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The Prophet (A Borzoi Book) Hardcover – September 23, 1923

by Kahlil Gibran (Author)

4.8 2,726 ratings

in Middle Eastern Poetry

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One of the most beloved classics of our time—a collection of poetic essays that are philosophical, spiritual, and, above all, inspirational. Published in 1923, Gibran's masterpiece has been translated into more than twenty languages.

Gibran’s musings are divided into twenty-eight chapters covering such sprawling topics as love, marriage, children, giving, eating and drinking, work, joy and sorrow, housing, clothes, buying and selling, crime and punishment, laws, freedom, reason and passion, pain, self-knowledge, teaching, friendship, talking, time, good and evil, prayer, pleasure, beauty, religion, and death.

Each essay reveals deep insights into the impulses of the human heart and mind. The Chicago Post said of The Prophet: “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.”

With twelve full-page drawings by Gibran, this beautiful work makes an incredible gift for anyone seeking enlightenment and inspiration.

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In a distant, timeless place, a mysterious prophet walks the sands. At the moment of his departure, he wishes to offer the people gifts but possesses nothing. The people gather round, each asks a question of the heart, and the man's wisdom is his gift. It is Gibran's gift to us, as well, for Gibran's prophet is rivaled in his wisdom only by the founders of the world's great religions. On the most basic topics--marriage, children, friendship, work, pleasure--his words have a power and lucidity that in another era would surely have provoked the description "divinely inspired." Free of dogma, free of power structures and metaphysics, consider these poetic, moving aphorisms a 20th-century supplement to all sacred traditions--as millions of other readers already have. --Brian Bruya

Review

"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

From the Inside Flap

A brilliant man's philosophy on love, marriage, joy and sorrow, time, friendship and much more. Originally published in 1923 - translated into more than 20 languages. With 12 full page drawings by Gibran.

From the Back Cover

A brilliant man's philosophy on love, marriage, joy and sorrow, time, friendship and much more. Originally published in 1923 - translated into more than 20 languages. With 12 full page drawings by Gibran.

About the Author

Kahlil Gibran was born in 1883 in Lebanon and died in New York in 1931. His family emigrated to the United States in 1895. In his early teens, the artistry of Gibran's drawings caught the eye of his teachers and he was introduced to the avant-garde Boston artist, photographer, and publisher Fred Holland Day, who encouraged and supported Gibran in his creative endeavors. A publisher used some of Gibran's drawings for book covers in 1898, and Gibran held his first art exhibition in 1904 in Boston. In 1908, Gibran went to study art with Auguste Rodin in Paris for two years, and he later studied art in Boston. While most of Gibran's early writing was in Arabic, most of his work published after 1918 was in English. Gibran's best-known work is The Prophet, a book composed of 28 poetic essays.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

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.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0394404289
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Knopf (September 23, 1923)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 96 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780394404288
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0394404288
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 990L
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.74 x 0.58 x 8.54 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,303 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1 in Middle Eastern Poetry (Books)
- #8 in Inspirational & Religious Poetry (Books)
- #129 in Personal Transformation Self-Help

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4.8 2,726 ratings

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Kahlil Gibran

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Kahlil Gibran: full Arabic name Gibran Khalil Gibran, (January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) was a Lebanese-American artist, poet, and writer of the New York Pen League.

Kahlil Gibran was born in the town of Bsharri in the Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, Ottoman Empire (north of modern-day Lebanon), to Khalil Gibran and Kamila Gibran(Rahmeh). As a young man Kahlil emigrated with his family to the United States, where he studied art and began his literary career, writing in English and Arabic. In the Arab world, Gibran is regarded as a literary and political rebel. His romantic style was at the heart of a renaissance in modern Arabic literature, especially prose poetry, breaking away from the classical school. In Lebanon, he is still celebrated as a literary hero.

He is chiefly known in the English-speaking world for his 1923 book The Prophet, an early example of inspirational fiction including a series of philosophical essays written in poetic English prose. The book sold well despite a cool critical reception, gaining popularity in the 1930s and again, especially in the 1960s counterculture. Gibran is the third best-selling poet of all time, behind Shakespeare and Laozi.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by unknown [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

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Michael E. Burgess

Thoughts on Khalil Gibran's "The Prophet"

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2012

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This is my all-time favorite work of literature.

The first time I read this book I was 15 years old. A great friend's father (a high school guidance counselor) gave it to me in an attempt to broaden my philosophical, intellectual and literary horizons. The book had the desired effect. I opened it that afternoon and did not put it down until I had read every last page in one sitting. I was transfixed. I finished reading it in approximately three hours, front to back. My philosophy, my world view and my life were all changed forever.

Tons of people have reviewed the textual content of the book but it is more than that. This work is arguably the greatest literary accomplishment of Gibran's lifetime and it isn't just textual. It is also textural. The Prophet is poetic and it inspires a sense of inner peace and harmony just by reading the words written on its pages; simple messages which resonated like a cannon in a young mind. As it turns out they still resonate in exactly the same way now that I am older. I have read The Prophet a total of 22 times during the course of my life and each time I read it I discover some new facet of my existence that I can apply its wisdom to.

