Spectrum of Spirit: A Digital Sanctuary for Spiritual Discourse and Community

The "Spectrum of Spirit" blog features insightful articles, essays, and reflections penned by the founder, Paul, and diverse guest contributors. Focusing on contemporary spirituality, the blog offers regular updates with weekly themes and seasonal reflections, fostering ongoing engagement and a deeper understanding of spiritual practices and trends.

What If Beauty Wasn’t Fleeting, but the Language of the Divine?

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By

Paul Hudson

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6–9 minutes

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In my NIV translation of the Bible, the first mention of the word beauty is in reference to Abram’s wife Sarai. Abram and Sarai were traveling to Egypt and the Egyptians they came across thought Sarai was beautiful. Later on Pharaoh’s officials saw Sarai and praised her to the Pharaoh. Pharaoh apparently treated Sarai well, and Abram received livestock and servants in exchange for Sarai, who the Egyptians thought was Abram’s sister. Despite treating Sarai well, Pharaoh was inflicted with diseases. Pharaoh summoned Abram and asked Abram why he told him Sarai was his sister instead of his wife. Pharaoh gave Abram Sarai back and Abram and Sarai were sent away with their newly acquired livestock.

In this story Pharaoh was encouraged to chase after the beauty of Sarai. Pharaoh was encouraged to preserve Sarai’s beauty by inviting her to his palace. Despite Abram’s deception and through Sarai’s beauty, the lord communicated to Pharaoh that Sarai was Abram’s wife and gave Abram and Sarai more than they had when they came to Egypt. There’s more to explore with this story, however I want to focus on beauty and how the divine may speak through beauty, in very surprising ways.

The Hebrew Bible includes mentions of beauty across multiple books, including Genesis, Psalms, Ezekiel, etc. it describes the beauty in humanity, land, and god and how beauty has been used and how it could be acknowledged. I believe the Hebrew Bible uses beauty not as a subjective aesthetic ideal, but to classify things as sacred, holy, or blessed. Though this is heavy religiously loaded language, I believe looking at different perspectives on beauty can influence one’s experience with wellness, technology, and the rhythms of life. I believe having a more flushed out understanding of beauty can transform the way we view our body and even more importantly, our spirit.

The Body’s Beauty

Life rhythms encapsulate a plethora of habits, from making one’s bed, to cleanliness, to food, etc. I believe the rhythms we live by are some of the most hallowed or sacred actions we can do to worship the life we have been given. I believe it’s important to align our life rhythms with our personality and our strengths to move with the seasons of life. I believe sometimes we will feel less beautiful and sometimes we will feel more beautiful, but it’s vital to find balance in these times to not make any rash or harsh decisions. I believe if we see ourselves in a similar line to the creation of earth, we will see the beauty of ourselves in all moments living out a more confident version of ourselves.

In the Highest Self Podcast, Sahara has a discussion with Yogi Cameron1. Sahara asks Cameron about Shiva Shakti’s story and Cameron responds by stating Shiva is the consciousness and Shakti is energy2. Cameron states that science is just now picking up this relationship, without Shiva, energy doesn’t know where it’s going, and without Shakti, consciousness goes nowhere3. Cameron claims in the Yogic tradition, Shakti is associated with creation and the feminine, however Cameron believes male and female have different levels of masculine and feminine flowing within them4. Cameron explains more about the traditional distinction of masculine and feminine, the masculine representing consciousness and the feminine representing movement5. Cameron states this is why the masculine and the feminine are thought to be a perfect match, whether the relationship is between a man and a man or a woman and a woman, the key ingredient is the masculine and the feminine6. Cameron elaborates further, the coming together of the masculine and the feminine forms consciousness with creativity connecting the mind with energy7. Cameron believes when these two come together, the partnership can do everything8. Cameron explains, too much of one energy could lead to a partnership being too cold or too hot leading to suffering in consciousness or creativity9. Cameron shares that in the Shiva Shakti relationship, people try to complement one another, when one partner is more masculine or passionate, the other tries to become more feminine or nurturing10. Cameron closes this section with an analogy to great tennis players, when a tennis player plays beautifully, they use the masculine to create forceful hits, and use the feminine to create touch shots to get the ball over their opponents11.

