LOVE! :-))))

LOVE, प्रेम ,പ്രേമം , காதல் , ప్రేమా 

पोथी पढ़ - पढ़ जग मुआ , पंडित भया न कोय। 
ढ़ाई अक्षर प्रेम के, पढ़े सो पंडित होय। - संत कबीर 

A person's education is of no use if they do not know how to love and respect others! - Saint Kabir

அன்பிலார் எல்லாம் தமக்குரியர், அன்புடையார் என்பும் உரியர் பிறர்க்கு . - திருவள்ளுவர்  திருவள்ளுவர் 

A selfish person thinks that everything and everyone is at their disposal whereas a selfless, loving person thinks everything that's theirs belongs to all!

By Thiruvalluvar the great poet / from thirukkural!

LOVE! A very interesting subject and also very diverse. Don't know what to write but will like to share what I've observed till date. I LOVE YOU! Wonderful! Magical Words! In English, LOVE is a general word and used to depict one's love for anyone from one's parents to anything one desires or connects with. In India, LOVE has different words with respect to different relations! We simply cannot go up to someone and say these words. Its considered taboo! I can say that to my parents or other close blood relatives and to my spouse but I can't say the same to any stranger, though I may be referring to a particular quality in them, when I say that!

I do know, times have changed a lot since my teenage, and youngsters nowadays can shout that in public without being ridiculed, but still a section of the society feels bad about this! My family is quite forward minded when it comes to this, as I can say "I Love so and so" as they know my love is not a romantic one and it is just said to show my like / support for that person!

But, still, I refrain from saying that in public and do that only at home. My country is culturally rich, but still there are certain rules / codes for us which would dare not break! I've fallen in love with so many people at different stages of my life. My first love happened at the age of six, when I found myself in love with a film personality, later, as I grew up, I found that I loved only his screen persona. Now I can say that I love him for many facets of his personality! :-)) There are so many people on my list, ranging from family members, friends, people in the neighbourhood, famous personalities, who held me in awe because of their interesting personalities. But they have fallen out of favour over time as I the very traits that I found interesting in the beginning didn't appeal to me later! I think this is because with every revolution around SUN, I find my ideas and ideals changing!

Love at first sight! It is so glorified in Indian cinema! :-)) Boy / Girl meets the either, opposites attract and they fall in love. I don't disapprove of this, as they say, Love Is blind, but I think Love grows and should grow with every passing year. It is mainly based on trust and mutual respect! It must be UNCONDITIONAL! In any relationship, this factor is a must! But, sadly we find it only with our mother. But, my belief is that if a person's love is TRUE, it would face anything, apart from violence and sadism. It will finally TRIUMPH into something BEAUTIFUL!

What is unconditional love?! Though, I'm not an expert, but it's been fascinating to see so many couples that I came through in my pre-martial and also now, how people hold on to each other with such faith, determination and love. Not just for physical pleasure or money, but REALLY! Its AMAZING! They fight bitterly, would seem like they're on the verge of separation, but in a few days, they're back to their normal loving selves! I personally think that all of us come from different backgrounds, raised by our parents differently, have numerous bittersweet experiences that give us an idea of how our love life should be and since we attach this baggage to ourselves, we are unable to celebrate the difference or the uniqueness of the person that we marry!

But, if we try, we will see that with each passing day we fall more and more in love with same person for a different quality of theirs. Like, from my life, I like music, its food, water and Oxygen to me, while my better half is not very enthusiastic about it! What fascinates him doesn't fascinate me at all! Everything from food, movies, ambitions, music and opinions we almost don't agree on anything, BUT STILL, over all these years of togetherness, we've learnt one thing, that to give each other some space to grow and also help in achieving each other's dreams! In case of any fight or quarrel, ranging from few hours to days together, either of us break the ice by bringing up some general topic and never let our EGO blow up our relationship!

In the early days of our marriage, because of my immature notions of LOVE, I used to wait to hear those three wonderful words I LOVE YOU", but never got it. As months passed by, and as I got to know him better, I found his motherly love for me during my pregnancy and his fatherly side when he used to advice me on certain things and a GURU as he patiently taught me certain things and a FRIEND while sharing jokes and his day at work! Then, it dawned on me that, more than saying it, it was more important to show it! As the years have passed I view him as my third child!

Love could be between so many people, need not necessarily between family members, but with one's profession, passion, pet, country, GOD or for no particular reason another person. Sometimes when, with a person, it may develop into a romantic relationship, it need not always be so and it might be just respect / admiration for a certain quality of their personality. Nevertheless, LOVE is indeed BEAUTIFUL, makes one wanted and is the only thing that makes the WORLD go round!

I might have missed on many other aspects, as I'm still on the path to learning more! So .... that's all!

Everyone's friend,

Lakshmi! :-)))