What is Love?
Love has been a controversial topic throughout humankind’s history; what exactly is love? Is it a feeling, an emotion, or a perhaps a state in which we exist? Is it the result of compatible personalities or simply chance? Can love really be explained, or is it something that words fail to adequately define?
The definition of love can vary from person to person. To some, it could be a burning passion, whereas for others, it could be a gentle warmth. Love can be unconditional or it can be conditional and depend on certain attributes that a partner possess. Love also has many faces, from a mother’s selfless affection for her child to an expression of a young couple’s profound understanding of each other.
No matter the context, love builds strong interpersonal connections and encourages two or more people to become emotionally and mentally bonded with each other. Love often sparks within the core of someone’s heart and then goes on to captivate the mind and ignite the soul with passion and desire, making it difficult to anticipate or explain.
Also, love encompasses diverse forms, such as platonic affection, romantic love, familial love, best-friend love, and self-love. Each of these forms stimulates different aspects of our lives, and is closely linked to our mental and physical health. Someone’s ability to love themselves is often reflective of their ability to love another person.
Love remains a great mystery, lying dormant in our hearts waiting for the right person to come along and awaken it. Love is difficult to put into words and to explain in its entirety, but what is certain is that from ancient times to modern times, it has been at the center of our emotions, our passions, and our lives.