By Georgina, Brisbane, Australia
Last week I attended an Esoteric Women’s presentation in Brisbane. The topic for the day was beauty. It soon became clear from discussions that society’s and women’s initial definition of beauty was literally only skin deep – our beauty appeared to be defined by how we look – by how we appeared on the outside rather than how we appear from within.
The presenters Jenny Ellis and Mary Louise Myers began the presentation with some statistics collated as part of the Dove campaign for real beauty. One of the statistics that I cannot forget stated only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful. To further demonstrate this point, Mary Louise described a video Dove produced. The video showed a forensic artist who sat one side of a curtain and a woman sitting on the other side. The woman described herself and the artist drew her. The woman left the room and a friend then came and sat on the other side of the curtain. This lady then described her friend.
The two paintings of the same woman were placed up on the wall and the woman came and looked at them and wept. The two paintings were very different: the one she had described was quite unattractive and hard, the other painting described by her friend was soft and beautiful.
I saw this video a few months ago and a friend just happened to call me within a few minutes of watching it. We are studying together and were about to start an internship. We started talking about our upcoming practicum and my friend started really crying; she described herself as being incapable, unable to do the job, how she was going to let everyone down, she was no good and she was going to fail.
I paused and replied whilst she was still crying; I explained the video I had just watched – how a woman sees herself and how others perceive her. I gently told her that everything she had just described about herself was not how I saw her at all: what I saw was a beautiful woman who was deeply eloquent, nurturing, committed, caring, with a natural ability to impart her knowledge and wisdom and to inspire – and gifted at connecting with others. To me this friend was going to become an amazing teacher; her nature and the essence of who she uniquely is were going to produce a teacher the world could only but benefit from.
My friend now started sobbing; could it be possible she too was able to connect to her true beauty seen by another and the upset that followed was a combination of relief and the pain felt at the realisation of how hard she had been on herself? By this stage I had started crying too – because what I had said was just as relevant to myself.
This video and incident clearly demonstrates what the group later felt and discovered in the women’s presentation – our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are. It then manifests out – everything simply becoming an outward expression of the inner beauty of who we are – our clothes, how we walk, how we talk, how we laugh, our make-up – all of these are expressions of our beauty-full self. We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.
In a society which directs us to ‘achieve’ or reach out for beauty from the outside and implies beauty is only the outward appearance, it is very hard to miss this simple connection. It can be easy to feel not good enough. But what this presentation gifted to me was the true connection to who I really am and the delight and joy and lightness of what that felt like. It was natural and easy – and was just sitting there waiting to be discovered. Wow! How empowering. And to sit in a room with 100 other women feeling the same joy and adulation of themselves was amazing.
My energies and efforts now focus on cherishing that beauty and honouring that beauty. It’s not easy when there are a million distractions each day persuading me otherwise and I don’t profess to be perfect in my expression – far from it. But I accept my beauty (that is, me and the essence of who I am) is enough to make sure I don’t stray too far from it. And I openly enjoy, appreciate and nurture the inner essence of all women I interact with, so they too get a chance to feel and appreciate their own lovely essence and beauty of who they are. Soon, they too may then get the opportunity to realise that this is real beauty, beauty from within – the knowing and expressing in celebration of who we really are.
Women in Livingness Blog 
“our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are. It then manifests out – everything simply becoming an outward expression of the inner beauty of who we are” A message that should shine out above every makeup counter.
The more we deepen in our connection to our essence and know the love we are within, the more we can feel that our beauty within is far grander than any picture that we are imposed upon to measure ourselves up to.
It’s a international shame that as women we find it easier to put ourselves down then to celebrate the love we are.
These thoughts are what we are taught as we grow up often without realising it. These thoughts are also very damaging and incapacitating of your perception of your ability to be you in life. What’s more damaging still is that these thoughts take hold and actually convince us that we are them!
This is so true, simply by connecting to our essence, and living from this inner-beauty, ‘We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.’
How lovely to feel, nurture and cherish the inner beauty you are now aware of, ‘what this presentation gifted to me was the true connection to who I really am and the delight and joy and lightness of what that felt like.’
We are all beautiful inside, ‘our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are. It then manifests out – everything simply becoming an outward expression of the inner beauty of who we are’, yes, very much so.
As I consider the women in my life, beautiful qualities come to me about all of them. I have seen them in all their beauty. And it is pretty unearthing to see that I don’t see myself this way. I don’t appreciate myself to the depth that I know is possible – which is a big block in me then deepening my appreciation for others.
Beauty from inside, the radiates out…this is the true beauty within us all and not specific to looks but a way fo being and feeling this shines out, it emanates…and inspires.
‘We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.’ This is gorgeous and so true. As women express more of their true essence I see women looking younger and more beautiful even as they get older in years.
‘Only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful.’ This is a shocking indictment of our society today and how we educate young women.
