<i>To Love and Be Loved</i> is a spirited challenge to a culture obsessed with romance and intimacy but dangerously ignorant of the full range of human love. Like a fresh wind, Sam Keen sweeps away tired self-help nostrums and reams of &quot;bad advice from Dr. Lonelyhearts&quot; to reveal a stunningly new map of love in all its forms. <br><br><br><br>Love is not something we &quot;fall&quot; into, claims Keen, but a complex art combining many skills and talents that take a lifetime to learn fully. At the center of his book are sixteen distinct &quot;elements of love&quot;: ranging from <i>attention</i>--a precious gift we can bestow on co-worker, friend, child, and spouse alike--to more exclusive gifts like <i>desire</i> and <i>sexuality</i>. Combining stories, poems and quotes with insights from modern psychology and spiritual tradition, Keen brilliantly explores the elements of <i>memory</i> and <i>solitude</i> in love, the importance of both <i>enjoyment</i> and <i>commitment</i>, and how we can cultivate the essential qualities of <i>empathy</i> and <i>compassion</i>. Each piece ends with suggestions for strengthening our daily practice of the element, so that we constantly enlarge our ability to love in all our relationships. <br><br><br><br>The final section of the book is a soaring meditation on the claim that &quot;those who love know God,&quot; an invitation to experience our place in the universe through the eyes of love.<br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>