What is Love to YOU?

[Joccaren]

I'm only going to answer part of this, as the question of "What is love" is best answered only via Haddaway reference, which has already been done multiple times, or via the acknowledgement that it is a series of chemical reactions in the brain that make us feel good around another person, and quite likely inclined to breed with them.

To throw away so much not for love... as I refuse to acknowledge it as such, but what it truly is. Comfort. Comfort coupled with some whimsical affection and greed. By an objective standpoint that's what this "love" really amounts to. To feel some comfort or find relief from loneliness.

I wouldn't put it quite like that. You need a lot more qualifiers there. For example, I have a massive amount of friends. They are always talking to me. My family is always there for me. I'm always doing something with someone else, I'm never alone, and there is never no-one I can talk to. I still feel like absolute shit after heartbreak though. I'm not lonely. Its something different. It is difficult to explain, and that's why you never really get a straight answer on it.

Man's loneliness is just his fear of life after all?

Not entirely sure what you mean by this, but I'd say no, not really. Loneliness is the need for a connections with other people, and being unable to satisfy that connection - being alone.

Whose to say one needs "love" to conquer their dreams or ambitions? Is it not better to not have to rely on such an emotional crutch? To stand on one's own ? Is this comfort we seek really necessary or is it there to make life slightly more easy and bearable?

No-one. No-one has ever, so far as I know, said you need love to get to your dreams. More often its that love is a part of someone's dreams.
As for it being better not having love? I'd agree with that, to an extent. Unrequited love; Yeah, you're better off without it. Mutual love that lasts? I would give up anything in the world for it. Yeah, I'd get further in life on my own, I'd be more successful, more determined, more motivated and more focused without love, I'd get to my dreams, and I'd live on top of the world, but I see no point in that without someone to share it with. What point is there in doing it all on your own?
Love isn't necessary, but neither is happiness, kindness, peace, companionship, your car, your job, the roof over your head or 90% of the things you own. Its also not there to make life more easy and bearable. Love is not the means to an end, it is its own end.

I am left to wonder why something so intangible and practically nonexistent seems to outweigh the tangible accomplishments or success of humanity when it comes to value.

Why should it not?
What is the point of something tangible?
Why is amassing 12 billion dollars worth more than finding the one person you want to share the rest of eternity with?
It seems to outweigh tangible accomplishments because it does outweigh them. Tangible things in life have no meaning. What use is 12 billion dollars if you have nothing to spend it on? What use is a fancy car if there's nowhere you want to drive it? What use is flying to the moon if you have no reason to want to?
Its the intangible things that make life worth living. With those 12 billion dollars you can have an amazing time, do whatever you want, and make yourself - at least temporarily - happy. With the car you can drive yourself to the places you want to go, and enjoy those places, or even just the experience of driving. Flying to the moon gives a great sense of accomplishment, inspires dreams and fulfills them too. Dreams, Enjoyment and Happiness are all intangible, yet they are what make life worth living. Love is just something else like that. Its something you live for.

 

[Resetti's_Replicas]

Love is anything that makes you go against your own best interest. Not just material-wise but intangible benefits too. In other words it's infatuation, not love, if your foremost goal is to have sex with them.

 

[smithy_2045]

Love is an unattainable pipedream. No I'm not bitter, stop saying that.

 

[SlaveNumber23]

Love is a terrifying, debilitating, painful sickness. Its also the best thing that can happen to anyone.

 

[Mr.Pandah]

Not really sure at this point. I'm still trying to figure it out. I thought I knew it for sure recently, but now this relationship is about dead. So honestly? I don't know at this point. I wish I did though but I don't think I'm at that point in life just yet to truly understand it.

 

[Extra-Ordinary]

Love is when that first infatuation passes, and you still like spending as much time as you can with your girlfriend/boyfriend/partner. It's when you can get through the toughest of times, and still not think any less of the other. And it's when you know the other has some things that bother you greatly, but you look past them anyway and don't think any less of them.

I've felt that infatuation a couple of times, and this is a pretty good description.
But to be more specific on the emotion itself:
I think of it as an absolute need to be with somebody. Just wanting to be close to the other person and doing everything you can to make them happy. Of course, that's just the infatuation stage, like sanquin said, only if it's lasts is it love.
Kind of basic, kind of cliche, but hey, it's my definition.

 

[Stasisesque]

It's like black pepper on strawberries. Both are good and can be eaten separately, or mixed with other ingredients, but bring them together and you've got yourself a taste sensation. That's what love is like.

 

[God's Clown]

Love is general is a strong attachment to something to the extent that losing it would mentally and physically cause your distress. Unconditional love is an attachment so strong that you are willing to sacrifice your entire being to protect and care for said thing that your attachment is to.

 

[ShipofFools]

Being in love is like a really, really good mindtrip, that lasts for quite some time.
Love itself is more then that, it is having found someone to care for and to share with, someone who goes straight into your heart and will never leave.

It's good to have that special someone.

