Our beloved Bob Marley was many things. Many see him as a Jamaican singer, musician and songwriter that served the world as a world ambassador for reggae music. Many know him as the first international superstar that emerged from the Third World and sold over 20 million records. However, some people, especially the ones that truly know him, see him as a secret lover. A romantic vanguard lies deep within the musical genius we know as Bob Marley. He was, and still is, an influential figure in our world who emphasizes key aspects in all of our lives: peace, positivity, equality and love.
This brings me to the essence of this article. We are here today to talk about a wonderful subject, for many the essential element in life itself, we are here to talk about love. Bob Marley has talked a lot about love over his years and has inspired millions of people while doing it.
There are hundreds of Bob Marley quotes on love, some very popular and some unknown, but every fan has his favorite Bob Marley quote about love. This is mine:
“Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for. “If you get down and quarrel everyday, you’re saying prayers to the devil, I say; one love, one heart, Let’s get together and feel alright.”[1]
I love this Bob Marley quote for so many reasons. It displays a lot of the key values and standards that Bob Marley stood for. He emphasizes unity, saying “one love, one heart, let’s get together and feel alright”. This element is something that many Bob Marley fans really values. Listening Bob Marley’s music is all about listening to it together.
I love the contradiction between the negativity and his positivity. Bob Marley is famous for being very positive; even in the worst scenarios he always kept it positive. In this quote, he starts out with a negative statement saying: “Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you”. That is something very unfamiliar for him. By saying that, he is being very realistic and he shows a lot of humility.
Another one of my favourite Bob Marley quotes about love goes as following:
“You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She’s not perfect—you aren’t either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break—her heart. So don’t hurt her, don’t change her, don’t analyze and don’t expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there.”[2]
I am so in love with this quote because he goes back to the simplicity of love. Nowadays, love is portrayed as difficult and complex. He recites love as something easy and logic, something to cherish and not to be too hard on each other.
In the end, four values are always recognizable in all of his quotes: peace, positivity, equality
Bob Marley has a long history when it comes to love. He has eleven children with seven different women. He was married to Rita Anderson at the age of 21. Surprisingly Rita never made an issue of him being associated with several women. His prolonged history of love was the source of inspiration for his exceptional writing of love quotes and poems. He was a man that was filled with love and expressed that in his music and love quotes for everyone to enjoy.
Although Bob Marley lived in an era that is different to the one we find ourselves in today, the reality is that the romantic problems he encountered were no different from the ones we experience in the 21st century. Love is universal and love is of all eras. Bob Marley’s music and quotes have transcended both time and space. To this day, his quotes about love are being used by many people. They will stay a source of creativity, happiness, life lessons and joy forever.
We find ourselves living in a world of mistrust, intolerance continues to remain dominant across all cultures. We can learn a lot from his love quotes, maybe even more than we realize.
I would like to end this article with a Bob Marley quote that I believe we can learn a lot from these days.
“If puss and dog can get together, why can’t we love one another?”[3]
[1] Marley, Bob. (n.d.). 137 Bob Marley Quotes on Life, Love, and Happiness. Retrieved March 18, 2019, from https://www.keepinspiring.me/bob-marley-quotes/
[2] Marley, Bob (n.d.-b). Bob Marley Quotes (Author of Every Little Thing). Retrieved March 18, 2019, from https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/25241.Bob_Marley
[3] Bob Marley, (n.d.). 137 Bob Marley Quotes on Life, Love, and Happiness. Retrieved March 18, 2019, from https://www.keepinspiring.me/bob-marley-quotes/
