200+ Quotes & Sayings By Kahlil Gibran

Kahlil Gibran was born in the town of Al-Gharbiyyah, Lebanon, on September 10, 1883. He is considered by many to be one of the most important poets and writers of the 20th century. Gibran died on May 22, 1931 in New York.

If you love somebody, let them go, for if they...
1
If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. If they don't, they never were. Kahlil Gibran
2
Let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together, yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow. Kahlil Gibran
Ever has it been that love knows not its own...
3
Ever has it been that love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation. Kahlil Gibran
4
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... 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. And think not you can direct the course of 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. . Kahlil Gibran
5
No human relation gives one possession in another–every two souls are absolutely different. In friendship or in love, the two side by side raise hands together to find what one cannot reach alone. Kahlil Gibran
Love one another, but make not a bond of love:...
6
Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Kahlil Gibran
7
It is wrong to think that love comes from long companionship and persevering courtship. Love is the offspring of spiritual affinity and unless that affinity is created in a moment, it will not be created for years or even generations. Kahlil Gibran
8
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 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 on your lips. . Kahlil Gibran
9
Thus with my lips have I denounced you, while my heart, bleeding within me, called you tender names. It was love lashed by its own self that spoke. It was pride half slain that fluttered in the dust. It was my hunger for your love that raged from the housetop, while my own love, kneeling in silence, prayed your forgiveness. Kahlil Gibran
They say: 'If a man knew himself, he would know...
10
They say: 'If a man knew himself, he would know all mankind.' I say: 'If a man loved mankind, he would know something of himself. Kahlil Gibran
When you love you should not think you can direct...
11
When you love you should not think you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course. Kahlil Gibran
12
You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore. You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days. Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.But let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow. Kahlil Gibran
And think not you can direct the course of love,...
13
And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course. Kahlil Gibran
14
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.. 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 oflove’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.. 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. . Kahlil Gibran
15
Love one another, but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Kahlil Gibran
Darkness may hide the treesand the flowers from the eyesbut...
16
Darkness may hide the treesand the flowers from the eyesbut it cannot hidelove from the soul. Kahlil Gibran
Yesterday we obeyed kings and bent our necks before emperors....
17
Yesterday we obeyed kings and bent our necks before emperors. But today we kneel only to truth, follow only beauty, and obey only love. Kahlil Gibran
He who seeks ecstasy in love should not complain of...
18
He who seeks ecstasy in love should not complain of suffering. Kahlil Gibran
We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience...
19
We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them. Kahlil Gibran
I slept and I dreamed that life is all joy....
20
I slept and I dreamed that life is all joy. I woke and I saw that life is all service. I served and I saw that service is joy. Kahlil Gibran
21
The Reality of The Other Person Lies Not In What He Reveals To You, But What He Cannot Reveal To You.Therefore, If You Would Understand Him, Listen Not To What He Says, But Rather To What He Does Not Say. Kahlil Gibran
22
Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself... You may house their bodies but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. Kahlil Gibran
23
Work is love made visible. And if you can't work with love, but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of the people who work with joy Kahlil Gibran
Of life's two chief prizes, beauty and truth, I found...
24
Of life's two chief prizes, beauty and truth, I found the first in a loving heart and the second in a laborer's hand. Kahlil Gibran
Do not fear the thorns in your path, for they...
25
Do not fear the thorns in your path, for they draw only corrupt blood. Kahlil Gibran
26
You were born together, and together you shall be for evermore.. But let there be spaces in your togetherness.. Love one another, but make not a bond of love. Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not of the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. . Kahlil Gibran
You talk when you cease to be at peace with...
27
You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts. Kahlil Gibran
28
Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding... And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy Kahlil Gibran
If you reveal your secrets to the wind, you should...
29
If you reveal your secrets to the wind, you should not blame the wind forrevealing them to the trees. Kahlil Gibran
30
No man can reveal to you aught but that which already lies half asleep in the dawning of your knowledge. The teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness. If he is indeed wise he does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind. Kahlil Gibran
Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry,...
