How to Read “Those who love me also love my dog”
Ware wo aisuru mono wa waga inu wo mo aisu
Meaning of “Those who love me also love my dog”
This proverb means that if you love someone, you should love everything connected to them.
The “dog” here doesn’t just mean a pet. It symbolizes everything surrounding that person—their hobbies, habits, friends, family, and possessions.
People use this saying in romantic relationships and friendships. It teaches the importance of accepting someone’s flaws and preferences.
For example, you might not understand your partner’s hobby. But you should accept it without criticism.
This proverb exists to convey an important idea. True love isn’t selective—it’s comprehensive.
You shouldn’t just love the convenient parts of someone. Real affection means respecting all the elements that make up who they are.
Even today, this concept remains a valuable measure of relationship depth.
Origin and Etymology
No clear written records explain this proverb’s exact origin. However, the leading theory suggests it came from the Western saying “Love me, love my dog.”
This English phrase existed since medieval Europe. Some traditions trace it back to the words of Saint Bernard.
After the Meiji period, Western culture flowed into Japan. Such sayings were translated and adopted as Japanese proverbs.
The combination of “I” and “dog” was easy for Japanese people to understand. Both concepts were familiar and relatable.
Why was “dog” chosen? Dogs have long been humanity’s closest animal companions. They’re known for their loyalty to their masters.
But this proverb isn’t about the dog’s loyalty. Instead, it treats the dog as part of the master.
Everything belonging to or related to the loved one becomes inseparable from them. This is the key insight.
This expression has lasted because it captures something essential. It reveals the true nature of “acceptance” in relationships.
Truly loving someone means accepting their preferences, possessions, and lifestyle habits. This proverb expresses a universal truth about human connections.
Usage Examples
- If you like her, remember “Those who love me also love my dog”—you need to get along with her friends too
- To accept my son’s marriage partner, I need the spirit of “Those who love me also love my dog”
Universal Wisdom
This proverb reveals a universal truth. Love isn’t partial—it’s holistic. This is the essence of human relationships.
We often try to love only someone’s attractive parts. We close our eyes to the inconvenient aspects.
But people can’t be divided. Their hobbies, quirks, past, and relationships all form who they are.
Why was this proverb created and passed down? Because humans instinctively give “conditional love.”
We unconsciously sort through people. “I like this part, but I dislike that part.”
However, such selective affection creates anxiety. The other person feels they’re not loved as they truly are.
True love means affirming someone’s entire existence. It doesn’t mean ignoring their flaws.
It means accepting flaws as part of who they are. By using the familiar example of a dog, this proverb makes abstract love concrete.
The deepest satisfaction in relationships comes from a specific feeling. It happens when we feel accepted as we truly are.
This proverb teaches us something timeless. Unconditional acceptance is the essence of love that people have always sought.
When AI Hears This
Network theory has a concept called “transitivity.” When Person A connects to Person B, and Person B connects to Person C, transitivity measures the probability that Person A also connects to Person C.
This proverb expresses exactly this transitivity through the human-dog relationship. What’s interesting is the asymmetric weighting involved.
In typical social networks, the chance of befriending your friend’s friend is only about 10 percent.
But this proverb shows something different. When connection strength to the central node (the loved person) is high, the connection probability to peripheral nodes (the dog) jumps to nearly 100 percent.
In other words, the weighting of “love intensity” dramatically increases network closure.
Even more fascinating is the presence of the dog as a non-human node. Modern recommendation systems suggest “products that people like.”
This is exactly a bipartite graph structure between human nodes and product nodes. You’re likely to favor products that someone you love uses.
Amazon’s “Customers who bought this item also bought” exploits this very transitivity.
This proverb recognized something profound 2,000 years ago. It understood that transitivity works even between different types of nodes—a universal property of network theory.
Lessons for Today
In modern society, this proverb teaches us something crucial. It shows the true meaning of loving someone.
With social media everywhere, we tend to see only people’s good sides. We look away from the inconvenient parts.
But if you want to build a deep relationship with someone, you need resolve. You must accept their whole self.
Specifically, this means valuing your partner’s family and friends. It means respecting their hobbies and values. And it means accepting their past.
This isn’t compromise. Rather, it’s an attitude of respecting someone as a complete human being.
If you truly care about someone, look at the world surrounding them. The people they love, the things they treasure, what they spend time on.
All of these form the person you love. Showing interest and trying to understand—this attitude is key to deepening relationships.
Don’t search for the perfect partner. Instead, love an imperfect partner perfectly.
That’s the warm message this proverb offers to those of us living today.
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