As I tried to explain Love for myself from different perspectives, I found sometimes only an old Mythology can help you to find your answer.

1: Without Love, there is no life

I shall never forget how I owe my life to the good people of my heart’s city. I shall never forget the beauty of having someone with whom to share news or even the smallest details of life.

I believe the blessing of sharing is one of the greatest aspects of human nature as social creatures. The Omnipotent itself knew that we, humans, were bound to do strange things, and therefore, we needed companionship—someone kind and loving, who could help us reach our full potential.

Life is fundamentally based on having love for one another in our hearts. Without love, there is no life. This is why we need love more than any other creature on the planet.

When I think of love, I remember how Aristophanes explains the myth of the original humans and the origin of love. This passage is from Plato’s Symposium, which includes Aristophanes’ speech on love:

2: Aristophanes’ Speech (From Symposium)

“In the beginning, human nature was not as it is now, but quite different. There were once three kinds of human beings, not just two: the male, the female, and the androgynous. The androgynous was a combination of both male and female.

Each of these beings was round in shape, with four arms, four legs, and two faces set upon one head, facing opposite directions. They had four ears, two sets of genitals, and moved by tumbling over and over, using all their limbs like cartwheels.

These beings were powerful and strong, and in their pride, they challenged the gods, attempting to ascend to heaven. Zeus and the other gods debated how to deal with them. Destroying them completely would mean losing their worship, but allowing them to continue as they were would be dangerous.

At last, Zeus came up with a clever punishment:
‘I shall cut them in two,’ he said, ‘so that they will be weaker, and at the same time, more useful to us—since they will increase in number and continue to worship the gods.’

So Zeus split each being in half, and Apollo turned their faces toward their wound so they could see their loss and remember their lesson. He also stitched up their skin, leaving only a small mark in the center—the navel—as a reminder of their original unity.

When these divided beings awoke, each half was filled with longing for its other. They searched endlessly, throwing their arms around one another in an attempt to be whole again. They embraced and would not let go, refusing to eat or sleep, and eventually, they began to perish from sorrow.

Seeing this, Zeus took pity on them. He gave them the ability to reproduce—so that, when two halves found each other, they could not only unite in spirit but also continue their kind.

This, my friends, is the origin of Love.

Love is the desire for wholeness. Each of us is only a broken half of a human, always seeking our missing part, longing to be complete once more.

Those who were split from male-male beings seek union with other men.
Those split from female-female beings seek union with women.
Those split from androgynous beings seek union between men and women.

When two true halves meet, they are overwhelmed with affection and cannot bear to be apart. They do not desire just sexual union, but something deeper—an understanding and harmony of souls.

If we lived rightly, and pleased the gods, perhaps Zeus would one day restore us to our original form, so we might live in complete unity once more.

This is the true nature of love—not mere desire, but the pursuit of the wholeness we lost.”

3: Meaning of Aristophanes’ Speech

1. Love is the search for our “other half” – a soul-deep connection, not just physical attraction.
2. There were three original human forms – male-male, female-female, and male-female, explaining different forms of love.
3. Longing and love are fundamental to human existence – they come from our separation and desire to be whole again.
4. A humorous yet deeply poetic explanation of desire and companionship – showing Aristophanes’ wit but also deep insight into human nature.