Though many definitions of love exist through many perspectives people have on it, I decided one day to contemplate such a topic. I would sit in meditation and practice Koan. From Japan to English, if it’s placed in Google translate, translates to “Zen question for meditation”. It is also translated to “meditation problem”. With this in mind, that is exactly what I did – I thought about what love is. I placed my attention wholly on this subject, to attempt to define what that is. Through what I found out in that time, I can say to you that love is connection. It is a unifying energy. It is when halves combine to become whole, when two becomes one. With this understanding in mind, it only makes sense that my definition of love is expressed here in this haiku. In honor of Valentine’s Day and with my Zen Buddhist lineage at heart, I am here to remind you that love is not about the high of being attracted to someone, feeling butterflies in your stomach, or striving to feel whole again. Love is when you take one as a part of you, so that everything about you is everything about the other person. It is Integration. When you love someone, you are that person. Even as you have these different types of relationships with people, whether it is romantic, friendships, or sexual, you can see that there is a trace of this unifying energy present in the exchange of intimacy and devotion with one another. This haiku is a reflection of my findings.
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What is Love?
It is to become the loved.
Become the whole world.
Love without borders,
Like the dawn’s blue hue – light, clear,
You become all things.
Embracing it all,
Without any condition,
Leads to a clear heart.
Purified, clear hearts,
Pleasurable surrender,
Taking it all in.
Love – a tree branch’s touch.
Knowing all is a mirror,
Accept. Everything’s you.
We are made of Love.
Love is also made of us.
Where is then, Hatred?
What is this Hatred?
Stains in our mental mirror.
Much weight in one’s chest.
Cleaning the mirror,
Empathy, compassion, care.
All that brings healing.
With crystal-clear hearts,
Diamonds can’t do it justice.
Forgotten treasure.