Treasured Writings of Kahlil Gibran (54 page)

Vision

When Night came and Slumber spread its garment upon the face of the earth, I left my bed and walked toward the sea saying, “The sea never sleeps, and in its vigil there is consolation for a sleepless soul.”

When I reached the shore, the mist from the mountains had engauzed the region as a veil adorns the face of a young woman. I gazed at the teeming waves and listened to their praise of God and meditated upon the eternal power hidden within them—that power which runs with the tempest and rises with the volcano and smiles through the lips of the roses and sings with the brooks.

Then I saw three phantoms sitting upon a rock. I stumbled toward them as if some power were pulling me against my will.

Within a few paces from the phantoms, I halted as though held still by a magic force. At that moment one of the phantoms stood up and in a voice that seemed to rise from the depth of the sea said:

“Life without Love is like a tree without blossom and fruit. And love without Beauty is like flowers without scent and fruits without seeds…. Life, Love, and Beauty are three persons in one, who cannot be separated or changed.”

A second phantom spoke with a voice that roared like cascading water and said:

“Life without Rebellion is like seasons without Spring. And Rebellion without Right is like Spring in an arid desert…. Life, Rebellion, and Right are three-in-one who cannot be changed or separated.”

Then the third phantom in a voice like a clap of thunder spoke:

“Life without Freedom is like a body without a soul, and Freedom without Thought is like a confused spirit…. Life, Freedom, and Thought are three-in-one, and are everlasting and never pass away.”

Then the three phantoms stood up together, and with one tremendous voice said:

“That which Love begets,
That which Rebellion creates,
That which Freedom rears,
Are three manifestations of God.
And God is the expression
Of the intelligent Universe.”

At that moment Silence mingled with the rustling of invisible wings and trembling of ethereal bodies; and it prevailed.

I closed my eyes and listened to the echoes of the sayings which I had just heard, and when I opened them I saw nothing but the sea wreathed in mist. I walked toward the rock where the three phantoms were sitting, but I saw naught save a column of incense spiralling toward heaven.

Communion of Spirits

Awake, my love, awake! For my spirit hails you from beyond the seas, and offers you her wings above the raging waves.

Awake, for silence has halted the clamor of the horses' hoofs and the tramp of the passers-by.

Slumber has embraced the spirits of men, while I alone remain awake; longing lifts me out of enveloping sleep.

Love brings me close to you but then, anxiety takes me far away.

I have left my bed, my love, for fear of the ghost of forgetfulness hiding in the quilts.

I have thrown my book aside, for my sighs silenced the words and left the pages blank before my eyes!

Awake, awake, my love, and hear me.

I hear you, my beloved! I heard your call from beyond the seas and felt the soft touch of your wings; I have left my bed and walked upon the grass and the night dew has wet my feet and the hem of my garment. Here I stand under the blossoms of the almond tree, heeding the call of your spirit.

Speak to me, my love, and let your breath mount the breeze that comes towards me from the valleys of Lebanon. Speak. No one hears but me. Night has taken all others to their resting places.

Heaven has woven a veil of moonlight and drawn it over all Lebanon, my beloved.

Heaven has fashioned from the shadows of night a thick cloak lined with the fumes of workshops and the breath of Death, and laid it over the frame of the city, my love.

The villagers have surrendered to Slumber in their huts in the midst of the willow and walnut trees. Their spirits have sped towards the land of dreams, my beloved.

Men are bent under the burden of gold, and the steep road of green weakens their knees. Their eyes are heavy with trouble and weariness, and they drop on their beds as a haven, my love, from the Ghosts of Fear and Despair.

The ghosts of past ages walk in the valleys, and the spirits of the kings and prophets hover over the knolls and the hills. And my thoughts, fashioned by memory, show me the might of the Chaldeans, the splendor of the Assyrians, and the nobility of the Arabs.

In the sinister alleys walk the grim spirits of the thieves; the heads of the vipers of lust appear from the crevices of the ramparts; and the ague of sickness, mingled with the agony of Death, shudders through the streets. Memory has removed the veil of forgetfulness from my eyes and shows me the loathsomeness of Sodom and the sins of Gomorrah.

The branches sway, my beloved, and their rustling joins the murmur of the rivulet in the valley, repeating to our ears the canticles of Solomon, the strains of David's harp, and the songs of Ishak al-Mausili.

The souls of the hungry children in the lodgings tremble; and the sighs of the mothers tossing upon the beds of misery and despair have reached the sky; and anxious dreams afflict the hearts of the infirm. I hear their bitter lamentations.

The fragrance of flowers has mingled with the pungent breath of the cedars. Brought by the frolicsome breeze over the hills, it fills the soul with affection and inspires longing for flight.

But the miasmas from the marshes also rise, steaming with disease. Like sharp secret arrows they have penetrated the senses and poisoned the air.

The morning has come, my beloved, and the soft fingers of wakefulness fondle the eyes of the dreamers. Rays of light force open the shutters and reveal Life's resolution and glory. The villages, reposing in peace and tranquility upon the shoulders of the valley, rise from their slumber; church bells fill the air with their pleasing summons to morning prayer. And from the caves echo the chimes as if all Nature joins in reverent prayer. The calves have left their stalls, and the sheep and the goats their sheds, to graze upon the glittering, dewy grass. The shepherds walk before them, piping on their reeds; and behind them walk the damsels singing like the birds welcoming the morn.

And now the heavy hand of the Day lies upon the city. The curtains have been drawn from the windows and the doors are open. The fatigued eyes and drawn faces of toilers appear in the workshops. They feel death encroaching upon their lives, and on their shrivelled countenances appear Fear and Despair. The streets are congested with hurrying greedy souls; and everywhere are heard the clanking of iron, the rattling of wheels, and whistling of steam. The city has turned into a battlefield where the strong wrestle down the weak and the rich exploit and tyrannize over the poor.

How beautiful is life, my beloved; it is like the poet's heart, filled with light and tenderness.

And how cruel is life, my love, it is like a criminal's heart, throbbing with vice and fear.

Under the Sun

I have seen all things that are done under the sun, and behold all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

E
CCLESIASTES

O spirit of Solomon that hovers in the ethereal realm; you, who cast aside the tattered garment of matter, have left behind you these words, born of weakness and misery, which deject those still imprisoned in bodies.

You know there is a meaning in this life which Death does not conceal. But how could humanity attain a knowledge which comes only when the soul is freed from earthly ties?

You realize now that life is not a vexation of spirit; that things done under the sun are not all vanity; that somehow everything has ever marched and shall ever march toward Truth. We miserable creatures have adhered to your earthly sayings as words of great wisdom. But they are shutters that darken the mind and obliterate hope.

You now understand that ignorance, evil, and despotism have their causes; and that Beauty is the revelation of wisdom, the product of virtue and the fruit of justice.

You now know that sorrow and poverty purify man's heart; though our weak minds see nothing worthy in the universe save ease and happiness.

You can see now that the spirit advances toward the light in spite of worldly hardships. Yet we repeat your words which teach that a man is but a toy in the hands of the unknown.

You have regretted your planting in our hearts a faintness toward life in the world and apprehension toward life in the hereafter. Yet we persist in heeding your earthly words.

O spirit of Solomon who now dwells in Eternity, reveal yourself to the lovers of wisdom and teach them not to walk the path of heresy and misery. Perchance this shall be an atonement for an unintended error.