Love is not a special emotion reserved for selected people or relationships but a way of relating free from self-interest, possession, and psychological dependence. Most relationships become transactions driven by insecurity, where the ego seeks completion through ownership and exchange. Genuine companionship arises without the urge to control or claim another, allowing affection to exist naturally, freely, and without conditions or expectations.
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Questioner: My question is, what is love? Is it the same for, say, a partner, my family, my friends? Is it binary, or is there anything such as love other than the self-love that we have?
Acharya Prashant: Start from where we stand. What is not love? Right? Man looking at woman because she's pretty. Obviously, that's not love. A woman looking at a man because he's handsome. Both engaging with each other after looking at each other's bank account. No. Obviously, that's not love. Ensuring that the parents agree and the caste equation too agrees. Obviously, that's not love.
Or the mother and the kid. The mother saying, "This is my particular kid, so I'll take care of it." Or a dog lover saying, "Oh, my dogs have to be taken care of, and I'll feed chicken to them." Obviously, that's not love.
Have you seen people walking their dogs? Some of those exotic species. They keep a cane with them. One hand, the leash; the other hand, the cane. What's the cane for? To beat up the stray dogs. "This is my dog. This is my baby. I love it so much. I am the mama. The pet mother." That's the love between the mother and the kid. "My baby, I love it so much. And if needed, I'll beat up the other ones."