The denial of our inner-beauty is universal, instead subscribing to the ideals society decides is the ‘look’ of the age. At every turn we are told how to be, how to look, what is sexy, what is beautiful, what is smart, what is successful. Beginning to break this down and re-connect to our innate beauty is something that invariably invokes tears for we miss this most divine part of ourselves terribly… it is the emptiness we use a myriad of ways to cover, fill, avoid, push down. Re-claiming the essence of who we are is the only true way out for us, thanks Georgina for sharing so honestly exactly that.
“We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.” . . . this I know to be a fact as I have been blown away by the beauty of people who dare to be themselves in full. It is like they grow on you and you could swear that they were the most beautiful man/woman you have ever met.
“what I had said was just as relevant to myself.” Very often when I am expressing a truth with another I realise that it is an equal truth for me.
Thank you Georgina for the way you have transformed my understanding of beauty and the way we have been influenced to regard it: ‘this is real beauty, beauty from within – the knowing and expressing in celebration of who we really are.’
I found that ad really interesting to watch- I think that all women can relate to it. So often we see and focus on our flaws instead of appreciating and valuing our beauty. I realise as a woman how important it is for me to do this so that I can inspire younger women to also know their own beauty not see role models who are hard on themselves.
So true MW… I have never focussed on my ‘inner beauty’, not until coming across Esoteric Women’s Health anyway… I wouldn’t have even known what you were talking about. My ‘beauty’ was purely based on how attractive I thought I was to men… my hair, skin, body, sexiness… all outer measures, and none a true reflection of my essence as I know it now. Today I feel far more beautiful than I ever did as a younger woman, and have zero concern whether anybody else finds me that way or not.
How beautiful it would be if girls were taught that to be a true woman is simply staying connected to our essence, and living from that essence, that would be enough to wipe out every single magazine that portrays that women have to look a certain way to be beautiful, when a woman reflects her own beauty from the inside out, there is nothing more beautiful or divine.
Yes what a different society that will be Sally… it is coming, we cannot continue to manipulate and torture ourselves as women to be something that lourdes our outer assets at the expense of our inner ones.
It’s kind of scary to think that rarely anyone sees themselves for the amazing and beautiful person they are, there’s definitely a lot of work for us all to do so that we do wake up everyday appreciating our own beauty and gloriousness and not getting lost in the miasma of self doubt and self-depreciation.
We are all beautiful in essence, the more we accept this the more we allow it to shine out, ‘our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are. It then manifests out – everything simply becoming an outward expression of the inner beauty of who we are’.
Society certainly does ask us to look outside of ourselves to search for beauty, when in truth one of greatest beauties there is in this world is when a woman walks in the knowing and power of who she already majestically is within. For when we look outside and compare ourselves to images and pictures we can never get a true sense of who we truly are. It is through our connection to our essence within that we come to know that our beauty within is beyond compare.
Our beauty is more than the world we live in.
In your essence everything is there.
If real beauty comes from within than shouldn’t we be careful what we choose to fill ourselves up with?
Do we look for external sources to fill us up such as food, emotions and good times or do we let our natural radiance to do the work for us?
I too am enjoying the openess and appreciating other women and their qualities they bring. I am also becoming more aware of being in the company women when they don’t feel great about themselves and whether I react or not. I can also relate to feeling appreciation and beauty within myself and being in a group of women feeling the same – it is divine.
When we buy into the current preoccupation that we all need to be looking outside of ourselves and fixing any perceived imperfections in how we look then we miss the awesomeness of connecting to and appreciating our inner beauty. We then become a beautiful reflection for all other women to inspire them to recognise and explore this in themselves.
“We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty” This is so true. We often say ‘That person has a certain something about them’ and that ‘something’ is an appreciation of the beauty of who they are.
We often see our own beauty in a more negative way than how others see us, when we connect to our own inner selves, we get to appreciate our own true beauty.
It is so inspiring to see and feel women expressing from their inner beauty and this has supported me to explore and express my own beauty more after many years of denying my womanliness. We have so much to offer each other in our reflections as you did with your friend Georgina and then realised it applied to you as well.
Perhaps the “only 4% of all women perceive themselves as beautiful” is accurate if only 4% express their inner beauty? This would also apply to men.
The strange thing is when we are expressing who we are and nothing else, we express beauty because we are love and love is beautiful.
Just imagine, that true beauty was not in a product, or in operation, but it simply blossomed from within, when one connected to the truly beautiful essence of us all
This is truly beauty-full Georgina. “Our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are. It then manifests out.” We build this hard exterior or shell around us from our own uncertainties and judgements we place on ourselves that it stifles the uniquely beautiful beings we are. When we start to appreciate how magnificent and grand we are, this breaks the hard exterior we have built and allows for our true delicate power to flourish. That is truly beautiful for all.
Georgina, true beauty is in this line “And I openly enjoy, appreciate and nurture the inner essence of all women I interact with, so they too get a chance to feel and appreciate their own lovely essence and beauty of who they are.” When we interact in this way we are in the essence of what the word “beautiful” truly is.
