The ZEN Bathroom

I have always viewed bathrooms as spaces where one is able to return to the essence of ONE. The act of bathing, showering, cleaning.  It is, come to think of it, most likely one of the most uplifting activities of man.  At moments when I have been exhausted and resisting going out, especially after a long taxing day, I have found that the simple act of taking a shower rejuvenates both mind and body beyond belief.  Energetically, water is healing, and it has great values of stabilizing your internal cells as well adjusting your Aura.  Everyone has had an experience of interacting with an individual or group, after which the need to take a shower or bathe stirs so strongly.  It is, indeed, for this very reason.  Man, in its most primitive existence, found water to be the liquid of cleanse.  Furthermore, the human body consists over 70% of water.  It is therefore not surprising that we relate to water so positively.  I, for one, have always been a water baby.  Once in the water swimming, I find it hard to leave.  I can float and swim for hours.

I have several friends who are partial to taking a bath as opposed to showering.  A dear friend soaks in a bath every evening after her long day as physician.  Another friend takes two baths a day.  

Generally, I am partial to bathrooms that have a 'still' and 'Zen-like' aesthetic. Where less is more and where the focus is turned inward.  Like meditation,  the magic lies in stillness and in the latter, all the answers come forth within that cloud of stillness.  There are, needless to say, some very attractive and inviting bathrooms that are opulent, formal and exotic.  The Victorians made the Grand Salon-type bathroom famous as an important chamber where one could spend many hours pampering yourself.  All with opulent seating and lying space, plants and exotic birds.  It became more than just the bathing space.  It was, a place of private relaxation, receiving of an audience, reading and getting dressed.  

It is interesting to observe how many people are in and out of a bathroom as though they merely go through the motion, while others spend a great deal of time relinquishing their routines.  As with food, some individuals are more in tune and connected to the ritual than others.   I have often observed the different personal styles of gentlemen in the health club locker room.  Some take long long showers, to the point of waste, while others are in and out in a jiffy without the time factor being the reason for such.  Some lather richly over and over, enjoying the act of bathing, while others use very little soap if any.

But one thing is common in all;  the joy of the act of bathing and the healing qualities that water brings!   

Below are some examples of bathrooms.  Different styles and sizes for different people. 

Personally, I am partial to clean, still and calm bathrooms.  Those connected to nature is, of course, the ultimate.  But for busy city-life, a zen bathroom in which you can ground and quiet your mind and connect to you soul is the ultimate cleansing chamber.