Since ancient times, humans have been searching for meaning. Why does it rain? Why does the fire burn? Love is another mystery that people strive to understand. Love takes many forms. It’s not just about finding your soulmate to marry and start a family. It is a way of seeing this world and everything in it, including love for people, nature, and ourselves. This mindset requires effort and can be difficult to adopt.

The first type of love that almost everyone experiences straight after being born is parental love. In addition to this kind, there is also brotherly love, which lays the foundation for all other forms of love. We choose someone we like and direct our care, attention, responsibility, and other efforts toward them. Brotherly love requires mutual effort, unlike maternal love, which is often more instinctive. Nature dictates that a mother's role in nurturing and caring is far greater than that of the child.

Erotic love, often referred to as romantic love, is the most passionate form, marked by an intense desire for intimacy and physical attraction. So, what is the difference between erotic love and maternal love? Mother and child have to separate in the future, while two people in love, on the contrary, evolve into something united physically and mentally—a new family. Unlike brotherly love, romantic love is not universal but exclusive, reserved for a singular connection rather than extended to all.

Last but certainly not least is the love one has for oneself. It has something in common with maternal love—care is the key. The best partner for us is ourselves, because we understand ourselves like no one else. We can take care of our mental and physical state, and even make our dreams come true. Love for others goes hand in hand with love for oneself since, without self-love, one cannot truly extend affection to others