What you shared about our true beauty lying within us and being the unique essence of who we are is just gorgeous and something all women need to be made aware of… for it seems we have all fallen for believing beauty is something we create and not something we express from the inside out. How different the world would be if all women knew this as a truth and then lived honouring and cherishing that.
When we can feel our beauty from the inside it just expands and has no boundaries so flows through and on out from us. Others can’t help but notice what’s there and that it’s something which is quite separate from physical beauty. To recognise that we are all this beauty inside is quite an awesome thing.
Today as I was doing a true movement workshop, I felt deep stillness in my body, it was lovely to feel this beauty, as I allowed myself to appreciate this moment I could actually start to feel my tenderness coming through. It was really awesome as I allowed, connected and claimed this in my body. The rest of my day I could feel my whole body had shifted to another level of stillness and tenderness.
understanding and connecting with the deep and profound knowing within us, gives us all access to that well from which we drink which then radiates the true beauty that is us for all to see.
What a brilliant presentation and how it brings home the judgement we have of ourselves and our own beauty, when in fact all women are deeply beautiful from the inside out.
When we relate to our own beauty through the eyes, what we see is always filtered by how we feel. When the beauty is felt, hence comes from within, the feeling fills us with particular feeling that we cannot help but breathing in and out.
I loved what you shared Georgina, it is just beautiful to feel the impact your words had on both you and your friend, really allowing your true beauty to be felt. Whenever I connect to this beauty within myself and others there is no denying that true beauty comes from within and reflects who we are from our essence. It is exquisite to feel.
It is so beautiful to feel who someone is, to really get to know them and all the beauty and wisdom they have to share. It feels like a huge present I am receiving, as in that moment they completely confirm the truth that is within us all.
I completely agree with you Georgina that our beauty comes from within. There have been times when I have made an effort to dress up but if I don’t feel that beauty within me no make-up, dress or hairstyle can substitute that sparkle I see when I truly see myself in the mirror and smile.
I really loved reading your blog Georgina – what a great expose of the two different paintings of the same woman, that would have been so powerful to witness and feel. A very strong message here that beauty lies within, thank you.
Great blog, revealing the truth about the source of our real beauty. So important to connect to our true essence within regularly as a reminder and marker for ourselves for those times when we’re caught in the maelstrom of ideals and beliefs that would have us believe – and continue to confirm – that it’s all about what we look like on the outside.
Even though this gorgeous blog was written almost 2 years ago (it’s now August 2015), I doubt that the statistics and message of the video will have improved much yet. More blogs like this are needed and the good work of the Esoteric Women’s presentations will need to continue – we’ve got some work to do, Ladies!
Dear Georgina, I love your blog and I appreciate you sharing about the women’s groups. It is easy to underestimate the power of these gatherings of women – gatherings in truth – and with the sole purpose of us women re-connecting to who we truly are, from the inside out. More and more women I know live more and more consistently from their inner connection, and their radiance is undeniable – it is very easy to see – and feel. That inner radiance shining out through their eyes supersedes and (perceived) ‘lack’ in external ‘looks’; these are not what it’s about. I used to have real issues about my hair: not enough, not thick enough etc etc. I kept talking to me, as I felt this issue was taking up too much of my time and space. So I connected to the realisation – I am not my hair. Reminding myself of this helped me relax about my hair, do the best I can lovingly and while having fun with it. And the rest just is, but it doesn’t define me. My hair is beautiful, just how it is, and I can choose to express with it in many different ways if I feel to.
Beautiful Georgina yes we have to accept our inner beauty and appreciate it. If we do so we love ourselves and how can we than not love all women equally – thank you for reminding us.
What I loved reading your blog Georgina was how your words of appreciation to your friend brought so much healing to her. The statistics you shared really show where women are at today with their self worth and lack of connection to their innate loveliness and essence . Thank you for these words: “And I openly enjoy, appreciate and nurture the inner essence of all women I interact with, so they too get a chance to feel and appreciate their own lovely essence and beauty of who they are.”
I love this blog Georgina such a simple message but how profound is the revelation within it.
Georgina, I have just googled the Dove sketches you talked about in your blog . The way we perceive ourselves as women and the way others perceive us is completely different. Self appreciation is such a huge step to changing the false perceptions we have of ourselves.
Absolutely true Fiona. Self appreciation has and still is very important for me in my daily life. Being hard on myself has been a real talent of mine. It’s not a good habit to get into, but I feel it’s quite popular; because let’s face it: we will never be ‘perfect’. But that’s the beauty of it all – we don’t need to be perfect to be totally beautiful and totally loving and totally loveable. That is what I have come to realise and work with more and more. And thank God to great housemates – who help me and call me out when I slip into being hard on myself! That is how we as women can support each other so easily, without the need to pander or ‘being nice’. Just saying it as it is, because we do feel it. No judgement needed at all.
Great blog Georgina showing us how key self appreciation is. Everyday I am feeling more and more self love for myself and this has been huge, if anything goes on and I feel off or weird I can always bring it back to not appreciating myself enough.
