Falling is all about coming down, descending, lowering.

Love, on the other hand, is an elevation, a rising, a being uplifted -- an experience that's buoyant, expansive, and lighter-than-air. At the very least, it's an entering into.

Then again, when you come to think about it, the phrase "falling in love" probably makes some sense -- because the act of falling, if you continue the descent metaphor to it's inevitable conclusion, often ends in "hitting bottom."

Ouch!

The phenomenon is all too recognizable. You meet someone. Your heart opens up. You're flying, you're free, you're feeling no pain -- not unlike the feeling of weightlessness that comes from falling.

Eventually, however, the falling ends. You land. You hit the ground. The object of your devotion, the catalyst for the grand opening of your heart, proves less than unconditional. Their attentions drift. Their flaws become apparent. Their undying acknowledgments fade. And so, alas, begins the painful process of falling out of love.

But it doesn't have to be that way.

There IS a love that is unconditional. There is a love that only gets better with time. There is a love that neither disappoints, diminishes, or disillusions.

Human beings have been searching for this perfect love from the beginning of time. It is our nature.

For many of us, this journey ends when we find the "other" -- usually in the form of what we've come to call our "soul mate." The anima. The animus. The yin to our yang. The yang to our yin.

And while this experience of finding/reunion can be extremely intoxicating, the fact remains that true love is not about falling. It's about being.

Some of us figure this out along the way and begin the search for the "Divine Beloved" -- the Master, the Teacher, the Guide, the Friend, the embodiment of unconditional love. And yes, some of us even find that One.

That's the good news.

The not-so-good news? We tend to enter into this higher love relationship with the same "falling into love paradigm" that ruled our search when we were 16.

In my experience. real love is not something we fall into. It's something we let go to. Big difference.

Many teachers and many paths talk about this love. Many books describe it. But talking about it and describing it take you only so far. The real connection to this love is what matters.

If you have a teacher or path that connects you to this unconditional love, congratulations! Stay with it. Savor it. Go deeper. If you don't have a teacher or path that connects you to this unconditional love (and are open to discovering what it is), I invite you to consider the guidance and message of Prem Rawat, aka Maharaji.

(When you come right down to it, it's all about the love...)