--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have sought love, first, because it…" description: "\"I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy – ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of life for a few hours of that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70e/bertrand-russell-69_heaven_i-have-sought-love-first-because-it-brin_2638364.jpg" --- # I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy –… ![“I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy – ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of life for a few hours of that joy. ... I have sought it, finally, because in the union of love I have seen, in a mystic miniature, the prefiguring vision of the heaven that…” quote by Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70e/bertrand-russell-69_heaven_i-have-sought-love-first-because-it-brin_2638364.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70e/bertrand-russell-69_heaven_i-have-sought-love-first-because-it-brin_2638364.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70e/bertrand-russell-69_heaven_i-have-sought-love-first-because-it-brin_2638364.jpg) > “I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy – ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of life for a few hours of that joy. ... I have sought it, finally, because in the union of love I have seen, in a mystic miniature, the prefiguring vision of the heaven that saints and poets have imagined.” [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker pursues love for its intense joy and as a glimpse of a transcendent, heavenly experience. **In simple terms:** Love is sought for its ecstatic joy and hint of heaven. Key Takeaway Cherish love’s ecstatic moments as a path to deeper meaning. Themes love ecstasy spirituality yearning Mood passionate contemplative Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - personal relationships - artistic inspiration - spiritual practice - seeking fulfillment Key Concepts philosophy romanticism transcendence Questions to Reflect On - What does love reveal about your deeper desires? - How can you balance ecstatic love with everyday responsibilities? A Different Perspective Love’s intensity can be fleeting and may distract from lasting happiness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Mystic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystic/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Rest of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest-of-life/) [Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint/) [Unions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unions/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) ## Related quotes > [HAPPINESS is delicate balance between 'What I want & What I have'. It is an inner joy that can be Sought & Caught but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/happiness-is-delicate-balance-between-what-i-want-what-i-have-it-is/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [I have sought love because in the union of love I have seen, in a mystic miniature, the prefiguring vision of the heaven the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/i-have-sought-love-because-in-the-union-of-love-i-have-seen-in-a/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [I was not yet in love, yet I loved to love...I sought what I might love, in love with loving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/i-was-not-yet-in-love-yet-i-loved-to-love-i-sought-what-i-might-love/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“I did not yet love, and I loved to love; I sought what I might love, in love with loving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustine-of-hippo/i-did-not-yet-love-and-i-loved-to-love-i-sought-what-i-might-love-in/) [Augustine of Hippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustine-of-hippo/) > [I sought for Love But Love ran away from me. 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Ulett > [“Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/three-passions-simple-but-overwhelmingly-strong-have-governed-my-life/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [When love move our hearts to see what is beyond this world, there is this happiness being felt from within. Love brings happiness which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrisomne-drasse/when-love-move-our-hearts-to-see-what-is-beyond-this-world-there-is/) Chrisomne Drasse > [Sometimes we see things not as they are but as we are: Love brings understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/sometimes-we-see-things-not-as-they-are-but-as-we-are-love-brings/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [When you smile my love, it brings joy to my heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine/when-you-smile-my-love-it-brings-joy-to-my-heart/) [Josephine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine/) > [YOUR love brings Me joy, happiness, delight, and ET CETERA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bokamoso-bruce-tlhwaele/your-love-brings-me-joy-happiness-delight-and-et-cetera/) [Bokamoso Bruce Tlhwaele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bokamoso-bruce-tlhwaele/) ## More by Bertrand Russell > [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [That the world is in a bad shape is undeniable, but there is not the faintest reason in history to suppose that Christianity offers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/that-the-world-is-in-a-bad-shape-is-undeniable-but-there-is-not-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [All movements go too far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/all-movements-go-too-far/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Those who advocate common usage in philosophy sometimes speak in a manner that suggests the mystique of the 'common man.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/those-who-advocate-common-usage-in-philosophy-sometimes-speak-in-a/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“Such, in outline, but even more purposeless, more void of meaning, is the world which Science presents for our belief. 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This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/many-orthodox-people-speak-as-though-it-were-the-business-of-sceptics/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [There is no greater reason for children to honour parents than for parents to honour children except, that while the children are young, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/there-is-no-greater-reason-for-children-to-honour-parents-than-for/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) [Explore all 1,620 Bertrand Russell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) ## More Heaven quotes > [Heaven lies around us in our infancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-golding/heaven-lies-around-us-in-our-infancy/) [William Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-golding/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. 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