Last year on Valentine’s Day 2011, I posed a very simple question right here on my blog: “What does love mean to you?”
Little did I know that asking this question would invite the entire world to my doorstep.
The blog post sparked an incredible global discussion on the meaning of love: one that transcended boundaries of landmasses and seas; overcame language barriers, nationalities and skin-deep differences; and would incidentally become a miniature-Mecca to humanity’s devotion to Love.
Yup, in the last year alone, literally thousands upon thousands have come from all corners of the Earth searching for the phrase, “What does love mean to you?“
They have arrived from places like Malaysia, India, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia, Israel, all across Europe, throughout the Americas and beyond — with the beautiful curiosity of what love truly means.
A year ago, asking that simple question on this blog would result in the post becoming the most visited blog post in the three-year history of DaveUrsillo.com — constituting a whopping 9.04% of total traffic to my blog in those 12 months!
Of course, this isn’t about blogging or web traffic — it’s about how wonderful it has been to have accidentally discovered such an alluring question, which, in turn, became a beautiful representation to how human beings around the world are utterly devoted to love.
Love, baby.
Love transcends every trivial boundary, division or separation that keeps us apart. It binds us, it unites us. It is the common ground we look to find in meetings, the unity we desire to achieve in discussions and debates on important social and political issues. It is the global peace we long to achieve.
Love is the contentment of Being, simply within ourselves.
And so, on this Valentine’s Day in 2012, I wanted to not only share with you this wonderful story about love, but also to share with you the dozens upon dozens of utterly beautiful insights on love that have been written by human beings from around the world.
And, who knows…
When you’re reading this list over and imagining those typing fingers of all shapes and sorts and colors… nestled away in an endless variety of nooks and corners of planet Earth… opening their hearts and souls to delve into the meaning of love… you might just feel a little better, a little brighter and a little more loving.
And if you ever have a bad day or a moment of doubt about the human species, or our dedication to love, or our natural wants of simple peace and happiness… look no further.
What Love Means Around the World…
Below is a mashup of all of the incredible things people around the world have said about love in the comments section of last year’s post. Enjoy it. And, Happy Valentine’s Day to you!!
Love is the Fulfillment of Life.
Love is everything.
Love is God. God is Love.
To Love is to Be who you Truly are
Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.
I think in true love, you lay down your life everyday for it. Sometimes it’s a small sacrifice… and sometimes it is without measure.
Love is laying aside self for someone else.
Love is not an emotion; to say this is to discredit its power.
Love is When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
love is when you cant sleep cause you are think about them love is when you are so in love that you cant think when you are not with them.
love is amazing. love is awesome.
love is when you don’t care what they look like u just love their personality.
Love is a dream.
Love is a strong feeling for some person , friend , family girlfriend/boyfriend etc.
love is the most powerful thing in the world.
love is different to different people. there are different types of love.
Love is beautiful!!!
To understand your love from who they are to their flaws and mistakes, nobody is perfect or flawless. To understand limits and space with your love, To forgive and to sacrifice just to be with your love.
Everyday that you are not with him/her, you wonder what she/he is doing and wonder if she/he is thinking the same thing.
Loving everything about your love, not just one aspect of that person, everything that your love does makes your heart dance and your mind sings a love song to you.
Love is not something that should be done very quickly, it should have time and when your time comes, you will know you’re in love.
Never giving up on love because there’s a lot of chances in the world, just be patience and believe that one day you will find that special someone for you.
Love means accepting someone(s) and something(s) exactly the way they are in this moment.
When I live in love, I see only perfection.
love isn’t something that should be thrown around like a little rag doll it is a gently caring
Love is not a thing it is a state of being. Love is in the sunrise and the sunset. Love is compassion, kindness and caring to those less fortunate and those more fortunate. It does not compete.
Love is ALL.
Love is within radiating outwards to ALL. Love is the pure spirit of every being.
Indeed, love is not an emotion. The peace you feel from love is the emotion.
Love is completion without possession. Being with someone because you want to be with them, not because you need them to complete you.
You can not put a word on love…it is a feeling, a knowing, that this is right and is where you need to be. With real love, there is no doubt between the head and the heart, they are both in sync.
the best type of love is where you try to make yourself whole first. So that instead of being “half”, and putting the responsibility for your wholeness and emotional well-being on the actions and validations of another, you make sure your love comes from a wholeness so that you contain enough to support yourself and sometimes another. The thing is, if you give yourself unconditional love and acceptance, you have it, and if you give it away, you still have it.
To me, love is an emotion of happiness when I am able to share something of myself, my time or my knowledge, with others unconditionally.
It’s more than words. It’s actions in small moments.
