4
“The earth will generously provide
you its fruits, and they will never be
scarce if you only learn to fill your
hands. By exchanging these gifts
with one another, you will discover
abundance and you will be fulfilled.
But if the exchange is not out of love
and generous justice, some will be
greedy and others, hungry.
When you laborers of the seas, the
fields, the vines, join the weavers
and sculptors and healers in the
market square, invoke the supreme
earth spirit until he comes to you
and blesses the scales and abacus,
until the value corresponds with
value. Never tolerate negotiations
made with a sterile hand, as it turns
your labor into mere jest. To these
beings, say ‘come to the fields or
follow our brothers to the sea and
throw their nets. The earth and sea
will be generous with you as they are
with us’.
And if you find singers, dancers,
flautists, buy their gifts as well.
They too are collectors of incense
and fruit, and what they offer you,
although made of the substance
of dreams, distill adornment and
nurture your soul. And before
leaving the market square, ensure
that no one leaves empty-handed.
SUPREME
SPIRIT
OF THE EARTH WILL NOT SLEEP PEACEFULLY
IN THE WIND UNTIL THE NEEDS OF THE L AST
OF YOU ARE FULFILLED
SINCE THE
Extract from The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran
