WOW! TO THE CREATOR

-The smallest shark is the dwarf lantern shark.
  at just 20 cm long. It is so small that it could
  lie curled up in your hand.

-Walking fish: The tripod fish is one of the deepest-
  dwelling of all fish, found more than 6000 m below
  the surface. It 'walks' along the soft mud of the
  seabed on the long spines of its two lower side fins
  (pelvics) and lower tail. It probably eats small shrimp
  and similar shellfish.

-Insect Senses: Insect eyes are of two different types.
 Compound eyes, which are made up of many tiny lenses,
  are good at detecting movement. Simple eyes only register
  light and dark. An insect's antennae, or 'feelers', function as
 organs of touch, smell, and taste.


-pseudo scorpions often attach themselves to the legs of insects,
 such as house-flies, crane flies and beetles, to hitch rides.
 They can also walk backwards.


-

JESUS ON THE LEAN DONKEY

Jesus on the lean donkey,
this is an emblem of how the rational intellect
should control the animal -soul.
                                    Let your spirit
be strong like Jesus.
                         If that part becomes weak,
than the worn-out donkey grow to a dragon.

Be grateful when what seems unkind
comes from a wise person.
                                      Once, a holy man,
riding his donkey, saw a snake crawling into
a sleeping man's mouth! He hurried, but he couldn't
prevent it. He hit the man several blows with his club.

The man woke terrified and ran beneath an apple tree
with many rotten apples on the ground.
                                                          "Eat!
You miserable wretch! Eat."
                                            "Why are you doing this to me?"
"Eat more, you fool."
                                "I've never seen you before!
Who are you? Do you have some inner quarrel with my soul?"

The wise man kept forcing him to eat, and then he ran him.
For hours he whipped the poor man and made him run.
Finally, at nightfall, full of rotten apples,
fatigued, bleeding, he fell
                                     and vomited everything,
the good and the bad, the apples and the snake.

When he saw the ugly snake
come out himself, he fell on his knees
before his assailant.
                             "Are you Gabriel? Are you God?

I bless the moment you first noticed me. I was dead
and didn't know it. You've given me a new life.
Everything I've said to you was stupid!
I didn't know."
                         "If I had explained what I was doing,
you might have panicked and died of fear.
Muhammad said,
                           'If I describe the enemy that lives
inside men, even the most courageous would be paralyzed. No one
would go out, or do any work. No one would pray and fast,
and all power to change would fade
from human beings,'
                                so I kept quite
while I was beating you, that like David
I might shape iron, so that, impossibly,
I might put feathers back into a bird's wing.

God's silence is necessary, because of humankind's
faintheartedness. If had told you about the snake,
you wouldn't have been able to eat, and if
you hadn't eaten, you wouldn't have vomited.

I saw your condition and drove my donkey hard
into the middle of it, saying always under my breath,
'Lord, make it easy on him.' I wasn't permitted
to tell you, and I wasn't permitted to stop
beating you!"
                   The healed man, still kneeling,
"I have no way to thank you for the quickness
of your wisdom and the strength
of your guidance.
                          God will thank you."

                                           RUMI

WOW! TO THE CREATOR

-Some hot springs have superheated water.
 The water is under such great pressure as
 it spurts from cracks in the rock, that is hotter
 than boiling. Yet some tiny life-forms called
 bacteria can live in it.


-On a hot, sunny day, the water in a rock pool
 can reach more than 50 degree centigrade. Yet
 in winter it can be almost freezing. Rock pool
 animals must be very tough to withstand such
 extremes.


-The biggest pearl was found in a giant clam and
 was 12 cm across. One oyster had eight small
 pearls inside,


-The giant squid has the largest eyes of any animal.
 They are up to 40 cm across- about the size of a
 soccer ball.

REF:THE MILES KELLY BOOK OF LIFE


-

A THANKFUL HEART IS THE WAY TO HAPPINESS

'Why do people go through life looking for happiness?
Dogs and cats look for food and comfort, but they
certainly don't go to all the trouble that people do in
their continual search for happiness. I suppose the reason
 is that we are the only ones who can align ourselves
with the hado of happiness.
      Many years ago, I had a discussion with Dr. Ravi Batra,
a well-known international economist, and he said something
that has stuck with me:

          "Why do you think people continually search
            for happiness? The reason is because we
            people have a link to unlimited existence. But
            many of us make a serious mistake. We set up
            conditions for happiness based on riches and
            fame, momentary pleasures, and things that are
            limited and always changing.
               There are those who are rich beyond most
                of our imaginations, and yet they continue
                to want more as they strive in vain to find
                happiness. The reason it's in vain is because
                they are looking to find unlimited happiness
                in limited money and riches.
                    Unless we can become one with the
                 unlimited existence, we will never find true
                 happiness. This requires that we raise our
                 consciousness."

