The Sacred Connection: Unveiling Beauty as a Spiritual Necessity
- Kirsten Weiss
- 6 hours ago
- 4 min read
--By Kirsten Weiss
Beauty is not just a frivolous luxury or a surface-level delight.
It’s a spiritual necessity that can open doors to a more magical, mysterious life, which is why I included a Beauty card in my UnTarot deck.
Why Beauty Matters More Than You Think
It’s easy to dismiss beauty as something we don’t really need.
But throughout history, regimes that seek to control and repress have targeted beauty as a threat.
Take, for example, the totalitarian regimes of Stalin’s USSR or the Taliban — they destroyed and banned beautiful art and expression.
Why? Because beauty points us to something higher.
It feeds the soul and inoculates us against despair.
Beauty gives us hope in dark times — and that’s exactly what oppressive powers want to extinguish.
My Sicilian Experience: Beauty as a Lifted Spirit
A few years ago, I was in Sicily gathering material for my Wit's End and Paranormal Museum cozy mystery novels.
Every corner revealed something spectacular — cathedrals, gardens, breathtaking Mediterranean views.
I was dazzled and uplifted, floating on cloud nine.
But here’s the mystery: I doubt most Sicilians live in that constant state of awe.
When you see something beautiful every day, your eyes stop really seeing it.
When I was a kid, every summer my parents would take us up to their cabin at Lake Tahoe.
Back then, I didn't think much about the scenery at all.
Tahoe was boring.
I wanted to be inside watching TV or playing with friends.
Now, as an adult, rare visits to Lake Tahoe fill me with deep appreciation for its beauty.
This fall from grace — from wonder to dullness — is something many of us have experienced on vacation.
At first, the food tastes amazing, the ocean sparkles, the clouds look magical.
But after a while, everything becomes "normal" again.
The Mystic Vision: Seeing Beyond the Surface
In everyday consciousness, reality exists only if we see it.
That can trap us in boredom, negative emotions, or routine, especially when we're in our heads instead of in the present moment.
We end up running on a hamster wheel, missing the deeper connections of life.
But we don't have to.
We can see beyond the surface, like mystics do.
Mystics (and poets) talk about a “vertical” type of vision — sinking deep into the subconscious or rising into higher consciousness.
This vertical perspective reveals the unity and connectivity of life.
How do we get to this vertical?
Mystics and poets seem to reach this state most easily through shock or surprise, like being in a new place.
If that shock is combined with a deep sense of presence, beauty can become a gateway to this mystical vision.
How Beauty Rockets Us into Presence and Magic
Being present with beauty — noticing and appreciating it — can rocket us upward into that vertical, mystical vision.
Beauty lifts our spirits and pulls us out of ordinary reality.
Once you commit to seeing beauty as a practice, you start finding it everywhere.
For most of my life, I thought the high desert landscapes of California and Arizona were ugly — brown and monotonous.
But one day, hiking in Kingman, Arizona, I made a point to be present and notice details.
Suddenly, the desert’s beauty unfolded before me, transporting me out of my ordinary reality.
Since then, I’ve hiked that trail several times.
The magic wasn’t quite the same because the shock and surprise wore off.
But the beauty was still there to experience.
Poetic Seeing: The Writer’s Mystic Vision
As a writer, I’m fascinated by poets because they practice this mystical vision all the time.
Poetic seeing means unpacking moments in writing by noticing little details and charging them with emotion.
It requires presence and a mystical way of seeing the world.
Famous poets like W. B. Yeats have described such experiences beautifully:
I sat a solitary man in a crowded London shop.
An open book, an empty cup on the marble tabletop.
While on the shop and street I gazed,
my body of a sudden blaze
and twenty minutes more or less it seemed so great, my happiness,
that I was blessed and could bless.
We, too, can experience these moments of blazing beauty in the ordinary if we are present.
Creating Beauty Around You: A Practical Magic
Why not create beauty around yourself to make it easier to access this mystical vision?
Many people think beauty has to cost a lot of money, but that’s not the case.
Years ago, when I was working in the Republic of Georgia, a friend invited me to her apartment.
It was an old, charming building, not the Soviet block style.
Inside, the walls were blazing gold, covered with icons — mostly postcards — almost like wallpaper.
It was stunning and perfectly suited her devout Christian personality.
This taught me that beauty is about arrangement and intention, not expense or originality.
Get a plant, clean your room, hang an art poster — it doesn’t matter.
Then be present with the beauty around you.
You will get used to it, but make a point of regularly noticing it.
Beauty Is Not a Luxury — It’s a Spiritual Necessity
Beauty feeds the soul, lifts our spirits, and connects us to the mystery of life.
It’s not a luxury reserved for special occasions.
It’s a daily practice, a gateway to a magical, mysterious existence.
So, slow down and look around.
Notice the beauty in the ordinary.
Let it surprise you, shock you, and bring you into presence.
It might just change your life.
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you carry a little more beauty with you today.