--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is always astonishing how love can…" description: "\"“It is always astonishing how love can strike. No context is love-proof, no convention or commitment impervious. Even a lifestyle which is perfectly in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/esther-perel-3265_eros_it-is-always-astonishing-how-love-can-st_347616.jpg" --- # It is always astonishing how love can strike. No context… ![“It is always astonishing how love can strike. No context is love-proof, no convention or commitment impervious. Even a lifestyle which is perfectly insulated, where the personality is controlled, all the days ordered and all actions in sequence, can to its own dismay find that an unexpected spark…” quote by Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/esther-perel-3265_eros_it-is-always-astonishing-how-love-can-st_347616.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/esther-perel-3265_eros_it-is-always-astonishing-how-love-can-st_347616.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/esther-perel-3265_eros_it-is-always-astonishing-how-love-can-st_347616.jpg) > ““It is always astonishing how love can strike. No context is love-proof, no convention or commitment impervious. Even a lifestyle which is perfectly insulated, where the personality is controlled, all the days ordered and all actions in sequence, can to its own dismay find that an unexpected spark has landed; it begins to smolder until it is finally unquenchable. The force of Eros always brings disturbance; in the concealed terrain of the human heart Eros remains a light sleeper.”” [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love can erupt unexpectedly, even in highly controlled lives, and its persistent energy disrupts order, revealing hidden desire. **In simple terms:** Love appears suddenly and unsettles routine. Key Takeaway Accept and explore unexpected desire. Themes love desire disruption intimacy Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical emotional When to use this quote - marriage - career - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts Eros unconscious longing psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you respond when desire disrupts your routine? - Can you nurture unexpected love without losing stability? A Different Perspective Love may be fleeting and not always sustainable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Context Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/context-love-3216665/) [Eros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eros/) [Eros Brings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eros-brings-3216666/) [Force Eros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/force-eros-3216667/) [Heart Eros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-eros-3216664/) [Human heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-heart/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [“The husband is the head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-husband-is-the-head-of-the-wife-just-in-so-far-as-he-is-to-her/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“When Psyche got up to leave, Eros once again mentioned that he would miss her on Sunday."Even if you come on Sunday, I shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-chong/when-psyche-got-up-to-leave-eros-once-again-mentioned-that-he-would/) [Nicholas Chong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-chong/) > [Why did you hit him? (Grace) Because it gave me a great deal of pleasure. (Julian) Nice. You haven’t seen me in what, two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/why-did-you-hit-him-grace-because-it-gave-me-a-great-deal-of-pleasure/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Ah, Vitaly, we all come from Eros." ~Sel Menach”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/ah-vitaly-we-all-come-from-eros-sel-menach/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“He smiled and smoothed my hair back from my forehead. He did not say a word, nor did he need to, because his affection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-bostic/he-smiled-and-smoothed-my-hair-back-from-my-forehead-he-did-not-say-a/) [April Bostic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-bostic/) > [“ Poor Nico di Angelo. The god's voice was tinged with disappointment. Do you know what you want, much less what I want? My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/poor-nico-di-angelo-the-god-s-voice-was-tinged-with-disappointment-do/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“After he cut off their genitals, Chronos threw them into the sea, where they floated in a "white foam." Out of this foam‒or "Aphros”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/after-he-cut-off-their-genitals-chronos-threw-them-into-the-sea-where/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [The precarious ontological link between Logos and Eros is broken, and scientific rationality emerges as essentially neutral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-precarious-ontological-link-between-logos-and-eros-is-broken-and/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [Writing, playing, composing, painting, reading, listening, looking-all require that we submit to being swept away by Eros, to a transformation of self of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-nachmanovitch/writing-playing-composing-painting-reading-listening-looking-all/) [Stephen Nachmanovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-nachmanovitch/) > [As Venus within Eros does not really aim at pleasure, so Eros does not aim at happiness. We may think he does, but when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-venus-within-eros-does-not-really-aim-at-pleasure-so-eros-does-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Eros is my sun, Ares is my fire, but Hephaestus is my rock, my foundation, and no matter where I go or what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-carter/eros-is-my-sun-ares-is-my-fire-but-hephaestus-is-my-rock-my/) [Aimee Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-carter/) > [Those who cannot conceive of Friendship as a substantive love but only as a disguise or elaboration of Eros betray the fact that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/those-who-cannot-conceive-of-friendship-as-a-substantive-love-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I may now add that civilization is a process in the service of Eros, whose purpose is to combine single human individuals, and after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/i-may-now-add-that-civilization-is-a-process-in-the-service-of-eros/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [Better to be miserable with her than happy without her. Let our hearts break provided they break together. If the voice within us does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/better-to-be-miserable-with-her-than-happy-without-her-let-our-hearts/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Of course, one might object that it is impossible for one person, one woman, to represent the ideal of both agape and eros. