Welcome to the inaugural episode of Skin • Spirit • Sacred, hosted by Merina B Eldan.

This podcast is your sanctuary to explore beauty, pleasure, and joy in the body, from skin to spirit. Join Merina in this sacred journey as she delves into the layers of beauty, self-care, and connection.
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In today’s episode, we explore the skin from the perspectives of ritual, metaphysical elements, and the effects that caring for our skin has on our mental and physical well-being.
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Hey, lovely souls! Have you heard the quote by Dostoevsky, “Beauty will save the world”? It’s right here by my computer, a constant reminder of the uplifting and positive energy I draw from it. It makes me think about what beauty means to me and how it shapes my life and yours. Through MAHALO Skin Care, I’ve had the incredible joy of creating beauty products that have touched the lives of thousands worldwide. It’s been a journey filled with connection and shared stories, and I’m so grateful for each and every one of you.

As we sit here, sipping our tea, let’s talk about something that’s been on my mind—the transformative power of skincare rituals. It’s more than just cleansing and moisturizing; it’s a gateway to deeper self-connection and vulnerability. I want to challenge the traditional beauty standards and invite you to view your body as a temple—worthy of care, devotion, and love. It’s a sacred space where beauty becomes a catalyst for deeper connection with ourselves and each other.

Out skin is not just our largest organ, it is a gateway to sensation, pleasure, and communication. How incredible is that? I’ve been thinking a lot about physical touch as a love language. It has this incredible power to convey so much meaning, acceptance, and pleasure without saying a word. It’s a beautiful way to connect and understand each other on a deeper level.

In my Ayurvedic training, I learned that the skin serves as a diagnostic tool, reflecting the body’s harmony or imbalance. It’s like the check engine light for our health. Skin issues are often signals of deeper underlying issues, offering opportunities for holistic self-care and connection. It’s a reminder to listen to our bodies and nurture them with love and care.

With my skincare range, I’ve always been passionate about plants and their healing properties. There’s something magical about connecting the vibrational frequencies of plants to our skin’s language. It reminds me of my childhood, sitting in my grandmother’s backyard, catching cherry blossoms in the wind. Those memories shaped my unique perspective on the relationship between skin and plants, and I believe they hold the key to unlocking our skin’s true potential.

As we finish our tea, I want to invite you to explore the pleasures of MAHALO Skin Care, a Kauai-based artisan-crafted line of facial beauty care. Embrace mindfulness in your skincare routines, and remember that even simple acts of self-care can be transformative rituals that connect us to our true selves. For the mundane to become a ritual, all that’s required is your conscious care and devotion, to you, for you. Thank you for joining me in this intimate conversation, I look forward to sharing more with you soon.

Key Timestamps
1:21 The Layering of Skin
7:06 Grounding into Sacred Space
15:20 The Magic of Plants
19:14 The Ritual of Skincare
32:46 Invitation to Integrate the Scared Journey into Skin
34:07 Poem: The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran (On Beauty)

On Beauty

And a poet said, Speak to us of Beauty.

And he answered:

Where shall you seek beauty, and how shall you find her unless she herself be your way and your guide?
And how shall you speak of her except she be the weaver of your speech?
The aggrieved and the injured say, “Beauty is kind and gentle.

Like a young mother half-shy of her own glory she walks among us.”
And the passionate say, “Nay, beauty is a thing of might and dread.
Like the tempest she shakes the earth beneath us and the sky above us.”

The tired and the weary say, “Beauty is of soft whisperings. She speaks in our spirit.
Her voice yields to our silences like a faint light that quivers in fear of the shadow.”
But the restless say, “We have heard her shouting among the mountains,
And with her cries came the sound of hoofs, and the beating of wings and the roaring of lions.”

At night the watchmen of the city say, “Beauty shall rise with the dawn from the east.”
And at noontide the toilers and the wayfarers say, “We have seen her leaning over the earth from the windows of the sunset.”

In winter say the snow-bound, “She shall come with the spring leaping upon the hills.”
And in the summer heat the reapers say, “We have seen her dancing with the autumn leaves, and we saw a drift of snow in her hair.”
All these things have you said of beauty,
Yet in truth you spoke not of her but of needs unsatisfied,
And beauty is not a need but an ecstasy.
It is not a mouth thirsting nor an empty hand stretched forth,
But rather a heart enflamed and a soul enchanted.
It is not the image you would see nor the song you would hear,
But rather an image you see though you close your eyes and a song you hear though you shut your ears.
It is not the sap within the furrowed bark, nor a wing attached to a claw,
But rather a garden for ever in bloom and a flock of angels for ever in flight.

People of Orphalese, beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.
But you are life and you are the veil.
Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.
But you are eternity and you are the mirror.