Do animals love? truly? Not just for comfort, safety and food? What proof is there? Is romantic love just a man-made construct?

Question

Nik1hil · Accepted Answer

Love is a faulty word.

You cannot answer this question, unless you learn to categorise a Complex word like LOVE properly.

I am sorry , but I will Drag you to a +5000 Yr old language Sanskrit, to answer something like this!..

TYPES OF LOVE AND CAN ANIMAL'S FEEL THOSE..

1. प्रेम (Preme): The Pure Essence of Love.

Yes, Animals can Feel this, it's shown in Penguins and Swans and Eagles.

In Sanskrit, “प्रेम” (Preme) encapsulates the purest form of love, transcending the material realm. Imagine love as a sacred river, flowing effortlessly, nurturing all in its path. Allow the current of प्रेम to sweep away barriers and unite hearts in a divine dance.

Share a silent meditation together, allowing the essence of प्रेम to bind your spirits.

2. मैत्री (Maitri): The Sacred Friendship of Souls

Yes, Some animals can feel that, It's shows by Dolphins and Lions.

मैत्री (Maitri) goes beyond conventional friendship; it is a bond of souls entwined through time. Picture your connection as ancient trees whose roots intermingle, offering strength, support, and a timeless camaraderie.

Establish a shared ritual that honors the enduring friendship within your relationship.

3. आनंद (Ananda): Love as Blissful Joy.

Yes, Animals can feel this. Bears & Cats are seen Observing Beauty and things in Nature, seated Peacefully.

आनंद (Ananda) portrays love as an ecstatic melody, resonating in the hearts of kindred spirits. Envision your connection as a harmonious symphony, where every note is a celebration of shared joy and delight.

Dance together, letting the rhythm of joyous laughter be your guide.

4. प्राणायाम (Pranayama): Love as the Breath of Life.

Yes, all animals fear death, so they run from predators, Hence they feel this kind of Love.

In the rhythmic inhalation and exhalation of प्राणायाम (Pranayama), discover love as the very breath of life. Feel the connection between breath and soul, a continuous exchange echoing the intimacy shared between two souls.

Practice synchronized breathing, fostering a deep sense of unity.

5. शृङ्गार (Shringara): Love as Aesthetic Beauty.

Yes, Animals experience this Love, many Birds show Bright colors in mating calls. Also Animals clean themselves to be more Attaractive.

शृङ्गार (Shringara) unveils love as a timeless masterpiece, painted with vibrant hues of beauty and adorned with the delicate intricacies of emotion. See your love story as an artful expression, appreciating the aesthetic of your shared journey.

Create a visual representation of your love story through art or photography.

6. परमात्मन् (Paramatman): Love as Divine Union.

Yes, animals experience this. Dolphins prove this, when a whale/Sperm-whale is Giving Birth, Dolphins Surround it and protect the Babu from Killer-Whales and Sharks. Same is displayed by many, species that Co-habit. Wolves form packs and also take care of their Old Wolves in pack.

As souls entwined in the dance of existence, परमात्मन् (Paramatman) reveals love as a sacred union beyond the physical realm. Visualize your connection as two flames merging into the divine light of oneness.

TRUTH BE TOLD:

We don't Perceive beings as Humans or Animals.

We perceive nature of a being can be humane or Animalistic. A Humane Nature can even be displayed even by an Animals and a Human can even act out like an Animal.

This Nature is dependent on Needs & desire and Learning of any being. A Wild Dog will act Different than a Pet dog, who was shown Love and taught things.

Animals when not driven by instinct can even act better than humans, and humans when driven by instincts act like animals..

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

I saw two things that cement animal love for me in terms of dogs (other animals love too, though these are the examples from my memory):

1. There is a Japanese dog who waited for his owner like usual to get off the train from work, though unfortunately for the dog the owner died… Never to arrive, the dog sat there and refused to leave as people gave food & water & attention always waiting for his owner to return until the dog’s death. I even believe there is a statue of the dog as a memorial for its loyalty.

