Poems by Khalil GibranWhere are you, my beloved? Are you in that little
Paradise, watering the flowers who look upon you
The dark wings of night enfolded the city upon which Nature had spread a pure white garment of snow; and men deserted the stree
Part One
The power of charity sows deep in my heart, and I reap and gather the wheat in bundles and give them to the hungry.
And a poet said, "Speak to us of Beauty."
One heavy day I ran away from the grim face of society and the dizzying clamor of the city and directed my weary step to the sp
And a merchant said, "Speak to us of Buying and Selling."
And he answered and said:
And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, 'Speak to us of Children.'
And he said:
And the weaver said, "Speak to us of Clothes."
And he answered:
Then one of the judges of the city stood forth and said, "Speak to us of Crime and Punishment."
And he answered saying:
Then Almitra spoke, saying, "We would ask now of Death."
And he said:
You would know the secret of death.
Then an old man, a keeper of an inn, said, "Speak to us of Eating and Drinking."
And he said:
And an orator said, "Speak to us of Freedom."
And he answered:
And a youth said, "Speak to us of Friendship."
Your friend is your needs answered.
Then said a rich man, "Speak to us of Giving."
And he answered:
You give but little when you give of your possessions.
And one of the elders of the city said, "Speak to us of Good and Evil."
And he answered:
A mason came forth and said, "Speak to us of Houses."
And he answered and said:
Then a woman said, "Speak to us of Joy and Sorrow."
And he answered:
Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
As the Sun withdrew his rays from the garden, and the moon threw cushioned beams upon the flowers, I sat under the trees ponder
Then a lawyer said, "But what of our Laws, master?"
And he answered:
You delight in laying down laws,
Leave me, my blamer,
For the sake of the love
Which unites your soul with
That of your beloved one;
For the sake of that which
Then said Almitra, 'Speak to us of Love.'
Then Almitra spoke again and said, 'And what of Marriage, master?'
And he answered saying:
Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses
your understanding.
Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its
And a woman spoke, saying, 'Tell us of Pain.'
And he said:
The tempest calmed after bending the branches of the trees and leaning heavily upon the grain in the field. The stars appeared
Then a hermit, who visited the city once a year, came forth and said, "Speak to us of Pleasure."
And he answered, saying:
Then a priestess said, "Speak to us of Prayer."
And he answered, saying:
And the priestess spoke again and said: "Speak to us of Reason and Passion."
And he answered saying:
And an old priest said, "Speak to us of Religion."
And he said:
Have I spoken this day of aught else?
And a man said, "Speak to us of Self-Knowledge."
And he answered, saying:
Man and I are sweethearts
He craves me and I long for him,
But alas! Between us has appeared
A rival who brings us misery.
I am the lover's eyes, and the spirit's
Wine, and the heart's nourishment.
I am a rose. My heart opens at dawn and
I was here from the moment of the
Beginning, and here I am still. And
I shall remain here until the end
I am a kind word uttered and repeated
By the voice of Nature;
I am a star fallen from the
Blue tent upon the green carpet.
In the depth of my soul there is
A wordless song - a song that lives
In the seed of my heart.
It refuses to melt with ink on
The strong shore is my beloved
And I am his sweetheart.
We are at last united by love, and
Then the moon draws me from him.
Then said a teacher, "Speak to us of Teaching."
And he said:
Part One - The Calling
Let me sleep, for my soul is intoxicated with love and
Yesterday I drew myself from the noisome throngs and proceeded into the field until I reached a knoll upon which Nature had spr
Almustafa, the chosen and the beloved, who was a dawn onto his own day, had waited twelve years in the city of Orphalese for hi
The God separated a spirit from Himself and fashioned it into Beauty. He showered upon her all the blessings of gracefulness an
A young man of strong body, weakened by hunger, sat on the walker's portion of the street stretching his hand toward all who pa
And now it was evening.
And Almitra the seeress said, "Blessed be this day and this place and your spirit that has spoken."
My wearied heart bade me farewell and left for the House of Fortune. As he reached that holy city which the soul had blessed an
Spring
Come, my beloved; let us walk amidst the knolls,
For the snow is water, and Life is alive from its
Part One
There in the middle of the field, by the side of a crystalline stream, I saw a bird-cage whose rods and hinges were fashioned b
Then a ploughman said, "Speak to us of Work."
And he answered, saying:
The gold-hoarder walked in his palace park and with him walked his troubles. And over his head hovered worries as a vulture hov