I sometimes find it hard to admit my growing self-love for myself as I still have ideas around people seeing this as me being up myself. I also can hold back for fear of jealously. Thankfully it is getting harder and harder to hold back the growing self-love and deep appreciation I have for myself.
The experiment with the painting is almost hard to believe just how dramatic the results were. I would love to have seen this clip for myself it is extraordinarily exposing.
The language of our inner voices can be extremely harsh if we allow it to be. It is a choice, something that I must remind myself of time and time again.
Georgina I loved how you spoke to your friend with such love and appreciation, and I feel that her tears were the healing she received, knowing that she was being seen for who she truly was.
It was lovely to feel the beauty in your friend as she allowed herself to connect and express her fragility when she realised how unnecessarily hard she had been on herself.
It is staggering and quite tragic that only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful. What are we measuring ourselves against ? We have somewhere falsely bought into one big lie that it ‘looks’ a particular way. Appreciating and feeling our inner beauty and allowing ourselves to honour us is very much supported by the Esoteric Women’s presentations I have attended.
It is tragic how only 4% of women know they are beautiful. And what are women measuring against? They are often measuring against the media, photoshop models, friends, family ect
Yes Ben and that IS the ‘lie’ that beauty ‘looks’ a certain way, and is often measured against images that are not even real.
True beauty blooms from the inside out.
Appreciating oneself and each other is so very important, something that is worth practicing on a daily basis.
Beautiful sharing Georgina. Your line: “My energies and efforts now focus on cherishing that beauty and honouring that beauty.”, stood out for me. Yesterday I realised that I was still holding myself very unlovingly, with that I mean constantly feeling like I was doing the wrong thing and not feeling myself to be beautiful. I have been working the last day on exactly what you shared in the line above. To focus on appreciating myself and cherishing my delicacy and preciousness that is always there inside.
Beautifully shared Lieke. I have caught myself in the same pattern of criticism, being hard on myself and not getting it right. Perfect to read Georgina’s words and know this can be shifted and that there is so much beauty just waiting to be expressed from within out.
So true Rachael and Leike, we have so many ways of making ourselves ‘not beautiful’ – apart from the obvious ones to do with criticising our physical appearance, there is also comparison, being jealous, thinking we are not smart, being angry, staying small, being insincere…..and it really is a simple choice isn’t it, to appreciate and cherish our inner qualities of delicacy and preciousness and to allow ourselves to shine?
Georgina there is so much beauty and honesty in what you have shared about our inner beauty. How blessed was your friend to have you to present the truth on our inner beauty as you are blessed to have heard it from Mary-Louise Myers and Jenny Ellis.
Georgina I love how you saw the true essence of your friend and were able to tell her what you saw and felt and how this was completely different to how she was describing herself, just like the dove video. “Our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are”. I will take this into my day.
It is absolutely gobsmacking that ‘only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful.’ Where are we at for this to be the current statistic???
We really do need to look at how women have come to see themselves in this way…
We can be so used to seeing ourselves in a negative light or even down playing our beauty that it becomes normal to describe oneself in a way that is not really true of who we are. I have seen myself do this many times and not only because I’m not used to it. There have been times were I have known very well that I am good at something or have a particular quality and in the presence of another I have played it down. We can do this because a) we don’t want to upset them b) we don’t want to rock the boat and bring up any uncomfortable feelings and c) because they’ll be jealous. The worst part is that it hurts us deeply (and the whole world) to downplay and not celebrate our excellence.
Yes Shevon what you have shared here is so true. I know I have also as you say “played down,” things I am great at, just to keep everyone happy and to not upset anyone. This really does hurt us very deeply and is not being true to ourselves and how amazing we all are. Its now about celebrating strengths and appreciating what we all bring.
I have recently started to wonder if “playing down” is based on a judgment we have of others being less than ourselves. The fact we play down how great we are may reflect we have already clocked ourselves as better in some way. We may even be sympathising with the other person in viewing them as less than ourselves. Maybe holding our attributes and qualities becomes easier when we hold it as a confirmation of our equal amazingness and refuse to hold either ourselves or others as less.
‘We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.’ How empowering it is indeed when we realise that we don’t have to try to be beautiful or have to try to keep up with images. That we ARE already abundantly beautiful and our connection to and our expression of our beauty within and IS our natural way of being. We are ALL naturally beautiful in essence with our own unique expression. And I love how you have highlighted the importance of accepting and appreciating not only our beauty within with but also expressing our appreciation of the beauty within others so they too can accept and appreciate this for themselves. Beautiful and inspiring sharing Georgina.
Beautifully said Carola, “everyone is naturally beautiful in essence”. I love how the more we see someone for who they truly are, the more they are willing to share.
A lovely blog Georgina , thank you. I was listening to the news this morning and the story was about a girl who had recovered from anorexia .It was about how many young people these days perceive their beauty by comparing themselves with the ideals of beauty as depicted on social media. Blogs like yours are helping to dispel that ideal and show that true beauty comes from within. I also loved how you ‘ enjoy,appreciate and nurture the inner essence of all women I interact with, so they too get a chance to feel and appreciate their own lovely essence and beauty of who they are” How gorgeous and inspiring is that!
