What is the meaning of Platonic love ? Concept and Definition of Platonic love

Platonic love - its definition and concepts

1. Concept of platonic love

Love, despite being a subject so abstract and complex when it comes to defining it, you could say that it is that set of feelings that bind a person with another, either, things, ideas, among other alternatives.
While especially love is linked directly to what could be termed as romantic love, i.e., that love which involves a passionate relationship between two people, it is also correct to apply to other types of relationships such as family love, which feels between friends and many others, always in all cases, it will be a feeling that causes a great affection and esteem for who is the recipient of our love.
Now, once described and with the clearer picture about what we love, we will deal with a kind of love, popularly known as platonic love.
Platonic love is that an ideal image of the person who loves without establishing any real relationship with her than Plato, i.e. all through the thoughts, never was concrete nothing in platonic love. John does who feels his history instructor platonic love.
Unattainable love which by different circumstances may not materialize and that may be a sexual component, but it gives mental, imaginative way, but it is not physically a platonic love. In this form of love the illusion is the basis on which stands the love and above all things gives special importance to the spiritual over that to the physical and passionate.
Although the name of the concept was taken from the doctrine of the Greek philosopher Plato, in fact, in the current form and that commonly given to the same very little is actually related to the concept that Plato was built on love.
Plato in his famous dialogues, argued that love to the knowledge, wisdom and the beauty is that according to this philosopher is in the origin of love, away from all kinds of passionate allusion. An individual, thought Plato, you will find love when you have a close view to which was as soul in which appreciated above all the beauty while it embodied ideas, meanwhile, that light on the beauty will be in the body of the person who loves or that begins to love. The vision of the soul of another is what Plato considered deep love.

2. Definition of platonic love

Platonic love is an expression which, in common use, is intended to refer to the philosophical view that had Plato about love, although he misinterprets it by full (cf. The banquet). This popular name has meaning not corresponded or impossible love which, therefore, persists as an ideal, unattainable. This, however, is radically different from the Platonic concept of eros or love, and constitutes an unacceptable Vulgarisation of his theory (simply read "The Banquet" or "The Symposium" dialogue to check it).
Propiamente hablando, y según la filosofía de Platón, tal como él se expresa al respecto en la obra El banquete, el amor es la motivación o impulso que lleva al conocimiento de la Forma de la Belleza, así como a la contemplación de la misma. Esta orientación se produce en un proceso gradual que comienza con la apreciación de la apariencia de la belleza en una persona (i. e., la belleza puramente física), continúa con la belleza física en general, y luego avanza hacia la apreciación de la belleza espiritual (la del carácter, la del alma), la de la belleza de las leyes y las costumbres en la sociedad, la que se encuentra en las artes y las ciencias, etc. Todos estos pasos deben finalmente superarse hasta alcanzar el punto cúlmine del proceso: el conocimiento apasionado, puro, y desinteresado, de la esencia de la Belleza en-sí, que se mantiene incorruptible y siempre igual a sí misma, el conocimiento de la Idea de la Belleza en cuanto es lo único que es bello en sí mismo y por sí mismo, y en cuanto aquello que es causa de que todo lo bello sea bello. En esto consiste la "idealidad" del amor platónico: no en tener un amor inalcanzable, sino en amar las Formas o Ideas eternas, inteligibles, y perfectas. No hay en absoluto elementos sexuales, sencillamente porque el auténtico amor para Platón no es el que se dirige a una persona sino el que se orienta hacia la esencia trascendente de la Belleza en-sí.
The modern concept of platonic love was developed in the investigations which Marsilio Ficino held to synthesise Platonism in the Renaissance, by order of Cosimo de ' Medici, ruler of Florence. «Its 'Neoplatonism' was based on two fundamental ideas: the neoplatonic hierarchy of substances and the theory of spiritual love.» The first postulated the idea of a hierarchy of substances, or a large chain of beings, from the lowest form of physical matter (plants), until the pure spirit (demiurge, the God of Plato), in which humans occupied a central position, or intermediate. They were the link between the material world and the spiritual world, and it was his supreme duty to ascend towards the union with the demiurge, which constituted the true end of human existence. Ficino theory about Platonic, or spiritual love, stated that, as people are United in their common humanity thanks to the love, in the same way all the parts of the universe they are United by the bonds of compassionate love» (Spielvogel, 2003). The above, based on the dialogues of Plato.

3 Meaning of platonic love

Platonic is an adjective that comes from Platonĭcus, a term from the Latin language. It usually applies to that love which develops from an ideal or imagination, without any sexual intimacy.
Platonic love is impossible to materialize or realize: that remains as something idyllic, which can never be achieved. The most traditional example of platonic love is which is felt by a figure of Hollywood or a rock star. The person who feels this love is blinded by the image that receives, through the media, the celebrity in question. This type of platonic love is often based on physical appearance.
The illusion is what sustains the existence of a platonic love. As you can not materialize, it continues from the imagination of the subject. If that love should be physically or to develop otherwise, it would no longer be considered as platonic.
It is important to highlight that the Platonic adjective comes from Plato, one of the most important Greek philosophers of antiquity. For Plato, real love is one that is felt by the knowledge. This means that the love between two human beings arises from the mutual discovery and get to know each other.
In this way, it is easy to notice that what we understand today as platonic love is quite different from the ideas of the own Plato on love. While platonic love is based on an ideal and fantasy, love that was referencing Plato required to inform the other person in depth.