Limiting love to relationships is like limiting God to an idol. It exists there, but also everywhere else.
There is this strange, tenacious quality of love. As gentle and beautiful as it is, it can also be extremely life-transforming. It can bring about changes, that nothing else can. If you just look around you will see that we are all living love, in every moment of our life. The very home you live in was the love of some architect and builder, and together it created a shell for you – to grow in love. Up in the sky, a plane goes past, and I can’t help but feel what kind of love for flight someone must have had for this to become a reality: make humans fly. The food we eat is a farmer’s love, sweat and effort. Anything that you see around you is someone’s love in action.
And yet, we tend to limit love to relationships. Even within relationships we limit love to a pampering love. An ego-filled love. An expectation-filled love. A barter love – you do this for me, and I will do that. Limiting love to relationships is like limiting God to an idol. It exists there, but also everywhere else. For most of us, if asked, whom do we love, we will have a few names. Within those names also we will have complaints and issues, at this very moment. I love him so much, but I wonder if he cares. She means everything to me, but I don’t think she even realizes it.
Love has been too defined. Too confined. Too suffocated. And it’s time, at least in my own life, to set it free…
I feel such freedom in loving people. People I relate with. People I don’t relate with. Love is the very fabric of my connection, and I don’t even need to know someone’s name to love them. I wish to love, because, what else matters, but love. I wish to love, in spite of. And I notice the more I release such thoughts, from far and wide people connect with me. Personal reasons, professional reasons, spiritual reasons. Unknown reasons. They simply come into my radar, sensing that love, and magic happens.
There is so much peace in my intimate relationships, by just bringing this understanding into practical application: I love because I love – because of what it does to me – I love because of the ways it purifies me. The other is just an expression ground for me. Somehow this relieves me of expectations from others or wanting to change them. Rather, such a love empowers both of us to be our best versions for the sake of love. I have literally watched my relationships metamorphize right before my eyes, from being so human, so struggle filled, to becoming sublime and divine with this little shift.
Bringing in love to every moment beautifies a moment. You can do any form of exercise: run, yoga, walk, Pilates. Or you can see it as you loving your body. My Surya Namaskar ceases to be a number of physical bends and twists but becomes a sacred ritual between my body and me. The food I eat is prasadam and not just fruits and vegetables. In fact, I have realized this truth – one can only experience long periods of absolute health if you truly love your body. Unless that deep love is in place, health is likely to always remain a struggle.
Love for work ensures success. In fact, when you see something – could be anything: a food dish, a blueprint of a building, a poem, a lesson taught in a classroom–if it is fragrant with love, you just know it. When it is done for the sake of being done, you just know it. Love emits something, I don’t know if we can even put a word to define it, that makes an object or a service come alive.
Love is our connection to the divine. It’s not about the rituals or the minutes you meditate. When the heart beats for the creator, love becomes your very nature. Born from love, live with love, and merge into love… that is how I wish for my life to be. What could be more beautiful!
