On Marriage
- Kahlil Gibran
You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
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 others 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 others 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 others shadow.
This wonderful and inspiring passage from Gibran's book has been my guide for what I feel should be an ideal relationship especially one where a marriage contract is involved. There are many and varied types of relationships but the most complicated one of all is marriage for it involves the coming together of 2 different individuals bringing their own personalities, influences and backgrounds to merge all that has been accumulated from years past.
If by chance, one understands what Gibran was trying to convey in this message and one is lucky enough to be in such an ideal relationship, then I guess half of life's battle has been fought and won......