      All that can be seen with a human eye is of this limited
world.Sooner or later, the material trappings will end, and
as long as that is how we define happiness, our hearts will
always feel hollow.
         Of coursee I understand that casting aside all desire
is not possible or even advisable. In fact, desire is not
what's preventing us from finding happiness. An appropriate
amount of desire is needed to make people strive for something
better, and it's what made it possible for human society to
rise to its current level. The problem arises when we become
slaves of our desires.----
      When you align your soul with the hado of appreciation
and love, a small drop of happiness will seep into your heart
and spread throughout your body. This will link you to the
vibration of happiness, and happiness will become a part of
your daily life. And this is the secret for finding happiness
right now wherever you are.

REF:THE SECRET OF WATER

THERE IS VALUE IN UNHAPPINESS

----Life  is not all happiness. As long as there is life,
there will be sadness. All our high hopes can be easily
deflated, but another way to look at this is to realize
that unhappiness is the path on the way to happiness.
     We exposed water to the words "Happiness" and
"Unhappiness". As expected, the the water exposed to
"happiness" formed beautiful round crystals that would
make a precious ring. But what about crystals formed
from water exposed to "unhappiness"? We expected to
find deformed and broken crystals, but the crystals were
rather beautiful hexagonal crystals that looked like they
had been cut in half. It looked as if the water was trying
its best to form crystals. It would seem, then, that
unhappiness is not really the opposite of happiness.
Unhappiness, in fact, is the process required for the
creation of happiness.
            Happiness and unhappiness are like two ends
of the same rope, and sometimes you hold one end of
the rope and everything goes your way, and other times
you have the other end of the rope and nothing goes
your way.
          Such is life. We all want to be happy every day
and never have to experience sadness. How unnatural
that would be! Like the waves that rise and fall, if water
never falls, then it could never rise or flow ahead.----
-----You can never own only one side of a coin. If you
want to find happiness, then you have to be ready to accept
what comes with it. Such is fate of all those who live in this
world.
        But we can still have hope and look forward to the future.
In fact, do you think you would be able to have hope if
everything went exactly as you wanted it to? Your ability
to be happy no matter what and no matter when depends
entirely on what's going on in your heart.

REF: THE SECRET LIFE OF WATER
BY MASARU EMOTO

WOW! TO THE CREATOR

-One species of cockroach can go for about 3 months
without eating, surviving off its body fat.It can even live
for 40 days with neither food nor water.


-The bombardier beetle can twist the end of its abdomen
to squirt a boiling, irritating liquid in almost any direction.
The liquid evaporates immediately it is sprayed. Forming
a gas that briefly blind the enemy and enables the bombardier
beetle to run away.


-Most cicadas are the loudest of all insects. The song of some
species can be heard more than 400 miles away.The sound of
thousand's of cicadas in a single tree can be louder than a
pneumatic drill.


-Many flowers have patterns of lines on them that reflect
ultraviolet light. Although the patterns are not visible to the
human eye, these 'honey guides' direct bees and other insect
to the nector.


-Worker honeybees communicate the location of food to the
rest of the hive by 'dancing'. The dances may be circular or
in a figure of eight (8), accompanied by waggles of the abdomen
and high-pitched buzzing.


-Ant communicate with the help of their feelers (antennae).
which are sensitive to touch and scent. They also leave scent
trails behind them to let the other ants know exactly where to
find the food source.Each ant colony has a unique smell that
helps the members to identify each other. This also helps the
ants to detect an intruder in the nest.

FROM SAND AND FOAM BY KAHLIL GIBRAN

-You cannot consume beyond your appetite. The other
 half of the loaf belongs to the other person, and there
should remain a little bread for the chance guest.


-Generosity is not in giving me that which I need more than
you do, but it is in giving me that which you need more than
I do.


