endeavours. To be truly beautiful we must have the right attitudes, think positively and most importantly recognise the beauty that is in us.

2. The next is a healthy life style, to be truly beautiful we need to live a healthy lifestyle; it is pointless to have a pleasant appearance while we are killing ourselves with our lifestyle. The food we eat, the amount of rest, recreation, exercising and how we socialise are all important factors here. Our lifestyles may be such that we are to busy or we find it too difficult to balance out all these factors, for instance in the case of a balanced diet, we sometimes find this difficult to achieve not because we can not afford it, but because the time and knowledge required to put it together is not there especially in the modern world we live in where there is an abundance of junk food. This can however be remedied with the use of nutritional supplements. One must however, endeavour to maintain a healthy lifestyle and the keyword here is moderation.

3. Finally we look at external adornment, this relates to the clothes, perfumes, cosmetics and accessories we wear to enhance our beauty. In this case there is no one perfect solution, what suits you may not suit me what is important is to be comfortable with what you wear. Avoid coming across as being over dressed or painted up like a doll; make sure whatever you wear adds to your self esteem.

Beauty can be viewed in different ways but in essence to be described as truly beautiful entails a combination of different aspects of beauty. We are all inherently beautiful, but we need to enhance this raw beauty so that we add value to our being. This makes us better appreciated and love. Beauty enhancement can be achieved by recognising our inherent beauty and allow this to reflect in our attitudes; living a healthy lifestyle and with the use of appropriate clothing and accessories. I have heard people say beauty is relative, what is beautiful to one person may not be so to another, this may be correct for physical appearances but with regards to beauty, true beauty I totally disagree. True beauty is absolute it is either you have it or not and it is achieved by enhancing ones inherent beauty.

The Personal Power of Beauty

Beauty is the power of radiance, and your personal beauty has the power to illuminate your world to a more radiant and bountiful experience. There is abundance, joy, passion, sensuality and pleasure to be had in your beautiful life, and working with your personal power of beauty is a strategy for claiming even more. Your personal power of beauty is a treasure to behold, a way to be bold and a powerful journey for you to unfold. Beneath the surface of your skin is the story of your beauty, and this is the story that is meant to be told.

The personal power of beauty is a magical tool that enhances all aspects of your existence to a more majestic and magnificent experience. Beauty is the source of your personal magic; it is the essence of who you are, it connects you to others and to the plenty of this planet.

What is beauty? Where does it come from? Who has it? 

When you think of beauty is it something you know you have within you? Or does beauty seem like something elusive and outside of you?

All people are beautiful, and it is our essential nature to radiate this beautiful truth.

The Beauty is on the Inside

Years ago, I saw an ad that I loved for Burt's Bee's products. The photo was of a group of Harley-type bikers, you know, heavy set men, grimacing, hairy and looking kind of scary. The caption on the ad said "The Beauty is on the Inside". It couldn't be clearer, beneath the packaging is where you will find true Beauty, it's on the Inside. This ad cracked me up, just thinking about it still makes me smile; the message was so clear, powerful and beautifully stated. Beauty comes from within, it emanates through the skin and vibrates around us.

Each of us has our own personal beauty, it is the unique essence of who we are, like our signature or thumb print, it is exclusively our own. Our personal beauty or inner beauty stems from the heart, our center of love. Our center of love is the vital force of our spirit, and the vital force of our spirits spring from the source of all life: Whether it be God, Goddess, Great Spirit, Energy, Vibration, the Creator, Nature, the Divine or the Force it is all the same source. Whatever you believe to be the divine spark of life within you; whatever you equate to the magic of your existence; however you understand life with its complexities and perfections and which ever way you account for the air that is your breath and the fire of your spirit all stems from the source of life, and the beauty within you is a part of the package. Our beauty is a divine light that sparks through each cell of our being. You truly can never be anything but beautiful, for you are life and life itself is beauty.

