Are Trees Truly Beautiful?

Nature, Meaning, and What We Learn from Looking

Picture by the Author. The view that sparked an enquiry.

A series of reflective essays from the Bay of Naples — Essay IV

Why did I ask myself, “Can trees be truly beautiful?”

While climbing up a flight of steps in an Italian village, I saw a tree behind a high wall. The tree’s crown, set against the autumn-blue sky, looked striking. I paused for a moment, took a closer look and thought it really looked beautiful.

As I continued my walk, I felt the need to know more. Exploring natural beauty is a good starting point. Approaching the question from a moral standpoint is another. And yes, artistic beauty can provide further information.

In answering the question, I may learn to appreciate the transcendental beauty of trees and deepen my sense of meaning, connection, and responsibility toward life.

I. Natural Beauty

Greek Aesthetics

When we say a flower is beautiful, we are conveying that it produces a pleasurable sensation in us. With over 60,000 tree species worldwide, can some trees evoke the same pleasurable response as flowers?

We recognise the appeal of flowers. They look symmetrical, colourful, and perfectly formed. They often smell good too, adding another element to the appeal. Why are flowers appealing?

Picture by the Author: Capri Harbour hibiscus, immediate appeal.

To answer this question, we go to Ancient Greece and ask Pythagoras. For the Greeks, beauty was a reflection of the order they saw in the universe, the cosmos ( kosmos). With order comes symmetry and harmony — flowers fit this description. Interestingly, cosmos gave us the word “cosmetic”.

Although we say ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ the ancient Greeks argued it could be expressed objectively through mathematical proportion. The Golden Ratio was considered the hallmark of beauty in art, architecture, and even the human form.

The Greek idea is still the foundation of Western aesthetics today.

But this Western perspective may be inadequate in answering whether trees are beautiful.

The Appeal of Trees

Trees, unlike flowers, do not conform to the classical notion of beauty. They are seldom neatly symmetrical or proportionate. They often twist and bend, but they can still be beautiful in their own ways.

Picture by the author. Order without ornament — quiet beauty.

Picture by the author. A different view, a different feel.

Some trees, such as pine, have a regular arrangement of their branches. Others, like raintrees, may show fascinating outlines. Have you tried looking up at the canopy while lying flat on a bench? This novel view can produce unexpected branching patterns. They can look interesting and beautiful.

I consider something beautiful when it evokes awe in me. This emotion connects me to something larger.

Compared with their stark winter appearance, the dense canopies in summer are delightful. Since I live in the tropics, where trees show hardly any seasonal change, they do not stir me as much as autumn does.

Seasonal changes in temperate lands appear much more attractive. I remember travelling in New England during the fall. I followed the changing colours of brown and gold with introspective melancholy. How can trees not be beautiful? The fleeting moments of autumn are also reflected on the other side of the world in spring.

The unofficial flower of Japan, the cherry blossom (Sakura), attracts flocks of tourists in spring. For the Japanese, Sakura is deeply woven into their aesthetic sensibilities and spirituality, symbolising the arrival of spring and the fleeting beauty of life.

It is much easier to see beauty in flowers. They engage us immediately. The appeal of trees, however, takes longer to take effect.

And often, it needs a more contemplative outlook to uncover the hidden beauty. The Japanese have an alternative.

II. Beauty Beyond Perfection

Wabi-Sabi aesthetics is rooted in Zen Buddhist philosophy, which appreciates the transient beauty in nature, as it goes through the natural cycle of life. This perspective contrasts with the Greeks’ emphasis on mathematical order and proportion. The Japanese see imperfection in the processes of ageing, decay, and fading as natural. And these changes can be beautiful when seen through a philosophical lens.

It is therefore understandable that Wabi-Sabi aesthetics considers old trees, twisted trunks, and irregular branches appealing. Their perceived beauty lies in their tenacity to grow young shoots and branches. And that was exactly what I saw walking past a restaurant.

