Falling in Love?
There's a phrase in the English language that makes no sense to me even though I've used it hundreds of times: "Falling in love."
Falling? Really?
Certainly there must be a better way to describe one of the sweetest feelings a human being can have. Falling isn't exactly the word we associate with great experiences.
The stock market falls. The temperature falls. Civilizations fall. Adam fell from grace. Nobody in their right mind really wants to fall.
Falling is all about coming down, descending.
Love, on the other hand, is an elevation, a rising, a being uplifted.
Then again, if you stop to think about it, the phrase "falling in love" makes some sense -- because the act of falling ends in "hitting bottom."
The phenomenon is all too recognizable. You meet someone special. Your heart opens. 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. Hard. The object of your devotion, proves less than unconditional. Their attentions drift. Their flaws become apparent. And so 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 -- a love that neither disappoints or disillusions.
Human beings have been searching for this love from the beginning of time.
That's what Maharaji talks about. And that's what he reveals to those who are truly thirst to experience it.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at July 4, 2009 02:31 AM
Comments
"Falling in love" is a mainly Western term used to describe the process of moving from a feeling of neutrality towards someone to one of love. The usage of the term "fall" implies many things: that the process may have been in some way inevitable or uncontrollable, risky or putting the lover in a state of vulnerability, that the process is irreversible, or all of these things (in the same way the word "fall" is used in the phrase "to fall ill" or "to fall into a trap". The term is generally used to describe an (eventual) love that is strong, although not necessarily permanent.
- Wiki
It seems from this that "falling" has a lot to do with a potentially high risk factor, possible lack of reciprocity, and no guarantee of permanence. As a mainly Western term, it may likely puzzle the rest of the world somewhat, but I offer that all may consider that unrequited love is a dangerous love.
This was my major concern when I first started seriously paying attention to Maharaji, that I was "falling" into a risky one way relationship. Luckily, my falling fears have been unwarranted for this is the relationship of true reciprocity, a "rising in love" albeit without the thin air and light-headedness, but with a hearty light hearted quality.
Many people find this confusing when associated with Maharaji, missing the point that we love both him, the person, and the seemingly invisible source of impartial and compassionate love, the divine, the well from which we all drink, both the earthly lowest and highest.
Posted by: Don Panachio de La Sundance ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.ideachampions.com/heart/nav-commenters.gif)
at June 24, 2008 09:43 AM
Dear Don Panachio,
Thanks for the wiki reference and your insightful response. Your point is well taken. Some people, I think, who are attracted to Knowledge and Prem Rawat (aka Maharaji) as their teacher, may feel at risk in a way that holds them back from pursuing their attraction -- not unlike the way some people who have been "wounded" in love, tend to hold back from future, committed relationships. Perfectly understandable. To me, for what it's worth (and for anyone who is reading this), the relationship between Maharaji and student/devotee/admirer is expansive, uplifting, energizing, life-affirming, rich, fun, soulful, and full of love.
Posted by: Mitch Ditkoff at June 24, 2008 10:22 AM
I suggest that you read
« Le choc amoureux » by Francesco Alberoni published in French by Ramsay.
Posted by: Alain L at July 5, 2009 10:26 PM
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