31
Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children. Kahlil Gibran
32
Pity the nation that is full of beliefs and empty of religion. Pity the nation that wears a cloth it does not weave and eats a bread it does not harvest. Pity the nation that acclaims the bully as hero, and that deems the glittering conqueror bountiful. Pity a nation that despises a passion in its dream, yet submits in its awakening. Pity the nation that raises not its voice save when it walks in a funeral, boasts not except among its ruins, and will rebel not save when its neck is laid between the sword and the block. Pity the nation whose statesman is a fox, whose philosopher is a juggler, and whose art is the art of patching and mimicking Pity the nation that welcomes its new ruler with trumpeting, and farewells him with hooting, only to welcome another with trumpeting again. Pity the nation whose sages are dumb with years and whose strongmen are yet in the cradle. Pity the nation divided into fragments, each fragment deeming itself a nation. Kahlil Gibran
He who is more mindful of one, loses the love...
33
He who is more mindful of one, loses the love and the faith of both. Kahlil Gibran
He who wears his morality but as his best garment...
34
He who wears his morality but as his best garment were better naked. The wind and the sun will tear no holes in his skin. Kahlil Gibran
For Reason, ruling alone, is a force confining; and Passion,...
35
For Reason, ruling alone, is a force confining; and Passion, unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction. Kahlil Gibran
36
I tell you as well as myself: what we see with our own eyes is nothing other than a cloud concealing what we should perceive with our inner sight, while what we listen to with our ears is merely a ringing sound disturbing what we should understand with our hearts. When we see a man being taken to prion by a police officer let us not hasten to assume he is a wrong-doer. When we see a corpse, and a man standing beside it with bloodstained hands, let us not conclude that this is a victim and his assassin. When we hear one man singing and another lamenting, let us ascertain which one of the two is truly happy. . Kahlil Gibran
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and...
37
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight. Kahlil Gibran
38
Say not, “I have found the truth, ” but rather, “I have found a truth.” Say not, “I have found the path of the soul.” Say rather, “I have met the soul walking upon my path.” For the soul walks upon all paths. The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed. The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals. Kahlil Gibran
39
Only yesterday I was no different than them, yet I was saved. I am explaining to you the way of life of a people who say every sort of wicked thing about me because I sacrificed their friendship to gain my own soul. I left the dark paths of their duplicity and turned my eyes toward the light where there is salvation, truth, and justice. They have exiled me now from their society, yet I am content. Mankind only exiles the one whose large spirit rebels against injustice and tyranny. He who does not prefer exile to servility is not free in the true and necessary sense of freedom. Kahlil Gibran
40
The hidden well-spring of your soul must needs rise and run murmuring to the sea; And the treasure of your infinite depths would be revealed to your eyes. But let there be no scales to weigh your unknown treasure; And seek not the depths of your knowledge with staff or sounding line. For self is a sea boundless and measureless. Say not, “I have found the truth, ” but rather, “I have found a truth.” Say not, “I have found the path of the soul.” Say rather, “I have met the soul walking upon my path.” For the soul walks upon all paths. The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed. The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals. Kahlil Gibran
Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses...
41
Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Kahlil Gibran
It takes two of us to discover truth: one to...
42
It takes two of us to discover truth: one to utter it and one to understand it. Kahlil Gibran
Trees are poems the earth writes upon the sky, We...
43
Trees are poems the earth writes upon the sky, We fell them down and turn them into paper, That we may record our emptiness. Kahlil Gibran
I AM IGNORANT of absolute truth. But I am humble...
44
I AM IGNORANT of absolute truth. But I am humble before my ignorance and therein lies my honor and my reward. Kahlil Gibran
The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you...
45
The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind. Kahlil Gibran
Ihr redet, wenn ihr aufhört mit euren Gedanken in Frieden...
46
Ihr redet, wenn ihr aufhört mit euren Gedanken in Frieden zu sein. Kahlil Gibran
Die Einsicht eines Menschen verleiht ihre Flügel keinem anderen.
47
Die Einsicht eines Menschen verleiht ihre Flügel keinem anderen. Kahlil Gibran
Wenn [der Lehrer] wirklich weise ist, fordert er euch nicht...
48
Wenn [der Lehrer] wirklich weise ist, fordert er euch nicht auf, ins Haus seiner Weisheit einzutreten, sondern führt euch an die Schwelle eures eigenen Geistes. Kahlil Gibran
Je tiefer sich das Leid in euer Sein eingräbt, desto...
49
Je tiefer sich das Leid in euer Sein eingräbt, desto mehr Freude könnt ihr fassen. Kahlil Gibran
Sadness is but a wall between two gardens.
