EROS THERAPEUTIKOS - LOVE AND ETHICS IN PSYCHOTHERAPY

Love in the deepest and highest level, as conceived by Platon in his s ymposium, is considered in the context of occidental philosophy's ''fe elings of sympathy'' (Max Scheler), empathy and the mystic feeling of cosmic one-ness. The buddhistic concepts of loving kindness (metta) re aches its highest level in the Bodhisattva of Mahayana. Love is an ess ential element of the development of knowledge. Love and knowledge inc rease the awareness of a universal responsibility. Therapeutic love is an essential medium of any humane therapy and can be cultivated in th e mental personal development of the therapist.