Khalil Gibran, On Marriage

I want to share with you the famous words from Lebanese-American writer and poet, Khalil Gibran, from his masterpiece, “The Prophet”. This part comes from the abstract "On Marriage".

This is my favourite part, and here you’ll find the whole piece.

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.