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvain-reynard/of-course-one-might-object-that-it-is-impossible-for-one-person-one/) [Sylvain Reynard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvain-reynard/) ## More by Esther Perel > [Sometimes it has to do with other longings that are much more existential. Sometimes you go elsewhere not because you are not liking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/sometimes-it-has-to-do-with-other-longings-that-are-much-more/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [ “For \[erotically intelligent couples\], love is a vessel that contains both security and adventure, and commitment offers one of the great luxuries of life:… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-erotically-intelligent-couples-love-is-a-vessel-that-contains/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [It’s hard to feel attracted to someone who has abandoned her sense of autonomy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/it-s-hard-to-feel-attracted-to-someone-who-has-abandoned-her-sense-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [For some people, a one-night stand doesn't make any difference in a seven-year love affair. I don't believe the degree of betrayal is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-some-people-a-one-night-stand-doesn-t-make-any-difference-in-a/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [I want to engage people in an honest, enlightened, and provocative conversation about the nature of erotic desire and the intricacies of intimacy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-want-to-engage-people-in-an-honest-enlightened-and-provocative/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“The quality of your life ultimately depends on the quality of your relationships . . . which are basically a reflection of your sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/the-quality-of-your-life-ultimately-depends-on-the-quality-of-your/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [If you start to feel that you have given up too many parts of yourself to be with your partner, then one day you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/if-you-start-to-feel-that-you-have-given-up-too-many-parts-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-regret-to-say-that-we-of-the-fbi-are-powerless-to-act-in-cases-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [You never know your partner as well as you think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/you-never-know-your-partner-as-well-as-you-think/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [On some level we trade passion for security, that's trading one illusion for another. It's a matter of degree. We can't live in constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/on-some-level-we-trade-passion-for-security-that-s-trading-one/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“When the impulse to share becomes obligatory, when personal boundaries are no longer respected, when only the shared space of togetherness is acknowledged and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/when-the-impulse-to-share-becomes-obligatory-when-personal-boundaries/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“I do believe that the emphasis on egalitarian and respectful sex—purged of any expressions of power, aggression, and transgression—is antithetical to erotic desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-do-believe-that-the-emphasis-on-egalitarian-and-respectful-sex/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“If intimacy grows through repetition and familiarity, eroticism is numbed by repetition. It thrives on the mysterious, the novel, and the unexpected. Love is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/if-intimacy-grows-through-repetition-and-familiarity-eroticism-is/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“She’s beautiful, too, did I mention that? She lives the life I didn’t live. I feel middle-age and middle-class around her. Nothing wrong with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/she-s-beautiful-too-did-i-mention-that-she-lives-the-life-i-didn-t/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [In dating, if you say no, your lover goes on to the next person. In marriage, if you say no, the person stays.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/in-dating-if-you-say-no-your-lover-goes-on-to-the-next-person-in/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) [Explore all 135 Esther Perel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) ## More Eros quotes > [“The husband is the head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-husband-is-the-head-of-the-wife-just-in-so-far-as-he-is-to-her/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [Better to be miserable with her than happy without her. Let our hearts break provided they break together. If the voice within us does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/better-to-be-miserable-with-her-than-happy-without-her-let-our-hearts/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I may now add that civilization is a process in the service of Eros, whose purpose is to combine single human individuals, and after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/i-may-now-add-that-civilization-is-a-process-in-the-service-of-eros/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [Those who cannot conceive of Friendship as a substantive love but only as a disguise or elaboration of Eros betray the fact that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/those-who-cannot-conceive-of-friendship-as-a-substantive-love-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Eros is my sun, Ares is my fire, but Hephaestus is my rock, my foundation, and no matter where I go or what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-carter/eros-is-my-sun-ares-is-my-fire-but-hephaestus-is-my-rock-my/) [Aimee Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-carter/) > [As Venus within Eros does not really aim at pleasure, so Eros does not aim at happiness. We may think he does, but when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-venus-within-eros-does-not-really-aim-at-pleasure-so-eros-does-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Writing, playing, composing, painting, reading, listening, looking-all require that we submit to being swept away by Eros, to a transformation of self of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-nachmanovitch/writing-playing-composing-painting-reading-listening-looking-all/) [Stephen Nachmanovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-nachmanovitch/) > [The precarious ontological link between Logos and Eros is broken, and scientific rationality emerges as essentially neutral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-precarious-ontological-link-between-logos-and-eros-is-broken-and/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [“After he cut off their genitals, Chronos threw them into the sea, where they floated in a "white foam." Out of this foam‒or "Aphros”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/after-he-cut-off-their-genitals-chronos-threw-them-into-the-sea-where/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [“ Poor Nico di Angelo. The god's voice was tinged with disappointment. Do you know what you want, much less what I want? My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/poor-nico-di-angelo-the-god-s-voice-was-tinged-with-disappointment-do/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“He smiled and smoothed my hair back from my forehead. He did not say a word, nor did he need to, because his affection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-bostic/he-smiled-and-smoothed-my-hair-back-from-my-forehead-he-did-not-say-a/) [April Bostic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-bostic/) > [“Ah, Vitaly, we all come from Eros." ~Sel Menach”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/ah-vitaly-we-all-come-from-eros-sel-menach/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Why did you hit him? (Grace) Because it gave me a great deal of pleasure. (Julian) Nice. You haven’t seen me in what, two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/why-did-you-hit-him-grace-because-it-gave-me-a-great-deal-of-pleasure/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“When Psyche got up to leave, Eros once again mentioned that he would miss her on Sunday."Even if you come on Sunday, I shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-chong/when-psyche-got-up-to-leave-eros-once-again-mentioned-that-he-would/) [Nicholas Chong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-chong/) > [“Of course, one might object that it is impossible for one person, one woman, to represent the ideal of both agape and eros. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvain-reynard/of-course-one-might-object-that-it-is-impossible-for-one-person-one/) [Sylvain Reynard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvain-reynard/) [Browse all 173 Eros quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eros/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is always astonishing how love can strike. No context is love-proof, no convention or commitment impervious. Even a lifestyle which is perfectly insulated, where the personality is controlled, all the days ordered and all actions in sequence, can to its own dismay find that an unexpected spark has landed; it begins to smolder until it is finally unquenchable. 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