Love Is Our Essence

What do we call a newborn baby when he/she first comes into the world?

A little “bundle of joy” right?

And there’s good reason for it. We begin life as curious mini-people bubbling with joy, happiness and love (well, except when we need food or our diaper changed).

This is because Love is our essence.

“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.” -Erich Fromm

Hold up… Before you picture me riding a pink unicorn over a rainbow and all that, let me elaborate a little bit.

Note: The way I’m using the word Love includes happiness, joy, peace, bliss and all things usually labeled as “positive.” It’s so much more than just the “honey, I love you”-type stuff. That’s why there’s 4 words for love in Greek, for example.

We gravitate towards people and things that make us smile, and tend to keep a distance from Negative Nancys.

That explains why is laughter pretty much the most contagious thing in existence. It’s the physical manifestation of pure joy that everyone wants in on.

We have a deep desire to feel good. And who wouldn’t? I’ll give you a nickel for every person you can find that really wants to live in fear, sadness, pain, hate, depression…etc.

Let’s see what Google has to say on the matter…

Might as well hit you with a few quotes too while I’m at it…

“The only abnormality is the incapacity to love.” -Anais Nin

“We love life, not because we are used to living but because we are used to loving.” -Friedrich Nietzsche

And what’s a post on Love without old school Valentine’s Day cards?

Damn right, Michaelangelo

Love is our natural state.

Let’s take a look at our essence from 3 perspectives:

Spiritual teachings- Many spiritual teachings describe what is commonly referred to as God with names like Infinite Consciousness, The Infinite, Universal Oneness, Om, Elohim, or simply…pure Love (see an extensive list here). This is why we come into this world as beings of pure love and happiness, and we constantly yearn for love and happiness throughout life. Because it is our essence.

Ever hear the phrase “God is love”? That’s what it’s getting at.

“Love… It surrounds every being and extends slowly to embrace all that shall be.” –Kahlil Gibran

Look at kids- Children are fresh out of wherever it is we come from. Fresh outta the essence. And generally speaking, they enter the world beaming with joy, happiness, and love. (Although they do act up sometimes if their basic needs aren’t satisfied, but rightfully so.)

Kids are  like a clean slate. They’re bursting with imagination, creativity and wonder. Go to any public place and see how kids act compared to adults. Kids run around and play. They have fun. While most adults are stone-faced and anxious (there’s always some awesome characters who retained a child-like essence though, so there’s hope).

Children begin to lose this love-based disposition when they accumulate fear-based conditioning and experiences. When they accumulate baggage, conditioning, and place rules/limitations on everything. This becomes like clouds blocking the sun. It’s a blockage, a disconnection from our essence.

We have a lot to learn from children, if you think about it. Like the ol’ quote:

“Be child-like, not childish.”

Be in the moment. Use imagination. See the wonder in everything. Practice non-judgment. Leave preconceived notions at the door. Ditch the inhibitions. Express yourself. Play. Laugh. And most importantly, HAVE FUN!

See my post entitled “What We Can Learn From Children” for more on this.

Meditation- Meditation is a state of non-thinking. It is simply being.

It is a letting go of everything. And when you let go of everything, what are you left with? As everyone can attest to, deep meditation is a profound sense of happiness, joy, peace, love, and overall well-being.

This is where we go to get “knowledge of self.” To realign with our true nature.

Here’s a quick meditation guide for beginners.

Some common words/sayings/phrases to think about:
+The term “baggage” – If you have no baggage, you’re happy, right? And take a look at this MLK quote: “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

+The phrase “let me be” – Implying that it’s all good when left alone.

+The phrase “worry-free” – Implies that you’re left with Love/happiness when there are no worries.

+When someone says “I wasn’t myself.” – This is usually describing a fear-based quality (anger in most cases). I hope people don’t say “I wasn’t being myself” after expressing Love in some form.

+We put the word “happy” in front of our birthdays, holidays…etc. – Imagine saying “sad birthday” to someone? Hahaha.

So next time you’re feeling all negative, remember, Love is our essence. Choose Love.

Stay feelin’ good, feelin’ great.

Love,  <~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ seewhatIdidthere? 😉

-Stevie P!

PS- What’s Love without some music?