Treasure the gem, not its wrapper

Our country has seen its share of fairness creams and instant glow masks. Comparisons are drawn between siblings and even strangers as to who’s fairer or more beautiful. Why is so much importance given to skin colour and looks? A raven or a cobra is as magnificent as a pigeon or a swan.

The skin is just an outer covering, holding together the skeletal frame - a sort of wrapper indeed! The real gem is the soul inside, with the inherent good and noble qualities. When one views the skin as nothing but a sheath then what does it matter if it is black, brown or white?

The interest should be in the worth of the gem inside. A body is prone to aging and external beauty is impermanent and cannot escape the ravages of time. An interesting story from the Upanishads is shared here. Pingala was a prostitute commanding a high price and courted by one of the richest lords of the city.

A poor Brahmin scholar once spotted her and fell for her beauty. But she disdainfully asked him to pay her price and take her. One day the nobleman failed to turn up and she waited in intense longing for him. As she passed the whole night in dejection a sudden transformation came over her mind and she began to realise that she was associating carnal satisfaction with happiness. She got disgusted with her way of life and when the eager Brahmin rushed in with her command price she poked fun at him for his lack of spirituality as he was lusting after her body which was a package of flesh and bones.

She became contemplative and turned a recluse and was reborn as the deformed Kubje during Krishnavatara, but went on to be blessed immensely by Lord Krishna when she offered the entire mound of sandal paste to him when he asked for it, although she had prepared it for King Kamsa.

Lord Krishna restored her external beauty and even married her upon her request, showering his blessing for her intense penitence and prayers during the previous birth. The beauty lies within, in the tiny spark called
the soul, which is originally the same for all but gets affected differently by the bodily and mental attributes of each person.