"Warning: Clothing has been shown to cause extreme psychological
dependence. Wear it at your own risk"-- Ben
Thornton
Freeing the
Naked Spirit
Certainly there are a number of
physical benefits, and each of us can make his or her own list when
considering the personal benefits. For me, the psychic benefits are
really far more important. For too long in the western world, we have
suffered from infancy with a perverse kind of aversion to and
rejection of the human body, while at the same time exploiting it with
every kind of revealing and exaggerated dress, especially in our
advertising, media and entertainment industries.
Children especially are continually
bombarded with material that serves to exploit human sexuality in
every form. While not the focus of my present comments, it is an area
in which the prudent use of and exposure to Naked or Naturism can be
of very considerable benefit in reducing the natural curiosity of
young children and adolescents so they can develop into well-balanced
adults. We read often of the difficulties that teens have as they
reach puberty. Girls seem somehow ashamed of their developing breasts
-- an incredible fetish in this country, unfortunately -- and boys
seem terrified of getting an erection, and both sexes are anxious
about their general growth and development.
The moralist whom I mentioned earlier
stated: "The desirability and fittingness of clothing are recognized
by the overwhelming majority of mankind. From a moral point of view,
Naked disregards the problem of concupiscence [sexual appetite], and
therefore rests on unrealistic premises."
On the contrary. It is precisely here
that Naked rests its defense on very realistic premises and on
considerable experiential knowledge. Anyone who has had a minimal
experience of Naked is aware that with very few abnormal exceptions
Naked has virtually nothing to do with sexual desire or lust. I know
of nothing that has a more beneficial effect on tempering curiosity
and desire than a protracted experience of Naked. This does not mean
nudists are devoid of lust and sexual desire, nor that in practice of
Naked there are not those who grossly misuse it for their own sexual
practices, to the scandal of and very great harm to the whole.
In our arrogance we have assimilated
cultural nudity to "primitive" peoples. In that same arrogance we fail
to notice that these naked peoples are very often far more modest,
considerate of others, and respectful toward their own and others'
bodies than many in our overheated, oversexed, scandalously clothed
western society.
It seems quite clear that the
accusations of some religious groups to the effect that nudity per se
and the practice of Naked in particular is in its essence degenerated
and causes all kinds of aberration can in no way be substantiated. If
I am not seriously mistaken, the predominant objections of this type
come not so much from the mainline churches in this country, but from
the fundamentalist groups on the far right, who seem to feel that they
have a special mandate from on high to save the country and the world.
I am assuming that many nudists and
Naturists consider themselves descendants of one of the Abrahamic
faiths; that is, Christian, Jewish or Muslim. But there is a
phenomenon here in this country that is practically unique in the
world -- the growth of the televangelist, the radio evangelist, the
revival preacher. Nowhere in Christendom have there been so many and
varied groups seeking to proclaim the one and only way to eternal
salvation. The Bible has been used as a weapon, as a final and
irrefutable source of all truth and authority, arbiter of every
imaginable question or problem in matters of faith, art, science,
history and even geography!
Short Reading About Nudist Culture
Have you ever met a nudist? You almost certainly have, because they are among your friends, neighbors, and co-workers, though you are likely not aware of it. Nudists generally don't go naked where you might see them, nor do they tend to advertise their presence. They aren't wild-eyed radicals, either, just very ordinary-seeming folks when they have clothes on. They often don't admit, even to close friends, that they really like not wearing clothes.
Because, in most "advanced" societies, the Youngs around nudity are even stronger than those around sex. People in casual conversation or on national televison may happily ramble on about the details of their sex life. Nudists have generally not been so open, even though by conservative estimates, several million people in North America enjoy certain kinds of recreation (like swimming) in the nude, or simply like being naked when at home.
This secretiveness is changing, however. People have been talking about recreational nudity on the rec.nude newsgroup for many years. (It was one of the first newsgroups in the early days of Usenet, because computer people seem to be likelier than average to enjoy nudity.) And now many personal Web pages are appearing, announcing the owner's interest in Naked and candidly advocating its advantages over "clothes compulsiveness". I keep pretty good track of this, since one goal of my pages is to catalog all the Web sites - around 500 of them - that have something of interest to people who like to be naked. It's now quite easy to meet nudists on the Web if you want to fathom why anyone would rather not wear clothes.
What do nudists put on their Web sites? Occasional pictures - generally the kind only family and friends could like - very disappointing to porn hounds. Stories about adventures au naturel. But often: essays that try to explain Why. Nudists feel they've been badly misunderstood by mainstream society.
With some justification. Misinformation in mainstream media often receives the blame for the Young on nudity. For instance, many nudists, prefer to be called "naturists", and they refer to their philosophy as "naturism" rather than "Naked" - because being naked is natural. We were born that way. The underlying philosophy is acceptance of the body just as it is.
One of the two main nudist organizations in the U. S. is known as The Naturist Society ( http://www.naturist.com). Yet most outsiders have never heard of the terms "naturist" and "naturism". If they have, the assumption is of having to do with watching birds or collecting bugs, confusing "naturists" with "naturalists". Also, naturists never refer to places where they gather as "colonies". "Parks", "camps", or "resorts", please. The American Association for Nude Recreation (http://www.aanr.com) wants to emphasize the recreational connotations of these latter words.
In fact, naturists have in the last few decades been able to enjoy the outdoors in public (though usually remote) beaches, rivers, and forests. Word about the best places to go, or to avoid, spreads rapidly over the Net. This has led to a predictable backlash from the "family values" crowd, who have mounted an aggressive effort to stamp out nudity everywhere. Such people would be astonished to learn that there are many conservative religious folks who like to be naked with others, and see no conflict between that and their religion. Religious naturists even have their own organizations and Web pages.
But most irritating to naturists is the mainstream tendency to confuse nudity with sex. Adult naturists enjoy sex as much as anyone else, but that isn't the reason they like not wearing clothes. What they do like is the comfort, relaxation, stress reduction, and feeling of freedom that being naked offers, as well as the camaraderie and openness they find in socialing with others of similar mind.
Most of the problems that naturists have to contend with stem from this misconception that naturism is a sexual interest. It incurs the wrath of conservative religionists, it deters families and body-conscious young adults from participating, and it attracts people whose interest actually is sexual. On the Net, this confusion has hampered networking among naturists. Yahoo! usually ignores requests to add naturist sites to their index. Excite classifies nudist sites as an "X- & R-rated Subtopic", along with prostitution and strip joints. This is badly mistaken, but Excite has ignored protests. Some other search engines don't even index nudist sites because "Naked" is assumed to be a code word for sexual content.
In spite of such problems, naturism, as a lifestyle and a philosophy, is definitely coming out of the closet, thanks in part to the Net. So it's no longer difficult to find people who like to talk about just why naturism deserves not to remain a well-kept secret.
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