The old weather-beaten trunk sloped away from the entrance. It had a small crown of small branches, but what attracted me was a hollow in the trunk, sprouting a carpet of small leafy vegetation. The contrast was striking, worthy of the contemplative moments spent there.

Wabi-Sabi offers us an additional way to experience the world. And trees.

Picture by the Author. Knotted, slanted, and weathered by years — the beauty of imperfection and resilience.

Picture by the author. Tenacity, Resilience.

Picture by the Author. Worn and hollowed by time, yet sheltering new growth.

III. The Moral Beauty of Trees

We recognise moral beauty through how people live. When we see expressions of gratitude, compassion, generosity, honesty, and courage, we are witnessing humanity’s inner beauty. Unlike the natural beauty we see, moral beauty is felt within us as a warm and uplifting sensation. It has an ordinary name with an extraordinary effect — elevation.

Elevation is an emotion with a powerful moral force. It inspires and moves, often transforming indifferent onlookers into compassionate, altruistic supporters. And it was elevation that moved Lori Portka.

In 2008, while feeling down and out, Lori Portka learned from a nun the importance of gratitude in living a happy life. Every night, she would write something she was grateful for from her day and notice amazing things she would otherwise have missed. This was how she started the 365 Gratefuls Movement. Her ideas have spread worldwide and have touched people through the practice of gratitude.

Are trees morally beautiful?

Should we be grateful for trees?

If we are grateful, what should we do?

IV. Recognising the Moral Beauty of Forests

Every year on 21 March, the United Nations celebrates the International Day of Forests. On this day, the organisation reminds us that trees are essential partners for our collective well-being.

What Trees Do for Us

Trees are life-giving — without them, human life and many ecosystems would be severely threatened. They are hard at work converting carbon dioxide into oxygen. At the same time, trees purify the air we breathe by removing pollutants we produce, such as those from driving and manufacturing.

Trees are essential in processing the water we drink. Tree canopies slow the impact of falling rain; the roots stabilise soil and filter pollutants. They prevent soil erosion and block pollutants from entering waterways. Additionally, they recharge underground aquifers, which provide 50% of the world’s drinking water.

Trees give us sustenance.

What Trees Provide Us

Despite deforestation, forests cover almost one-third of Earth’s land area. Today, more than 300 million people call forests home, with over one billion people depending on them for their livelihoods.

Well over half of the species found on land live in forests, their home.

Forests and jungles provide people with food. Both the native communities and rural populations harvest a wide range of foods, including fruits, nuts, mushrooms, and honey. Wildlife habitats provide meat and fish for forest-dwelling communities.

Even in urban communities, we plant trees because they are pleasing to the eye. We create parks and gardens. They provide shade, lower urban temperatures, and air pollution. We feel more at home living in a green environment.

Picture by the author. Offering shade without asking, generosity beneath its branches.

How Trees Enable Us

The Japanese call purposeful walking or sitting among trees ‘ forest bathing ‘ (Shinrin-yoku, 森林浴). The name likens immersing oneself in nature and experiencing it through all five senses. Reconnecting with trees and nature helps reduce stress and improve well-being.

I have been enjoying walks, amongst the trees, if I can, for many years. These walks, initially meant to keep physically fit, have become meditative. They have become appreciative walks revealing deeper and wider dimensions of natural and moral beauty as they merge in harmony. This is good for our mental health.

I suspect nature lovers’ response to nature is not purely sensory but emotional and ethical. This experience, awe, stirred in them a desire to protect, nurture, and give back.

We should be grateful for nature and trees along our streets, in parks, or in forests. We express it not only by caring for the environment but also through moral action. It affirms our responsibility to the world and to one another.

What We Do in Return

Trees, in truth, don’t need us. We need them.

Trees are considerably older than human beings, appearing 390 million years ago. In contrast, our forefathers only appeared about 300,000 years ago. But their existence is threatened by us.

Trees, in truth, don’t need us. We need them.

