karenika - books - the prophet

The Prophet

When Love beckons to you, follow him,
Though his ways are hard and steep.
And when his wings enfold you yield to him,
Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you.
And when he speaks to you believe in him,
Though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.

[ second part ]

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 the board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.

I highly recommend you read all of Kahlil Gibran's work. The Prophet contains his own drawings as well his beautiful words. This page has the entire book online.

Interestingly enough, my best friend, Laura's family owned the original copy of the book autographed by Gibran himself.

Today's excerpt comes from one of my favorite books: The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. Since it's so hard to pick just one good section from his work, I'm posting two. The first one is "On Love" and the second "On Joy and Sorrow."