-You are indeed charitable when you give, and while giving,
turn your face away so that you may not see the shyness of
the receiver.


-You may judge others only according to your knowledge
of yourself. Tell me now, who among us is guilty and who
 is unguilty?


-You cannot judge any man beyond your knowledge of him,
and how small is your knowledge.


-How mean am I when life gives me gold and I give you silver,
and yet I dream myself generous.


REF: KAHLIL GIBRAN AN ILLUSTRATED ANTHOLOGY
BY AYMAN A EL- DESOUKY.

WOW TO THE CREATOR

-Arthropods have paired limbs, which can be specialized
as legs; pincers, paddles or almost any other form.

- On a warm day, a large oak tree takes up about 1140 l
of water from the soil. As much as 98% of this water is lost
through the tree's leaves by evaporation.


-The Arctic poppy is the flower that blooms the nearest to
North pole.


- The world grows enough wheat in a year to fill a line of
trucks stretching a quarter of the way to the Moon.


-  A drug made from the Madagascar periwinkle, a perennial
plant, helps children to fight the cancer leukemia.


- Male seahorses have the babies. They don't exactly give birth,
but they store the eggs in a pouch on their belly. When the eggs
are ready to hatch, a stream of miniature seahorses billows out
from the Male's pouch.


-In some tropical swamps the water can be more than 40 degree
Centigrade far too hot for us to bathe in. Decaying plants make
the water acidic- it would rot our clothes in a couple of days.
Yet fish and other creatures live here.

REF: THE MILES KELLY BOOK OF LIFE

-

WOW! TO THE CREATOR

-Early fish were the first animals to have brains in their heads.
Other creatures had nerve connections and sensory organs
spread around their body. Or concentrated in more than one
 place.

-Flying reptiles had hollow bones; so that their bodies were
as light as possible. This means that their bones become
fossilized only rarely- usually when they fell into a lake or sea.

-Together, the world's plants produce a combined total of about
150 billion tonnes of sugar each year by photosynthesis.

-Venus fly-trap (plant) sometimes catch small frogs, and the rajah
pitcher (plant) is said to eat mice.

-The deadly nightshade plant is poisonous to humans, but birds and
rabbits can eat it without harm.

-Some lotus seeds have sprouted after being in a dormant (resting)
state for 400 years.


REF: THE MILES KELLY BOOK OF LIFE

THE BASKET OF FRESH BREAD

The Prophet Muhammad said,
                                     "There is no better companion
on this way what you do. Your actions will be
your best friend, or if you're cruel and selfish,
your actions will be a poisonous snake
that lives in your grave."

                                     But tell me,
can you do the good work without a teacher?
Can you even know what it is without the presence
of a Master? Notice how the lowest livelihood
requires some instruction.

                                       First comes knowledge,
then the doing of the job.And much later,
perhaps after you're dead, something grows
from what you're done.

                                  Look for help and guidance
in whatever craft you're learning. Look for a generous
teacher, one who has absorbed the tradition he's in.

Look for pearl in oyster shells.
Learn technical skill from a craftsman.

Whenever you meet genuine spiritual teachers,
be gentle and polite and fair with them.
Ask them questions, and be eager
for answers. Never condescend.

If a master tanner wears an old, threadbare smock,
that doesn't diminish his mastery.

If  a fine blacksmith works at the bellows
in a patched apron, it doesn't affect
how he bends the iron.

                               Strip away your pride,
and put on humble clothes.
                                If you want to learn theory,
talk with theoreticians. That way is oral.

When you learn a craft, practice it.
That learning comes through the hands.

If you want dervishhood, spiritual poverty,
and emptiness, you must be friends with a sheikh.

Talking about it, reading books, and doing practices
don't help. Soul receives from soul that knowing.

The mystery of spiritual emptiness
may be living in a pilgrim's heart, and yet
the knowing of it may not yet be his.

Wait for the illuminating openness,
as though your chest were filling with light,
as when God said,
                           'did we not expand you?'
                                                      (Qur'an 94:1)

Don't look for it outside yourself.
You are the source of milk. Don't milk others!

There is a milk fountain inside you.
Don't walk around with a empty bucket.

You have a channel into the ocean, and yet
you ask for water from a little pool.

