Khalil Gibran was a Lebanese American writer, poet, visual artist, and philosopher, the title which he rejected himself. Although he considered himself a painter, he lived mostly in the United States and wrote some of his best works in English.
On January 6, 1883, Gibran was born in a village of the Ottoman-ruled Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate to a Maronite family. In his early years, he was immigrated to the United States along with his mother and siblings. He was enrolled at a Boston school, where his creative abilities were immediately noticed and sent to photographer and publisher F. Holland Day.
He was sent back to his native at fifteen, where he enrolled at College de la Sagesse in Beirut. He was mainly inspired by the European modernists of the late nineteenth century. His initial works were sketches, short stories, poems, proses written in simple language for Arabic newspapers in the United States. Around 1904 his drawings were displayed for the first time at Day's studio in Boston, and by 1905 his first book, A Profile of the Art of Music, was published in Arabic in New York City.
During the exhibition, he met Mary Haskell, his benefactor, who made it possible for him to study art in Paris. His next work, Nymphs of the Valley was also published in Arabic by the following year. Haskell, later on, introduced him to two of his friends Teller and Micheline, who agreed to pose as models for him. In 1908 he published his next work, Spirits Rebellion, in Arabic. After a short time, his book was burned in Beirut by the zealots who considered his book as dangerous and as poison to youths.
By 1912, he settled in New York City and devoted his time to writing literary essays and short stories in Arabic and English. His literary and artistic outlook is generally romantic. All of his writings deal with themes like love, death, nature, and yearning for his homeland. They are lyrical outpourings and expressions of what Gibran has ever felt in his life.
During the last years of his life, he was forced from time to time to return to Lebanon. His countrymen felt that he would be a great leader if he accepted the role. Although he was deeply happy by their desire, he did knew that returning would be a grave mistake. From the geographic point of view, he did call for the adoption of Arabic as a national language of Syria.
At the beginning of 1992, he was diagnosed with an enlarged liver. Doctors told him not to work, which gave him more pain than the illness. The last book published in his lifetime was The Earth Gods on March 14, 1931. He was later admitted to the hospital on April 10, 1931, and died on the same day. The cause of his death was reported to be liver cirrhosis.
Following are some of the famous Khalil Gibran Quotes on Love, Life, Death, Marriage, Friendship, Beauty and Travel.
Trust in dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.
Dreams are series of thoughts, images, or sensations that occur in a person's mind during their sleep. It is to imagine something likely to happen.
Gibran says that we must believe in our dreams. They are the hidden treasure that is infinite or something unending. It is the gate to something that lasts for a long time, even after death.
Dreams are something that will help us to achieve things in life. And it's okay if you cannot achieve it at once, as it can be attained whenever you are ready to bounce back in life. Whenever you are prepared, you can begin to accomplish it all.
Thus, have faith in dreams as you never know when they can turn into reality.
The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the greatest intention.
It is the quality of being friendly, generous, and concerned. It is the quality of caring and understanding people in a better way.
This quote says that the smallest act of affection is more valuable than having all those intentions. As kindness does change the way we see ourselves and others and the way, they see us.
When we show kindness towards others, it starts to affect people positively. We start to feel more compassionate, confident, and in control over our thoughts. We start finding ourselves more supportive and promising than before.
Thus, kindness is more important than any other intention you have in your life.
You may forget with whom you laughed, but you will never forget with whom you wept.
People generally forget all the moments of happiness when sorrow overtakes your life. The feeling of pain and ache is what will always be remembered no matter how happy you were.
Gibran says that people often fail to recall people with whom they have had their happy times. During those moments, you will always have loads of people all around you. Everyone will support and celebrate your joy and will look forward to spending time with you.
But the people who stay with you during the tough times are the ones who will always be remembered. As you will always need someone with you to weep and share all your sorrows with them. We truly know who our real friends are as they will always stay with us during tough times.
Thus, try to be with someone in their bad days, as you too will have tough days.
Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be.
Progress is to move forward towards a particular destination. It is a development towards an improved or advanced situation in life.
This quote says that the real progression does not lie in intensifying things. It is the improvement towards the destination. It is the growth you have in a particular situation that will be helpful for something in the future.
It is the evolution that you create to reach a particular destination. It needs efforts, hard work, and the courage to face the worst. You need to strive for days or months as progress does not take place in a day.
Thus, start making progress in life even though it is small as it will surely help you when you need them.
Continue reading some more Khalil Gibran Quotes....
Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need.
Generosity is the quality of being kind and generous. They are people who provide more than you expect from them. They are people who generally care and having a liberal mind.
Pride is the feeling of having pleasure and satisfaction that you get because you or people connected to you have done or have got something. It is a good emotion and also one of the positive traits.
