To celebrate The Prophet, this serial will be comprised entirely of my favorite excerpts from the book. They will be those I believe are the most important, meaningful, provocative, and enlightening passages.
All I ask is that you read them as I post them. Only the most benighted among us will walk away having gained nothing.
Reading from The Prophet
I have said that everyone should read Kahlil Gibran. I even mentioned especially recommending The Prophet, as it is one of his most profound works.
I first read this book in 1984 with only a cursory review, but its content held fast to my mind and heart. Later, in 1989, I returned for the first time to read again what was hidden among its pages. It was through that second reading that I came to fully appreciate and comprehend Gibran's work.
The Coming of the Ship
On leaving for home, even when the heart longs for its place of birth and remembers pain and loneliness while away…
The Coming of the Ship #2
On seeking a bit more time, even if only a moment, before departing from the presence of a loved one who may never return, especially if our love has gone without expression…
On Love
On love not being a promise of tranquility, not something to be controlled, and having no other desire but love itself…
On Marriage
On being together with someone we love…
On Children
On children and important lessons everyone needs to understand…
On Giving
On giving, and the truth of it, and being worthy of receiving, as well as worthy of being a giver…
On Eating and Drinking
On not taking for granted that which sustains us…
On Work
On the truth of working for a living…
On Joy and Sorrow
On how you should never look at joy and sorrow the same again…
On Houses
On the questions of what constitutes a house…
On Clothes
On the paradox of clothing…
On Buying and Selling
On the exchange of goods and services, and the threat of greed and hunger…
On Crime and Punishment
On the wrongdoer and the wronged who are not as separate as many would think…
On Laws
On the concerns of who makes laws and why, and the truth of what they can and cannot control…
On Freedom
On what freedom truly is and what Americans need to understand…
On Reason and Passion
On the importance of weighing logic and emotions with equal practice…
On Pain
On the importance of our pain…
On Self-Knowledge
On the reality of self-knowledge as a continuing endeavor with infinite truths and infinite paths, and the importance of honest self-discovery…
On Teaching
On genuine teaching being not the transfer of information by rote but instead the nurture of learning…
On Friendship
On the clarity of true friendship…
On Talking
On why people should talk less but say more…
On Time
On how we must treat time differently than just the passing of moments and plotting of life…
On Good and Evil
On the ease with which the good in people can become the naissance of evil…
On Prayer
On why so many get it wrong…
On Pleasure
On what pleasure is and is not, on regret, and on the nature of the obscure line between good and bad pleasures…
On Beauty
On why beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder and no one can ever tell you what you should see as beautiful…
On Religion
On the religion in all of us, and why so many miss the point…
On Death
On why those who forgo living in the hopes of rewards after death are missing the point altogether…
The Farewell
On the fallacy of prejudice…
The Farewell #2
On saying goodbye to loved ones…
