Three Encounters with the Beautiful - Jacob Hamilton

Intro

To understand beauty, one might try and find a definition. This exercise usually produces few fruits, as beauty is something to be experienced, not defined. It is therefore crucial to investigate one’s own encounters to get a better grasp of the subject at hand. By examining such experiences, one is more able to identify the common threads throughout all encounters with the beautiful. Below, I describe three encounters with the beautiful.  

Beauty in the Starry Sky 

I encountered beauty one night as I sat outside in my backyard and gazed upon the starry sky. It was one of those nights when artificial light was dim, and the stars were numerous and shined more brightly than ever. 

Reflection 

Within the first encounter, I felt myself starstruck. Time stood still and everything went quiet. It may sound strange, but as I looked upon the Heavens, I felt it staring back at me. Another world that typically lies dormant had opened and I had been privileged to have gained a peak. The Heavens were alive, and the stars ceased to be burning balls of gas and were transfigured into splendid celestial beings. I felt myself transfigured along with the stars. 

Where Does the Beauty Emerge?  

From the moment I set my eyes upon the night sky, I experienced beauty. The heavens were not dead and empty, but lively and full of glory. It is hard to pin-point where exactly the beauty emerged. To speculate on such a matter, I believe, would be to miss the point. What I can say is that the whole experience felt sacred. I was communing with something higher than myself. Sacredness and beauty, while not synonymous, certainly overlap. Beauty filled the whole experience and tied it all together. 

Beauty on an Overlook 

A second encounter with beauty came when I was hiking along the Blue Ridge Mountains in the western part of Virginia. After a long and tedious trek up a mountain, my friend and I stumbled upon a rocky overlook. On the overlook, we gazed upon the forested hills and the winding roads down below. 

Reflection  

Within this encounter, I felt myself come to a new appreciation of my surroundings. I had gazed out from such overlooks before, but this instant struck me differently. This was aided by the fact that I had been doing strenuous hiking. I felt I had been rewarded with such a beautiful sight. As I peered out from above, I felt both a feeling of accomplishment, yet was humbled by the spectacular and sublime view of my surroundings. 

Where Does the Beauty Emerge? 

It may sound contradictory to have felt a sense of accomplishment yet also humbled, as I was in this second encounter. Yet, this is exactly how I felt. Having hiked such a challenging hike, I felt I had overcome the world. Still, I was humbled by the grandeur of my surroundings. I believe the painting, Wanderer above the Sea Fog, expresses a similar sentiment to one I am trying to. I was greeted with a beautiful vision of the world, having climbed up a mountain. Yet, I also came to a new sense of my own place, and that of mankind's for that matter, within it. To stand above the world is, I think, one of the most profound aesthetic experiences one can have. 

Beauty in an Early Morning Walk Along the Beach 

A third encounter with beauty occurred while I was walking along the beach in the Outer Banks. It was early in the morning and the sun was just starting to rise. The day was also slightly cloudy, which served to make the whole scene more dramatic. As I walked, I watched the dawning sunlight struggle to pierce through the clouds.  

Reflection 

Within this encounter, it is important to note I was in a lofty state of mind. These states, I find, are more common in the early hours of the day. When one has recently awoken from sleep, one is likely to find oneself in a slightly altered state of consciousness. In this mode, I found myself more affected by my surroundings. This served to put me in a state of deep tranquility and reflection. 

Where Does the Beauty Emerge? 

 Latent beauty lives all around us, yet we only rarely realize it. My early morning mood had allowed me to see it. The beauty of the early morning shore worked to further transform my state of mind, which in turn made me even more receptive to the surrounding beauty.  

Conclusion 

All states of being imply a relationality, a state or object without relations could not be commented upon. However, the word communion implies a very deep sort of relationship between two things. Within all my encounters with the beautiful, I experienced a communion that usually only occurs between persons. One cannot equate communion with the beautiful, just as one cannot equate it with the sacred. Communion, though, is essential to both domains. Within all my encounters, there was a depth of being, both within myself and outside in the world, that was revealed.