Georgina I loved reading your blog, ‘our beauty lies inside us’ Wow what a difference this would make to teenage girls if they were aware of this, as part of their education. It would take so much angst out of their life, teenage magazines would stop being able to dictate how they should look. So refreshing to see and be with naturally beautiful women, who know their own essence.
Yes there is so much support for each other when women are accepting of themselves and what we each bring. Free from competition we are able to be very encouraging of each other’s growth and actually enjoy each other shining. My goodness I know that my school days would have been so different if I/we lived in that wisdom back then.
So true Sally what you observe about teenage girls. They can be self depricating. I have found that teenage girls can compare themselves harshly with the latest popular,glamourous figures in the media and make themselves feel less than, in comparison. This only exacerbates self loathing and self worth issues the more. There are programs available to deal with these issues in schools, however they don’t seem to be have a lasting impact on the girls. Or there seems to be no follow up on them. They just seem to be quick superficial fixes and its just more information being churned out. I feel these invaluable womens talks are breaking new ground, and paving the way for more impacting workshops, regarding honouring our innate femaleness. They are assisting women to begin a deeper, loving, truer relationship with themselves and this will pave the way for greater quality on-going programs to be introduced into schools. Providing life tools that can be shared with and embodied by our youth of today. It’s time
Your story is and important one to tell Georgina. Something in us is not prepared to appreciate in full who we truly are and we have fallen for the false belief that we always can do better in any way. Therefore these women’s groups are such a gift to all women, and men, since these undo these false beliefs and shows us that we are all equally beautiful and divine as this is the true essence of our being.
I so agree nvanhaastrecht, this believe that we need to better ourselves is very deep and very insidious.
Well said Nvanhaastrecht. These womens’ groups are doing an amazing job – helping us re-connect to our inner selves. The more I live from that inner self, the more beautiful I feel. I don’t need to have cosmetic surgery to ‘fit in’ and feel beautiful. Every bit of me is beautiful, no matter if it fits into any classic and may I say – very narrow – view of what we have allowed society to define as ‘Beauty’. Even getting older, I still feel beautiful from the inside out, when I connect to that and not choose to see myself just as features, hair and body parts. They are not who I am.
I am a man and the Dove forensic artist would have the same result about me – still, after 11 years working with Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine. The discrepancy would be MUCH smaller than it was in the past but it is still there.
I hold myself back because the more I shine and the more not just my friends and wife (and friend) see me in my fullness the more jealousy I will receive and I am only now learning to notice jealousy and to deal with jealousy.
In some ways it is hilarious and sad – I spent a lot of effort honing my mind but people have been jealous of something I was born with – my connection to my heart.
I really can relate to being able to see what’s true about others but still struggle to see, feel and hold this for myself. I’m wondering what it is that makes it so easy to fall back to dismissing the self and not live in celebration, especially after feeling my own true inner beauty and amazing essence? Maybe it’s a matter of beliefs continually disturbing that natural connection and expression of inner beauty. Could it be that it’s easier to live disconnected to all that we are because it’s more acceptable and we fit in? Lots to ponder, thanks for the most gorgeous blog 🙂
Thank you Georgina. I have watched the Dove film you have mentioned and it is a powerful reminder to treat ourselves like the precious and delicate women that we naturally are.
A beautiful sharing, thank you Georgina and I agree when you say “It’s not easy when there are a million distractions each day persuading me otherwise” I find that if I do get distracted this is when connecting and feeling my beauty within feels impossible, however if I stay connected with what I know is naturally inside I feel stronger and these distractions have less effect.
How devastatingly sad that only 4% of women perceive themselves to be beautiful.
A beautiful sharing Georgina of a topic that is for men and women. We are bombarded with tips and tricks on how to make us more attractive but it is all superficial, you can be physically stunning to look at but if that inner beauty and connection to self is not there then the attraction is based purely on looks and if that is the key to a relationship then it is only a matter of time before cracks will appear.
Thank you for sharing here Georgina. I know I fell for the belief that only a select few could be identified as ‘beautiful’ yet whenever I ‘fell’ for this I could feel deep down I was actually choosing to believe a lie as I could feel and see beauty in everyone (although many did not let any out). In all of this I always hoped I would be considered beautiful but never felt sure if I made the grade. It was an awful way to live.
I now know that I am beautiful and it has been a joy to see this beauty grow as I remember how to share it with the world.
Georgina, this is so beautiful, learning to see and feel our inner beauty is something that has taken me a very long time to feel, honour within myself and really accept it. To feel that essence and they no matter what is going on, on the outside, does not matter. No matter what someone says, looks at you, ends a relationship with you, you get let go of a job, feel rejected by others around you……no matter what…..that essence if yours, untarnished, full of love, wisdom, stillness, harmony and joy. They are inside ALL the time, no matter what!!! This is what i come back to in any moment i feel less than, feel down or the day has just gotten overwhelming. I come back to me, that feeling within that knows i am connected to something greater and grander than i can ever understand, but just know with every ounce of my being. This is my essence, it is me.
