All forms of love is Divine Love expressed in a variety of ways. Regardless of it’s expression, Divine Love is a powerful love! Power that emanates and stretches far beyond any limitations attempted to be put upon it. Because the very fabric and essence of all life is Divine Love, it is demonstrated in a number of ways; some of which may not seem like love at all.
But when you think about it, all forms of animate and inanimate objects are created from and are a part of the Divine Love tapestry. Therefore every experience whether considered positive or negative, good, or bad, right or wrong are also forms of Divine Love revealing itself in different experiences for the continual growth and expansion of consciousness.
In fact, I am convinced that the energy known as love is self-contained to the extent whatever you think, perceive, hear, and feel, smell, touch, taste or believe is ever present; guiding you toward your everlasting highest good. How could it not be? As one of the highest vibrations in the universe the varying expressions of love is actually the only thing there is. I realize most people don’t believe that because of the belief in duality. It is believed: ‘how could any energy that looks and feels so good also be the cause of such pain and darkness? ‘
The answer lies within the eyes of the beholder. In reality, perception is based on what one has been programmed or conditioned to believe about every form of love demonstrated. Simply consider, that if you were told over and over again during your growing up years the sinking feeling in your stomach is not the fear of something awful but rather an exciting, fun experience you’re ready to have, you would equate the sinking feeling as great, not dreadful. Can you understand how through conscious and sub-conscious stimuli you create a road map which leads you down a specific path perceived in your mind to be right or wrong?
The brain is flooded with over 200 bits of information, all to be interpreted per minute. That’s a lot! There is no way you are able to be aware of all the information you pick up, but you take it in anyway. You process it and then develop beliefs, ideas, thoughts and feelings from which you react or respond to. From which your desires, goals and visions are herald (also Divine Love taking on yet, different forms).
As you can see, Divine Love is an energy with multifaceted patterns. It includes the expression of love from one person to another. There are six ways to love described below as a few examples of how Love is expressed. Each type of love can be perceived as positive and/or negative. But each one is commonly experienced and expressed in one way or another.
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1. Tough Love: This type of love has the appearance of being harsh, cold, uncaring and actually unloving. But it couldn’t be farther from the truth. Tough Love is how it sounds but it is done to promote so many attributes, which if learned, allows the person who is being loved to grow into their best self. An example of Tough Love is…
A 15 year old understands to smoke in the school bathroom is not allowed. Yet, he does it anyway because he wants to be cool; more grown-up. The teen is caught and his dad is called with the news. Dad ensures the principal that he will rectify the matter. Later that evening after the family had dinner together, dad asks his son to stay for a moment. Dad, speaking to his son says, “Son…I understand you’ve taken up smoking! Well, don’t hide it in the bathroom stall. If you’re going to smoke, do it like a man! Here, have a cigar with me.” As dad pulls out the cigar and shows his son how to prepare it for smoking the son begins to feel queasy. He knows he doesn’t want to smoke that thing, but he also knows there is no way out with dad. Once the son lights the cigar and takes his first puff he chokes, gasps, coughs and knew it would be as awful as he had imagined. The teen decides he doesn’t want to take another puff but dad…well dad insisted they smoke their entire cigars together.
It was a lesson the son never forgot. It was an experience which stopped him from smoking forever. At almost ninety he is as healthy as can be.
2. Compassionate Love: It is believed that to have compassion is either a sign of weakness, feeling what someone else feels, or feeling sorry for a person in pain. Compassionate Love surpasses far beyond these misnomers. It is a love that understands what a person is experiencing. No one can feel exactly what another person feels. We can only feel what we have personally experienced and then connect with how it makes us feel in a similar situation to another. Compassionate Love is therefore tolerant, understanding, simple, easy, and allows us to experience the unity, not separation, we have with each other. This special love allows us to connect with our own humanity in the most wonderful and intimate way and is expressed to another.
3. Conditional Love: This love may sometimes appear to be a very sweet love, however because of an underlying intent it is not actually sweet, at all. Conditional love does not allow for energy to flow freely. Rather it creates limitations, lack, being stuck and even death to the emotion of love. Nevertheless, it is still a form of Divine Love in that it advances the person toward moving along a path of enlightenment through spiritual development, self-awareness, compassionate understanding and a host of other attributes which significantly aid in the ascension of one’s real self. Here’s an example of Conditional Love…
A woman loves her boyfriend very much. His passion is photography although he works as an executive financier. He doesn’t enjoy his job. In fact he despises it. But it affords them a great life-style. The couple have been together since he began working at the finance company. It wasn’t long before they started living together. After a couple of years they both felt it was time to take their relationship to the next level. He proposed to her while at the same time, he announced he had quit his job and was going to work as a photographer’s assistant. She knew that meant they’d have to tighten their belt and she didn’t want to give up the life-style they had been accustomed to already. So, she told him she could never get marry him unless he kept his current job. Consequently, they broke up. He loved her too, very much. But he had to follow his passion, his heart for photography. It was not an easy decision for him to leave her, but if he wasn’t able to express a part of himself through the medium he loved, he would wither inside. It was more important for him to be true to himself allowing his spirit to thrive than to be confined in the cage of Conditional Love.
4. Nurturing Love: When we think of Nurturing Love we think of a mother’s love. Nurturing Love is an expression of love that helps nurture others. It’s the type of love that allows the full essence of a spiritual being to blossom. This love is understanding, wise, considerate, validating and kind. It allows seeds to be planted and then cared for with the right amount of water, sun and nutrients for strength and expansion. This is why the expression of Nurturing Love is equated with parents and children. Children are given what is needed daily, so they become strong, healthy, joyful, balanced, loving and positive contributing adults to their community.
5. Tender/Caring Love: We all know what this expression of love is. It is the sweet love that cares for another person. This type of love demonstrates you care for another person as much or more than you do for yourself. A person who receives tender love can often love herself a little bit more. An example of Tender/Caring Love is…
An elementary school teacher had a class that was horribly unruly. One of the students in his class had ADHD making it difficult for her to learn how to read at grade level. The child’s parents didn’t have the resources to hire a tutor or an aid to help their daughter. The child was often teased by other children in the class because of her reading and writing deficit. Often the girl could be found crying behind one of the bungalows. She felt so stupid and humiliated all the time. Her teacher decided rather than grade papers and work on the lesson plan for the next day right after school, he would tutor her. The teacher asked the child’s parents if he could work with the little girl individually every day. Of course the parents agreed. After working with the child for an entire semester, she learned to read and write well; up to her grade level. In fact she ended up getting a B in the class for her reading and writing skills.
By that one act of Tender/Caring Love a young life gained confidence in herself and her ability to learn. She is now in college studying to be a nurse.
6. Unconditional Love: The full embodiment of Divine Love is Unconditional Love. It is simple to define, elegantly pure in nature, fluid in delivery and magnificent in displaying power in every aspect of it’s expression. Unconditional Love is just love. It has no strings attached, no conditions, it’s not concerned with ill will, God’s blessings, what you believe or how things should or shouldn’t be. Unconditional Love for another person is wishing many blessings upon them, it’s wanting the absolute highest and best good for them, even when they’ve done something against you. Even if they are unkind. Even when they care only about themselves. Even if they are filled with dark thoughts leading to dark actions. Unconditional Love is absolute forgiveness and the willingness to love absolutely in every given situation, at any given time. This love is, without doubt, the full essence and glory of Divine Love for any human being who chooses to express it.