Love

I haven't gotten many comments on my blog.  I'm quite sure people are reading it since people tell me they are.  So for this post I'm going to use my blog for the other purpose for which I started it, to talk about things I'm thinking about.  So please leave comments about what I post.  I would love the discussion.  If you are shy about sharing your thoughts and opinions, then just post anonymously.

I've been reading from a little from a book of Poems called "The Prophet."  It was written by Kahlil Gibran.  I really like it.  It starts out with an introduction about a prophet who is about to leave a city that he has spent a good amount of time in.  The people of the city are quite distressed by the thought of his leaving.  One prophetess by the name of Almitra and who seems to have been a disciple of the Prophet's speaks for the people and asks the prophet "all that has been shown you of that which is between birth and death."   He responds by asking them, "of what can I speak save of that which is even now moving your souls?"  Almitra then told him to "Speak to us of Love"  That leads to the first poem, which of course is a poem about just that.  The following is the text of the Poem.

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, 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. 

I really don't even know where I would start with a poem so loaded as this one.  Each line could be devoted to a blog post.  I especially like the portion of the poem that speaks of Love transforming us into "the sacred bread for God's sacred feast."  The thought of being husked, ground into bits, and kneaded until we are "pliant," doesn't sound like terms we would usually associate with a Love poem, but isn't this exactly what Love does to us?  Who would ask to go through such a thing?  Well, the sad shame is, most want all the pleasure and none of the pain, and naively believe that they can have all the pleasure without the pain.  This expectation may be a factor in the epidemic divorce rates today.  (A discussion for another day.  I'm convinced there are many other serious factors playing into this)

That leads to my next favorite part of the poem, the type of people I described above live in fear of love.  The prophet says that if in your fear you seek only the pleasure and peace of love, then  "it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love's threshing-floor."  So essentially he counsels the people to either live every aspect of love, and if you can't, then don't live any of it.  You can then "laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears."  Those who cannot overcome their fear will never experience life in its fullest.  A sad lot, but probably not as sad as someone who tries to enjoy all of the pleasures of love and avoid all the pain.  

I really like this poem and I could go on, but I've probably talked on so long now that most of you will probably not read it all.  I hope some of you will think about it and comment on it.  I really want to know what others think about the poem.  If its a successful post, then I'll probably do the second poem on marriage.  Again, if your shy about sharing your thoughts, but like to share them nonetheless, then go ahead and post anonymously.  Hope to hear from some of you.