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→How Does One Cultivate a True Aesthetic Sense?
= How Does One Cultivate a True Aesthetic Sense? =
The cultivation of a true aesthetic sense begins with a cultivation of our senses of perception. At first, the intention is to encourage recognition of what is beautiful - for when we are able to perceive and receive the "beautiful", we aspire for beauty. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/12/vital-education#p11</ref>
However, the recognition of what is beautiful brings with it a sense of discernment of what is not beautiful or not in harmony with this aspiration. It is then that we enter the rational stage and begin to question why something is beautiful while something else is not. This is a stage characterised by polarity - for shadows can only be cast where there is light.
The suprarational stage of aesthesis - where one can begin to see universal beauty without reasoning and polarising - calls for a new understanding of perfection, a purification of the self, a strong will and a sense of detachment. Below, light has been shed on each of these aspects.
'''Perfection: '''We think of perfection as something that must be acquired, a state of goodness, absent of all things bad and ugly. This is a very divisive understanding of the word. Perfection is a state of wholeness; it is the absence of nothing. However, this is not to say that we must accept and enjoy ugliness. When the being is harmonised around the soul center, perfection becomes a natural harmonious outflow. This is where purification comes in.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/10/aphorism-63-64-65#p24</ref>
'''Purification: '''The disharmonious movements of our being can be conquered by acknowledging the transformative power of beauty. Little by little, the parts of us that are not in harmony with the whole can be refined and transformed by directing the light towards them i.e. becoming conscious of them and offering them. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/15/6-january-1951#p28</ref><ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/04/26-april-1951#p29</ref>
'''Will: ''' It is not always easy to face and conquer our shadows after having experienced light. It creates a feeling of sinking and loss of control. One must have a strong will to control one's imagination and direct it towards beauty and light. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/09/3-september-1958#p15</ref>
== Cultivating Aesthetic Sense in Children ==