Love- “An undefinable emotional subjugation”

Love is an emotional, psychological and an innate feeling which humanity has expressed it through their works since ages. It is such a concept which can never have an exact definition. Shakespeare in his famous sonnet 116 said,

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds 

Admit impediments.”

Shakespeare meant that, it's not truly love if it changes when it encounters difficulties. This poem eloquently reflects how divorce makes a mockery of the wedding vows, which pledges unconditional love. Shakespeare itemizes what people who are really in love do not do, they don't change. Their love remains strong even when they face difficult situations. Along the same line, he described the concept of true love. It's constant, unmovable and reliable. It's not weakened by difficulty or hard times. Finally, love is not bound by youth and beauty. Your loved one remains true even when you're no longer young and pretty. Love is forever.

Since the Industrial Revolution started in England at around 1750, humanity never looked back. We wanted development, money, power, every comfort and luxury but lost sight of some values which was comparatively much more precious and important-“Love” Love according to the definition of modern age would be either merely an attraction for the opposite sex, selfish desires or simply lust. It isn’t that the selfless love which was conveyed by Shakespeare has vanished totally, but when we talk about generalizations probably this definition would definitely make much sense.  

A very interesting concept which has emerged in the 21^st century is “loneliness” Surprisingly; this psychological trauma was never experienced in the earlier days. Humankind was much affluent and acquainted with moral values and had affection towards each other which has become a missing element in our modern life. We, the people of modern generation have been taught to earn everything. In fact, love, happiness and affection can also be amassed. How? The answer is Money. Is it genuinely that love can be earned? Can defeating others give satisfaction? Can the concept of happiness be understood without learning the art of sharing? The day mankind understands these concepts; that day he could be called as a complete rational being.

Another vision that comes in my mind is, does love has an antonym? How can humanity forget the celebrated word- ‘hatred’? Love poured in the glass of humanity where affection, care and selfless conduct prevail can never have an antonym. Probably, this kind of a world where discrimination and abhorrence doesn’t survive won’t be possible to create, but my question is can’t we stop dividing ourselves? Boundaries between nations were created for administrative convenience but was there any need for a border line to be created within our heart? Religion was initiated in order to instill values, code of conduct and morality in human beings but was there a need to fight communally on it? Why a religion even had to be divided on the basis of castes and sub castes?  Isn’t love becoming some sort of an endangered word which is marching towards extinction?

The richest person in the world, Carlos Slim Helú, a citizen of Mexico has a net worth value of 69billion. Another statistical figure reflects that nearly 15 persons die every minute in this world due to hunger. What array of development are we talking about where poverty prevails more than anything else? A child of merely 4-5 years is weeping ahead of us as she needs a loaf of bread to fill her empty stomach. What is the 1^st instinct that generates in us? The immediate feedback would be how to avoid and run away from the situation. Where have we lost our humanity where only the word “Me” exists? Mother Teresa devoted her entire life to humanity. There were people who didn’t understood her language as she was an Yugoslavian but does  love really need any language to be communicated? It itself is a language which is understood globally. Eventually, we all are human beings with the same scientific name and can’t ignore the fact.

Humankind today is hustling after love. Every one of us wishes to have a “Romeo” or a “Juliet” in their life. Love itself is such a colorful word with multiple shades in it that nobody can remain untouched from it. But, to be a true lover, you need to be a “giver” not a “scrounger” Every form of love demands sacrifice. It actually glorifies the meaning of love adding pure divinity to its meaning. The society we live in has fabricated us in such a manner that self-centeredness is a part of our behavior. This approach towards life can never hatch happiness in our life as I recall the applauded lines of Dalai Lama,

“Happiness is not something readymade. It comes from your own actions.”

Love according to me isn’t merely a feeling. It is the glittering sunshine which makes me smile. It is the adrenaline rush in my blood which adds spice to my life. It’s the twinkling hope in my heart which says, that mankind would one day surely understand the true notion of love.