Serious and poetic, scientific and lyrical, the study of the American historian Diana Ackerman is devoted to an eternal topic that always occupies the minds of mankind. Based on a variety of sources - from classical to the most modern, the author explores the historical, cultural, religious and biological roots of love, offers his reading of the works of Freud, the writings of the “classics of love” Stendhal and Proust. A separate chapter includes the popular science work of J. LaRue “ Sex in the Bible." It reflects various aspects of human sexual life in biblical texts, as well as the influence of Old Testament attitudes on the consciousness of people in the past and present.