Beg for that love expansion. Meditate only
on THAT. The Qur'an says,
                                           'And He is with you'
                                                                    (57:4)

There is a basket of fresh bread on your head,
and yet you go door to door asking for crusts.
Knock on your inner door. No other.
Sloshing knee-deep in fresh riverwater, yet
you keep wanting a drink from other people's waterbags.

Water is everywhere around you, but you see only
barriers that keep you from water.
The horse is beneath the rider's thighs, and still
he asks, "Where's my horse?"

                                Right there under you!"Yes, this is a horse, but where's the horse?"
                                   Can't you see!
"Yes, I can see, but whoever saw such a horse?"

Mad with thirst, he can't drink from the stream
running so close by his face. He's like a pearl
on the deep bottom, wondering, inside his shell,
where's the ocean?
                               His mental questionings
form the barrier. His physical eyesight
bandages his knowing. Self-consciousness
plugs his ears.
                      Stay bewildered in God,
and only that.
                     Those of you who are scattered,
simplify your worrying lives. There is one
righteousness: Water the fruit trees,
and don't water the throne. Be generous
to what nurtures the spirit and God's luminous
reason-light. Don't honor what causes
dysentery and knotted-up tumors.

Don't feed both sides of yourself equally.
The spirit and the body carry different loads
and require different attentions.
                                          Too often
we put saddlebags on Jesus and let the donkey
run loose in the pasture.
                                Don't make the body do
what the spirit does best, and don't put a big load
on the spirit that the body could carry easily.

                                                                  RUMI

REF:THE ESSENTIAL RUMI
TRANSLATIONS BY COLEMAN BARKS WITH
JOHN MOYNE.

CENTRALITY OF CREATION (EPISTLES OF THE BRETHREN OF PURITY)

"-----Plants, you must know, live upside down. Their heads point towards the center of the earth,
their bottoms to the circling spheres. Man is just the opposites. His head is in the heavens, and his
feet point to the earth's center, wherever he stands on the earth's surface- north, south,east, or west-
and whichever way he faces. Animals are in between, neither upside-down like plants nor right-side-up
like man.Rather, their heads face one way, horizontally, and their tails the other, as they turn this way
and that and go about theur business.
      This order or scale of plants, animals, and humans, as we've described it, is divinely ordained, an
expression of God's wisdom and sovereign providence, a sign and a testimony for all with eyes to see,
who ponder the mysteries of creation. All who probe the true natures of things and scan the horizon to
learn from the portents they find there will see that the power of the Universal Soul shed their influence
on the world from the highest circling sphere to the deep core of the earth.Some flow straight down from
the outermost sphere to the earth's center, some return from the center, rising towards the encircling sphere,
and some are broadcast in all directions across the heavens. Every ray is filled with God's hosts, charged with preserving the world and managing its creatures, governing the whole, and other tasks whose inmost
working are known but to God, exalted be He.------"

REF: EPISTLES OF THE BRETHERN OF PURITY

HEIRARCHY OF CREATION (EPISTLES OF THE BRETHREN OF PURITY)

----You must know, dear brother, God aid you and us with His sustaining
spirit, that mineral substance are the lowest things that come to be.
They include all bodies that arise as composites of the four elements:
fire, air, water, and earth. Plants, too, are compounded of these elements.
But nourished by the elements, they can grow, expanding in all three dimensions:
length, width, and depth. Animals share with plants the functions of nourishment
and growth but are distinguished by locomotion and sensitivity. Man share these
traits with plants and animals but adds his own distinctions: reason and discernment.

REF: EPISTLES OF THE BRETHERN OF PURITY
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY LENN E. GOODMAN AND RICHARD MCGREGOR

COME CLOSER YOUNG MAN (MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE)

---Then they asked for permission to see the Shaykh, and when he gave them permission he ordered
the young man to perform a complete ablution and to dress in his finest clothing, so when the young man
set about those preparations, his heart was joyful that his need would be fulfilled on the very day, and
that this preparation which he had been ordered to undertake was sign pointing to the good that would
come to him subsequently.-------
Next (the Shaykh) ordered the young man to come close to him, so he approached and came nearer.
Then (the Shaykh)  came even closer and began to speak of what cannot be comprehended by imagination,
what pens cannot expresss, and what has not occured to the heart of any mere mortal (bashar). This is
among those things which must not be mentioned in the schools of sermons and should not be openly
expressed in the contents of books, because of its tremendous worth- for it is only unveiled to those
who are worthy of it.
Now, when (the Shaykh) had fulfilled his duty and had led (the young man) out of wandering in the
wilderness to the end of his guidence, then his way (madhhab) became pure, his drinking-place became
sweet, and he came to know his Lord. Then his consecration was accomplished, through glorifying
what God made sacred. He held firmly to the solid connection (with God) circled around the age-old
House, fulfilled his devotion through remembrance (of God), and completed his pilgrimage with (God's)
greatest sign.-------

