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On Love, Marriage & Children

The Prophet

Almustafa speaks on love, marriage, and children. Love asks for the best in you; marriage needs spaces so each can grow; children are life's longing for itself—they pass through you but belong to life.

On Love

Love will wound and burn—it is not safe. But it is necessary. "When love beckons to you, follow him, though his ways are hard and steep." Love gives not to receive; it gives because giving is its nature. To withhold your heart out of fear is to miss life.

"Let there be spaces in your togetherness, and let the winds of the heavens dance between you."
— Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet (On Marriage)

On Marriage

Stand together yet not too near: the oak and the cypress do not grow in each other's shadow. Give one another space to grow, and fill the space with love. Possession is not love; freedom within commitment is.

On Children

Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts—they have their own. You may house their bodies but not their souls.

Key Insight

Parents are the bow; children are the arrows. The archer (Life) bends the bow and sends the arrows forth. Our role is to steady the bow with love, not to decide where the arrow flies.

Key Takeaways

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