Seven Stages of Love

Being the flavour of the season, the word 'LOVE' has been overly exploited already. From TV ads to V-day cards, everything is being painted bright red. So, I'll go straight to the point and leave out the boring niceties.

The whole idea of this post came from one simple idea. I then blew it up, and made up stuff to fit with that model. This is what you would call Reverse Engineering. It's something like what you would do for the numerous 'Prove that LHS = RHS' questions we have had encountered in the Mathematics exams. We know were we are supposed to arrive at. We just try to find a way to get there.

So, here's the things that I made up - The Seven Stages of LOVE.

*** This analysis was performed by observing various relationships. The lack of first hand experience might be telling on the final result ***

1. Sa - First sight

Nothing much special here. Statistics state that the average man sees about 547.4 faces everyday. But I don't think I need to use a statistic to convince you that we see a lot of faces everyday, most of them unfamiliar - and most of them go unobserved. But if when you observe a particular face, you feel something in your heart, that, THAT, my dear friend, is the first sight of love.

2. Ri - Finding out

Also known as the 'Goosebumps' stage, this stage in Love is one of suspense. You know you love her, and you want to know if it will be returned in kind. So, you basically need to ask her about it. I was once mad enough to write about 13 different ways to propose, so I won't be making the same mistake here. Please refer my other blog in case you are hell bent on reading it.

3. Ga - The 'Rose tinted Glass' stage

If you have reached this stage, Congratulations!!! You are among the lucky few to have their love returned in kind, from the person they want it to come from. I call this the 'Rose tinted Glass' stage, cos the lovebirds fly carelessly through the sky. It's the best among the stages, as you can find no wrong in the other. The other is perfect as far as you are concerned.

4. Ma - Break up

And then you start meeting the imperfections in the other. It's not a sudden process - it's a gradual gathering of facts, mostly from unpleasant encounters. But the actual act of break up is sudden. The pent up frustrations gains vent in a single moment, and becomes something more than it is supposed to be.

5. Pa - Healing

We've already talked about this stage in an earlier blog. This is the stage which requires your friends to be at the very best. They must console, cajole and ultimately convince you that this is just a phase in life, and that it too will come to pass.

6. Dha - Coming to terms

And when it passes, you'll come to terms with the situation. This is again like the Break up stage. It does a hit and run on you. At some point of your 'Healing' stage, you'll realize that this was how it would have turned out after all, that this was necessary part of your relationship. And then you'll find peace.

7. Ni - Getting ready for more

Again, a stage which takes it time to pass. You've decided to let bygones be bygones. But, you are not yet to commit yourself into something new yet. You take your time dawdling in other stuff, hoping that one day, you'll be ready to love again.

***

When I had put forward this idea to a friend of mine, I was asked how I would explain people being in Love in the institution of Marriage. Especially when the stages included a phase involving Break-up explicitly. And I've given you the answer already.

In case you missed the hints I had lavishly laid out for you, I've equated each stage of Love with a 'Swara'. And what do you think happens after the 7th swara - the swara's repeat themselves, starting from 'Sa' on a higher octave.

Just like the swaras, Love repeats itself, at a different level - maybe with the same person, maybe with someone else. You would have seen your parents/your friends have a big quarrel with their significant other, and then patch things up after some time, and continue with their lives like before. That's them going back to stage one after stage seven.

And that's what I wish for you on this special day. I wish for you to have someone special, so that you can fall in Love with them, over and over and over again... and then again...

'til later.