Beauty abounds in nature: the majestic mountains, the delicate hues of a flower, the brilliant colors of a sunset, the sparkle of dew on the morning grass. There is harmony of shape and color, light and shadow, sound and silence.
Harmony is an aspect of beauty. Harmony is inherent in the very structure of the universe. The ancients found mathematics to be the basis of music, and today scientists are learning more about the “music of the spheres” in the motions of the stars and the properties of the atom.
Singing birds and chirping insects sound nature’s music as they seek love. They are expressing its inherent harmony; human music cannot compare with it. The dissonance of our fallen condition condemns us to strike discordant notes. Were human beings as harmonious as nature!
Human beings, God’s supreme creations, should manifest supreme beauty. People sing, dance, and create beautiful art, but more than that, we find beauty in one another, in expressions of love. There is inner beauty in a loving couple, a filial child caring for aged parents, and a loyal citizen making sacrificial efforts for the welfare of his or her nation.
The beauty that people manifest in these ways also glorifies God, who delights to see beauty abounding in His works. This inner beauty becomes apparent in the spirit world, where beauty abounds for those who are worthy.
1. The Beauty of Nature
Nature is the art of God. Dante Alighieri
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Matthew 6.28-29
God is beautiful and loves beauty Hadith of Muslim (Islam) It is God who has made for you the earth as a resting place, and the sky as a canopy, and has given you shape—and made your shapes beautiful—and has provided for you sustenance of things pure and good; such is God, your Lord. So glory to God, the Lord of the Worlds! Qur’an 40.64
Known by the name of Protectress is the Goddess girt by Eternal Law; by her beauty are these trees green and have put on their green garlands. Atharva Veda 10.8.31 (Hinduism)
The One who, Himself without color, by the manifold application of His power Distributes many colors in His hidden purpose, And into whom, its end and its beginning, the whole world dissolves— He is God!
Svestasvatara Upanishad 4.1 (Hinduism)
Beauty is before me. Beauty is behind me. Beauty is below me. Beauty is above me. I walk in beauty. Navajo Song (Native American Religions) God created the seven heavens in harmony. Qur’an 71.15
In the cosmic Void is He absorbed, Where plays the unstruck mystic music— Beyond expression is this miraculous wonder. Adi Granth, Gauri Sukhmani 23.1, M.5, p. 293 (Sikhism)
The origin of music lies far back in time. It arises out of two poles: the two poles give rise to the powers of darkness and light. The powers of darkness and light undergo change; the one ascends into the heights, the other sinks into the depths; heaving and surging they combine to form bodies.
If they are divided they unite themselves again; if they are united, they divide themselves again. That is the eternal way of heaven. Heaven and earth are engaged in a circle. Every ending is followed by a new beginning; every extreme is followed by a return.
Everything is coordinated with everything else. Sun, moon, stars move in part quickly, in part slowly. Sun and moon do not agree in the time which they need to complete their path. The four seasons succeed each other, bringing heat and cold, shortness and length, softness and hardness.
That from which all beings arise and in which they have their origin is the Great One; that whereby they form and perfect themselves is the duality of darkness and light… Sound arises out of harmony. Harmony arises out of relatedness. Harmony and relatedness are the roots from which music, established by the ancient kings, arose. Book of Ritual 19 (Confucianism)
Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
No matter how precious a work of art in a museum may be, can it be equal to a living work of art? This world is God’s work of art; it is like a museum containing all God’s beloved creations. (175:187, April 16, 1988)
Listen to the sound of the cicada. When it sings, all other creatures sing along with it. No orchestra on earth can compare to the orchestra of nature.
(285:243, June 5, 1997)
Beholding all things of the natural world, nature’s beauty and harmony through the changing seasons, we should appreciate their profundity. A bird in flight, a butterfly or bee, the flowing streams, and the towering mountains—know that each is God’s creation and a manifestation of God’s inner heart. (5:343, March 3, 1959)
If you ever feel as if you are dying of loneliness, go out into a garden and find a flower. Smell its fragrance and talk with it, “What a beautiful fragrance! Where are you from?” It might respond, “I come from my grandma and grandpa.” This means its ultimate origin was from God.
God created this world as a beautiful garden for us; it is a museum of living things, given for our enjoyment. Picasso’s paintings may be beautiful, but he could not create even a patch of grass. Have you ever considered that you are looking at God’s museum? Have you ever been astonished at the beauty of a pussy willow? It blooms on a cold spring day by the ice-melting stream. How marvelous!
Have you wondered for whom is it blooming? Imagine: when your beloved child is thirsty, he breaks the ice with his fist and drinks the water. Afterwards he sees that pussy willow in bloom, a symbol of spring, and sings its praises. It is wonderful! Seeing it enriches our life.