Over the years I have shared this amazing book with loved ones, friends, coworkers, even a university professor, who to my great surprise, had never read it. This is a seminal work and should be required reading for any person who considers himself/herself to be 'educated'.

Aside from the passages in the Bible, this is the greatest work of literary art in existence. Whatever booksellers are charging nowadays for a copy of The Prophet, it is worth it.

Michael E. Burgess

13 people found this helpful

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Joseph Kline PhD, MD, MBA

The most beautiful and profoundly true book ever written by one man!

Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2014

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I was first introduced to Gibran's masterpiece when I was a young intelligence analyst serving in Vietnam in 1968. You may think what an odd place to meet The Prophet, but actually a combat zone may have been the perfect locale. Vietnam was an area where man's inhumanity to man begged for something that was beautifully expressed and was profoundly true, something that was man's greatest achievement in an area of his worst. This is just one example of the power of The Prophet.

The Prophet is a relatively short book that can be read in an afternoon, but its impact will endure for a lifetime. I have given copies to friends on the occasion of their weddings, and read it to every woman I ever loved. I have also recommended it to countless patients in my psychiatry practice. One would have to be dead inside not to be moved by the poetic beauty of Gibran's carefully chosen words on life, love, marriage, joy and sorrow, children and the like. It was truly inspired by God himself, so profound are its truths.

This edition is equally perfect. It is hardcover and contains Gibran's own unique drawings. The paper is heavy and softly feathered, giving it an expensive appearance appropriate to the value of the writing within. It really does make a simple but valuable gift for occasions such as weddings or for others you love.

If you have never read The Prophet, then you must buy some copies, read one and keep it, and give the others away to people you care about. After all these years, I cannot count the number of times that I have quoted it. It is my favorite book of all times and easily garners MY ABSOLUTE HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION!!!!!

43 people found this helpful

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Kahlil

Inspiring

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2024

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I like how you can apply many teachings from the book to day to day life today.

One person found this helpful

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Good Life

A book to think and reread

Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2023

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I've read this many times and it speaks differently each time. Although it can be read straight through I would recommend picking a subject that is weighing on your mind and read it as a commentary on the subject to deeply think about. This makes it a rather strange book for the casual reader. You could more think of it as poetry rather than prose. Because I change over time, each time I read a passage it conveys a different message. The messages aren't blunt but something to contemplate. Because of that I wouldn't recommend this as a quick read and on to something else. It has to be read over time. Read a passage and come back to read another passage later.
One of my favorit books that I have used for many moments over many years.

12 people found this helpful

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Nova

A must-read classic

Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2012

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For years, I've seen the Prophet sitting on others' book shelves with the haunting face on the cover, and I always wondered what this book was about. Then a friend laid it in my hands a few months ago just at a point in my life when I could actually grasp it. I read just one page and Gibran's words were so beautiful, so powerful, so truthful that I had to get a copy of my own.

Almustafa, the main character, is a prophet of God; he is Christ, Buddha, Krishna, the Higher Self. He is the familiar soul that walks between heaven and earth in all humans and all creatures. As he is about to leave the city of Orphalese to return "home," the people there sorrowfully beg him to share with them his wisdom. One by one they ask Almustafa to speak of love, of children, of eating and drinking, crime and punishment, of houses and self-knowledge, among other basic topics of life. His answers come in precisely crafted poetry that is deceptively simple, stunningly beautiful and potent in their spiritual depth. Afmustafa's responses to the people of Orphalese represent the distillation of Gibran's own Self-mastery, his own unified consciousness, and spiritual awakening.

This short book should be read slowly and repeatedly until all its hidden truths are unveiled, even if it takes rereading it years after the first time. It is not only Gibran's masterpiece, but his loving gift to the world. I'm glad it took me 48 years to get to it; I would not have appreciated it until now.

5 people found this helpful

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Ken

It's a great book.

Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2023

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Over the years I've bought this book for my children, my Niece and Nephew and this time around for my early teenage grandies.

Every one should give them a copy

…. And I just bought myself (another.. lost???) one for a pleasant re-read

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Tony pinto

a great read

Reviewed in Canada on October 23, 2023

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the book is very insiteful

Joanne Marasigan

Timeless message

Reviewed in Mexico on October 18, 2022

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Been wanting to read this classic and truly didn’t disappoint. The message is timeless, profound and I honestly had to read it twice to appreciate the meaning and let it all sink in. Love the artwork as well.

Gillian walker

A book to make sense of life

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 12, 2023

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I gave it as a Christmas present

Paris

Indispensable

Reviewed in France on August 7, 2015

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De la poésie, de la spiritualité, et une vision de l'humanisme que chacun d'entre nous devrait lire ou écouter, ne serait-ce qu'une fois dans sa vie.

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Anders Kouru

The Prophet of Kahlil Gibran

Reviewed in Germany on December 10, 2012

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Jungere Menschen aber auch ältere Menschen wurde diesen Buch gern lesen!
Es gibt viel innere und auch poetische Schönheit!
Viel Spass!

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