Georgina, what a beautiful name you have. To see the beauty in another, being in awe of, appreciating and expressing it is exquisite and something I deeply cherish.
Touching post Georgina showing the tender support between women, so often not expressed. Your words here hit the nail right on the head in regards beauty: “We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty”. The more we express the inside world that resides within, the more beauty or beautiful we look. Beauty then is divinity activated, lived in (not by) the outside world.
It is so close, everybody sees it, only the beholder doesn’t. What is it? It feels like one of these riddles we shared as kids. Only this time it is a truth hidden deep inside of us and, perhaps even more, not reflected by society: let’s bring out our beauty ánd appreciate our friends, family, others more out loud. Let’s get used to talking about our beauty!
What a beautiful and simple description of true beauty you have articulated in this line, Georgina: ” everything simply becoming an outward expression of the inner beauty of who we are – our clothes, how we walk, how we talk, how we laugh, our make-up – all of these are expressions of our beauty-full self. We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty.” That feels to me to be the right way around – from the inside out. Thank you for your wonderful clarity.
Thank you Georgina. I hurts when we see the women in our lives not consider themselves as beautiful and amazing as we see them, but there is also much for us to ponder on here and how we regard ourselves and our own beauty. For it is there present in the same amounts for all of us. I know I have got confused with thinking that how beautiful I am doesn’t matter, its all about what I do and how I do it. I can see now how this is a recipe for exhaustion and has no capacity to sustain me as a women and a gorgeous one at that. My beauty, gorgeousness and loveliness has nothing to do with what I do and is always there for me for feel in abundant amounts, but this I have found does need daily attending, care and nurturing, so that each day it becomes easier for me to feel and connect to.
‘One of the statistics that I cannot forget stated only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful.’ I read and re-read this sentence / statistic over and over again. I literally could not believe what I was reading. How is this possible that only 4% of women perceive themselves as beautiful?. I then read on and appreciated how much the internal critique is at play and how harmful critical thoughts are. It would be very revealing to take part in the same experiment with the painting as I am sure it highlight to many of us just how self critical we can be. This blog is very revealing and a superb reminder to pay attention to how we are with ourselves
That’s so beautiful that connection you have with your friend to share the way you see her, even that is super special, considering how hard and tough women are with each other nowadays. I would really love to watch that video that you described. Where can I find that?
Georgina
I so get your comment about being so hard on ourselves. The fact that we don’t stop to appreciate the most simplest of things shows our levels of honouring.
I could feel as I read this blog, just how hard I can still be on myself. A beautiful reminder that I can often be my own worst enemy. Your blog has inspired me to go to a deeper level of acceptance with myself and not choose to entertain thoughts that may crop up about my own self worth, but focus and nourish all that I am, which is innately and divinely beautiful.
As I re-read this blog and watched the Dove Drawing video that you mentioned at first I felt a sadness, as if not having felt my own beauty before, but then I noticed my body shudder – something just felt wrong to me. To me the inner beauty is a feeling, not a look, not my clothes, my hair, facial features or body shape, it is a feeling of warmth that comes when I choose to feel my body rather than remain in my head with all the ‘need to do’ thoughts on how to be me. My inner beauty told me that that sadness is not me and had I stayed there I would feel much worse and not see myself as beauty-full as I already am. The mark of beauty is a quality that doesn’t restrain itself – you don’t see a rose holding back from blooming, it just blooms.
That’s beautiful, Leigh: The mark of beauty is a quality that doesn’t restrain itself – you don’t see a rose holding back from blooming, it just blooms.” Such a grand truth you have expressed here with your words ” an unrestrained quality.”
Thank you for this gorgeous blog on beauty. For me beauty is something I know myself to be. Not my looks, though these too are and can be very beautiful, but in how I feel. In how I move, and in the many ways in which I express I feel my beauty, that which is within, coming out. Beauty is my known and it is holding this knowing as I go throughout my day that is the honouring of who I truly am.
I am only just coming to realise how much I have judged my beauty on what I look like. My beauty has been do deeply connected to what I look like and if something changes e.g. a bad hair cut, suddenly my beauty goes. This was a harsh realisation. But what I also realised was that I was seeing the beauty in everyone in the same way. I was only looking at the external beauty and not the inner. Beauty was judged on appearances. I cringe even writing this as I never fully realised I did this as I too was always one to say “beauty is on the inside”.
