The Meaning of Beauty

What is beauty?

What is seen as "beautiful" will change from person to person, according to brain or eye taste, but to be beautiful arguably only has one necessary criteria.

Whatever we choose to register as beautiful with our subjective brain or eyes will be because we see in it a confidence - an energy - that attracts us. Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa painting has this energy. When we recognise that confidence in ourselves, then we'll become beautiful, too - and without the need for plastic surgery.

Beauty isn't in perfect skin, or flawless model-glamour. That's just glitz. News headlines about super models and their lack of confidence is not surprising - if those models lack inner confidence, close proximity with them will tell us all too soon that their "beauty" really is just skin deep. It will tell them, too, every time they look in the mirror.

Hiding the stress of such reality under the influence of drug abuse is understandable.

Lasting beauty is something different. It brings success of a different kind - it brings joy to living, it gives pleasure to you and others. This type of beauty does not try to be like everyone else, it stands alone, it stands out. It is truly ageless because it doesn't depend on perfect skin, or a toned body.

A girl once asked me to name "a favourite blonde" of mine (I am one of those men who do not prefer blondes, and prefer Salma Hayek to Pamela Anderson), and when I gave Dame Helen Mirren's name she was shocked.

But why? Along with Dame Judi Dench, I have been a fan of Mirren's for a long time. It's not to say that I find the British actress sexually attractive, but take a look at this picture of her (above) at this year's Golden Globes awards - which she dominated.

Isn't she beautiful?

Picture courtesy of BBC News online.

My Life Handbook: Part three: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Read more: About my life | What I have to say >>