An article based on the new book, The Seven Symphonies of Extraordinary Love
“Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” – Rumi
Extraordinary Love is the ability to love for the sake of love itself. This ability to radiate extraordinary love in our lives requires a paradigm shift in how we love that can fundamentally transform every relationship that we know. Unless, we are willing to shift the context or the paradigm that we operate in about love, any actions we undertake will lead to only a variation of the past.
Extraordinary Love is not simply an emotion, a feeling or a body sensation. It is awareness, consciousness and a way of Being. It is a conscious choice to love without conditions. You love another person simply for the sake of love, and not because of a special circumstance, or to fulfill our needs or attributes that they demonstrate. One makes an extraordinary choice to love extraordinarily.
In the context of everyday living and loving, I’ve observed seven different ways, seven different roles, through which we relate to others with extraordinary love. These roles are: parent-child, friend-sibling, student-teacher, lover-beloved, man-community, husband-wife, and self-higher self. Incorporating this knowledge into our consciousness enables us to flavor every endeavor of life with harmony, peace and happiness.
1. The symphony of unconditional sacrifice (Parent-Child): Despite how grown up and successful we become, part of us always remains a little child in our parent’s eyes. They may not have had the right tools or know-how to express this unconditional love for us in a skillful manner, but a parent never stops loving their child. By opening our heart to our parents we remove the barriers to experience the extraordinary love they have for us.
2. The symphony of friendship and unlimited generosity (Friend-Sibling): A true friendship is a treasure worth in gold. As the saying goes, a friend is someone who knows the music in our heart, and can render the composition back to us even when we doubt our own melody. As we navigate through the ebb and flow of life, we need to be willing to accept the gifts from our friends, for doing so provides them with the gift of giving. No matter what level of success we achieve, we won’t do it by ourselves. We need others to help us along the way, and it becomes our loving responsibility to pay it forward.
3. The symphony of obedience (Teacher-Student): The covenant between a disciple and master requires respect and obedience. What follows is an awakening of knowledge. Humility allows wisdom to flow. Acknowledging our teacher’s greatness breaks down the walls of ignorance and ego. Obedience to the master removes any blocks that keep us from leading a life of our highest potential. The heart that is open to such love of obedience is magnanimous, understanding and compassionate towards all beings.
4. The symphony of true romance (Lover-Beloved): True romance requires that one surrender completely to the agony and ecstasy of love. To feel the sweet pain and exultation of spirit is better than no love at all. Extraordinary love in this context of true romance is a communion, a complete surrender, a dance, an art, a supreme expression of beauty.
5. The symphony of community and humanity (Man-Community): Consider our individual significance as a human being doesn’t come from material successes but as a result of self-actualization. When we embody the true meaning of community and harmony in the core of our Being, we become intoxicated with love. Community means coming together in unity, and humanity is the essence of oneness. Community love is accepting others with compassion.
6. The symphony of devotion (Husband-Wife): Devotional love is giving of self through thoughts, feeling and deeds with complete surrender. This is the art of conscious loving with humility. When the feminine goddess merges with the masculine counterpart with such devotion and surrender, divine intimacy becomes available.
7. The symphony of awareness (Self-Higher Self): When love becomes our religion, nature acts as our scripture, and we begin to merge with the higher levels of consciousness. Meditating in this divine realm of consciousness then gives us the access to the eternal. A sense of oneness with our world engulfs us and we become present to the majesty of divinity in each of us. Extraordinary love becomes a way of Being, a natural expression.
When love is extraordinary, it imparts its perfume to the entire universe. Such extraordinary love cannot be concealed once it has been awakened within our heart.
The trick is trying to master all seven symphonies simultaneously. I usually have 6 of the symphonies going pretty well, but sometimes have trouble in 1 area or another at any given time.