Reflecting on “The Prophet” by Khalil Gibran

Good afternoon everyone,

Hope you’re having a great start to the weekend 🙂

Last week, I finished reading “The Prophet” for a book club that I’m a part of. After chatting it through with two of my friends, I thought my thoughts and feelings on it could make for an interesting blog, which is exactly what we’re going to be taking a look at today.

Hello and Welcome to Sweeney’s Blogs!

For those who haven’t read the book, Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet is a poetic and philosophical work that explores life’s deepest themes through a series of profound, lyrical short essays. The book follows Almustafa, a wise prophet who has lived in the city of Orphalese for 12 years and is about to depart.

Before he leaves, the townspeople ask him to share his wisdom and musings on fundamental aspects of life – from love, loss, children, work, joy, sorrow, freedom, reason and a whole load more.

While I really enjoy reading books like this and The Alchemist, there is one concern that I have with – they distill big life lessons into poetic, almost fable-like narratives, which makes them deeply inspiring, however, also a bit idealistic at times. For example, this book offers countless pieces of advice and wisdon, but its abstract, spiritual tone can sometimes feel disconnected from the messiness of everyday life.

That being said, this could also be classed as part of their appeal. They act as guides, offering a hopeful, reflective perspective rather than a practical roadmap.

I did find myself drawn to a couple sections of the book in particular, here are two of them in particular:

“No man can reveal to you aught but that which already lies half asleep in the dawning of your knowledge” – reinforces the belief that we know a lot more than we give ourselves credit for, it’s more a case of learning how we realise and unlock our full potential that is tied to the magic of life
“The deeper that sorrow carves into your being the more joy you can contain. Is not the cup that holds your wine, the very cup that was burned in the potter’s oven?” – alludes to how life can not exist without sadness and happiness. We experience all of these feelings on a spectrum, it’s going through these touch times that make the happy times that much more impactful to our lives at the end of the day

I’d deffo recommend giving this book a read, it may not neccessarily teach you anything knew, it’s a lovely reminder about the beauty of life. If you do decide to give it a go, be sure to let me know what you think!

Would you like to see me review any other books soon? Send me your recommendations if so 😄

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a lovely day!