Episode 1 - The Prophet - Kahlil Gibran

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
The coming of the ship. AlMustapha, the Chosen and the Beloved,
who was a dawn unto his ownday, had waited twelve years in the
city of Orfelees for his ship thatwas to return and bear him back to
the isle of his birth. Andin the twelfth year, on the seventh
day of Iolul, the month ofreaping, he climbed the hill without the

(00:24):
city walls, and looked seaward,and he beheld his ship coming with the
mist. Then the gates of hisheart were flung open, and its joy
flew far over the sea. Andhe closed his eyes and prayed in the
silences of his soul. But ashe descended the hill, a sadness came
upon him, and he thought inhis heart, how shall I go in

(00:47):
peace and without sorrow? Nay,not without a wound in the spirit?
Shall I leave this city? Longwere the days of pain I have spent
within its walls, and long werethe knights of a loneliness. And who
can depart from his pain and hisa loneness without regret? Too many fragments
of the spirit have I scattered inthese streets, And too many are the

(01:10):
children of my longing that walk nakedamong these hills, and I cannot withdraw
from them without a burden and anache. It is not a garment I
cast off this day, but askin that I tear with my own hands.
Nor is it a thought I leavebehind me, but a heart made
sweet with hunger and with thirst.Yet I cannot tarry longer. The sea

(01:34):
that calls all things unto her callsme, and I must embark. For
to stay though the hours burn inthe night is to freeze and crystallize and
be bound in a mold. Fainwould I take with me all that is
here? But how shall I Avoice cannot carry the tongue and the lips

(01:55):
that gave it wings? Alone,must it seek the ether? And alone
on him without his nest shall theeagle fly across the sun? Now,
when he reached the foot of thehill, he turned again towards the sea,
and he saw his ship approaching theharbor, and upon her proud the
mariners, the men of his ownland, and his soul cried out to

(02:16):
them, and he said, sonsof my ancient mother, you riders of
the tides, how often have yousailed in my dreams? And now you
come in my awakening, which ismy deeper dream. Ready am I to
go? And my eagerness, withsails full set, awaits the wind.
Only another breath will I breathe inthis still air, Only another loving look

(02:40):
cast backward, And then I shallstand among you, a seafarer among seafarers,
and you, vast sea, sleeplessmother, who alone our peace and
freedom to the river and the stream. Only another winding will this stream make?
Only another murmur in this glade,And I shall come to you a

(03:00):
boundless drop to a boundless ocean.And as he walked, he saw from
afar men and women leaving their fieldsand their vineyards, and hastening towards the
city gates. And he heard theirvoices calling his name, and shouting from
field to field, telling one anotherof the coming of his ship. And

(03:21):
he said to himself, shall theday of parting be the day of gathering?
And shall it be said that myeve was in truth my dawn.
And what shall I give unto himwho has left his plow in mid furrow,
or to him who has stopped thewheel of his wine press. Shall
my heart become a tree, heavyladen with fruit, that I may gather

(03:43):
and give unto them, And shallmy desires flow like a fountain that I
may fill their cups? Am I? A harp that the hand of the
Mighty may touch me, or aflute that his breath may pass through me.
A seeker of silences? Am I? And what treasure have I found
in silences that I made? Dispensewith confidence? If this is my day

(04:05):
of harvest? In what fields haveI sowed the seed? And in what
unremembered seasons? If this indeed bethe hour in which I lift up my
lantern, it is not my flamethat shall burn therein empty and dark.
Shall I raise my lantern, andthe guardian of the night shall fill it
with oil, and he shall lightit. Also these things he said in

(04:30):
words, but much in his heartremained unset, for he himself could not
speak his deeper secret. And whenhe entered into the city, all the
people came to meet him, andthey were crying out to him as with
one voice. And the elders ofthe city stood forth and said, go
not yet away from us. Anoontide have you bidden our twilight? And

(04:54):
your youth has given us dreams todream. No stranger are you among us,
nor a guest. But our son, and are dearly beloved, suffer
not yet our eyes to hunger foryour face. And the priests and the
priestesses said unto him, let notthe waves of the sea separate us now,

(05:16):
and the years you have spent inour midst become a memory. You
have walked among us a spirit,and your shadow has been a light upon
our faces. Much have we lovedyou, But speechless was our love.
And with veils has it been veiled? Yet? Now what a Christ aloud
unto you and would stand revealed beforeyou? And ever has it been?