Gibran says that a generous person believes in giving more to the people in need, but a person who has pride in themselves will always take less than they need. This is mainly because the person who has pride believes in achieving everything he needs on his own. He does not like to accept help from others. They are people who are self-sufficient and have a firm belief in themselves.
Thus, be generous whenever you can but never lose dignity.
If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. And if they don't, they never were.
Love is an intense feeling of emotion that you have for a person or a thing. It is to care and put other's needs before theirs. It is loving someone without any limitations and expecting nothing in return.
This quote says that if you love someone, then you need to let them go when the time comes. If they love you, they will surely return to you as they will not be able to live without you. All your memories will make them come back to you. And if they return, they are always going to be yours.
But if a person starts forgetting all those memories and never return, they learn that they were never yours to begin with. Think of them as a chapter in your book called life. And when that chapter ends, turn the page as your book is still waiting for you.
Thus, do not wait for a person who will not return as life is too short to complain.
Poetry is a deal of joy and pain and wonder, with a dash of the dictionary.
Poetry is a literary work that attempts to stir a reader's emotions and imagination. It is an artistic work where the feelings are expressed by the use of some distinctive style and rhythm.
Gibran says that poetry is a pact between delight, agony, and awe with a fling of dictionary in it. It is the beauty of words when arranged in verses to create a certain impression. Poetry is mainly created by a poet who carefully throws words in a way that it feels magic.
It is a type of literature where words are often interplayed, and all the emotions are felt when read by someone. In poetry, words are strung together to form sounds, images, and any ideas that can be too complex or even abstract.
Thus, try to enjoy poetry when you can.
Life without liberty is like a body without the spirit.
Liberty is the ability to something the way they want to. It is the state of being free within society or free from the control or any other restrictions imposed by any authority.
This quote says that a life without freedom is like a body without its spirit. It means that you need certain independence to stay alive. A free will is what you need to survive in this journey called life.
Liberty is the condition in which a person can speak, act and pursue their dreams without any restriction imposed on them. It is extremely important in individual growth as it leads to enhanced expression of creativity and helps discover their thoughts hidden in the corner of their minds.
Thus, enjoy liberty as, at times, it too can be costly.
Few more Khalil Gibran Quotes...
Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.
Tenderness is the feeling of concern, warmth, or affection you feel for someone. It can also be termed to be extremely sensitive to pain. Kindness is the quality of being generous, friendly, and considerate towards a person.
Gibran says that to be delicate and affectionate is not the indication of fragile and pain. Instead, it is the expression of strength and determination you have within you. To be generous is not a sign of being weak as it shows how big-hearted you are as a person.
When a person is sensitive to pain, it does not shows his desperation instead, it shows his strength to hold the pain within him even though it tears his part. It shows the determination to get better even if it aches.
Thus, be determined and have enough power to face any situation in your life.
You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts.
Thoughts are idea or opinion produced by thinking or something which occurs suddenly in your mind. It is the process of using your mind to consider something. It is an idea or mainly the thing you are thinking about.
This quote says that you talk to a person only when the peace of your thoughts comes to a halt. When you feel confused and are nervous enough, your notions are not in solitude, at those times of stress, you feel mixed emotions within you.
When you lose your calmness, your thoughts get misplaced, and you are under stress. So, when you talk to a person, you start sharing everything on your mind. You start sharing your burden with them and loosen your minds.
Therefore, start talking to people when you can, as it helps to free yourself from your thoughts.
Yesterday is but today's memory, and tomorrow is today's dream.
Yesterday is a day that was your present, but now it is your past. It is something that is no longer a part of your plan. A day in which nothing can be changed even if you try to.
Gibran says that yesterday is a day that is going to be a memory that stays today. It is a day that is going to be in your memory. It is a reminder that the day has already passed, and you can do nothing about it.
Tomorrow is the day after today. It is something which is a dream of today. The present-day you have is today, and the dream which you see is tomorrow. It is the vision that you have on your mind.
Thus, forget about the past and be excited about tomorrow as it can do wonders for you.
The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind.
A teacher is a person who teaches, especially in school. It is a person who helps people to learn things. They are mainly people who provide guidance and show the right path to all their students.
This quote says that a clever teacher does not offer you to set their foot in his own space of knowledge. Instead, he should guide you to the entrance of your mind. A teacher should be capable of driving his student to their thoughts. He should awaken their minds and help them be strong enough to lead their lives.
No matter what, help your students to carve their future and to lead a successful life.
Life without love is like a tree without blossoms or fruit.
Love is a feeling which involves strong emotions in it. It is something that changes a person as a whole. It is an emotion where you feel a strong affection towards others.