2. A dog’s owner was passing out one day, so this dog went up to a nearby car approaching slow enough to catch the driver’s attention. The dog barked then led the driver to its owner which helped save the dog owner’s life. If that isn’t a dog that cares I don't know what is.

I don't know I just believe that animals can love just as humans do, they have that capacity. Maybe certain things are man-made constructs & concepts, though it shows they have the capacity to be very caring to their owners.

Romance not sure, this is more owner and their loyal pet companions for life vibe.

Screenwriter · Accepted Answer

Well, there's some papers on the study of rats and paternal/maternal care and prairie dogs and the same.

But you have to take into account that we have the biggest, most complicated brains of all the mammals and no other animals have similar brains, so comparison is improbable.

And comfort, safety and food are intertwined with "love." No one feeds anyone they dislike, do they. And who makes people feel comfortable and safe besides people who like and love you?

Humans love their animals, some more than other humans. So the licking and grooming that pets do to us is a show of their affection. I've seen chickens, alligators, rats, birds express what I'd call affection for the people they live with.

I don't think other animals fall "in love" like us. Maybe a gorilla or higher ape might express similar feelings towards each other. But many animals pair bond. A certain subset do so for life. Others, like humans, are serially monogamous, with another subset who also pair for life.

PeachyPie93 · Accepted Answer

Yes my cat I had for years loved me lots, he would never use his nails on me he would always use the pads of his paws even if we were play fighting, he would always come to me when I was crying, he would always sleep on my hip every night, he would eat food with me whenever I had something. If I wasn't paying attention to him he would lay on my laptop and look at me, anytime I called him he would instantly come. He also knew when another animal died and was sad.. I think they can truly love others but I don't think they NEED love like humans seem to..

QuestionObsession · Answer

I agree with you. What animals exhibition in the form of affection is not love but bonding for survival and recreation. Animals are complaisant/ subservient because survival is a self preservation process, in other words a necessary selfish process. It is conditional love.

However, animals who have been separated from their owners and after a long time if they are suddenly united, the overwhelming joy they may exhibit is their memory of a 'good time' when they felt their best. That is what makes them overjoyed when reunited with a beloved owner.

wynning · Answer

Maybe not in the way we do but I'd say they definetely experience emotions that are similar if not equal to love and more.
In a bonding kind of way.

Love is about care and attachment in my opinion.

Unless we figure out a way to communicate with them like we do to each other, we'll never really... know firsthand. We can observe though. Elephants have mournings, domesticated animals like dogs have grown attached to us, chimps are quite similar to us in how they show what we would call affection.

We are animals too. More so than them sometimes...

RavVid · Answer

Cats and dogs have mammalian brains just as we do. So they have the gear for it. My cat (sadly passed) would like to sit beside my chair the go off and do some cat stuff for a while then come back. He knew the footsteps of his human friends and would belt downstairs to meet them at the door. He just liked them as they never fed him.

I think there is enough like love to be labeled as love.

Romantic love is man-made construct on the other hand I would say, if we are talking of flowers an chocolates style romance. Sex based love is quite palpable and most of us have experienced it. It is too real to deny.

Iron_Man · Answer

They love you and their other family dogs because I’ve seen my Rottweiler when another dog of ours dyed that got hit by a car when they were all wandering around The neighborhood at night the greyhound went too far got out in the middle of the street and froze as a car was coming it got hit and killed, made a real loud noise, the Rottweiler showed a lot of emotion like crying out when we brought the dog back to the house I did not see the car hit the dog just heard it but I know the dog freezes up, cause I’ve seen the dog do that before went out in traffic

HawkPerception · Answer

I think I really do love most mammals. I can't think of any mammals I don't. I'm the type of dude that kneels down every time I see a dog to get them to relax around me. Same with cats. There was even a wild coyote I saw once. Got off my bike and sat down in the middle of the road. Buddy just looked at me and didn't come my way. I was able to pet a wild rabbit once I too.