Such a beautiful blog Georgina and I too could feel the tears coming up as you described your friend sharing her true feelings. I could relate to everything you both felt and it reminded me of a realisation I had when I was 50. I had been attending an acting class for film and television and we were watching a video of ourselves for the first time. Everyone around me appeared to be shocked at how they appeared on the screen, especially the young women who were making apologies for how they looked, criticising every part of themselves. I could also feel myself going into self critique mode and was drawn to the deep lines on either side of my nose and said out loud: “My face looks like it’s sliding off!” The young man next to me laughed and then replied very gently “But it’s still beautiful”. I was stunned as I had never felt beautiful, but gradually his words started to make sense. He was seeing and feeling all of me, the complete package, whereas I was looking at all the individual parts of my face, focusing on the ones I didn’t like, and not connecting at all to what was inside. From this experience I have come to understand that this is what happens so often – that others see our outer beauty and feel our inner beauty, when we are unable to do so. I continued to attend the class but none of the young women returned obviously unable to accept the image of themselves on the screen – and I had thought that they too looked beautiful!
I know we have heard all our lives that ‘true beauty comes from within’ but somehow we have to be able to access it, as it doesn’t seem to come naturally in this day and age of external beauty being so important. Natalie Benhayon is able to guide us to this place within all of us – our essence – where we can feel this deep inner knowing that we are all so deeply, gorgeously beautiful – innately so. What a revelation – could just start a revolution!!
I stumbled on your beautiful blog this morning Georgina and your tenderness is so palpable. Thank you for a beautiful sharing on true beauty which lies in our essence inside each of us.
Georgina you summed it up so perfectly. We truly are all beauty-full.
Thank you for so clearly what is meant by inner beauty and when we re-connect with that inner beauty, “We appear outwardly beauty-full because we are expressing our inner beauty”.
I loved those words Georgina natural and easy to describe beauty. I have found once I cleared a lot of my issues/hurts then I could feel the natural beauty that I am. It wasn’t an outside appearance but a feeling from inside that was expressed out. And I agree once you feel your beauty you can then feel others beauty and then they have the choice to connect to this..
Wow Georgina, what a beautiful article, thank you. I had not heard about the Dove campaign, it does not surprise me ‘how a woman sees herself and how others perceive her’ as being very different. I held many beliefs that I was not beautiful, not good enough, that I would mess things up, let everyone down etc.etc… and at the same time had people tell me how beautiful and amazing I was and so the two pictures were very different. I now feel my beauty and amazingness for myself and know this to be the truth.
Very beautiful sharing, thank you Georgina, I can relate to all of it!
Incredible blog Georgina. It’s shocking that just 4% of women are confident with their appearance, but when you think about how many ideals are pushed upon them about what they should look like, how they should act particularly by the media, it isn’t so surprising… I would actually say LESS than 4% of women (if any women!) can actually tick all of society’s check boxes.
A lovely article
Thank you Georgina, you have helped me to appreciate myself today.
It is interesting that most women strive to make ourselves look like someone else who we see as beautiful or more beautiful than us. We have an ideal in our head of what beauty is. The true beauty of every one of us “lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are.” No more comparison, just allow the beauty of my inner essence to shine out.
Inner beauty – and our awareness of it – is a gift indeed.
I’ve listened to a lot of talks by Serge and Natalie Benhayon, who presents that true beauty is felt and expressed from within.
Whilst it is one thing to hear that, I did start to look at what it means for me to measure myself on outer beauty. And when I did this – I realised I’m just comparing myself to women who look NOTHING like me.
I’ll set my judgement bar against people who I’ll never look like because it just isn’t me.
And when I do this and I don’t eventually look like a totally different person from the outside, I consider myself a failure and go pick another person who looks nothing like me to start the cycle again with.
I’d do it so often I didn’t even realise that was the extent of what I was actually doing.
To really consider that true beauty is within me, and it is always there if I choose to let it out, makes so much more sense.
It also asks me to take better care of myself, which has meant that I do look better from the outside because of how I treat myself from within.
This has been such an amazing journey for me, something that was there all along, but with the support of Universal Medicine, I’ve allowed myself to pull back the curtains and look at whats underneath.
Hi hvmorden – That is such awesome sharing. I love how you so clearly nail and express it ,”It also asks me to take better care of myself, which has meant that I do look better from the outside because of how I treat myself from within.” How much sense does your statement make. Thank you for your sharing of your deepening observations around this incredibly important awareness.
It is so true what you share Georgina, women are very critical of themselves. I remember doing a performance once and everyone in my year group had to do one there were no restrictions on what you could do or share only a time limit of 15mins. I waited and waited until the end of the year and finally had to do it. In preparing to do it I was really nervous and then I pondered on how I had experienced others performances and I realised that NOT ONCE had I been critical of anyone, I had loved everything they had done as they had risked being seen and share their heart. There was nothing to not love. So I thought logically no one was there looking at me with this criticism so maybe I should just enjoy the moment and know that no one would be begin critical. It was awesome. What I have learnt from the presentations like the one described by you Georgina is an ever deepening love and tenderness of my self and I am so thankful to those who present there is another way!
Hi Georgina, I will be taking the essence of your blog into my day, I loved the relating of the tv programme and it is so true! I love the way you end your blog “Soon, they too may then get the opportunity to realise that this is real beauty, beauty from within – the knowing and expressing in celebration of who we really are.” This opened my heart.
