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Concept of Beauty in Vedant
an object that attracts us and fills our heart with pleasure. According to this meaning beauty is an objective quality, but it has a subjective application as well. The experience of beauty - Saundaryanubhava or aesthetic experience also has subjective quality.
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One more etymological derivation of "Sunder" believed to have come from - Su+nar- meaning shining. Therefore all lusterious objects are called to be beautiful. Bhanu Dixit on Amarkosa says that su+dar is the root of the word Sundar. Here "dar" means respect. Hence the object which deserves respect from all is called Sundar.
The Beauty (Sundaram) in Indian Philosophy is supreme Reality or perfect Being. It is one the three attributes of god.
Some western scholars, capitalizing the lack of mention, feel Indians had no sense of Beauty. In fact this is not so. Shri P. S. Shastry in his scholarly article, "The Rgvedic Philosophy of the Beautiful" published by Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, vol. XXXII, has not only detailed as many as twenty two words denoting beauty but has also explained their different meanings as well. The term Beauty also means attractive, proportionate, orderly, rhythmic, symmetrical, charming etc. The term beauty, in fact, is highly ambiguous in its use.
The Types:
The classical understanding regarding the types or kinds of beauty is Beauty of Nature and Beauty of Art. Both these types have common as well as uncommon characteristics. Considering the objects to which we attribute Beauty we find sensuous beauty, beauty of form and beauty of expression of meaning.
According to Indian Aestheticians, Beauty can be classified only as wordly and divine. Wordly beauty is temporary or fugitive and is through object. It is sensuous and pleasure giving but of inferior nature. On the other hand Divine Beauty is of higher nature. The Indians refer these two beauties as an Inner Beauty and outer Beauty or physical Beauty and Divine Beauty also.
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