(05:40):
That love knows not its own depthuntil the hour of separation. And others
came also and entreated him, Buthe answered them not. He only bent
his head, and those who stoodnear saw his tears falling upon his breast.
And he and the people proceeded towardsthe great square before the temple,

(06:01):
and there came out of the sanctuarya woman whose name was Almitra, and
she was a cirrus. And helooked upon her with exceeding tenderness, for
it was she who had first soughtand believed in him, when he had
been but a day in their city. And she hailed him, saying,
Prophet of God, in quest ofthe uttermost long have you searched the distances

(06:27):
for your ship, And now yourship has come, and you must needs
go. Deep is your longing forthe land of your memories and the dwelling
place of your greater desires. Andour love could not bind you, nor
our needs hold you. Yet thiswe ask ere you leave us, that
you speak to us and give usof your truth, and we will give

(06:51):
it unto our children, and theyunto their children, and it shall not
perish. In your a loneness,you have watched with our days, and
in your wakefulness you have listened tothe weeping and the laughter of our sleep.
Now, therefore, disclose us toourselves, and tell us all that

(07:11):
has been shown you, of thatwhich is between birth and death. And
he answered, people, of orfelies, of what can I speak save
of that which is even now movingwithin your souls. End of chapter one,
Chapter two on love. Then saidAlmitra, speak to us of love.

(07:41):
And he raised his head and lookedupon the people, and there fell
a stillness upon them, And witha great voice, he said, when
love beckons to you, follow him, though his ways are hard, and
steep, And when his wings enfoldyou, yield to him, though the
sword hidden among his pinions may woundyou. And when he speaks to you,

(08:03):
believe in him, though his voicemay shatter your dreams. As the
north wind lays waste the garden.For even as Love crowns you, so
shall he crucify you. Even ashe is for your growth, So is
he for your pruning. Even ashe ascends to your height and caresses your
tenderest branches, they quiver in thesun, So shall he descend to your

(08:26):
roots and shake them. And they'reclinging to the earth like sheaves a corn.
He gathers you unto himself. Hethreshes you to make you naked.
He sifts you to free you fromyour husks. He grinds you to whiteness.
He needs you until you are apliant, And then he assigns you

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to his sacred fire, that youmay become sacred bread for God's sacred feast.
All these things shall Love do untoyou, that you may know the
secrets of your heart, and inthat knowledge become a fragment of life's heart.
But if in your fear you wouldseek only Love's peace, and love's
pleasure. Then it is better foryou that you cover your nakedness and pass

(09:09):
out of love's threshing floor into theseasonless world, where you shall laugh but
not all of your laughter, andweep but not all of your tears.
Love gives nought but itself, andtakes nought but from itself. Love possesses
not, nor would it be possessed. For love is sufficient unto love.

(09:33):
And when you love, you shouldnot say God is in my heart,
but rather I am in the heartof God, and think not. You
can direct the course of love,for love, if it finds you worthy,
directs your course. Love has noother desire but to fulfill itself.
But if you love and must needshave desires, let these be your desires.

(09:58):
To melt and be like a runningbrook that sings its melody to the
night. To know the pain oftoo much tenderness, to be wounded by
your own understanding of love, andto bleed willingly and joyfully. To wake
at dawn with a winged heart andgive thanks for another day of loving.

(10:18):
To rest at the noon hour andmeditate love's ecstasy. To return home at
eventide with gratitude, and then tosleep with a prayer for the beloved in
your heart, and a song ofpraise upon your lips. End of Chapter