50
Sadness is but a wall between two gardens. Kahlil Gibran
Behind the veil of each night, there is a smiling...
51
Behind the veil of each night, there is a smiling dawn. Kahlil Gibran
For what is it to die but to stand naked...
52
For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun? And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance. Kahlil Gibran
I am forever walking upon these shores, Betwixt the sand...
53
I am forever walking upon these shores, Betwixt the sand and the foam, The high tide will erase my food prints, And the wind will blow away the foam, But the sea and the shore will remain forever. Kahlil Gibran
For what is it to die but to stand naked...
54
For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and melt into the sun? Kahlil Gibran
Your fear of death is but the trembling of the...
55
Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand is to be laid upon him in honour. Kahlil Gibran
56
For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun? And what is it to cease breathing but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered? Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing. And when you have reached the mountaintop, then you shall begin to climb. And when the earth shal claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance. Kahlil Gibran
57
Some of you say, “Joy is greater than sorrow, ” and others say, “Nay, sorrow is the greater.” But I say unto you, they are inseparable. Together they come, and when one sits alone with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed. Kahlil Gibran
You give but little when you give of your possessions....
58
You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. Kahlil Gibran
Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror. But...
59
Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror. But you are eternity and you are the mirror. Kahlil Gibran
When you part from your friend, you grieve not; For...
60
When you part from your friend, you grieve not; For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, asthe mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain. Kahlil Gibran
61
We wanderers, ever seeking the lonelier way, begin no day where we have ended another day; and no sunrise finds us where sunset left us. Even while the earth sleeps we travel. We are the seeds of the tenacious plant, and it is in our ripeness and our fullness of heart that we are given to the wind and are scattered. Kahlil Gibran
62
You have been told that, even like a chain, you are as weak as your weakest link. This is but half the truth. You are also as strong as your strongest link. To measure you by your smallest deed is to reckon the power of the oceanby the frailty of its foam. To judge you by your failures is to cast blame upon the seasons for their inconstancy. Kahlil Gibran
63
Your reason and your passion are the rudder and the sails of your seafaring soul. If either your sails or your rudder be broken, you can but toss and drift, or else be held at a standstill in mid-seas. For reason, ruling alone, is a force confining; and passion, unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction. Therefore let your soul exalt your reason to the height of passion, that it may sing; And let it direct your passion with reason, that your passion may live through its own daily resurrection, and like the phoenix rise above its own ashes. . Kahlil Gibran
64
You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts; And when you can no longer dwell in the solitude of your heart you live in your lips, and sound is a diversion and a pastime. And in much of your talking, thinking is half murdered. Kahlil Gibran
No man can reveal to you aught but that which...
65
No man can reveal to you aught but that which already lies half asleep in the dawning of your knowledge. Kahlil Gibran
Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder,...
66
Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder, with a dash of the dictionary. Kahlil Gibran
67
You are my brother and I love you. I love you worshipping in your church, kneeling in your temple, and praying in your mosque. You and I and all are children of one religion, for the varied paths of religion are but the fingers of the loving hand of the Supreme Being, extended to all, offering completeness of spirit to all, anxious to receive all. Kahlil Gibran
I came here to be for all and with all,...
68
I came here to be for all and with all, and what I do today in my solitudewill be echoed tomorrow by the multitude. What I say now with one heartwill be said tomorrow by thousands of hearts... Kahlil Gibran
Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never...
69
Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking. Kahlil Gibran
Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach...
70
Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof. Kahlil Gibran
I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel...
71
I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are sons of one religion, and it is the spirit. Kahlil Gibran
One's own religion is after all a matter between oneself...
72
One's own religion is after all a matter between oneself and one's Maker and no one else's. Kahlil Gibran
Your daily life is your temple and your religion.
73
Your daily life is your temple and your religion. Kahlil Gibran
Your daily life is your temple and your religion. When...
74
Your daily life is your temple and your religion. When you enter into it take with you your all. Kahlil Gibran
75
I love you, my brother, whoever you are - whether you worship in a church, kneel in your temple, or pray in your mosque. You and I are children of one faith, for the diverse paths of religion are fingers of the loving hand of the one supreme being, a hand extended to all, offering completeness of spirit to all, eager to receive all. Kahlil Gibran
76
And if you would know God, be not therefore a solver of riddles. Rather look about you and you shall see Him playing with your children. And look into space; you shall see Him walking in the cloud, outstretching His arms in the lightning and descending in rain. You shall see Him smiling in flowers, then rising and waving His hands in trees. Kahlil Gibran
When you reach the end of what you should know,...