 REF:THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE BY JA'FAR B. MANSUR AL-YAMAN
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY JAMES W. MORRIS

SECRET NAME (MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE)

--(The narrator continued) Then he turned his gaze toward the young man and said:
'O brave youth (fata) you have been honoured by a newly arriving intimate friend,
and you have been greeted by a visitor (a soul like yours) ,so what is your name?'
'Ubayd Allah ("the little servant of God"), son of the servant of God,' he answered.
'That is your description,' replied the Shaykh, 'but we have already been informed
about you.'
'I am Hurr ("freed-man"), son of the servant of God,' the young man replied.
'Then who set you free from being owned, so that you become free?' inquired the Shaykh.
'This Knower set me free,' said the young man, pointing with his hand toward the Knower
who had called him (to the way).
'But do you think,' continued the Shaykh, 'that if he is also owned and not your owner,
does he have any right to set you free?'
'No, he doesn't,' replied the young man.
'Then what is your name?' repeated the Shayth.
(The narrator) continued: Then the young man hung his head, bewildered and unable to
respond.
'O brave youth,' pursued the Shaykh. 'how can we recognise something that has no name,
even if it has been born?'
'I have been born to you,' replied the young man, 'so you name me!'
'That is only after the fulfilment of seven days (of waiting), the Shaykh responded.
'But why must that be postponed until after seven more days?' asked the young man.
'In honour of the new-born infant,' replied the Shaykh.
'But what if  the new- born should die before the seven days are finished?' the young man continued.
'Nothing will harm him,' replied the Shaykh, 'and after that he will be named.'
'Then will this name by which you'll have named me be my own?' asked the young man.
'In that case you would be what is worshipped,' replied the Shaykh.
'But then how should we speak of it?' asked the young man.
'The Name is your owner,' the Shaykh answered, 'and you are owned by it. For you cannot
penetrate further than your own (spiritual) rank. Now depart until you period of waiting (is over).' ----

REF:THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE BY JAFER B. MANSUR AL YAMAN
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY JAMES W. MORRIS

THE SHEIKH AND THE DOG

A dog brushed up against a sheikh, who made
No move to draw his skirts in or evade
The filthy stray- a puzzled passer-by
Who'd noticed his behaviour asked him why.
He said: "The dog is filthy, as you see,
But what is outside him is inside me-
What's clear on him is hidden in my heart;
Why should such close companions stay apart?"
If inward filth is slight or if it's great,
The outcome is the same disgusting state-
If straws impede you, or a mountain-top,
Where is the difference if you have to stop?


                                                      ATTAR

THE LOVER WHO SAVED HIS BELOVED FROM DROWNING

A girl fell in a river-in a flash
Her lover dived in with a mighty splash,
And fought the current till he reached her side.
When they where safe again, the poor girl cried:
"By chance I tumbled in, but why should you
Come after me and hazard your life too?"
He said; "I dived because the difference
Of 'I' and 'you' to lovers makes no sense-
A long time passed when we were separate,
But now that we have reached this single state
When you are me and I am wholly you,
What use is it to talk of us as two?"
All talk of two implies plurality-
When two has gone there will be Unity.

                                                 ATTAR

THE DEATH OF SOCRATES

When Socrates lay close to death, a youth-
Who was his student in the search for truth-
Said: "Master, when we've washed the man we knew
And brought your shroud, where should we bury you?"
He said: "If you can find me when I've died,
Then bury me wherever you decide-
I never found myself; I cannot see
How when I'm dead you could discover me.
Throughout my life not one small particle
Had any knowledge of itself at all!"'