Our living environment is a museum of love. Talk with its exhibits and make them your friends. Once you understand that you were born on earth to build relationships with this world of love, how can you be lonely? (112:220, April 12, 1981)
God of creation! Thy beauty is manifested in all the created beings: Everywhere Thy hands have touched teems with mysterious and radiant beauty. Let us fathom the distressed heart of the Father who, even today, ceaselessly tries to find beauty in us, who were created for this purpose. Allow us, we pray, to return beauty to Thee, for Thy love. (1:102, June 10, 1956)
2. The Beauty of Human Beings
Confucius said, “It is goodness that gives to a neighborhood its beauty.” Analects 4.1 (Confucianism)
The perfume of flowers blows not against the wind, nor does the fragrance of sandalwood, tagara, and jasmine, but the fragrance of the virtuous blows against the wind; the virtuous man pervades every direction. Dhammapada 54 (Buddhism)
Whether in village or in forest, in vale or on hill, wherever monks dwell—delightful, indeed, is that spot. Dhammapada 98 (Buddhism)
Purified, for spiritual might, by God’s impulse, we think of all beautiful things.
Rig Veda 5.82.6 (Hinduism)
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Isaiah 61.10
Let not yours be the outward adorning with braiding of hair, decoration of gold, and wearing of fine clothing, but let it be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. 1 Peter 3.3-4
When anyone, having the right kind of love, mounts up and begins to see the beauty present in the beautiful person, he is not far from the final goal. For the right way of love, whether one goes alone or is led by another, is to begin with the beautiful things that are seen here, and ascend ever upwards, aiming at the beauty that is above, climbing as it were, on a ladder from one beautiful body to two, and from two to all bodies, and from beautiful bodies to beautiful actions and from beautiful actions to beautiful forms of knowledge, till the last from these one reaches that knowledge which is the knowledge of nothing else but Beauty itself, and so knows at last what Beauty really is. Plato, Symposium (Hellenism) Indeed there are three types of music.
The first type is the music of the universe (musica mundana), the second type that of the human being (musica humana), and the third type is that created by certain instruments (musica instrumentis constituta)… producing melodies.
Now the first type, the music of the universe, is best observed in those things which one perceives in heaven itself, or in the structure of the elements, or in the diversity of the seasons…
Thus there must be some fixed order of musical modulation in this celestial motion. Now one comes to understand the music of the human being by examining his own being. For what unites the incorporeal existence of reason with the body except a certain harmony and, as it were, a careful tuning of low and high pitches in such a way that they produce one consonance? Boethius
Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
People appear beautiful when they receive God’s grace, when God loves them. They are beautiful because they radiate light. In a world where all things radiate love’s light, no one would discriminate between beauty and ugliness. (33:88, August 9, 1970)
What is original beauty?
It is to become embodiments of beauty, to express our beauty through laughter, dance and song, and with it to glorify God. This was the beauty God intended for the original Garden of Eden. (2:245, June 9, 1957)
If you look at people with the glasses of love, no one displeases you. Even an ugly woman looks beautiful; even a misshapen man looks handsome. (162:47, March 22, 1987)
There is nothing attractive about a lake filled with muddy water. Yet if a lotus blooms in the midst of the mud, it makes the lake truly amazing. One flower can make a lake come alive. One flower can transform an ugly lake into a beautiful lake. From this point of view, evil human beings, if they have even an ounce of love in their hearts, can be beautiful. (354:21, September 16, 2001)
A woman may have great beauty, but if there is no purpose to her beauty, does it have meaning? Would any of the women here like to be a beautiful doll that stayed all day in a glass box? None of you could tolerate it. Beauty is not a passive thing just to be admired; it is active, pursuing a goal.
Some think that the purpose for a woman’s beauty is to attract a husband. If that were all, would she be happy? No. In her beauty a woman dreams of something more than merely securing a man; she dreams of finding something within that man—love. The goal of beauty is love. Beauty’s dream comes true in the happiness of love. (116:10-11, December 1, 1981)
Looking with a genuine heart of love, who is more beautiful, the smiling face of a woman who has artfully adorned herself with makeup or the smile of a woman who suffers and works hard to care for her family? The hard-working woman has the more beautiful smile. Although she is busy day and night with laundry, cleaning the house and looking after her children, she has a most noble appear- ance. (129:176, October 30, 1983)
How seriously we are to live for others in this world determines the beauty of our character in the next world. It does not matter if a person is plump or slender; his or her heart to live for others is the supreme beauty of all beauty, because it is the way to perfect love. (307:166, November 8, 1998)
The major topic in the spirit world is harmony. It is balance and unity. What is the center of harmony? Could you say, “Since my face is beautiful, the harmony of the universe should revolve around me?” In the spirit world, though you may boast of your beauty, you will meet many who are more beautiful than you.
The environment there is exceptionally beautiful. You should learn to appreciate it; nevertheless, because you tend to see only one dimension, you are likely to miss its multidimensionality. (217:143, May 19, 1991)