Gibran says that a life without love is like a tree without any sprout of flowers and fruits. It means life simply holds no purpose without love. It holds no existence as love is something that you need to experience at least once in a lifetime.
A feeling where you put other's needs before yours. It makes you a responsible person who takes care of others. It creates a positive impact on us and can help to improve our physical and mental health. When in love, you have a person to share your burden with so you heal faster.
Thus, when you fall in love, make it last for a longer time.
Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.
Suffering is the pain that is caused by injury, illness, or personal loss. It is a state where you have to undergo stress, pain, and difficulties.
This quote says that the people who have suffered a lot have emerged as the strongest souls. They are people who are ready to face the worse and have enough courage to turn a new page in their life. People who have had enough pains in life learn to turn those hardships into positive ones.
The famous characters are always people who have been wounded with lots of scars, As scars mainly remind a person to fight and emerge stronger than ever. It is a reminder of all those times which you never want to go back to.
Therefore, be thankful for all those suffering as it has taught you a lot more than happy.
In the 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.
Friendship is a ship that never sinks, even when a storm pounces on it. It is a relation that you share with your friends.
Gibran says that in this cheerfulness of friendship, let there be enough giggling and sharing of all those moments of joy. Let there be days when you can smile without any worries as only these days will bring a grin on your face when you remember it.
Friendship is something that helps your heart to find its path and makes your mornings refreshing. It will act as your happiness in those dewy days, a thing which will turn you into a cheerful person.
Thus, friendship is not a big thing, but it is indeed a million lot of things.
Few more quotes by Khalil Gibran....
Exaggeration is the truth that has lost its temper.
Exaggeration is mainly a statement that represents something as better as or worse than it is. It is to make something seem larger and more important than it is.
This quote says that enhancement is the truth that has already lost its character. When you exaggerate, you truly make it seem larger than the thing is. You give it value even when there is no need.
When you overemphasize things and make them more dramatic. It starts to become a bad habit which eventually turns into lying. When it gets to that extent, things start to become bad, and people hate spending time with you. It is the manipulation of the truth that tones down the reality.
Thus, stop exaggerating as it can make you fall into a complicated situation.
I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers.
This quote is from Khalil Gibran's book The Garden of Prophet, Lazarus and his Beloved, Sand and Foamed. It is something that is quite an irony as the sentence has two parts that do differ from each other.
Gibran says that he has learned to be quiet from the person who talks too much. He learned to be liberal enough from the narrow-minded person and learned to be kind from being inconsiderate.
In short, he did learn all the positive traits by observing all those who behave badly. As they say that they are two ways to learn from a person that is to either copy all the good things he does or look for the bad things and corrects them if found in himself. So, he says that even though he did learn all those lessons, he still is thankless to them as he had to tolerate all those people to learn the lesson.
Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as, by the way, your mind looks at what happens.
Life is something which you should live at a time. Learn to be prepared for the worst and do hope for positive things to happen. As you will be determined by the life you live.
This quote says that your living is mainly directed not by what life brings to you. As life is full of surprises, you may get a new one at any time. It is determined by your perspective with which you live your life. Your point of view of looking out for things decides your living.
It is not by what happens to you. Instead it is how your mind takes the situation. Your mind is a thing that decides how difficult the situation is for you. But if you start considering it as something easy, then you surely can do t.
Therefore, have a positive outlook on life and constructively take everything,
We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them.
Joys and sorrows are two emotions that contradict the other as it is those emotions that give your life its true meaning. Only when you experience both, you do understand the importance of life.
Gibran says that we human beings are quite complicated creatures. We pick our happiness and misery even before we experience it. This way of picking often creates confusion as sometimes the best does turn into the worst and vice versa.
Choosing the moments even before knowing what makes the situation most complicated. It creates difficulties and turns into misery, especially when our joys turn into sorrows. We often feel less confident and feel scared even to try simple things.
Thus, pick your moments carefully as sometimes it can cause you huge damage.
And ever has it been known that love knows not its depth until the hour of separation.
Love is a feeling where you find a great interest in something or pleasure in doing a thing. It is something where you start to have intense affection for a person.
This quote says that love does not have its importance until you experience separation. When you love a person for a long time, you start to take things for granted. Slowly the differences start cropping up, and it gets difficult.
The only solution to avoid the consequence is to separate, and when the time for detachment arrives, you start knowing the depth it holds in your life. You realize the importance of love and pain if you part from the one you love.
Therefore, solve the differences when you can, or else it can lead to a crack in your relation.
Remember that it takes years to understand the difference between who to let go of and with whom you need to be patient. In the same way, it takes years to know what you truly deserve and what you don't. So hang in there as development and expertise come with time.
