The Prophet

by Kahlil Gibran

Shall the day of parting be the day of gathering?

A seeker of silences am I, and what treasure have I found in silences that I may dispense with confidence?

These things he said in words. But much in his heart remained unsaid. For he himself could not speak his deeper secret.

entreated

threshes

kneads

But if in your fear you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure, Then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love’s threshing-floor, Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.

When you love you should not say, “God is in my heart,” but rather, “I am in the heart of God.”

And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.

eventide

The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.

When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.

When you are sorrowful, look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.

Some of you say, “Joy is greater than sorrow,” and others say, “Nay, sorrow is the greater.” But I say unto you, they are inseparable. Together they come, and when one sits alone with you at your b...

Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.

It is in exchanging the gifts of the earth that you shall find abundance and be satisfied.

And what is it but fragments of your own self you would discard that you may become free?

discord

Much of your pain is self-chosen. It is the bitter potion by which the physician within you heals your sick self. Therefore, trust the physician, and drink his remedy in silence and tranquillity: For his hand, though heavy and hard, is guided by the tender hand of the Unseen, And

Say not, “I have found the truth,” but rather, “I have found a truth.”

Say not, “I have found the path of the soul.” Say rather, “I have met the soul walking upon my path.”

aught

thither.

And let your best be for your friend. If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.

And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

Who among you does not feel that his power to love is boundless?

And let to-day embrace the past with remembrance and the future with longing.

You are good when you strive to give of yourself. Yet you are not evil when you seek gain for yourself.

You are good when you walk to your goal firmly and with bold steps. Yet you are not evil when you go thither limping.

Even those who limp go not backward.

You are good in countless ways, and you are not evil when you are not good,

IN your longing for your giant self lies your goodness: and that longing is in all of you.

You pray in your distress and in your need; would that you might pray also in the fullness of your joy and in your days of abundance.

And if it is for your comfort to pour your darkness into space, it is also for your delight to pour forth the dawning of your heart.