What is love? It is a perplexing and curious question. Poets describe it; writers document it; people tell us they love us – but still, we do not fully know the answer. Why not? This is because love is not external. It does not exist in time and space. It must emanate from the self. Once we feel and grasp the love of self – self-love – we are able to extend that emotion, that unique feeling, to our fellow man. In a world so inundated with media-generated negativity, how do you possibly come to the point that you can begin to understand yourself, let alone love? As with any skill, I believe it must begin with a desire to learn. If you look at nature, you will see that there is an expression of order in things.
Life clearly has a cycle to its creation, maturation, regeneration, and physical end — to be rebuilt again through its seeds or offspring. In the natural world, there is an aspect of love that we fail to understand in a human sense. There is the biological bond most certainly of tenderness and warmth, but something deeper. There is a level of love that accepts what is and tries to improve throughout the succeeding centuries. “From tiny viruses and bacteria, unrecognized for millennia, to blue whales weighing 200 tons, and fungi that spread for hundreds of hectares underground, the diversity and extent of life on Earth is dazzling. In its life and reproduction, every organism is shaped by, and in turn shapes, its environment.” (1) It is not judgmental – it simply desires to improve.
Love then, on an individual basis, comes with an understanding that each of us is an innate part of nature. At the beginning of our life, a primitive part, to be sure, but still a part. We are an intrinsic piece of the cosmology, an essential component of the universe, of God, if you will — whether we recognize it or not. If this is true, then the world needs each and every one of us to “do our duty” and improve as beings. Failure to do so and the consequences will be dire.
“Ecologically speaking, the infrastructure of life on Earth is in danger of collapsing under the weight of human extraction, production, consumption and waste. Climate change, depletion of scarce resources, destruction of plant and animal life, pollution of water and air, soil erosion, declining food security in many parts of the world – these are symptoms of a deadly trend that must be reversed if humanity (and much of life in general) is to have a future. …
Spiritually speaking, these developments have led to a concentration of human goals on material wants; the artificial creation of a culture of discontent; a narcissistic mindset of wider horizons and long-term visions; the dismantling of traditional systems of meaning, cultural values, and social norms without providing valid alternatives and the concomitant dissolution of extended families and communities.” (2)
To begin to understand love, time must be spent in silence and meditation. All answers lie within, I do believe this to be true. I am subject to my five senses (sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing). Introspection allows us to access the sixth sense, our connectivity to universal consciousness (3), and our place in it. It is here that the spark of love begins. We begin to realize that each of us has a mission, a purpose to be fulfilled on the Earth. We are not just casually created entities. We have been given life in a very real and essential way. Much like a lake is created by thousands of water droplets, so it is with human society. Curiously: if you drop a tiny, tiny amount of mud into a tarn it is sullied for an unbelievable distance – much like the actions of people in present-day society.
I cannot change the world, but I can learn to love myself and change my little piece of it. The eminent Buddhist nun and teacher Pema Chödrön (b. 1936) leaves us with a thought: I have discovered, just as my teachers always told me that we already have what we need. The wisdom, the strength, the confidence, the awakened heart and mind are always accessible, here, now, always.
A closing thought: It is easy to “get lost” in our contemporary world. One way to begin your journey into the self is to renounce fear – fear of failure, fear of success, fear of life, and, ultimately, fear of death. All of these are artificially created constructs: the creator – me! This is why the sages continually reference the individual as the true solution to all of life’s ills and evils. I am alone. This is not, as I have often said, some psychologically depressing statement. It is the truth: the corollary being that I am therefore free to be the true me — whatever that means – and find my place and contribution to and in the Common Good.
To sum up: This week, we spoke about love and how this emotion must begin with an expression of self-love first.
To be noted: from Mother Teresa (4) — Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand.
Just for fun: Mischa Maisky plays Bach Cello Suite No.1 in G
For reflection: 思想的歷史 — 文藝復興
This week on your reflective walk, please ponder how you can learn to truly love yourself.
Every day look for something magical and beautiful
Quote: Love is like pure mountain air – unhindered and magnificent.
Footnotes:
1) Ecologists Study the Interactions of Organisms and Their Environment
2) Celtic spirituality and contemporary environmental issues