Falling in love is not an extension of one's limits or boundaries; it is a partial and temporary collapse of them.
M. Scott PeckRead
I define love thus: The will to extend one's self for the purpose of nurturing one's own or another's spiritual growth.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Love is about the desire to support and enhance the growth of oneself and others spiritually.
This quote by M. Scott Peck suggests that love is not merely an emotion but a conscious decision to invest in the growth and well-being of ourselves and those we care about. It emphasizes the importance of nurturing relationships that foster spiritual development, highlighting selflessness and commitment as integral components of true love.
Themes
LoveSpiritual GrowthNurturingSelflessnessRelationships
In practice
Example use cases
In a wedding speech to express the essence of the couple's love.
More from M. Scott Peck
All quotes βListening well is an exercise of attention and by necessity hard work. It is because they do not realize this or because they are not willing to do the work that most people do not listen well.
M. Scott PeckRead
If your goal is to avoid pain and escape suffering, I would not advise you to seek higher levels of consciousness or spiritual evolution.
M. Scott PeckRead
All my life I used to wonder what I would become when I grew up. Then, about seven years ago, I realized that I was never going to grow up--that growing is an ever ongoing process.
M. Scott PeckRead
When we love someone our love becomes demonstrable or real only through our exertion - through the fact that for that someone (or for ourself) we take an extra step or walk an extra mile. Love is not effortless. To the contrary, love is effortful.
M. Scott PeckRead
An unconscious, gentle process whereby people who want to be loving attempt to be so by telling little white lies, by withholding some of the truth about themselves and their feelings in order to avoid conflict. Pseudocommunity is conflict-avoiding; true community is conflict-resolving.
M. Scott PeckRead
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If you distill the essence of everything, what life is about, every single one of us is given a short moment in time on this planet, and we all have one universal need and desire, and that is to be loved and to love. And to deny that for your own political expediency, I don't want to live in that column. It ain't worth it.
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My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?
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I give you my hand, I give you my love more precious than money, I give you myself before preaching or law; Will you give me yourself?
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I have made the most important discovery of my career, the most important discovery of my life: It is only in the mysterious equations of love that any logic or reasons can be found.
John Forbes NashRead