The Secret of Thai Beauty

Written with Kittirat Yothangrong

One of the comments I most hear from visitors to Thailand is how beautiful and youthful the local women are. Many have a noticeable radiance that is eye catching and attracts some admiration of the beauty they behold. The famous Thai smile is known around the world for its semblance of beauty and serenity.

So for us “mortals” who pursue such presence, what is the secret of Thai beauty?

There is no single factor that answers the question. The secret seems to be embedded within the Thai lifestyle and culture. Beauty is a holistic concept and therefore developing an aura of beauty is about the self. Beauty is primarily about awareness and self confidence within our world and social setting. Without this self confidence beauty will not radiate from the person.

This self confidence comes from the Thai woman’s role in society and this role is definitely not a docile subservient one as many westerners often imagine. Today approximately 70% of university enrolments are women and many CEOs around Thailand are also women. Contrary to myth, the Asian woman is an emancipated one dominating the paradigm of confidence in our society these days.

Many Thai women put career ahead of family and care about their grooming. Thai women love cosmetics and have a knack for being very artistic in blending the various shades of masquara and face powder to enhance their own natural radiance. They are skilled in knowing how to highlight their individual “strengths” in such creative ways that makes beauty such a pleasant thing to look at. Thai women understand the role cosmetics play in radiating what they already have through the translucency of cosmetics in very sophisticated ways. They are true artists of the face in a way that must earn our true admiration.

But beauty is not just skin deep. That’s a big mistake to think. Cosmetics only enhance what is already latently there. One would like to think that cosmetics enhance rather than create personas, although some may beg to differ.

Thai beauty begins in the garden and travels through to the kitchen. There may be great truth to the concept that ‘we are what we eat’ – something that has deep spiritual connotations in both Buddhism and Islam. Thai cuisine is just full of vegetables, herbs, and fruits with minimal meats. These herbs are not there for nothing, they are full of anti-oxidants, vitamins and minerals, things that have been consumed for a lifetime and play an important role in creating skin textures and toning that are radiant and as clear as can be. Beauty certainly begins with basil, ginger, lemongrass, mangosteen, and mangoes. Thailand is full of so many wonderful herbs that are consumed on a daily basis. Diet certainly provides the empty canvass of beauty in Thailand.

Beauty also requires “right thinking” a Buddhist concept that eliminate nasty emotions which age and stress us. When you walk around with grief, hate and anger within you, one will tend to reflect that in their appearance. On the contrary, if one walks around with happiness, contentment, and warm feelings for others, one will reflect these emotions from the persona. So beauty is very much a state of mind that Thai women understand. Positive emotions and in particular that famous “Thai smile” releases lots of powerful endorphins that not only enhance our self confidence but provide the secret elixir of youth to our bodies. It’s ironical that humans for so long have looked for the secret of youth and all along this golden nectar is actually inside of us.

And if a smile was not enough – there are more ways by which to produce the nectar of youth through exercise. Thai women in village life are physically active and in urban life many take up yoga as a means to keep their body trim and subtle which produces more endorphins within their bodies. Yoga is not institutional in Thailand, it’s something you just do at home each day. And to cap it off, some Thai women has discovered the secret of meditation. Meditation calms the person, revitalizes the body, and also releases another set of endorphins that enhance the body. Meditation also relieves stress and assists a person develop a sense of mindfulness that creates another level of beauty. If you don’t believe me, just go and take a close look at someone who practices meditation regularly and you will know what I mean.

So what a beauty package, so integrated and just a ‘new you’ waiting to be discovered inside of you. Beauty does come from within and smart grooming and cosmetics enhance and help radiate the aura out into the world. Beauty is actually a journey of life, that’s the real secret. Beauty is a feeling, not an appearance. Take that journey and you might be surprised how well you look and feel.

Originally published in the Science of Beauty 2012

KITTIRAT YOTNANGRONG or Akoi as she is known, is one of the very few people who have been a Buddhist nun and a runner-up in the Miss Southern Thailand Beauty Quest as a “mature” contestant. She is a ‘practical’ vegetarian who believes in herbs, healthy living, and meditation. An avid yoga fanatic, Kittirat is also an organic farmer. She regularly speaks to community groups in Malaysia and Thailand on empowerment, health through herbs, and spirituality.

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