Ever wondered why people say, “I met my other half”?
It’s a phrase that holds a sense of completion, a longing fulfilled. But why do we feel the need to search for our “other half”? What is it about meeting someone who “checks all the boxes” that resonates so deeply with us? Whether it’s the woman who feels she’s found her soulmate or the man who has no hesitation going all in, there’s an undeniable mythology and psychology behind this phrase.
According to legend, humans were not always as we are today. Greek mythology suggests that there were originally three types of humans: males (born of the sun), females (born of the earth), and androgynous beings (born of the moon). These humans were powerful and self-contained, their spherical bodies equipped with four arms, four legs, two faces, and two sets of genitalia. So formidable were they that they dared to challenge the gods, attempting to ascend Mount Olympus.
To quell their rebellion, Zeus struck them down, not with a thunderbolt, but by dividing their bodies in half. This act left them vulnerable, with only two arms, two legs, and one face. From that moment on, they were destined to roam the earth in search of their missing half.
This myth, preserved in Plato’s Symposium, offers a poetic explanation for our intrinsic longing for connection and completion.
While the Greek myth provides a poetic explanation, its underlying truth resonates deeply. Love and connection are intrinsic to human existence. Whether you believe in the mythology or see it as a metaphor for our need for companionship, one thing is certain: we are all on a journey to find that one person who truly completes us.
In the end, perhaps the search for our “other half” is less about finding someone else and more about discovering the part of ourselves we had forgotten. May you find your other half, in this present world full of deceit and manipulation.
