What is love in Hindu Culture?

Love cannot be selfish; love cannot be disrespectful; love cannot misunderstand; love cannot be doubtful. Who set the example of this love for us?
Sriram and Sita set the example of highest form of love.

Sriram was getting ready for taking reins of kingdom and crowned as a king of Ayodhya…and, he heard the news of King Dashrath, his father and the promises he made to Kaikeyi, his queen. King Dasharath made two promises to Kaikayi, his third wife, one to send Sriram (a crown Prince) to exile for fourteen years and crown Bharat (third in the line) as a King.

Sriram understood the situation and his responsibility. He decided to go exile to ensure that his father could honor his words.

Sita mata also decided to leave kingdom and royal comfort to accompany her husband to jungle. Life in jungle was not easy for young royals who were used to comfortable life.

During their exile, they faced all sort of difficulties. However, they determined to stay in jungle for 14 years as per the promise.

After Ravan abducted Sita mata, Sri Ram was upset, but never thought of abandoning his wife. He could have easily forgotten his wife and chose to marry another princess. He was a crown prince of Ayodhya, one of the respected kingdom of those days and any princess would have more than happy to marry him. But, Sriram didn’t choose an easy path. He wanted to bring back Sita. He searched her, build an army, a bridge in ocean, crossed the ocean and fought the difficult battle as Ravan was one of the most powerful kings, who had all the resources in abundance and was considered to be an expert in warfare.

After winning the painful battle, Sri Ram and Sita Maa returned Ayodhya.

Is this more than the marriage vows ‘to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part…’ as these vows are for couple and their lives.

May be an image of 5 people, temple and text

In Hindu marriage is about loving and living for each other and fulfilling the responsibilities. We believe in karma and doing karma is our duty.

Hindu men take more time to commit to a woman because it is a lifetime decision for them. For them, marriage is not a contract, but a lifetime commitment to love and togetherness, and a union of two families. There may be a reason why your boyfriend is taking time to commit, since he wants the relationship and union of two families to run smoothly. Let’s understand what is love?

Love is – to respect each other, understand each other in terms of each other’s nature, roles and responsibilities and accept them, and live or sacrifice for each other …

Sandhya Jane

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