As for me, I love my girlfriend. Not like "Oh I want to be with you because you're pretty and funny." Rather, it's "No matter the tough times or challenges, you're the only one who keeps me pushing and I need you." Love cannot be explained with mere words, I feel personally it can only be expressed through actions. Heck you'd sacrifice your own ideals or materials in favor of making that person or something happy/better. It's how I see it overall.

Very well put!

 

[Major Idea]

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous, love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly, it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. Bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

I find that really useful. Especially when the one I love drives me up a wall with confusion and I need that extra bit of patience and understanding.

 

[asap]

It sounds like an ignorant thing to say.
Self-Preservation is quite an intrinsic nature among most humans so it'd be stupid just to do as you would advise.

Can you honestly say without a doubt "LOVE" is the most important thing there is? Because I would like to disagree heavily. Which is why I even made this thread in the first place.

Your definition of love is the very reason I despise such a convoluted term and if man's endeavors or my own accomplishments in life have taught me anything then no. This romanticized tripe you call love is not necessary to one's life at all times.

I think the evolutionary logic behind love is quite strong but that is not the point i'm trying to make.

More that it is a chance to let go of all the prior thoughts and logical decisions and enjoy life more fluidly, at least with one person. The emotional compulsion to do so is the required push, but the freedom received is fantastic. When another person feels similar then the confidence and overall happiness is overwhelming. The negatives mainly arise due to lack of confidence in either parties.

I know that a video game website isn't all into feelings and prefers hard logic when approaching problems, but nothing is as empowering.

 

[Froggy Slayer]

I know that it hurts like hell. I know that it's essentially been tearing me apart for the past few years. And I know that I wouldn't get rid of it for the entire world. Reminds me that I'm still...human, I guess. Hell, reminds me that there are still things worth fighting for in the world.

 

[Froggy Slayer]

If anything it was all pointless like most love is.

The pointless little things are what life is all about.

 

[thesilentman]

The poetry in this thread... Q_Q

What is love to me? It's a feeling of pure happiness, unmatched by any joy in the world. It's also when you're ready to throw away your world for someone else. Yet another definition would be a feeling of intense attraction that will never go away when cemented in place by time. It's many, many things!

But only one definition rings with me: pure happiness, despite any tough times that may follow.

... I approve of this thread. =)

 

[Willy Hernandez]

What is love? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhrBDcQq2DM

Also anyone could tell me how put the vids properly?

 

[Dragonbums]

Love to me is a very symbolic partnership.
No one is expected to do certain things because of what is imposed in society.
It means taking turns, listening, and getting along.
When we argue it should strengthen the bonds you have with one another. Not break it apart.

 

[CrimsonBlaze]

I've experience the feeling of love before.

For me, it was a warm, sensation in my chest, almost like a candle, burning with serene grace. I also felt as if something inside was pouring or bleeding, yet it remained in my chest and the sensation was sublime. Whenever I was close or thought about the girl that I was in love with, I would be reminded of that sensation I would be near her and continue thinking about her.

So whatever your beliefs about what love is and if it even exists, I can assure you that it is a feeling of extreme comfort and it most certainly exists.

 

[hooksashands]

A saying that I read a while back summarizes my view. "Romance is when you want the other person and true love is when you want the best for the other person." Made things simpler for me when I got a crush on my best friend some years ago, we got too different views on relationships, I wouldn't feel satisfied and he can't handle me on a 24/7 basis. So I decided to support him when it came girlfriends and not demand anything from him. Irony being that three girlfriends later he's tired of relationships and I'm still his best friend.

I want a partner that genuinly cares for my wellbeing and needs, and would be willing to do the same for them obviously. Not much fan of the whole "love at first sight", feels nice but a more mature emotion would probably be a better base for relationships.

Totally. Love is sacrifice for someone else's sake. I watched my friend go through boyfriends like lightbulbs until she went to college, where she met an awesome guy. I know he's awesome because I hang out with him and all three of us play Borderlands together; we even do this stupid tri-fecta tickle/cuddle thing sometimes. Despite her fortune, I occasionally wish I could have been her Mr. Right, I feel that small twang of jealousy in me... but that's just selfish. So is looking at it as being 'friend zoned'. The more I think about, the more relieving it is because while with her previous boyfriends she'd call me up every night crying, angry, and we'd sit around and talk about what total shitheads her ex's were or what a total shithead her soon-to-be-ex was, there would always be this little voice in my head asking "Could you really do better?" I never asked her out, or admitted this to her. I saw that she needed my help and I provided the kind only a well-meaning platonic friend could. =P

I don't believe in the "love at first sight" crap either, but I do believe in chemistry. Even if the idea can't hold up as universal law, it's comforting to think that everyone has a soul mate. Or at least someone they can live with for 6 months and not want to stab.

 

[TakerFoxx]

Love' is making a shot to the knees of a target 120 kilometers away using an Aratech sniper rifle with a tri-light scope.

To clarify: Love is knowing your target, putting them in your targeting reticule, and together, achieving a singular purpose against statistically long odds.