                                            ATTAR

GABRIEL AND THE UNBELIEVER

One night in paradise good Gabriel heard
The Lord say: "I am here" and at His word
The came another voice which wept and prayed -
"Who knows whose voice this is?" the angel said,
"It comes from one, of this at least I'm sure,
Who has subdued the self, whose heart is pure."
But no one in the heavens knew the man,
And Gabriel swooped toward the earth to scan
The deserts, sea and mountains- far and wide
He searched, without success, until he cried
For God to lead his steps. "Seek him in Rome,"
God said. "A pagan temple is his home."
A worthless idol ruled his hopes and fears.
Astonished, Gabriel turned and said: "Tell me,
Dear Lord, the meaning of this mystery;
You answer with your kindness one who prays
Before a senseless idol all his days!"
And God replied: "He does not know our Way;
Mere ignorance has led this man astray-
I understand the cause of his disgrace
And will not coldly turn aside My face;
I shall admit him to My sanctuary
Where kindness will convert his blasphemy";

                                                                 ATTAR

THE STORY OF KING MAHMOUD AND THE WOODCUTTER

King Mahmoud went out hunting. In the chase
His courtiers flagged, unequal to the pace.
An old man led a donkey whose high load
Of brushwood slipped and fell into the road.
The old man scratched his head; the king came near
And said: "Do you need help?" "I  do, that's clear,"
The old man said; "if you could lend a hand,
You won't lose much. I see that you command
Your share of grace- such men are always good."
The king got down and helped him with the wood,
His flower-like hands embraced the thorns; and then
He rode back to his waiting lord again.
He said to them: "An old man will appear,
Riding a piled-high donkey- lead him here;
Block all the paths and highways to this place;
I want him to confront me face to face."
The winding roads were blocked up in a ring,
Of which the center was the waiting king.
The old man mumbled as he rode alone:
"Why won't he go...this donkey's skin and bone.
Soldiers!...Good day, my lord!" and still the way
Led pitilessly on; to his dismay
There rose ahead a royal canopy,
And there was no escape that he could see.
He rode, for there was nothing else to do
And found awaiting him a face he knew.
"I made a king hump wood for me," he cried;
"God help all sinners now, I'm terrified."
"What troubles you, my man?" inquired the king.
"Don't play with me, you took in everything,"
The old man said; "I'm just a wretched fool
who day and night must scour the plain for fuel;
I sell the thorns I get and buy dry bread-
Give me some scraps, and blessings on your head."
The king replied: "Old man, I'll buy your wood-
Come name a price you think is fair and good."
"My lord, such wood cannot be cheaply sold;
It's worth, I reckon, ten full bags of gold."
The courtiers laughed: "It's worth two barley grains.
Shut up and sell, and thank you for your pains."
"Two grains, my friends, that's true- but this rare buyer
Can surely manage something rather higher?
A great one touched these thorns- his hand brought forth
A hundred flowers; just think what that is worth!
A dinnar buys one root- a little gain
Is only right, I've had my share of pain;
The wood itself is worthless, I agree-
It is that touch which gives it dignity"'

                                                       ATTAR

PROCESS OF BEING GUIDED IN "THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE"

....The Knower answered: Surely God did not created the (human) creatures as fully grown men
and as (divine) knowers. He only created them as infants, small and ignorant, not knowing anything,
so that they only become big after having been small, and only come to be knowing after they were
ignorant. Thus their smallness is a precondition for their becoming big and their ignorance is a sign
pointing toward knowledge. The same is true of (spiritual) knowledge: One can only attain its essence
on the basis of preceding, lower form of knowledge which hearts can more quickly assimilate and the
understanding can more easily grasp, so that the first stage (of that process of spiritual growth) is
established in (people's) minds and they are humbled enough to carry out the duties (required by that),
and so that their hearts come to open up to the essence (of that knowledge) and their intellect are
able to bear its goal. That is God's accustomed way regarding His servants, So it is not necessary for us
to depart from the opinions of (this) religious community, nor do we need to follow other than (His)
accustomed way in our process of being guided........

 (From JA'FAR B. MANSUR AL-YAMAN  "Kitab al- Alim wa'l-ghulam" Edited and Translated
by James W. Morris)

SAYINGS OF KAHLIL GIBRAN

-It was but yesterday I thought mt self a fragment quivering
  without rhythm in the sphere of life.
  Now I know that I am the sphere, and all life in rhythmic
  fragments moves within me.