Cameron shares some great insights into the Yogic tradition, and how the masculine and feminine complement one another in an ideal Shiva Shakti relationship. Even though Cameron is mostly focusing on the partnership between two individuals I would like to focus on his analogy to tennis. I believe the combination of force and touch is what makes some of the best athletes and creatives stand apart. One of the best players in the NBA, Jayson Tatum, uses his size and strength against smaller players to carve ways to the rim, balancing his attack by being able to size up and shoot over players who can match his physical gifts. I believe the combination of masculine and feminine, hot and cold, consciousness and creativity, force and touch can help one become a more beautiful and complete version of themselves. I believe this harmony was designed by the Creator, however humans are slowly coming to an understanding of the beauty designed within us. I believe finding this beautiful harmony within our bodies, within our spirits can uplift us in one’s journey towards the best version of themselves.

Sacred Beauty

Building a digital platform requires my screen time to be relatively high. Though others would probably believe my screen time is an unhealthy amount, I believe it might be a little more than I need to stay consistent with Spectrum of Spirit. I see my time creating discussion posts, responding to others posts, posting blogs, videos, and podcasts, as sacred time, time to understand myself within the world and express my understanding to the best of my ability. However, if you would like to get off your phone and other devices more consistently I would recommend spending time in nature, going on walks, hiking mountains, tanning on a beach, or whatever else you enjoy doing outside.

In The Sadhguru Podcast, Sadhguru shares some wisdom on what he believes is the only way to “solve” phone addiction12. Sadhguru recalls a memory from 20+ years ago when he was guiding his foundation, he had to go to a black booth to use a phone13. Sadhguru would sit at the booth and make 100+ phone calls to connect to all the people he wanted to connect with to continue to build what he wanted to start14. Sadhguru states now he can call who he wants and the job gets done quickly15. Sadhguru believes life has become better because of the phone, but states the downside of phones is people are in a state of compulsiveness16. Sadhguru claims this state of compulsiveness leads humans into a state of suffering ie. compulsive eating and drinking17. Sadhguru does not believe the phone is the issue but compulsiveness is the root of the issue18. Sadhguru states the solution to reducing compulsiveness is to be conscious of one’s compulsive behavior19. Sadhguru clears a confusion between controlling and consciousness, when one becomes conscious they are liberated, the opposite of being controlled20.

Sadhguru’s final statement has left me in a stump. I believe his wisdom pertaining to consciousness and control is something I want to apply to all aspects of my life, not just my phone. I believe control is rooted in power, authority, oppression and a lot of harmful ways humans have hurt each other. On the other hand, I believe consciousness is awareness, seeing the moments come and go, observing the silence with the noise. I believe consciousness requires humans to be still, not so much physically or even mentally, but spiritually. I believe when our spirit is still, it’s not stagnant and unable to grow, but it’s receiving instead of reaching. I encourage you to find beauty in your consciousness, in your stillness, in your receiving, instead of reaching and scrolling to find the beauty you wish to control.

Call to Beauty

Notice beauty. Fleet away quietly. Beautify your language. Invite the divine. Listen to your body. Enjoy slow sacredness. Call down your beauty. Realign your understanding. Inhale life. Look at your expression. Treat your origin kindly. Eternalize your beauty. Let it echo luxuriously. Find mystery in the divine. Receive guidance from your soul.

Bibliography

  1. Highest Self Podcast, “596: Unlocking Ayurvedic Secrets for Better Digestion, Energy & Wellness with Yogi Cameron,” podcast audio, April 1, 2025, accessed April 4, 2025, https://open.spotify.com/episode/6EE3JNKfWncpD6cQIMcnWa. ↩︎
  2. Highest Self Podcast ↩︎
  3. Highest Self Podcast ↩︎
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  10. Highest Self Podcast ↩︎
  11. Highest Self Podcast ↩︎
  12. The Sadhguru Podcast, “The Only Solution to Phone Addiction,” podcast audio, April 1, 2025, accessed April 4, 2025, https://open.spotify.com/episode/5cbrgB62sYJ3SsKP6f5Ssn. ↩︎
  13. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎
  14. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎
  15. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎
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  18. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎
  19. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎
  20. The Sadhguru Podcast ↩︎

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