Power and Love

"Where love rules, there is no will to power, and where power predominates, there love is lacking. The one is the shadow of the other." - Carl Jung

Discuss.

I would like to only I don't understand... I've had no sleep

I would love to. But never having been in love I don't really think I have anything worthwhile to say. I don't think I have ever been in love...what's it like? Maybe someone should start a thread and people can give their opinions on that too...okay, be back when I know...

It's not about "love," like the stuff on Valentine's Day or whatever. It's about the love that you feel as a person, for your parents, for your siblings, for your friends, whatever. Do you feel love though you haven't ever "been in love"? I am sure that you feel some kind of love.

I feel the need to protect my family and friends...Does that count?

Yes i think in love there is no will to power as it is an altruistic and unselfish emotion.

Whereas when someone has power over another the other the love is not reciprocated in exactly the same way.

Makes sense, however i am yet to see anything work without someone having power.

I don't know . . . do you love them? Does the need to protect them come from love? Can that be called love?

Moreover, if you do have this love, do you not want to gain power? Do you not want to conquer your family? If the love was missing, would you want to?

I love almost everything. I think I understand the question now. I don't think there needs to be a power thing in love itself but in some relationships there is obviously a dominant person .eg. parents. Did I understand right?

Well, power must exist, and someone must hold power (at least one person), but that does not mean that the power "predominates" the individual. A person can have a lot of power yet still have a lot of love. It is when the power is the core of the individual . . . such as when a person wants desperately to become rich and famous and is willing to ditch friends and such for it. The person is missing some sort, some form, of love, from someone.

I don't know. There aren't really any right answers - only thought.

Think of the inside of the individual - if the person craves power, is he or she lacking love? If the person has all the love in the world, will he or she crave power of some kind?

Gain power?...me? No, I would not know what to do. I don't understand love in any shape or form...Compulsion maybe but love or rather the many descriptions elude me.

Love is a form of power too. When someone loves you and/or you them it gives you to different extents power over eachother. Depending on the relationship and the depth of the love depends on the power each person would have over the other.

Its an interesting subject because love cannot be boxed and labelled, we all love differently, we all love different people in different ways.

As Jung says if love rules then you become submissive to it. Almost like the unconditional love of a child to a parent.

As a parent, if you love your child, you will try to be a good parent and use your position to hold power over the child for its own well being.

Therefore holding this power is essential in giving love to your child.

And on the other end of the scale there are people who use love to hurt, whether intentional or not. FOr example, if someone loves you...however they define it, you are able to hurt them or effect their lives in a much greater way because they let you, the feeling weakens people and strengthens them at the same time.
While you are stronger for having that person to help you, you are weaker because your life is open to be more effected by them, ecspecially emotionally, and mentally.

i love in certain ways i love my boyfriend becus i cor explain i just do and every time we are together or apart i love him and never stop thinking of him. i love my dog becus he is like my best friend and he is cool and stuff and i love my couisn cus i look afetr him and have done 4 8 years and he is like my baby and i just love him but i dont think if u r in love u lack power or if u have power u lack love i think both can co-exist together and both are really equal