I have seen a tree in Sorrento with formidable thorns, more or less evenly spread on the trunk. It seeks protection. Nature has given such trees a form of defence, relevant in the past, but of little use against humans, the most formidable predator and destroyer on earth.

Picture by the author. Formidable defence, yet at the mercy of humans.

It seems humans have taken the trees and forests for granted. Is it because we live such busy lives, dashing about, that we do not notice them standing silently, totally unaware of their contribution?

And in return for their contribution, what is ours?

We have been clearing the forests for a long time, often unchecked. Unregulated forestry today remains a significant driver of climate change. If we need a reminder, the International Day of the Forest comes in handy — we need a day to recognise and celebrate their contribution to life on Earth.

We have seen the moral beauty of trees. They are artistically beautiful, too.

V. Artistic Beauty

Along a quiet street in Sorrento, I noticed an unusual artisan shop. It displayed handcrafted wooden items that delight our eyes. But what stood out were the useful wooden objects: sunglasses, watches, tools, and small artifacts of daily life.

Picture by the author. Human imagination and patterned wood.

One item caught my attention — a set of wooden pens. It seemed to say, “From tree to tool, from wood to word — beauty continues its journey through us.”

Picture by the author. Convergence of the art in wood and word.

Here, the tree is no longer just an object of beauty; it becomes part of human expression. The crafted objects embody functional beauty. The Japanese have a special term for the beauty of use, “Yo-no-bi” (用の美), which refers to the coexistence of utility and artistry.

Truly, we can experience beauty and participate in it, too.

From tree to tool, from wood to word — beauty continues its journey through us.

Some artists work with wood, while others work with living trees. Bonsai horticultural artisans have, for hundreds of years, created miniature trees that mimic the weathered beauty of nature — Bonsai (Japanese: 盆栽, ‘tray planting’). This art of growing miniature trees in containers originated in China 3,000 years ago when people cultivated ornamental plants to imitate natural scenery within gardens — a craft known as penjing (盆景, “pot scenery”).

The core philosophy of Bonsai is to portray Wabi-Sabi aesthetics, the poignant passage of time and harmony with nature. Here, the elements of the tree, such as trunk, branches and leaves, remain in harmonious proportion, mimicking a full-sized tree. The artisans cultivate the branches in three dimensions to give the tree visual depth and natural proportions. Symmetry, which characterises Western aesthetics, is avoided.

Picture by the author. In the Yen Phu Village Hall — Japanese aesthetics in Vietnam

Bonsai, to me, comes close to defining all three elements of beauty. Firstly, the miniature tree is itself a natural visual delight. Secondly, it is an artistic expression of a philosophy, and thirdly, the artisans, in giving us the pleasure of appreciation, display moral beauty.

VI. The Convergence of Self-transcendent Beauty

Natural, moral, and artistic beauty are distinct yet deeply interconnected. Together, they portray a higher form of experience — self-transcendent beauty.

Self-transcendent beauty helps us to move beyond ourselves. When “unselfing” occurs, our personal concerns begin to fade as we merge into something larger than ourselves. This “peak experience” can be cultivated through contemplation, which allows time and space to appreciate the beauty of trees. The practice of unselfing can also be strengthened by sharing narratives, works of art, and acts of kindness.

VII. Returning to the Question

Picture by the author. Balanced in form and set against an old mansion, the tree reflects a harmony between nature and human design.

And so, finally, are trees beautiful?

I believe no single aspect of beauty fully captures the beauty of trees. But by looking through the collective lenses of natural, moral, and artistic beauty, I am convinced that trees are indeed beautiful.

They taught me to appreciate their transcendental beauty and to deepen my sense of meaning, connection, and responsibility toward life.

This essay is part of an ongoing series of reflections on travel and the inner life in the Bay of Naples.

Retired professor of radiology writing on ageing, curiosity, and the inner life. Lifelong student of attention and meaning.

Originally published at https://agewelleveryday.org on April 10, 2026.

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