Love’s Meaning
“What is this thing called Love?”
Really – what is love? We all talk about it, think about it, pretend we know about it. But, really, what is love?
The Christian Bible says things like: God is Love. Love one another. Love your enemy, love your neighbour. Yeah, yeah – sure, sure. Got it! But, really, what does “love” mean?
In my attempt to learn what love is, I decided to work out what love is not. Here’s my list so far:
Love is not sexual attraction. Love and sex are NOT synonyms.
Love is not attachment or possession. I love my dog, I love my home… that’s not love, it’s ownership and control.
Love is not desire. I love chocolate, I love to swim naked in the sea. That’s not love, it’s yearning for satisfaction.
Love is not satisfaction. It’s not “feeling good.” I love sunsets. I love dance. I love beauty. I love art. That’s not love, it’s passion, it’s emotion. Emotions come and go like wind in the trees.
Love is not needing. “I love XXX” does NOT mean, “I need XXX.” That’s dependence.
When we say, “I love you,” does it mean “I want to make love to you, I want to control you, I desire you, I get along with you, you turn me on, I need you?” No, no, no and no. So far, I understand what love is not. Love is NOT about me getting something. It’s not about me receiving or having something.
Is it: “I wish for your happiness?” Does “I love you” mean, “I wish of your happiness” even if it means I may not be happy? This meaning works. I will put this meaning on my list of what love might be.
OK – is love God, as John, one of the writers of the New Testament, says? Is God love? OK – if God is the creator of all, can we say love is the creator of all? Yes we can. So, is God merely the personification of love? If so, we are back where we started: the word ‘God’ is merely a synonym for love. Our question remains: what is love, or what is God? Same question.
So far, we’ve only got one idea that works: love is my wish for others to be happy. (Or healthy, or satisfied, or – any other benevolent intention we might have for another being.)
I think I have thunk enough about this “love” thing. Jerry Lee Lewis once sang: “Too much love drives a man insane.”
Know that I love you.
KennyDN.com