Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.
Robert A. Heinlein
MEANING OF THIS QUOTE
Love is arguably the most beautiful feeling known to man. Well, there are a couple of reasons for this. The first one is because love is a feeling that only humans can experience. Don’t get us wrong – animals, too, can be affectionate, but their affection is contingent upon (the expectation of) someone fulfilling their basic requirements. And this brings us to the second reason that makes love so special – it defies a person’s basic instincts.
Love is essentially putting someone before yourself. You basically cease to live for yourself; you live for another person. Their needs become more important than yours; their happiness becomes essential to your own.
IS TRUE LOVE UNCONDITIONAL?
Probably, yes, but this unconditional love is subject to some very significant conditions. For starters, unconditional love is bound to get you nowhere in a toxic relationship. Such love does more harm than good. Likewise, harboring feelings of unconditional love in a one-sided relationship is of little help.
IS ROMANTIC LOVE THE PUREST FORM OF LOVE?
While that’s subjective, it surely isn’t the only example of love. A parent’s unwavering affection and a friend’s steadfast support is no less significant than a partner’s love. Regardless of its form, what truly matters is whether one person prioritizes the other’s happiness and well-being over their own or not.
CONCLUSION
Despite the undeniable materialism that has corrupted words like ‘love’ over the past few decades, in its truest form, it remains the most splendid yet inexplicable feeling. Making your happiness contingent upon someone else’s might seem limiting in this day and age, but when done for the right person, it actually is a very liberating feeling.
Robert Anson Heinlein was an American science-fiction author. Heinlein once wrote: “Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.”