LOVE SICKNESS

The term for what is referred to in the English language as love sickness is upos. This can be glossed as "grieving", as it is also used to refer to the emotional state felt by someone who has lost a parent, spouse, or child. The behavior associated with upos is refusing to eat or drink and sometimes running away into the forest. The behavior is stated to be equivalent to that of someone starving. It can lead to suicide attempts. Both men and women can experience this emotion and display such behavior.

People behaving like this are also referred to as being mulau C "crazy", no longer able to think clearly.

This state can occur over an unmarried love object, or over a love object who is marrying someone else. There are no statements that the love object could be a spouse of someone else.

Love sickness can only occur if there has been the application of love magic, called pugai. This is derived from the root -agai, which refers to having an affair. The prefix {pV}, used to form a substantive, indicates in this context that brought into being as the result of an action. Love magic can be used to cause another to desire you, to want you. It can also be used by a third person against two other people whom he wants to involve in an affair with each other.

It is important to note that love sickness does not involve aggressive behavior against a love object who does not reciprocate affections.