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Sooner would I perish of longing than live in dullness! Would that the depths of my soul be consumed by an eternal, unappeasable appetite for love and beauty. For I have looked all around and seen that those who are satisfied are the most wretched of all people, and are enslaved by their own earthiness. I have heard the burning sighs of unrequited love and I have found them sweeter than love satisfied.
As evening approaches, the rose folds its petals and sleeps in the embrace of her yearnings. But with the approach of the morn, she parts her lips to receive the kiss of the sun. For the life of a flower is a longing and a fulfillment, a tear and a smile.
The sea's waters become vapor and rise, gathering into a cloud. The cloud floats above the hills and the valleys until it meets a gentle breeze and then it falls, weeping towards the fields. Only then does it join the running streams and return to the sea, its home and origin. The life of a cloud is a separation and a union, a tear and a smile.
And so is it for the spirit. The individual spirit becomes separated from the greater spirit and sojourns in the world of matter, a wandering cloud over the mountains of sorrow and the plains of joy, until it meets the subtle breeze of death. The spirit thus sojourns until it returns to its origin; to the Greater Sea of Love and Beauty; to God!
~ Kahlil Gibran; from A Tear and a Smile, 1914.
Photograph: Denis Roussel
Such beauty and depth from Kahlil Gibran. Our sojourn here on earth is comprised of the dualities of suffering and joy - "a tear and a smile". We are meant to experience the full spectrum of polarities, to be buffeted by them as great storms and lulled into sweet dreams by gentle breezes. These experiences are not only for our individual learning but become part of a greater movement of human consciousness. An evolution of consciousness or spirit if you will. Gibran compares our journey to that of clouds that cycle back to the ocean from whence they originally came creating a grand cycle. No matter where we are we always remain the water we started from. In other words, we are pure spirit and always connected to our Source.
ReplyDeleteHe states he would rather savour and embrace the suffering in life than to have a life without it. He understands that there is an inner meaning in the suffering we endure. It has a way of hollowing us out so completely until there is no other door to open except the one within our hearts. And from this opening a great beauty comes forth. To live with an open heart and embrace life in all its forms is the Way of the Heart. Indeed, we can learn so much from his greatness spirit and gentle wisdom.
Thank you so much again, Joseph, for your thoughtful attention for Gibran's passage. And as you say, Kahlil Gibran understands that there is an inner meaning in the suffering, the "tears", we endure. And also in the "smiles", those moments of joy. Gibran also wishes us to think of these things in their most direct metaphysical way: that a 'tear' is the feeling of our separation from the source, and a 'smile' our union with the source once more.
ReplyDeleteThank you again. I always so appreciate your comments, as you know.