oN LoVe

The Prophet on Love

Kahlil Gibran

Then it was said, speak to us of Love.

And the prophet raised his head

and looked upon the people,

and there fell a stillness upon them.

And with a great voice he said:

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 easily as the north wind lays waste the garden.
For even as love crowns you,

so shall he crucify you.

Even as he is for your growth,

so is he for your pruning.

Even as he ascends to your height

and caresses your most tender branches

that quiver in the sun,

so shall he descend to your roots

and shake them in their clinging to the earth.

Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself.

He sifts you free from your husks.

He grinds you to whiteness

and kneads you until you are pliant.

And then he assigns you to his sacred fire,

that you may become bread of the sacred feast.

All these things shall love do unto you

that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in

that knowledge become a fragment of Life’s heart.
Think not you can direct the course of love,

for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.

Love give naught but of itself,

and takes naught but from itself.

Love possesses not, nor would it be possessed;

for love is sufficient unto itself.

Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself.
When you love, let these be your desires:

to melt and be like a running brook

that sings its melody, to the night.

To know the pain of too much tenderness.

To be wounded by your own understanding of love;

and bleed willingly and joyfully;

to wake at dawn with a winged heart

and give thanks for another day of loving;

to rest at the noon hour and mediate love’s ecstasy;

to return home at even tide with gratitude;

and then to sleep with a prayer for your beloved

in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.

Aahh, such is Love...