Eros spirit, breath, life or animating force". Eros In Greek mythology, Eros (, ; , "Desire") is the Greek god of sensual love and desire. His Roman counterpart was Cupid ("desire"). Some myths make him a primordial god, while in other myths, he is the son of Aphrodite. He is one of the winged love gods, Erotes. The Greek ἔρως, meaning "desire," comes from ἔραμαι "to desire, love", of uncertain etymology. R. S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin. Eros appears in ancient Greek sources under several different guises. In the earliest sources (the cosmogonies, the earliest philosophers, and texts
Agape and Eros two ancient Greek words for love, "eros" and "agape" (unconditional love). Nygren argues that "eros" is an egocentric and acquisitive kind of love, needs-based and desire-based. When we love out of "eros" - whether we love a god or another human being -, we love out of self-interest and in order to acquire and possess the object of our love. This form of love received its classic expression in the philosophy of Plato, particularly in his dialogue The Symposium. "Agape", by contrast, is a self-giving and self-sacrificial kind of love. It is based on God's unconditional love for all creatures.