-They say to me in their awakening, "You and the world you
  live in are but a grain of sand upon the infinite shore of an
  infinite sea."
  And in my dream I say to them, "I am the infinite sea, and
  all worlds are but grain of sand upon my shore."


-When God threw me, a pebble, into this wondrous lake
  I disturbed its surface with countless circles.
  But when I reached the depth I became very still.


-Once I knew a man whose ears were exceedingly keen,
but he was dumb. He had lost his tongue in a battle.
I knew now what battles that man fought before the great
silence came. I am glad he is dead.
The world is not large enough for two of us.


-Remembrance is a form of meeting.


-We measure time according to the countless movement of
 countless suns; and they measure time by little machines in
 their little pockets.
 Now tell me, how could we ever meet at the same place
 and the same time?

KAHLIL GIBRAN (1883-1931)

Kahlil Gibran was a poet, philosopher and artist. He was born in Lebanon.
The millions of Arabic speaking people are familiar with his writings in
Arabic language. His poetries have been translated into more than twenty
languages. His drawings and paintings have been exhibited in the great capitals
of the world. In United States, which he made his home during last twenty years
of his life, he began to write in English. "The Prophet" and other books on his
poetries are loved by many Americans and seen as expression of reflecting
inside of human mind and soul. His message was Universal and reflects
fundamentals of all pure souls regardless of from which religion they belong.
Some of the treasures by Kahlil Gibran are, The Prophet, Prose Poems,
The Tear and a Smile, Jesus the son of man, Sand and Foam, The forerunner,
The Madman, The Earth Gods, and Spirits Rebellious ect. Today Kahlil Gibran
is not among us but, his words still light ups our mind and soul.

       "I came to say a word and I shall say it now. But if death prevents me,
         it will be said by Tomorrow, for Tomorrow never leaves a secret in
         the book of Eternity.
               I came to live in the glory of Love and the light of Beauty, which
         are the reflections of God. I am here, living, and I cannot be exited
         from the domain of life, for through my living word I will live in death.
               I came here to be for all and with all, and what I do today in my
         solitude will be echoed Tomorrow by the multitude.
                What I say now with one heart will be said Tomorrow by thousands
          of hearts."

                                                                                   KAHLIL GIBRAN

THE ALLEGORY OF THE SHIP

The allegory of ship in al-Kindi's "Treatise on the Device for Driving Away Sorrows" makes the broad point that all possessions, not merely superfluous ones, cause sorrow and threaten to harm us. Our passage through this world of destruction, al-Kindi says, is like that of people embarked upon a ship "to a goal, their own resting- place, that they  are intent upon." When the ship stops so that the passengers may attend to their needs, some do so quickly and return to wide, commodious seats. Others-who also tend quickly to their needs but pause to gaze upon the beautiful surrounding sights and enjoy the delightful aromas-return to narrower, less comfortable seats. Yet others-who tend to their needs but collect various objects along the way-find only cramped seating and are greatly discomforted by the objects they have gathered. Finally, others wander far off from the ship, so immersed in the surrounding natural beauty and the objects to be collected that they forget their present need and even the purpose of the voyage.Of these, those who hear
the ship's captain call and return before it sails, find terribly uncomfortable quarters. Others wander so far away that they never hear the captain's call and, left behind, perish in horrible ways. Those who returned to the ship burdened with objects suffer so, due to their cramped quarters, the stench of their decaying possessions, and the effort they expend in caring for them, that most become sick and some even die. Only
the first two groups arrive safely, though those in the second group are somewhat ill at ease due to their more narrow seats.

For al-Kindi, those passengers who endanger themselves and others by their quest for possessions are like the unjust we encounter in daily life. Conversely, the just must be those who attend to their needs or business quickly and do not permit themselves to become burdened with acquisitions or even to be side-tracked into momentary pleasures.

The passengers are all bound for their homeland, but it is not clear where they are heading. At one point, al-Kindi claims that we are going to "the true world" and at another that the ship is supposed to bring us to "our true homelands." There is no doubt, however, that whether the destination be one or many, it can be reached only by acquiring the habits that eschew material possessions.

