A reading for reflection from Kahlil Gibran's work,
The Madman,
His parables and poems.
The Seven Selves In the stillest hour of the night,
As I lay half asleep,
My seven selves sat together,
And thus conversed in whisper.
First Self Here,
In this madman,
I have dwelt all these years,
With naught to do but renew his pain by day and recreate his sorrow by night.
I can bear my fate no longer,
And now I rebel.
Second Self Yours is a better lot than mine,
Brother,
For it is given to me to be this madman's joyous self.
I laugh his laughter and sing his happy hours,
And with thrice-winged feet I dance his brighter thoughts.
It is I that would rebel against my weary existence.
Third Self And what of me,
The love-ridden self,
The flaming brand of wild passion and fantastic desires?
It is I,
The lovesick self,
Who would rebel against this madman.
Fourth Self I,
Amongst you all,
Am the most miserable,
For naught was given me but odious hatred and destructive loathing.
It is I,
The tempest-like self,
The one born in the black caves of hell,
Who'd protest against serving this madman.
Fifth Self Nay,
It is I,
The thinking self,
The fanciful self,
The self of hunger and thirst,
The one doomed to wander without rest in search of unknown things and things not yet created.
It is I,
Not you,
Who would rebel.
Sixth Self And I,
The working self,
The pitiful labourer,
Who,
With patient hands and longing eyes,
Fashion the days into images and give the formless elements new and eternal forms.
It is I,
The solitary one,
Who would rebel against this restless madman.
Seventh Self How strange that you all would rebel against this man,
Because each and every one of you has a preordained fate to fulfil.
Ah,
Could I but be like one of you,
A self with a predetermined lot.
But I have none.
I am the do-nothing self,
The one who sits in the dumb,
Empty nowhere and know-when,
While you are busy recreating life.
Is it you or I,
Neighbours,
Who should rebel?
When the Seventh Self thus spake,
The other six selves looked with pity upon him,
But said nothing more,
And as the night grew deeper,
One after the other went to sleep,
Enfolded with a new and happy submission.
But the Seventh Self remained watching and gazing at nothingness,
Which is behind all things.
