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Binding blindly
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Valentine's Day this year too is no different from the past. And, the hearts of lovers vibrate the same way as they have always been, says Mubin Sultan
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THE HISTORY of love dates back to the dawn of mankind for when God created Adam and Eve, he also created love. Say love and everything beautiful comes to mind. "Even love unreturned has its rainbow," says J.M.Barrie in his work `The Little Minister'.
There's something about the first strike of the Cupid that changes the world around, things seem brighter than they are, tasks seem easier, and everything seems easily conquerable. Geoffrey Chaucer thought love is blind, Shakespeare thought that when love speaks, the voice of all the Gods make Heaven drowsy with harmony and many great people thought many great things about the divine love.
Expressions
But, youngsters today seem to have their own definitions of love. "Love is what you express," says Anil, who was spotted spending a fortune on a greeting card that just says "I love you," which can anyway be said without spending a whopping sum. And what is this expression of love? "To let your beloved know how much you love her," he says.
John Keats' expression of love to Fanny Brawne, the woman he adored till his last breath, was through the pain he suffered waiting for her to reciprocate his love, which she never did though.
While some see Valentine's Day as a chance to express love through cards, flowers, chocolates, jewellery, candle-lit dinners etc., others see it as an opportunity to revive old memories and cement broken relationships. "I have been waiting for this day for a long time now, hopefully we would revive our relationship this Valentine's day," says Padma who broke up with her consort on Valentine's Day last year on owing to some misunderstanding.
Valentine's Day is a blessing from St. Valentine, the patron saint, who is believed to have lived during the rule of the Roman Emperor Claudius II. Legend has it that Valentine was a priest who helped lovers in Rome in the third century. It all started with Emperor Claudius who was facing serious trouble in recruiting soldiers. He understood that none of the young men of his country-the potential soldiers liked the idea of leaving behind their wives and children to join the army. As a treatment to his problem, the emperor outlawed marriages for young men. Valentine, after realizing the serious injustice practiced by the Emperor, defied him by performing marriages in secret.
When Valentine was discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Another legend says that Valentine actually sent the first `Valentine card' while in prison, to the jailor's daughter with whom he fell in love, signing it `From your Valentine.' There are many such legends attached to the mystery that shrouds St.Valentine and the Catholic Church also recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine. However, it is believed that Valentine sacrificed his life for the cause of love on 14th February 269 AD, for which he has since been revered and honoured by young lovers, on Valentine's Day.
Not very open
Everybody loves their Valentines and Valentine's Day, but not many are ready to publicly accept that they do. When it comes down to revealing the names of their loved ones, youngsters in Vijayawada are often tight-lipped. "Love ceases to be a pleasure when it ceases to be a secret," says Sara recalling Aphra Behn's statement from "The Lover's Watch,' while we have long had people singing `pyar kiya toh darna kya... .' "Bollywood can make anything happen," she reasons. Nijay, who currently has neither a girlfriend nor the time to find one, says he would take time out to pray God for all the women in the world on Valentine's Day, someday one of them could be his.
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Madurai
Mangalore
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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