BEAUTY

 
At the gathering on the 13th, someone mentioned the topic of "beauty". Meher Baba's response touched on the subject of lust.

"I like beauty in everything, but what is beauty? The beauty that never perishes, that is immortal, is real beauty. Look at the human body. It is full of filth and dirt. The mouth, nose, rectum, urinary tract — what are in all these? Filth! Still, men run after beautiful women. This is not beauty. It is foul lust.

"Suppose you love a beautiful woman and her face gets misshapen by acid thrown on it, rendering her ugly. Then what will become of your love? If your heart is quite clean and your mind is pure, you will remain unaffected, even surrounded by thousands of beautiful women. Circumstances will have no effect on you and you will be able to appreciate beauty.

"As it is, you do not love beauty, but dirt, because you yourselves are unclean. Get rid of your own foulness and then find out what beauty is. Beauty can never be enjoyed without rooting out the dirt."