Philosophical Sayings About Worldly Matter (LVI)

Some persons look handsome, and some don’t. The same can be said of animals. What is the standard of beauty? In terms of beauty, humans are much inferior to animals that possess colorful furs or splendid plumes. When it comes to flying and swimming humans are inferior to animals, too. Only with the combination of intellect and morality can humans excel.

(This is a translation of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Wan Ko Yeshe Norbu’s philosophical sayings about worldly matters originally written in Chinese.)

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Below is not an official translation, just for reference

In real life, some people are beautiful, some are ugly, some are handsome, and some are sleazy. However, beauty and ugliness coexist in the world, just as they do among animals. So, what standard do we use to distinguish between beauty and ugliness? Truly speaking, when it comes to appearance alone, there are many aspects in which humans are not as impressive as animals. For instance, some animals have colorful fur with dazzling and ever-changing colors, and they possess various special abilities. Fish can swim and hunt underwater while birds can soar freely in the sky and do remarkable things. In contrast, humans cannot dive to search for food or fly in the air; in terms of functionality and beauty, there are many ways in which humans fall short compared to other creatures.

To truly surpass all living beings in beauty, the only attributes we have are our talents and morals. When these two aspects come together, that is the highest form of beauty—the harmony of the spiritual and the material, which cannot be compared to any animal's attributes. If we fail to have these, humans may be worse than animals. Therefore, the cultivation of those traits is of utmost importance and is essential to true beauty.