Seeing The Hidden Beauty Without Eyes

Seeing the hidden beauty without eyes Beauty is an experience, nothing else… D. H. Lawrence

Long back in the history of time somebody had observed – 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder'. I won't like to name the person for I am not sure who said it (some attribute it to the Greeks who first used it in the third century B.C and some other to Margaret Wolfe Hungerford (née Hamilton), who wrote this line in her book 'Molly Bawn in 1878) - and furthermore the readers digest recent issue warned its readers never to use a quote without verifying the source lest you attribute right words to wrong people. I can verify the source but the book 'Molly Bawn' – an antique piece- will drain my meager finances by almost Rs.5000. Now was it 'eye' or 'eyes' originally, I don't know and I won't care to know for it doesn't matter. All of us are capable of beholding and admiring beauty with one eye closed or without eyes, for beauty is not always what the eyes see; it is much deeper than that. Beauty is something that lifts your mind, touches your consciousness and sometime your soul. Beauty is felt – you can smell it, touch it; immerse yourself into it without seeing it. Today, the once shabby garden, that I pass every day during my morning forays, looks as adorable as I sometime appear in the mirror after a visit to my favourite barber at number 5 stop. Only two days ago, while crossing this path, pinching my nose, a shuddering me had pondered – is it a garden or a cesspool? - but today, as I look at it, I am impressed beyond expression, yet I have some ordinary words to describe it- hedges trimmed, grasses mowed, bushes thinned, weeds eradicated, paths restored, and a fragrance pervades the surroundings (instead of the foul odour of stinking rubbish heaped in one corner two days back). This garden is an epitome of beauty. It has soothed my burning eyes, calmed my brain and lifted the hangover I was reeling in till a few moments ago. But I get much more from the garden once I close my eyes- I feel the breeze caressing my face, swim in the fragrance and listen to the symphony of bulbul, magpie robin, and cuckoo. And in this sublime and serene ambience I sail in the peaceful void that prevails over me - such beauty cannot be seen by eyes. When your eyes see, other senses sleep but when you close your eyes you begin to feel the sensation of a breeze on your skin, your ears pick up sounds unnoticed before and your nose picks up the odours and fragrances that never reached your brain even though all of these were around you all the time. I think our eyes dominate other senses and through them we see, feel and appreciate only a quarter of what god has created. Close your eyes ---now. @ Suhas Kumar 11.11.2009