4umi Khalil Gibran : Jesus, The Son Of Man / A rich man on possessions

A rich man

On possessions

He spoke ill of rich men. And upon a day I questioned Him saying, "Sir, what shall I do to attain the peace of the spirit?"

And He bade me give my possessions to the poor and follow Him.

But He possessed nothing; therefore He knew not the assurance and the freedom of possessions, nor thr dignity and the self-respect that lie within.

In my household there are sevenscore slaves and stewards; some labor in my groves and vineyards, and some direct my ships to distant isles.

Now had I heeded Him and given my possessions to the poor, what would have befallen my slaves and my servants and their wives and children? They too would have become beggars at the gate of the city or the portico of the temple.

Nay that good man did not fathom the secret of possessions. Because He and His followers lived on the bounty of others He thought all men should live likewise.

Behold a contradiction and a riddle: Should rich men bestow their riches upon the poor, and must the poor have the cup and the loaf of the rich man ere they welcome him to their board?

And must needs the holder of the tower be host to his tenants ere he calls himself lord of his own land?

The ant that stores food for the winter is wiser than a grasshopper that sings one day and hungers another.

Last sabbath one of His followers said in the market-place, "At the threshold of heaven where Jesus may leave His sandals, no other man is worthy to lay his head."

But I ask, at the threshold of whose house that honest vagabond could have left His sandals? He Himself never had a house nor a threshold; and often He went without sandals.

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 Khalil Gibran Introductory biography Spirits Rebellious The Broken Wings A Tear and a Smile The Madman The Forerunner The Prophet The New Frontier Sand and Foam Jesus, The Son Of Man James the son of Zebedee Anna the mother of Mary Assaph called the Orator of Tyre Mary Magdalen Philemon, a Greek Apothecary Simon who was called Peter Caiaphas Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Rafca A Persian Philosopher in Damascus David, one of his followers Luke Matthew John the son of Zebedee A young priest of Capernaum A rich levi in the neighborhood of the Nazarene A shepherd in South Lebanon John the Baptist Joseph of Arimathea Nathaniel Saba of Antioch Salome to a woman friend Rachael, a woman disciple Cleopas of Bethroune Naaman of the Gadarenes Thomas Elmadam the Logician One of the Mary's Rumanous, a Greek poet Levi, a disciple A widow in Galilee Judas the cousin of Jesus The man from the desert Peter Melachi of Babylon, an astronomer A philosopher Uriah, an old man of Nazareth Nicodemus the poet Joseph of Arimathea Georgus of Beirut Mary Magdalen Jotham of Nazareth to a Roman Ephraim of Jericho Barca, a merchant of Tyre Phumiah, the high Priestess of Sidon Benjamin the scribe Zacchaeus Hannah of Bethsaida Manasseh Jephtha of Caesarea John the beloved disciple Mannus the Pompeiian, to a Greek Pontius Pilatus Bartholomew in Ephesus Matthew Andrew on prostitutes A rich man on possessions John at Patmos Peter on the neighbor A cobbler in Jerusalem Suzannah of Nazareth Joseph surnamed Justus Philip Birbarah of Yammouni Pilate's wife to a Roman lady A man outside of Jerusalem Sarkis, an old Greek shepherd Annas the high priest A woman, one of Mary's neighbors Ahaz the portly Barabbas Claudius a Roman sentinel James the brother of the Lord Simon the Cyrene Cyborea The woman in Byblos Mary Magdalen thirty years later A man from Lebanon The Earth Gods The Wanderer Al-Nay The Garden of the Prophet Lazarus and His Beloved Satan My Countrymen I Believe In You Your Thought And Mine You Have Your Lebanon History and the Nation The Vision Visual art