77
When you reach the end of what you should know, you will be at the beginning of what you should sense. Kahlil Gibran
And even as each one of you stands alone in...
78
And even as each one of you stands alone in God's knowledge, so must each one of you be alone in his knowledge of God and in his understanding of the earth. Kahlil Gibran
The lust for comfort kills the passions of the soul.
79
The lust for comfort kills the passions of the soul. Kahlil Gibran
The timeless in you is aware of life's timelessness. And...
80
The timeless in you is aware of life's timelessness. And knows that yesterday is but today's memory and tomorrow is today's dream. Kahlil Gibran
Perhaps time’s definition of coal is the diamond.
81
Perhaps time’s definition of coal is the diamond. Kahlil Gibran
82
Many of us spend our whole lives running from feeling with the mistaken belief that you can not bear the pain. But you have already borne the pain. What you have not done is feel all you are beyond that pain. Kahlil Gibran
Friendship is always a sweet responsibility, never an opportunity.
83
Friendship is always a sweet responsibility, never an opportunity. Kahlil Gibran
84
For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill? Seek him always with hours to live. For it is his to fill your need, but not your emptiness. And in th sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed. Kahlil Gibran
85
And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit. For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught. Kahlil Gibran
A woman protested saying,
86
A woman protested saying, "Of course it was a righteous war. My son fell in it.". Kahlil Gibran
87
When you were a wandering desire in the mist, I too was there, a wandering desire. Then we sought one another, and out of our eagerness dreams were born. And dreams were time limitless, and dreams were space without measure. Kahlil Gibran
I have found both freedom and safety in my madness;...
88
I have found both freedom and safety in my madness; the freedom of loneliness and the safety from being understood, for those who understand us enslave something in us. Kahlil Gibran
Forgetfulness is a form of freedom.
89
Forgetfulness is a form of freedom. Kahlil Gibran
Life without liberty is like a body without spirit.
90
Life without liberty is like a body without spirit. Kahlil Gibran
91
And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when even the desire of seeking freedom becomes a harness to you, and when you cease to speak of freedom as a goal and a fullfilment. you should be free indeed when your days are not without care nor your nights without a word and a grief, but rather when these things girdle your life and yet you rise above them naked unbound. Kahlil Gibran
92
But you who walk facing the sun, what images drawn on the earth can hold you? You who travel with the wind, what weathervane shall direct your course? What man's law shall bind you if you break your yoke but upon no man's prison door? What laws shall you fear if you dance but stumble against no man's iron chains? And who is he that shall bring you to judgment if you tear off your garment yet leave it in no man's path? People of Orphalese, you can muffle the drum, and you can loosen the strings of the lyre, but who shall command the skylark not to sing? . Kahlil Gibran
For how can a tyrant rule the free and the...
93
For how can a tyrant rule the free and the proud, but for a tyranny in their own freedom and a shame in their own pride? Kahlil Gibran
Tolerance is love sick with the sickness of haughtiness.
94
Tolerance is love sick with the sickness of haughtiness. Kahlil Gibran
Men who do not forgive women their little faults will...
95
Men who do not forgive women their little faults will never enjoy their great virtues. Kahlil Gibran
The professors in the academy say, “Do not make the...
96
The professors in the academy say, “Do not make the model more beautiful than she is, ” and my soul whispers, “O if you could only paint the model as beautiful as she really is. Kahlil Gibran
The appearance of things changes according to the emotions; and...
97
The appearance of things changes according to the emotions; and thus we see magic and beauty in them, while the magic and beauty are really in ourselves. Kahlil Gibran
Your clothes conceal much of your beauty, yet they hide...
98
Your clothes conceal much of your beauty, yet they hide not the unbeautiful. Kahlil Gibran
True beauty is a ray That springs from the sacred...
99
True beauty is a ray That springs from the sacred depths of the soul, and illuminates the body, just as lifesprings from the kernel of a stone andgives colour and scent to a flower. Kahlil Gibran
Let me, O let me bathe my soul in colours;...
100
Let me, O let me bathe my soul in colours; let me swallow the sunset and drink the rainbow. Kahlil Gibran