Definition of Love

What is love? A question that has been asked for generations upon centuries, and has yet to find a true answer. A rhetorical question by habit, yet there are answers floating about here and there. What is my answer? "What is love?" cannot be answered at all for it is intangible, an abstraction. Hate cannot be truly defined either since a thing cannot truly exist for a time without having an opposite co-existing, one cannot come into light without the other in a sense. Now, one might say, "Neil, both words appear in the dictionary, not even you cannot deny physical evidence like that." to which I merely give this response, "Those are definitions of the actions and repercussions of the actions that result from the intangibles passing through the world."

"Why is this post entitled, Definition of Love, if there is no definition for love, nor hate for the sake of being complete." Now, that is a valid question, and I sit here typing this post with this to say. Each person has his or her attempt of defining the term whether they know it or not. Everyone has felt some level of love and hate whether they acknowledge it or not, whether is buried deep within the unconscious lost due to lack of rehearsal or other such memorial devices. This is my definition as it stands on this date at this time.

Love is...
caring for someone more than you believe was even possible for caring for them.

Now, this seems very simple following such a build up and the fact that it has been debated over for years through families and friends, acquaintances and strangers, for generations upon decades upon centuries from the moment the concept was even conceived. BUT, it is so broad and non-exact. It does not constrain to a strange level nor allow thoughts to err to different topics. I left out things such as "you would do anything for them" as that does not really relate to most situations and it seems more directed to the passionate love whereas I am trying to speak towards the general love. Love of family, love of friends, love of self.

So, I have grown to love so of the people I see from day to day life and (maybe due to paranoia) I haven't really felt the love reciprocated back to me. And, sadly, I have made myself an example of how love is not something that needs to be reciprocated, but can just be merely given. That, in my opinion, is what Christianity wants of people. To be kind to others without the hope of receiving anything in return. That is what builds up true karma for Buddhist, I think. Two major religions thus agree on this one point which is such a rare occurrence, it should be taken into perspective and let it cause you awe.

Edit: 2/25/08

Having not reread what I wrote, but being inspired on defining the difference between being inlove and merely loving someone, I decided that I have a worthy venture in which to engulf my mind. However, I feel it is fairly simple to discuss the difference between the two states of being, seeing as that is what they are. If I were to love someone, then I have a deep, hard to cause to flinch gut feeling towards the protection of that person's livelihood. I love my friends proportionately along the hierarchy of friendship that could be discussed at another time. If I were to be in love, my feelings for that person are so deep that nearly nothing could cause me to even question my connection to that person. I would likely cast my life away for any of my friends, however for a person with whom I am in love, I would not even give a second thought to casting my life down to save hers. To be in love is to be happy and though I have no idea what happiness is, I feel that any person would be able to recognize this emotion if it arose.