The Prophet

by Kahlil Gibran Narrated by Emma Topping

Overview

The Prophet is a book of 26 poetic essays about Al-Mustafa who has lived in the foreign city of Orphalese for 12 years is about to board a ship which will carry him home. He is stopped by a group of people, with whom he discusses many issues of life and the human condition. It is one of the most popular set of poems of all time.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Cadenced and vibrant with feeling, the words of Kahlil Gibran bring to one's ears the majestic rhythm of Ecclesiastes... If there is a man or woman who can read this book without a quiet acceptance of a great man's philosophy and a singing in the heart as of music born within, that man or woman is indeed dead to life and truth." —Chicago Post

Salma Hayek-Pinault

Throughout my life, I have returned to the book [The Prophet] many times, and its words have always nourished my heart and my soul ... To each of us who have experienced this book, Gibran has given us an enduring and priceless gift.

Amin Maalouf

The inimitable line of Zeina Abirached offers a dream setting for Gibran’s poetic wisdom.

JUN/JUL 07 - AudioFile

Published in 1923, THE PROPHET is the narrative of Almustafa, a man preparing to return to the island of his birth after 12 years away. Before he departs, the people of his adopted city ask him to reflect on ideas such as love, the law, freedom, and self-knowledge. His answers are poetic and wise—the style is closer to the Gospels than to today’s crop of inspirational titles—and their beauty is enhanced by the pitch-perfect narration of Paul Sparer. Sparer has a magnificent voice that can’t help but evoke Orson Welles. Whatever your religious bent, this recording, first released in 1985, is well worth a listen. D.B. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170434527
Publisher:	Saland Publishing
Publication date:	01/01/2011
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

ON LOVE
 
Then said Almitra, Speak to us of Love.
 
And he 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 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 tenderest 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 threshes you to make you naked.
He sifts you to free you from your husks.
He grinds you to whiteness.
He kneads you until you are pliant;
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God’s 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.
 
 
But if in your fear you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure,
 
Then it is better for you that you cover your na­kedness and pass out of love’s threshing-floor,
 
Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.
 
 
• • •
 
 
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.
 
Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;
 
For love is sufficient unto love.
 
 
When you love you should not say, “God is in my heart,” but rather, “I am in the heart of God.”
 
And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.
 
 
Love has no other desire but to fulfil itself.
But if you love and must needs have desires, 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 to 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 meditate love’s ec­stasy;
To return home at eventide with gratitude;
And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.

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