AL-KINDI

Ref: Great Thinkers Of The Eastern World

DEATH-BED REPENTANCE

A true believer said: "There is a crowd
Who when they come to die will cry loud
And turn to God. But they are fools; they should
Have spent their lives in seeking what is good.
When leaves are falling it's to late to sow;
Repentence on a death-bed is too slow-
The time to turn aside has flown; be sure
whoever waits till then will die impure"

The Devil Complain

A sluggard once approached a fasting saint
And baffled by despair, made this complain:
"The devil is a highwayman, a thief,
Who's ruined me and robbed me of belief."
The saint replied: "Young man, the devil too
Has made his way here to complain- of you.
'My province is the world,' I heard him say;
'Tell this new pilgrim of God's holy Way
To keep his hands off what is mine- if I
Attack him it's because his fingers pry
In my affairs; if he will leave me be,
He's no concern of mine and can go free'."

ATTAR

THE STORY OF KING MAS'OUD AND THE FISHERBOY

He said: 'King Mas'oud, riding out one day,
Was parted from his army on the way.
Swift as the wind he galloped till he saw
A little boy sat by the ocean's shore.
The child was fishing-as he cast his hook,
The king dismounted with a friendly look
And sat by him; but the unhappy child
Was troubled in his heart and hardly smiled.
"You seem the saddest boy I've ever seen,"
The monarch said. "what such sorrow mean?"
"Our father's gone; for seven children I
Must cast my line" was his subdued reply.
"our mother's paralysed and we are poor;
It is for food that I must haunt this shore-
I come to fish here in the dawn,s first light
And cannot leave until the fall of night.
The merge harvest of my toil and pain
Must last us all till I return again."
The king said: "Let's be friends, do you agree?"
The poor child nodded and, immediately,
His new friend cast their line into the sea.
That day the boy drew up a hundred fish.
"This wealth is far beyond my wildest wish,"
He said: "A splendid haul,"the king replied.
"Good Fortune has been busy at your side-
Accept your luck, don't try to comprehend
How this has happened;you'd be lost, my friend.
Your wealth is greater than my own; today
A king has fished for you- I cannot stay."
He leap onto his horse. "But take your share,"
The boy said earnestly. "That's only fair."
"Tomorrow's catch is mine. We won't divide
Today's; you have it all," the king replied.
"Tomorrow when I fish you are the prey,
A trophy I refuse to give away."
The next day, walking in his garden's shade,
The king recalled the friend that he had made.
A captain fetched the boy, and this unknown
Was at the king's command set on his throne.
The courtier murmured at his poverty-
"He is my friend, this fact suffices me;
He is my equal here in everything,
The partner of my throne," declared the king;
To every taunt the boy had one reply:
"My sadness vanished when the king passed by."

ATTAR

FAME

I walked upon the sand at ebb-tide.
And bending down, I wrote a line upon the sand.
And in that line I wrote what my mind thought
And what my soul desired.

And when the tide was high,
I returned to that very shore,
And of that which I had written I found naught.
I found only the staff marks of one who had walked blindly.

                                                                KAHLIL -GIBRAN

LOVE TRIANGLE

One night, out of unbearable pain
The moth came out and put on a claim:
He asked the candle: Pray!
How long will you be burning me thus, in dismay?
And the candle said in return:
You heedless creature, what do you say?
You in the blink of an eye
And are freed from suffering and pain.
All along the night till morning
I spend my time weeping and burning in agony.
At times, I laugh but it is at myself;
At times, I weep in mourning....
There exist another candle but hidden from sight;
A candle which is neither lit nor extinct.
To that candle I am the moth, the ardent moth
And from that comes my disposition to wailing
It makes me burn as I make you burn:
This is ultimate sign of love
Why do you thus bully me, since like you
I spend my days in unbearable pain?
If that candle would shine from the invisible world
So many moths will fall prey to Him.
'Attar shall continue candle-like to burn
A long as there is a trace of him to burn.

                                                                ATTAR

MY SOUL COUNSELLED ME

My soul counselled me and charged me to
listen for voices that rise neither from
the tongue nor the throat.
Before that day I heard but dully, and
naught save the clamour and loud cries
came to my ears.
But now I have learned to listen to silence,
To hear its choirs singing the songs of ages,
Chanting the hymns of space, and disclosing
the secrets of eternity.

KAHLIL- GIBRAN

MARRIAGE

Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But 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 string of a lute are alone though
they quiver with the same music.


KAHLIL-GIBRAN