What is the meaning of 'First deserve then desire?

Answer 1

In order to get almost any earthly thing on your own, you must first deserve it before it is healthy to desire it. You deserve something - in the only sense that ultimately satisfies - only when you work for it. At that point it is healthier to desire it. Better to be unattached to the things of this world until they are manifest, lest they confuse the ultimate objective: to act and behave in such a way that we are worthy of our heartfelt desires.

This quotation is particularly applicable with regard to the apparent secret to happiness: love. Most earthly love is conditional, we must deserve it in some way before receiving it. If you put yourself in a position to deserve it, you are more likely to receive it, so desiring it becomes rational, rather than wishful thinking.