This are some quotes from an excellent book I've been reading recently:

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"What the world generally refers to as love is an intense emotional condition, combining physical attraction, possessiveness, control, addiction, eroticism, and novelty. It's usually fragile and fluctuating, waxing and waning with varying conditions. When frustrated, this emotion often reveals an underlying anger or dependency that it had masked. That love can turn to hate is a common perception, but here, an addictive sentimentality is likely what's being spoken about, rather than Love; there probably never was actual love in such a relationship, for Hate stems from Pride, not Love.

Love is unconditional, unchanging, and permanent. It doesn't fluctuate---its source isn't dependent on external factors. Loving is a state of being. It's a forgiving, nurturing, and supportive way of relating to the world.

Love isn't intellectual and doesn't proceed from the mind. Love emanates from the heart.

Reason only deals with particulars, whereas Love deals with entireties.

Love takes no position, and thus is global, rising above separation. It's then possible to be "one with another", for there are no longer any barriers. Love is therefore inclusive, and expands the sense of self progressively. Love focuses on the goodness of life in all its expressions and augments that which is positive. It dissolves negativity by recontextualizing it, rather than by attacking it.

This is the level of true happiness..."

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To those words, I might add that in this life I have only seen such love fully demonstrated and realized in fewer individuals than I can count on the fingers of one hand. I've seen it partially realized in many good people. It is quite comparable to the kind of love a good mother instinctively feels toward her small child...only instead of being extended JUST to that child exclusively, it goes out equally toward absolutely everyone...every living being...regardless of their flaws or their individual nature. It expects nothing, demands nothing, gives everything. Such is the Love that God has for all of Creation. Such is the Love that Life has for all living beings.

Such love is attainable. Those few who attain it are said to be "enlightened", which is a good description, because they are filled with light. In the presence of light there can be no darkness.

In romantic love as this society thinks of it, there is usually a good deal of darkness (mixed with some light)...and a great deal of need and desire. That which sees itself as incomplete is in need and desire, and expects that it can get what it needs or wants, from somebody else. This is an unfortunate illusion, but one that has most people in its control for their whole lives. They call that illusion "love", and write books, plays, movies, and songs about it. It's very dramatic, full of highs and lows, so it makes for a good book or movie. Entire industries depend on this illusion for their livelihood.

An example of actual Love in action is the life of Mahatma Gandhi. Another such example is the life of Mother Teresa. Others: the life of Jesus or Buddha or Baha'Ullah (the prophet of the Baha'i religion).

Love is seeing the other AS yourself, and behaving accordingly...because in truth there IS no other. There is only One of us here. One masquerading as many. That is the foundation of all the holy teachings.

Love will never invade another country. Love will never execute or imprison. Love will not torture. Love will not persuade by force or rule by fear. Love will cure illness rather than attacking only the outer symptoms of illness...by filling whatever lack there was that showed itself as the illness in the first place. Love will establish equality, not protect and perpetuate elitism. Love will recognize that human rights spring from an eternal divine source inside every human being, not from the temporal authority of some government or church or bureaucracy. Love will find meaning in the beautiful heart of Life where the loveless find only victory, fame, vengeance or profit.

Love can save the World.