Beauty holds magic. The beauty of a landscape, of a flower, of a music instantly does good. It comforts, amazes, awakens the senses, brings pleasure, creates a bond, changes the breath, makes us smile, invites us to the present. Neuroscience has demonstrated its impact on the brain (activation of the pleasure and reward system, empathy, mirror neurons…) which positively modifies our state of being. Beauty heals. And more than that, it is a condition of our health. For the Navajo, illness is the result of a broken balance with beauty, a beauty-harmony present at the heart of all that constitutes life. So in beauty, may we walk.
Immersing ourselves in beauty, state of Hozho
For the Navajo, to be healthy is to be in a state of Hozho. A term that refers to a symbolic circle within which beauty, health, harmony, joy, consciousness, compassion, prosperity and humor are found. The Navajo rarely use this word alone, in ritual prayers they say “shil hozho” (with me there is beauty), “shii hozho” (in me there is beauty) or “shaa hozho” (from me beauty radiates).
Beauty is not a matter of appreciation, it designates a quality of presence, a conduct, a way of being in the world, respectful and responsible.
It is the responsibility of the human being to maintain balance and harmony with his environment. It is also our responsibility to change the way we look at life in order to detect the beauty in everything around us and thus cultivate wonder and gratitude.
Excerpt from a Navajo healing prayer:
May I walk in beauty.
May I walk all day long.
May I walk through the seasons.
May I walk on the scent sprinkled with pollen.
That with grasshoppers around my feet, I walk.
That with dew around my feet, I walk.
That with beauty, I walk.
That with beauty before me, I walk.
That with beauty behind me, I walk.
That with beauty above me, I walk.
That with beauty all around me I walk.
In old age, may I walk full of life on a feeling of beauty.
In old age, may I walk on a scent of beauty, alive again.
It ends in beauty.
It ends in beauty.
How to restore health and beauty?
The legend says, “One day the white man will ask the red man to help him remember how to live in harmony with nature again. ”
Open your senses
Having your senses on alert allows you to establish a different relationship with your environment. We are generally disconnected from our bodies, too perched in mental considerations. Nature proves to be an excellent terrain for experimentation: walking barefoot on the earth, swimming in a river, smelling the smells of the forest, listening to the songs of birds, lying down in the grass, feeling the warmth of the sun on our skin, looking at the stars?
Changing one’s gaze – Cultivating humor
In order to perceive the beauty that underlies everything, it is necessary to modify little by little one’s look, to take a step back, to relax, to play down the drama and to cultivate a certain amount of indispensable humor (above all of oneself!).
“One sees well only with the heart. The essential is invisible to the eyes.” The Little Prince
Living in Poetry
To be able to see the beauty that surrounds us, to slow down one’s steps, to listen, to observe, to take time, to marvel, to be available to the present moment and to its mystery without will to reach something, without judgment, just to enjoy the moment. Far from the power and will of the consumer society, closer to nature. Living in the simplicity of the moment. “Being available for life”.
Personal and collective responsibility
When the balance is broken, it is our responsibility to set ourselves in motion to restore it. As individuals, we are responsible for our actions, thoughts and life choices. We are also collectively responsible. Contrary to what current society proposes to us to live, we function well and truly together, what happens to one person happens to the entire community. The malaise of an individual is a symptom of the malaise of the community. Therefore, the idea is not to point the finger of blame but to take advantage of this disharmony as an opportunity to heal the collective. This is the reason why Navajo healing takes place in the form of ceremonies.
Everything is interdependent; we are also closely connected to nature and the environment. The whole only works because each part is connected to the others and fulfills its role and function to the best of its ability.
“Man did not weave the web of life, he is only a thread of fabric. Everything he does to the web, he does to himself.” Seattle, Suquamish Indian Chief
