the origin of love

In the beginning, there was no such thing as Love.

"..the primeval man was round, his back and sides forming a circle; and he had four hands and four feet, one head with two faces, looking opposite ways, set on a round neck and precisely alike..Terrible was their might and strength, and the thoughts of their hearts were great, and they made an attack upon the gods..

'Methinks I have a plan which will humble their pride and improve their manners;', Zeus said. 'Men shall continue to exist, but I will cut them in two and then they will be diminished in strength'..

After the division the two parts of man, each desiring his other half, came together, and throwing their arms about one another, entwined in mutual embraces, longing to grow into one, they were on the point of dying from hunger and self-neglect, because they did not like to do anything apart; and when one of the halves died and the other survived, the survivor sought another mate, man or woman as we call them, being the sections of entire men or women, and clung to that..

..Each of us when separated, having one side only, like a flat fish, is but the indenture of a man, and he is always looking for his other half..

..And when one of them meets with his other half, the actual half of himself, whether he be a lover of youth or a lover of another sort, the pair are lost in an amazement of love and friendship and intimacy, and would not be out of the other's sight, as I may say, even for a moment: these are the people who pass their whole lives together; yet they could not explain what they desire of one another."

- Symposium by Plato

They say Love is the most wonderful thing, and here, it says that Love came about because of pain and loneliness. It was born when we were separated. If Zeus didn't cut us up into two, we'll never know what Love is. Should we thank him for it? Is it better this way? Or is it better that we stay as one and never feel the joy of finding Love? I don't know.

But what I do know and believe in is that, individually, we're already perfect and whole. We don't have to depend on another person to complete us. There are parts of us that could use some improvement and there are parts that are unknown. I think that's what we have to do: find ourselves, be the best we can be, love and accept what we have. Once we've done this, and we're full and overflowing, there will be more meaning and happiness, more of ourselves and our life to share with others.

Here's a video from my favorite favorite movie of all time, "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" about the origin of love. Amazing song. Happy Hearts Day everyone!

"..that's the pain that cuts a straight line down through the heart, we call it Love.."

Sources:
http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YO9FpWX57E&feature=related