It is great to read your words Georgina. It is said that ‘beauty is in the eyes of the beholder’. This is indeed true, but very little is said about beholding oneself as a precious, beautiful person – this is a beauty that is not only visible, but emanates from the person like a shining light.
So true, I was only talking to a colleague at work about this today.
Thank you Georgina, I grew up thinking it was all about outer beauty and was so fascinated by supermodels etc, and it was not until later that I could feel that they had the same issues as everyone else. Presenting an unachievable airbrushed perfection everywhere young women look, really prevents them from valuing themselves and the gorgeous qualities they uniquely have and are developing in themselves.
“our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are”. This phrase is so beautiful and true. All the self-doubt can disappear when we feel the beauty of the unique essence that lies inside us.
Wow, Georgina, this is a beautiful sharing. Thank you.
Wow Georgina, so beautiful. I was recently in a reception area and another woman was waiting for her appointment and reading a women’s magazine. She looked up at me and said, “Does anyone actually look like this and if they do how do they do it and how much does it cost?” We concluded that most (if not all) the pictures were airbrushed and that magazines have a way of making us feeling less than with the representations of unachievable looks from the photographs they include.
This reveals how important it is for us to focus on the fact of our inner beauty and remind each other of that which is within and not allow the focus to be led from an outside unrealistic ideal of how we ‘should’ be.
“our beauty lies inside us; it is the unique essence of who we are.” A line which could be introduced from a very early age so we grow really knowing this immutable fact.
Georgina, what a lovely blog. I sat here reading it and felt the absolute beauty of what you share and how that beauty is in me and everyone. And like others have shared as I feel my own beauty, I naturally feel and see it in others. Thank you for reminding me to reconnect to my beauty again.
This is true monicag2, I also feel the same; as I have connected more deeply to my own inner beauty and the natural loveliness in myself as a woman I feel it and see it more and more in other women, and this is very beauty – full and confirming of the truth that we are.
We can be so hard on ourselves can’t we Georgina. In my experience, if I hear 10 great things about myself and 1 not so good, I often focus all my energy and attention on that one. This is a great reminder to celebrate myself more.
Yes Debra, you are not alone in that. It feels freeing though to be working at turning the tables on that one.
I agree Debra we can accept our beauty and celebrate knowing we are beautiful. To catch our thoughts about ‘this is not okay, I am not worthy’ etc the underlying process of being hard on ourselves.
I do exactly that Debra, focus fully on the one thing that was not positive and make it into something far bigger than it is.
I can relate to this in many ways as in the past I know I have only focused on the bad while everyone else seems to only see the good parts. The line ”It was natural and easy – and was just sitting there waiting to be discovered” is inspiring as I feel to take this away and practice reminding myself that I am already beautiful. Always have been, always will be.
Lovely! I knew my beauty as a child, lost that feeling in my teens by comparing myself to others, put a face on to fit in as an adult, but didn’t feel that glorious inner beauty that now shines out until I was 50-ish, and only then in isolated moments. Having been inspired by the presentations from Universal Medicine, I can now feel that gorgeous beauty that is in me, and see it in all humanity. There is grace in my life again.
Yes Leigh it is a practice as for some reason we all grew up thinking we weren’t any worth and spent more time berating ourselves than appreciating ourselves!
Hi Georgina
I really can feel what you have written and can really relate to it. I can be quite obsessed with how I look on the outside and find it hard to always feel and connect to my own inner beauty and glory. What you have revealed has really touched me and inspired me to truly appreciate and feel “me” especially in the busyness of each day.
Yes, as a man I agree. Physical beauty is nice but how a woman or a man feels to me is what’s really important.
Lovely point Christoph, so true.
Beautifully expressed Christoph.
Thank you Georgina. I’ve seen that very powerful video of how women describe themselves vs how a friend describes them. What an eye opener. I’m taking this sentence from your blog forward into my day……and hopefully, the day after and the day after.
“But I accept my beauty (that is, me and the essence of who I am) is enough to make sure I don’t stray too far from it. “
Yes Toni and I am finding that since I feel a connection to my own beauty I can so much more readily connect to the beauty in everyone and everything else; once we feel all this, it is then possible to understand more deeply that what we are ultimately feeling and expressing is the source of the beauty and love from which we are innately from.
Yes that’s so true, when I’ve connected to my own beauty, I can see it and appreciate it in others.
Lovely!
Just what I needed 🙂 I didn’t go to the women’s talk, so thanks for sharing the essence of it.
It is such a gift to know ones own beauty, a gift that is there for all to share and appreciate equally. I loved reading your words and the silky feeling they offer, thank you Georgina. I can feel the connection you have to your true beauty, exquisite.
Good point Toni – it is a gift not only for ourselves, as then there are not the taunting self loathing thoughts, but also a gift for everyone else as well. If we show our inner beauty on the outside, instead of looking out and applying what we find/learn to our faces, then other women and people will be able to feel how they are able to that as well, that they are truly beautiful on the inside.