What is the purpose of beauty in the world?

Question

Wonderful answers!

Answer 1

"Beauty is truth and truth beauty. That is all /ye know on earth and all ye need to know." [1]

I agree with the last respondent that beauty may reveal the true nature of things. That which is beautiful seems to me to reveal or remind one of something beyond itself.

But I am not sure that beauty, being a quality, can have a purpose at all. It is not trying to achieve anything. Perhaps it would be better to ask what the function of beauty is: what does it do?

Does something beautiful prevent us from damaging or disturbing it, thereby sustaining its existence? Perhaps it induces us to nurture and protect it, whilst reminding us of the certain truths or inducting us into them: a sort of symbiosis. Who can know?

Answer 2

Beauty Lies In The Eyes Of Beholder

Answer 3

I don't know.  That's a great question.  Perhaps it's up to each of us, every day, to notice and appreciate the beauty around us, whether it's the way light reflects through a water droplet or the most glorious breathtaking sunset we've ever seen.  Maybe beauty is meant to turn the soul towards God, to remind us that peace is found in being still and noticing what's around us.  I guess I think it's a gift that's meant to thrill our souls and connect us to each other and the earth.

Answer 4

There is no purpose.  Just enjoy it.

Answer 5

This is a great question.

Know beauty to know truth.

Mark these words carefully, and read on.

Here is one example:

What may at first appear beautiful, in fact may be a mask hiding a wretched person inside, as in a beautiful, but scheming woman who steals money and wrecks others lives for her own purposes. She uses her beauty for seemingly 'evil' purposes.

Later, there is a payback or return from her behavior, and the purpose is revealed of why she was given great beauty, and how she used it. A term for this result (and beginning) is called 'Karma', a cycle with a purpose, actually multiple purposes involving many people, animals, the earth, planets, stars, and elements, the manifest and unmanifest.

In the example above, the woman may discover her inner beauty through the result of her actions, and this in itself is beauty revealing truth, and she becomes more radiant with her discovery of her inner beauty. Similarly, a person who is born with an appearance that most people may think is unattractive, may shine with an inner beauty that attracts people and animals, important events, and most importantly, love.

These are opportunities for all of us to discover the purpose of life, and it is that for which our perception of beauty exists.

Now, consider this:

When one is open to beauty in this world and beyond, then one sees the purpose in all, and even in the 'terrible' people or events that are sometimes called 'evil', one can see the purpose. To use the word 'Divine' says that there is a separate existence other than Divine. The word Divine is thus a misnomer.

To see beauty properly is to see beauty, truth in all.

The purpose of beauty is to reveal the truth, and to elevate the seeker of beauty and truth to awareness and identity with all. This is the highest state in yoga, and in all religions, and in fact, is the goal of all atheists, to find the truth.

Answer 6

to show how much worse off we could be.

Answer 7

If there wasn't beauty, there could be no beast.

Answer 8

The purpose of beauty is to attract better mates - we want better looking people so that there's a greater chance of our children being good looking, thus continuing our genepool.

Answer 9

Survival of the fittest...better looking people or animals attract their opposite s*x thus providing them with a bigger pool of genes to choose from.

Answer 10

to satisfy the senses

Answer 11

Plato's theory on beauty and perfection was that it proved there was a life before and will be after this one.  In essence it proved the existence of heaven.  He asked his students to name him something that was perfectly beautiful.  Something that stayed beautiful and perfect forever.  His students couldn't come up with anything that was perfect and would stay perfect.  He told them that our preconceived notion of beauty and perfection was proof that there was heaven because if there was nothing on earth that was perfect then where did we get the idea that it should exist?