Friday, November 13, 2009

To “nourish the inner aspect”, Oscar winner Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare in Love) suggests pursuing websites in the latest newsletter of her blog “GOOP—nourish the inner aspect”.

She says: “When I can steal a quiet moment I like to peruse these websites for inspiration…” Then she lists various websites which talk about romantic portraits, glamorous people, tips on faucets, luxury home goods, Must Have Gifts, tips on Raising Lifestock, most compelling global street style, boutique openings, brands like “Rag & Bone”, etc.

In this newsletter, Paltrow directs us to Garance DorĂ© which features “street fashion photography” from the streets of London, Paris, Milan, and New York; “One Kings Lane” for “luxury home goods” and sales events of “Holiday Correspondence, Holiday Ornaments and Holiday Entertaining”; Food52, where home cooks offer recipes on themes like “best beer cocktail” or “best fig recipe”; River Cottage whose partner farm in England offers courses on Beekeeping, Allotment Gardening, Meat Curing and Smoking, Bread and something called “Pig in a Day”; Refinery29 to get current on the newest and best in fashion, shopping, and emerging trends from the runways to the streets of New York and London; etc.

Paltrow wants us to beat the masses and “pounce” onto invite only GILT, an online “sample sale”, every afternoon at twelve o’clock precisely; and visit the “Green Porno” deadpan puppet shows on Sundance Channel where she learnt about “reproduction in the animal and insect kingdoms”, and which shows “where the fish we eat come from”.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed has criticized Paltrow’s blog for mostly being too materialistic and indulging in very mundane things and shallow substances dealing with temporal and external pleasures, and catering to “outer” while claiming to “nourish the inner aspect.”

Zed, who is president of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that the idea of foraying into “inner aspect” was wonderful, but he did not comprehend why Paltrow wanted to market a product with an entirely different label. Although the tagline of GOOP is “nourish the inner aspect”, there were not many deep spiritual and philosophical thoughts in it, which were essential part of “nourishing” the inner self. It was very “external”, Zed added. He offered to help Paltrow, if asked.

Ancient Hindu scriptures Upanishads indicated that finite things could not calm an infinite thirst because the delight lied in the infinite. We could not fill the hollowness with outer materials. We should aim at uniting with Self, described as sat-chit-anand (absolute existence, pure consciousness, outright bliss), Rajan Zed pointed out interpreting the scriptures.

GOOP is said to be a name carved from 36-year old Gwyneth Kate Paltrow’s initials, who is also sometimes known as “part yogini”.

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