Reason and Passion
November 8, 2007 | by brett | Permalink
I have been a fan of Kahlil Gibran since I first picked up the Prophet at age sixteen. Every once in awhile I pick up the book and flip through its pages. Yesterday I landed on “Reason and Passion.”
Here’s the opening passage on the topic:
“And the priestess spoke again and said: speak to us of Reason and Passion.
And he answered, saying:
Your soul is oftentimes a battlefield, upon which your reason and your judgment wage war against your passion and your appetite.
Would that I could be the peacemaker in your soul, that I might turn the discord and the rivalry of your elements into oneness and melody.
But how shall I, unless you yourselves be also the peacemakers, nay, the lovers of all your elements?
Your reason and your passion are the rudder and the sails of your seafaring soul. If either your sails or you rudder be broken, you can but toss and drift, or else be held at a standstill in mid-seas.
For reason, ruling alone, is a force confining; and passion, unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction.
That last line sums up the last year of my life. Reason (aka my risk averse accounting job), was my force that confined. My passion (aka the four month tour that I dreamt about executing for a year and a half) was unquestioned by anyone. Therefore, as the trip progressed, the end goal that I had in mind (a resource for people to turn to for career guidance) fell short of my expectations because it was driven by passion alone.
Which puts me in a unique situation now, proceeding forth with a book and documentary. If our crew approaches it with reason and executes with passion, I believe that we have the rudder and sails to lead us to land.
But for now, we’re at mid-sea.
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THERE ARE 5 RESPONSES TO THIS INTERVIEW
Contém Conteúdo » Blog Archive » Rapidinhas#2 Says:
November 8th, 2007
[…] Ensinamentos de Kahlil Gibran no excelente blog Pursue the Passion. […]
Steve Says:
November 8th, 2007
I love reading about the maturity of how your passion is turning into focused execution. I’m proud. You’re on the right path. I’m not sure where it is leading, but you are right on track. You can’t see the tracks, but you’re on them.
Kelly G Says:
November 8th, 2007
Mid sea . . . . not such a bad place to be! Think of what Christopher Columbus discovered and the passion he must have had to venture out on what he believed! Keep following your passion and everything will come together!
therapydoc Says:
November 8th, 2007
Good luck!
Pursue the Passion: The Journey » Blog Archive » What I learned from Kanye West Says:
June 9th, 2008
[…] without the goal of becoming the greatest, he’d be nowhere near as successful as he is today. It’s like having passion without reason, or reason without passion- you need both to be successful… Having a lofty goal like Kanye’s allows him to continue into the depths of decades. 3) […]
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