When you understand the source of beauty within you, you then have access to its potential for your greater abundance, power and ability to manifest change. The power of your beauty is already embedded in your essence, ready to glow. However, it is harnessed through your beliefs about yourself and the actions you take in the name of truth, beauty and love. You are born with the tools to become a channel for this very compelling and influential vibration. You are the vehicle for this sacred source to shimmer and shine.

Beauty is Truth, Truth Beauty

"Beauty is truth, truth beauty. That is all ye know on Earth, and all ye need to know." -John Keats. 

We live in a world where our concepts of beauty are decided by the collective consciousness, the standards of our society. Many of us, especially women, are victims of what is known as the 'beauty myth'. A world where fashion rules, perfect body types are most desired and our ways of looking and being are all meant to sell or consume products: beauty products, fragrances, diet pills, hair color, fashion magazines, douches etc. But that is not what true beauty is made of. The truth is we are already whole and complete beings, we are all perfect because we are each perfectly ourselves. What is true is that beauty is everywhere and within everything. For everything on earth and in the universe is of the divine source. Unfortunately, many of us were not taught to honor our own beauty in this way. We were warned against being too conceited or told we were not beautiful enough and sadly so many beautiful people have never had their own precious nature reflected back to them. We hide our beauty in the shadows, even the super models complain about places within themselves that they find hideous. In subtle and not so subtle ways we have been disempowered and misdirected by the media to seeing ourselves as less than the ideal of beauty. Every commercial on television is an assault, telling us what we need to do to be better, happier and more beautiful. This is the beauty myth and it can destroy our sense of self-esteem and even destroy the joy in our lives, it already has for so many people.

As adults, we need to re-teach ourselves where true beauty comes from. We need to re-connect to the radiant source of life within us and teach this to our children. True beauty comes from the heart and soul and spirit of who you truly are, it is your divine right to resonate with self-love and allow your beauty to take the stage. Your authenticity is buzzing with beauty. Life is love, love is truth and truth is beauty. All of life is sacred and all of life is beautiful. Beauty and truth are hand in hand, one does not exist without the other.

Elizabeth Stahl B.A., N.H.C., is the creator and facilitator of "My Goddess Party", Star of Aphrodite Mentoring and Life Coaching, Girls of Power and The Girls and Goddesses Parties - for girls ages 10 and up.

The Psychology of Beauty

The psychology of beauty is complex not just because the concept of beauty is as yet undefined but also because it is largely true that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder or how individuals perceive other people or things. Beauty can be attributed to everything that appeals to our senses and all objects that are compatible with our personal preferences. Beauty as we perceive it is largely a projection of our needs and beautiful objects or persons simply cater to our idealizations or fancies and reflect our natural need to relate to all that is appealing. Human beings are controlled by the senses and we tend to repeat processes or experiences that appeal to the senses, that are harmonious and have structure and form. Beauty appeals to our sense of sight so there is a preference for repeating the experience of beauty.

But how do we perceive beauty and why are some people or objects considered more beautiful than some others? Psychological tests have considered symmetry and proportion as extremely important in the perception of beauty. Beauty is also more holistic than specific as a beautiful object is judged as a whole package that is appealing rather than judged on the basis of its parts. Freudian or psychoanalytic explanations of beauty are scarce but psychoanalytic concepts could be used to consider our judgment of beauty as a projection or wish fulfillment so people attractive to us are typically ones who we admire or who in some way represent our own desires and fancies. Psychoanalysis can also be compatible with the idea that beauty is preferential perception when there are similarities with a parent. Most people are also considered beautiful when they have baby-faced features or a particular innocence in their faces. Beauty can also be culturally motivated so in certain eastern cultures women with beautiful feet are considered attractive whereas in the Victorian era in England, women with elegance and grace were the ones with smooth neck and tiny waist and modern western women are judged on the basis of their breasts, bottom and lips. The perception of beauty can change and studies have found that women may prefer softer features of men during particular times and more masculine features at other times depending on the stage of their reproductive cycle. So there are actually several theories of beauty which are discussed here one by one.

