Tag: prejudice

Is naturism natural or is it a fad in people’s minds?

Is naturism natural?

According to the blogger at The Sovereign State it isn’t. (Note that this is an article from August 2009.)

The writer of that blogpost claims that we were never meant to walk around naked. His statement to prove this is that, “if this were the case, we would have developed fur. We didn’t because we were smart enough to make clothes“. (See second paragraph in the article.)

The second paragraph claims: “In other words, had there existed “naturists” in these latitudes a few thousands years ago, they’d have simply died out.”

There are quite a few comments added to that post, some clearly from naturists.

The basic idea of clothing.

We put on clothes to be warm. In that view the writer of that post is entirely correct. What he seems to ignore (as so many others who are against anything naked unless perhaps it’s porn) is that little bit “to be warm“.
As we all know, most people live in areas that aren’t cold all the time.

Some people even live in areas where it’s never cold, like in Africa or Central and South America.

Does that mean these people, who are known to be naked, are wrong? Should they wear clothes because their naked, naturist appearance isn’t natural?

Lustful eyes.

Another paragraph in that post gives me a lot of reason to believe that this person shows something about himself instead of the average naturist:

I really don’t care if people choose to make themselves look ridiculous by adopting a naturist lifestyle, but some people drag their children into it and that’s what bothers me. Of course they argue that there’s nothing sexual about their perversion, but this is just wishful thinking. Their children, teenage girls most worryingly, are exposed to lustful eyes.

Anyone who reads this and feels him-or herself a proper nudist or naturist will cringe at this. “Ridiculous” isn’t how I feel when I wear no clothes. “Free” is much closer to it. One more chalked up for ignorance and prejudice, folks.

I’ve seen naked children at nude beaches and at resorts. I’ve yet to find kids who are happier than they, despite the watchful eyes of their parents and other adults who look after them. Oh, I mean lustful eyes of course.

Clothes are great.

I’m serious. But only when the conditions call for them.

When it’s hot we don’t need them. Unless you think that an air conditioning system is natural.

 

No one can really explain nudism

Trust me. You can talk until you’re blue in the face, or any other colour you fancy, but it’s just as easy to explain how wonderful it is to walk around nude and carefree as it is to explain how an orange tastes to someone who’s never seen or tasted one.

Some people will never agree that it’s silly to put on clothes when it’s warm enough to go without them. Lifelong conditioning does strange things to a brain. Imagine, dear fellow nudist, that suddenly someone comes up to you and tells you you don’t need to eat, that life goes on as usual without food. That’s hard to believe as well. (Okay, as far as we know now it’s not true, so please don’t try it.)

I think we need to see the ideas of convinced textiles in a similar light. Being enthusiastic about your nudist lifestyle in an honest way is perhaps the best approach. Talk about it but don’t tell people to do it too. Suggest that they might try it some time. Do you feel the nuance?

We all know that clothes aren’t natural. They were adopted as a necessity against the influences of weather and climate. No living creature is ever born with clothes on. Still, people’s minds are ingrained with the certainty that you need clothes. Teach someone something from birth and it becomes (second) nature. (Lots of sad examples for that.) If someone you meet is interested in, or even inclined to try nudism, a good way might be to encourage them to do it in the safety of their home, alone. And not just once, but advise them to try it several times. The first time is the most difficult one – most modern people have grown so distant from the sight of their own body that they’ll immediately focus on the things they hate about it. It takes time to get used to that for them. Unfortunately. But with some luck, if they do try and like it, they’ll let you know.

Body Image

A brilliant observation on Body Image:

I was hanging out on the deck with a female friend this past weekend. It was hot, about 75F, and my friend had shed all her clothes.

“I don’t mind being nude here,” she told me. “Nobody can see us. But I wouldn’t want to be naked at a beach — I don’t have a nice body . . .”

And that in a nutshell is why some people fear social nudism, I suspect. Body image. They are self-conscious about their bodies because they don’t have the ideal model look (read: skinny).

I assured my friend that there is nothing wrong with her body, that she looks just fine, and that nudism is, in part, about liberating ourselves from unrealistic body images and just accepting and celebrating people as they are. I also explained that few people will be looking her body up and down.

I know how it is: we are our worst critics when it comes to our appearance. Yet I also know that when it comes to interactions with people, their appearance is irrelevant. It doesn’t matter whether they are fat, skinny or in-between. It doesn’t matter whether they look like Cinderella or The Phantom of the Opera. And it doesn’t matter whether they are dressed in the most fashionable clothes or clothes from a second-hand shop. What matters to most people is the soul reflection in their eyes and the love in their hearts.

There is more, go here to read the entire article as posted on Jillian’s page.

All the fuss about nudity

I often wonder what it is about nudity that so many people get worked up about it. There is nothing new about nudity, people have been born nude since the beginning of mankind.When you take a shower or bath, you take your clothes off. When you have sex, you usually do that too. Everyone knows there is a naked you under your clothes, and yet when you go about and actually show it, most people react shocked, appalled and cry bloody murder, if not worse.

Bathtime

What’s the reason for that? Religious objections about nudity? I think that has a lot to do with it. Look at what the Christian bible says about that, when Adam and Eve ate a ‘forbidden’ apple. Suddenly they were ashamed of their naked bodies, covered themselves and got themselves kicked out of a nice place. Who declared that was the right thing to do? Freedom of speech was probably not an item in those days…

Naked Adam, naked Eve

Of course it is understandable, when mankind started shedding their hair, they had to dress up to keep themselves warm. Freezing to death is hardly the fun thing to do. But when the weather’s fine and clothes are only used to prevent people from seeing the real you…

Who hasn’t experienced a tremendously hot summer where every bit of clothing you wear is too much? I once heard someone say: “All I had on was the light.”

Who needs clothes in Africa?

People who visit saunas and nudist/naturist camps have a smarter idea about that. Why get all worked up with that shame thing that is forced onto everyone?

Naturism back then
Naturism today

Don’t be afraid of your own nudity. It is normal. Natural. Natural, yes, as everyone comes into nature naked. I’ve never seen a tree that grows clothes. The whole taboo on nudity is wrong, and also accounts for a lot of the perverted things that are happening in our day and age. If people would accept the naked human body for what it is, the thrill of the ‘forbidden fruit’ would fall away. I am quite convinced of that.

There is nothing to be ashamed of, unless you choose to. But before you choose, ask yourself if you really feel the way you feel about nudity, or if it is the result of what society has pushed onto you. And be honest with yourself.