To me, love is much greater than what we feel romantically. It is what makes us sing, dance and makes us human.
Love is the most amazing thing in our lives. It is what makes us human, what makes life worth living. Nothing else truly matters.
Love is the energy that connects us to everything. It is infinite and does not vary depending on who or what it is intended for. It is our god in its purest form.
To me, love means tapping into that inner, never-ending pool of gratitude & acceptance. Acknowledging the Divine Light in us all.
Love is a form of celebration.
Love means honesty and trust. It means being true to yourself and eachother. It means never taking eachother for granted and laughing every day.
To me, love is life, and life is love.
Love is not a fleeting, hard-to-capture moment or a level of emotion that we can only hope to attain by finding “our better half” in hopes of being “complete.”
Although forever imperfect, we are complete. Although forever flawed, we are whole. We are all that we need for completeness. Those whom we love only serve to challenge us and enhance us to become better people.
Love is a state of Being. It is a state of mind. It is a total openness to what is and what is not.
Love is forgiveness and compassion, patient determination, and the dedicated Will to better the lives of those around us.”
Now… what does love mean to you?
So, let’s hear it! What does love mean to you?
Let’s keep this awesome discussion going, and build an even bigger and better collection of insights on all things love. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts on love’s meaning, message and power on this Valentine’s Day.
And, bonus round! Ask your friends in languages of the world…
Want to join the love parade? Click to Tweet “What does love mean to you?” in your native language, or just a new favorite to mix things up :)
In Afrikaans: Wat beteken liefde vir jou beteken?
In Arabic: الحب ماذا يعني لك؟
In Bulgarian: Какво [does] обичат да ви?
In Catalan: Què l’amor significa per a vostè?
In Chinese Simplified: 爱是什么意思，你呢？
In Czech: Co pro vás znamená láska?
In Danish: Hvad elsker betyder at du?
In Dutch: Wat betekent liefde betekenen voor u?
In Estonian: Mida ei armastan keskmine teile?
In Finnish: Mitä does rakastavat keskiarvon haluat?
In French: Ce que l’amour signifie pour vous ?
In German: Was bedeutet das für Sie liebt?
In Greek: Αυτό [does] αγαπάς σημαίνει να σας;
In Haitian Creole: Sa fè lanmou vle di pou ou?
In Hebrew: מה אוהב אומר לך?
In Hindi: आपके लिए प्यार का क्या मतलब है?
In Hungarian: [Does] szerelem, mit jelent Önnek?
In Indonesian: Apa Apakah cinta berarti bagi Anda?
In Italian: Che cosa amare significa per te?
In Japanese: どのような意味を愛だ？
In Korean: 무엇이 당신에 게 의미를 사랑 합니까?
In Latvian: Ko dara mīlestība nozīmē jums?
In Lithuanian: Kas nėra meilės reiškia jums?
In Malay: Apakah cinta bermakna kepada anda?
In Norwegian: Hva [does] elske bety for deg?
In Polish: Co to [love] średniej dla Ciebie?
In Portuguese: O que amor significa para você?
In Romanian: Ce are dragoste înseamnă pentru tine?
In Russian: То, что [does] любовь означает для вас?
In Slovak: Čo robí rád pre vás znamená?
In Slovenian: Kaj [does] ljubezen pomeni za vas?
In Spanish: ¿Qué amor significa para usted?
In Swedish: Vad älskar medelvärdet för dig?
In Thai: สิ่งที่ไม่รักหมายความว่าคุณได้อย่างไร
In Turkish: Ne demek sana seviyor mu?
In Ukrainian: Що таке любов означає для вас?
In Vietnamese: Những gì không tình yêu có nghĩa là cho bạn?
* No, I am not multilingual and relied upon a translator for help here! If there’s an error you can help me correct, leave a comment below! Thank you. :)
That’s all I’ve got for you today. Hope this piece helps to open your heart, you mind, and your imagination to the world of love that surrounds us, always.
Rock on. Shine on.
And, once again, Happy Valentine’s Day to you!
PS :: I’ve been jammin’ about love all over the web…
“I feel so much love around me always, that life itself has become my very soul-mate. And, the feeling is ten-fold when my thoughts and deeds and creative expression each vibrate with a devout sense of meaning, purpose and fulfillment.”
– Ode to the Secretly Sex-Crazed Computer Geeks :: a guest post for Elisa Doucette’s Ophelia’s Webb
“Our instincts are that internal compass, providing us with guiding direction toward where we believe we ought to be heading — if we merely remember to look down into our palms and see where the needle is pointing.”
– Love your Instincts :: a guest post for Syndee Stein’s Deeper Ground