1. Beauty as Symmetry and Proportion - As you might have noticed in case of ancient architectural marvels, symmetry was extremely important. Whether it was the great pyramids in Egypt or the architectural wonders in Greece, symmetry and perfect dimensions played an important part in the history of aesthetics. This whole idea of symmetry also applies to every other object or person that we perceive so a person with perfectly symmetrical face would also be considered as an epitome of physical perfection. Perfectly shaped and sharp features are attractive to most people and the most beautiful faces are the ones which have very proportionate features. The same applies to the body and the low waist to hip ratio giving a curvy lower part of the body in women is considered more attractive than a straight shape which usually does not indicate fertility. As human beings are finally looking for evolutionary advantage women with a curvy shapes are considered more fertile and are thus more attractive to men. Similarly men with athletic and muscular bodies are attractive to women. However many men might not prefer extremely voluptuous or curvy women just like many women may not prefer extremely muscular men. This suggests that proportion is also about moderation or maybe human beings are more comfortable with certain moderation in what they perceive rather than excess and that way the perception of beauty may even depend on some sort of social programming.

2. Beauty as a whole rather than parts - When we consider something beautiful, we usually try to take a broad holistic view. Thus when we consider a rose as beautiful, we are less attentive towards each petal and consider the symmetry of the flower as a whole. In a similar manner, when we consider the face of a man or a woman, beauty is the composite quality that seems to represent the entire face of the individual rather than the parts or particular features. Our senses prefer a holistic view and perception of things and thus a person is considered attractive or beautiful only when all features add up to something really pleasant to the senses.

3. Beauty as projection and wish fulfillment - The perception of beauty is not only a mental process but also a deeply personal one. If say your lover has blonde hair, you might find other blonde haired people very attractive because you tend to project your inner fancies on to other people. The 'he' looks like my lover or 'she' looks like my lover is a common syndrome in our perception of beauty and people who are remotely similar to our mates are suddenly more beautiful to us than others. The same projection applies in case of selecting a mate who resembles a parent. If a man looks like your father or a member of the family he is obviously far more attractive to you than to others. The wish fulfillment theory is also equally true and when we want to be like someone in terms of talents or certain qualities, we naturally consider that person as absolutely perfect and beautiful. Some teenagers may idolize popular actors or actresses and the need to be like them also determines their own perception of beauty.

4. Beauty as innocence and charm - No one can deny that a charming personality with social confidence can be far more attractive than a dull personality. A person who has the inherent ability to attract individuals with the sheer force of personality and presence is considered highly attractive. In some way there may be an association between good looks and social confidence and sometimes individuals with good looks are also socially most accepted and thus more confident. Individuals with baby-face features with high or defined cheekbones and certain innocence on their faces are usually considered very attractive by both the sexes. Beauty is advantageous in social adaptation and good looking people are thus socially successful as well, as they get support and positive assessment from other people. However the opposite in also true and sometimes good looking women and even men can become extremely self-conscious and fail to develop adequate self confidence. Good looks can in certain cases become an impediment as good looking women who are also intelligent may be judged more on the basis of their looks rather than their intelligence and this is sometimes a sad fact in modern society.

5. Beauty as a product of culture and society - This is an accepted fact. The concept of beauty seems to change with time as society changes and the perception of beauty varies in different cultures. Dark skin is considered very attractive in Western societies and whiter skin is considered as attractive in Eastern societies, because of the element of novelty in both the cases. Feet and hair of women are important features in Eastern cultures whereas in the West, the woman's lips, and hips are considered important. The breasts of women are important indicators of beauty in all cultures and men's body and chin or jaw and certain masculine sharpness are also considered as attractive. Studies have indicated that women however tend to prefer dominant looking men during the first follicular stage in their reproductive cycle but prefer men with softer more feminine features when they are in their menstrual and ovulation stages. This may have some evolutionary advantage as men with feminine soft natures and faces are considered as more stable and more family oriented than men who have extreme masculinity or a sort of raw appeal. This is however too generalized and there are individual differences as well.