Contextualizing Words and the Meaning of Love

"What if the mightiest word is love, love beyond marital, filial, national. Love
that casts a widening pool of light. Love with no need to preempt grievance."
-- Elizabeth Alexander

As you gather from my “welcome” video, in this class we are focusing on “agape” love, which is
sometimes described as the “highest form” of love. You read many definitions of this word. As for
me, I see agape love as consisting of two sides: on one side is compassion (the prevention of pain),
and on the other side is loving kindness (the promotion of happiness).

Agape love goes beyond love between individual people, perhaps best exemplified in Gandhi’s
belief that “peace between countries must rest on the solid foundation of love between individuals.”
As I have pondered the meaning of love, I come back to the definitions of true love as expressed by
Thich Ngat Hanh, quoted in my essay (above) on “Exploring True Love.” But I have also come to see
“non-violence” as a form of agape love and, related to that, "civil disobedience." As you move through
the course, please feel free to share your views of the definition of love on our discussion forums.