KHALIL GIBRAN – A BRILLIANT POET

by Dr. Lawrence Wilson

One of the most beautiful books of poetry that I highly recommend is the book entitled The Prophet by Khalil Gibran (1883 – 1931). Some of the following is from a website about his life and work.

ABOUT KHALIL GIBRAN

Gibran Khalil Gibran was born in 1883 in Bsharri, a mountainous area in Northern Lebanon. His mother’s family came from a prestigious religious background, which imbued her with a strong will and later on helped her raise up her family. Khalil was mainly educated by a village elder who taught him the essentials of religion and the Syriac and Arabic languages.

When he was 8 years old, in 1895, the Gibran family left Lebanon and migrated to the city of Boston, USA, where Arabic was spoken and Arabic customs were common at that time. Khalil entered school and impressed the teachers with his sketches and drawings, a hobby he had developed in Lebanon.

Gibran caught the eye of his teachers with his sketches and drawings, a hobby he had started during his childhood in Lebanon.

WORKS OF KHALIL GIBRAN

In 1904, Khalil had his first art exhibition in Boston. From 1908 to 1910 he studied art in Paris with August Rodin. In 1912 he settled in New York, where he devoted himself to writing and painting. Gibran's early works were written in Arabic, and later he published in English. In 1920 he founded a society for Arab writers, Mahgar (al-Mahgar). Among its members were Mikha'il Na'ima (1889-1988), Iliya Abu Madi (1889-1957), Nasib Arida (1887-1946), Nadra Haddad (1881-1950), and Ilyas Abu Sabaka (1903-47).

THE PROPHET is a book of 26 poetic essays, which has been translated into over 20 languages. The theme of the book is that a prophet, who has lived in a foreign city 12 years, is about to board a ship that will take him home. He is stopped by a group of people, whom he teaches the mysteries of life. The essays and poems in this book I find particularly beautiful and meaningful. The entire book, The Prophet, is available on the internet at THE PROPHET.

Khalil Gibran was truly a great man. Below are just a few of his other books.

.IS AL MURUDJ, 1906

.STONEFOLDS, 1907

.ON THE THRESHOLD, 1907

.AL-ARWAH AL-MUTAMARRIDA, 1908

.DAILY BREAD, 1910

.FIRES, 1912

.AL-AJNIHA AL-MUTAKASSIRAH [The broken wings], 1912

.DAM'AH WA-IBTISAMAH [A Tear and a Smile], 1914

.THE MADMAN, 1918

.AL-MAWAKIB [The Procession], 1919

.THE FORERUNNER, 1920

.SPIRITS REBELLIOUS, 1920

.SAND AND FOAM, 1926

.JESUS, THE SON OF MAN, 1928

.THE EARTH GODS, 1931

.GARDEN OF THE PROPHET, 1933

.THE DEATH OF THE PROPHET, 1933

.TEARS AND LAUGHTER, 1947

NYMPHS OF THE VALLEY, 1948

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