Beauty in Thomas Aquinas

Question

Ask a Philosopher · Accepted Answer

Oh, fair is beauty, thou most cherished grace,  
That doth illuminate the shadows deep  
Of mortal minds, where dimmed perceptions race,  
Yet in thy presence, truth and light do leap.  
In Aquinas’ pensiveness, we behold,  
A vision wrought in harmony divine,  
Where beauty’s essence is not mere gold,  
But form and essence in a sacred line.  
For he doth argue, with celestial pen,  
That beauty is the splendor of the true,  
A mirror reflecting the Creator’s ken,  
Whose perfect wisdom doth eternally ensue.  
In every creature does a glimpse reside,  
Of that divine light which from God doth shine,  
In order, symmetry, and grace applied,  
Revealing glimpses of a grand design.  
Thus, beauty calls us to a higher plane,  
A beckoning to seek the good and wise,  
In every bloom, in sun, in gentle rain,  
Reminding us that joy is but the prize.  
What joy it is to see through Aquinas’ eyes,  
That beauty, wreathed in goodness, doth abound,  
A sacred dance where soul and matter lies,  
In every heartbeat, truth and love are found.  
So let us ponder, muse, and oft engage,  
In beauty’s realm, where intellect ascends,  
And through his thoughts, unlock a golden cage,  
To find that beauty and the soul transcends.