Spencer10 · Answer

Love? Thats a tough one to answer... but I do know of several cases where animals do "selfless" things, Like stand up to a bear to protect their Master. I have experienced this first hand. If there was not something there why would they not look out for number one first and say run away?

Maybe_Maybe_not · Answer

Then the next human in the queue wondered... Do humans love? Truly? Not just for comfort, emotional safety, and psychological gain? What proof is there? What is love?

purplepoppy · Answer

Animals should abandon their partners the moment better quality mating material comes along yet many species pair for life. This is actually a good definition of love, a bond between two despite the easy availability of better partners.

NathanDavis · Answer

yep... I used to be the one who would give Luna all of what she needed and more, and then right after, she would go to my ex-girlfriend first... lmfao

and then, me too.. but she was clearly her favorite for the lovies... lol

Filthy_Immigrant · Answer

yes they do, more than women!

there's been time that I've forgotten to feed my dog and he still stands by my side till this day. however I seen simps with no standards buying women lunch and a bunch of other things yet these same exact women end up betraying them and treating them like shit

Kaneki05 · Answer

We are animals so yes. And if you mean other animals well where do you think we got it from? There is plenty of animals with same emotions as us, there is also ones without but guess what that also happens to humans.

DrPepper12 · Answer

Animals can be just as generous, proud, altruistic, logical, communicative, patient, kind, etc well being their training or immediate needs.

In fact, anything we can do they can do better!! If you've ever loved a dog you know.

lightbulb27 · Answer

pigeons mate for life. don't know why... maybe they get a big dose of oxytocin hanging out on the wire together?

Kelly6 · Answer

@crimsyjo most animals live for Safety,, Reproduction  Love Food  Comfort But this doesn't apply to every animal

Shiprex · Answer

I think they do as they react to emotional cues and provide emotional responses when humans display them

Ad_Quid_Orator · Answer

Some certainly can. We can look at our brains and see what parts of our brain light up when we're experiencing emotions like love and we can identify the same parts of the brain in other animals.

abc3643 · Answer

No, of course they love. It's a mammalian trait many 10s of millions of years old.

ravagesavage · Answer

I mean shit if it's just our subjective view of reality, then it would make a pretty strong case for nihilism. 😰

slatyb · Answer

I think that's a yes. We see animals mourning their dead, taking care of the sick and injured.

noohair · Answer

Of course animals can’t love like humans, but they are smart and have strong feelings. Actually women want comfort safety and food and that is why they love men.

exitseven · Answer

I think that animals can pretend to love. They play the game for 3 hots and a cot.

FenixG45 · Answer

Animals can mate for a season or lifetime. Socialization does serve its purpose in group protection and cooperation. Some animals have been known to die of a broken heart.

ABC1x1x · Answer

Only a little more than a woman. Throw your dog and your woman in the trunk for several hours and see who is happy when you let them out.

Twalli · Answer

Animals don't have romantic love, but they do love.

moneymagnet24 · Answer

Animals love till you feed them twice in a day  If you don't feed them they will bite you in return lol.

allan997 · Answer

No it’s just mere instincts, you give them food, pet them, etc, they take care of you just because you are their provider, I don’t think they just love you unconditionally.

fish5505_87 · Answer

Im not letting anyone here ruin what I think, my dog loves me, lol!

Anonymous · Answer

Yes, animals can experience fear, anger and other emotions, so I think they can experience love too.

MFlint · Answer

Yes, they love. My cat thinks we're married.

chrissykerdock · Answer

dogs love no doubt

Bklynbadboy12 · Answer

I don't know but my dog is always happy to see me

MasterKS · Answer

Deep bond is there too i am sure.

Do animals love? truly? Not just for comfort, safety and food? What proof is there? Is romantic love just a man-made construct?

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