Toiletry is a type of self care. It involves self-touch and self-appreciation. Media-zation has considerably distorted the practice. It has become dousing oneself in chemical-based colognes and products (to cover odor), masking aspects of ourself we would be culturally embarrassed by (hair, wrinkles, blemishes, scars). Toiletry shouldn't be based on cultural embarrassment. It's not a negative influence. It's a celebration of the body we live in, an appreciation and honoring of our function. We wash ourselves not only of dirt and sweat, but of dead cells and static energy. We attend to rough skin and callus. By touching and looking with appreciation (not condemnation), we mindfully care for ourselves. This care changes our respiration rate and hormonal output. It is a subtle message to the rest of me, a message of love, which impacts the entire organism.
Much like other basic activities in modern life, toiletry has gone to the wayside. Basic activities like cooking a meal from scratch to feed the body (inclusive of spirit and soul) has become separated from most of me and has become mechanical. So too, bathing becomes automatic, something we do because we should do it, but often it is missing the intention, the love of oneself that actually impacts our health and wellness. Like most things, we find shortcuts to move through eating and toileting as fast as we can. In this rushed process, we eliminate care; care of ourselves on a dimensional level. In a gym setting, I've watched with interest the absence of toiletry in others. I'm not talking about people not showering after working out. I'm talking about the lack of consciousness in the bathing and toiletry activity. People barely dry off from a shower, throw clothes on and are out the door. There is no awareness of their bodies in this way, of their skin or hair. I sometimes think I am an observer outside a fast food restaurant; the sensibility is similar.
Toiletry involves our largest organ: the epidermis-- skin. Skin breathes. It respirates, removing toxins. What we put on it is absorbed into our bloodstream, hence effecting the rest of our organ systems. By subjecting it to seemingly benign chemicals, whether it be commercial soaps, shampoos, oils and lotions we further toxify ourselves as much as if we ingested these harsh substances. So we need to take a look at the quality of water we use and the ingredients in these topicals. It's possible to buy (and make!) lotions and oils that are whole, chemically free. Appalachian Valley Natural Products http://www.av-at.com has lotions, oils, shampoos and other toiletry needs that fit this bill. They sell a wide range of harvested/processed-with-integrity essential oils for you to customize the scent or desired energetic response of the scent-free product (i.e.: lavender good for relaxation, rosemary good for stimulation of hair follicles, etc). They sell minimally processed lotions, like avocado butter and almond oil, good for hydration and softening respectively.
At the heart of all this, is the emotional and psychological aspect of basic self care. It could be our (cultural) indoctrination of shame and contempt of the human body or the particular human body we live in with all its flaws and imperfections, impacts the cursory way we approach toiletry. Or the guilt of not deserving the time, place, space or resources to manifest this type of care upon ourselves is another influence. And then there is the denial, that intention and consciousness is not really that relevant to basic things like eating and bathing. Just cook it, or sponge it and get it over with. It would be interesting to try the experiment of taking one's daily shower as one usually does, with the addition of an awareness of how it is done (without changing anything about it). And then on another day, taking one's daily shower with the addition of intention and care. Conscious of the pressure of the cloth or sponge down the various limbs, the breath in the body as whole scents permeate the shower atmosphere. How does it feel to take time and awareness in the drying process, noticing the small almost imperceptible needs of various parts; a small massage to a tired knee, a sandstone to a tough and callused heel. Is there a difference? What is the difference? Look in the mirror, does this attention change how I feel, how I look, the tension levels in my body? How does this effect me? Is there an accumulated benefit if toiletry is regularly performed like this?
I had an interesting conversation with an old friend the other day. We spoke about how it is the imperceptible and indirect actions which brings about meaningful, authentic change, not the direct and usually ego driven imposition of ideas or actions. The small garden privately tended impacts the neighbors, impacts the person doing it, who then brings that influence into their day and to those with whom they interface. The love and self care one shows oneself will mirror to the outside world, impacting all. When we forgo these small opportunities of showing care to oneself or others, whether it be cooking a meal, or simply bathing with more awareness and self-love, we indirectly shower (pun intended) disregard, lack of awareness in our daily atmosphere. This intrinsically leads to insensitivity and inconsideration. A small act will do this: what I care and don't care to put in or on my body, how I care or don't care to acknowledge about my body by lack of caring touch and regard. It's subtle yet pervasive.
At the heart of all this, is the emotional and psychological aspect of basic self care. It could be our (cultural) indoctrination of shame and contempt of the human body or the particular human body we live in with all its flaws and imperfections, impacts the cursory way we approach toiletry. Or the guilt of not deserving the time, place, space or resources to manifest this type of care upon ourselves is another influence. And then there is the denial, that intention and consciousness is not really that relevant to basic things like eating and bathing. Just cook it, or sponge it and get it over with. It would be interesting to try the experiment of taking one's daily shower as one usually does, with the addition of an awareness of how it is done (without changing anything about it). And then on another day, taking one's daily shower with the addition of intention and care. Conscious of the pressure of the cloth or sponge down the various limbs, the breath in the body as whole scents permeate the shower atmosphere. How does it feel to take time and awareness in the drying process, noticing the small almost imperceptible needs of various parts; a small massage to a tired knee, a sandstone to a tough and callused heel. Is there a difference? What is the difference? Look in the mirror, does this attention change how I feel, how I look, the tension levels in my body? How does this effect me? Is there an accumulated benefit if toiletry is regularly performed like this?
I had an interesting conversation with an old friend the other day. We spoke about how it is the imperceptible and indirect actions which brings about meaningful, authentic change, not the direct and usually ego driven imposition of ideas or actions. The small garden privately tended impacts the neighbors, impacts the person doing it, who then brings that influence into their day and to those with whom they interface. The love and self care one shows oneself will mirror to the outside world, impacting all. When we forgo these small opportunities of showing care to oneself or others, whether it be cooking a meal, or simply bathing with more awareness and self-love, we indirectly shower (pun intended) disregard, lack of awareness in our daily atmosphere. This intrinsically leads to insensitivity and inconsideration. A small act will do this: what I care and don't care to put in or on my body, how I care or don't care to acknowledge about my body by lack of caring touch and regard. It's subtle yet pervasive.
