"But there is suffering in life," one of the listeners said."And there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some battles in the struggle for your dreams than to be defeated without ever even knowing what you're fighting for

إذا شكوتُ قليلاً، فلأنني لست سوى قلب إنسان. وهكذا هي قلوب الناس، تخاف من تحقيق أحلامها الكبرى، لأنها تعتقد أنها لا تستحقّ بلوغها، أو أنها فعلاً لا تقدر على بلوغها. إننا نموت، نحن القلوب، خوفاً من حالات الحب الذي ولَّى إلى الأبد، ومن الأوقات التي كان يمكن أن تكون أوقاتاً رائعة، ومن تلك التي ليست كذلك، ومن الكنوز التي كان يمكن إكتشافها، ولكنها ظلّت، إلى الأبد، مدفونةً في الرمال، لأننا، متى حصل ذلك، نتألّم كثيراً من هول المعاناة التي تسبق النهاية.

Thy will be done, my Lord. Because you know the weakness in the heart of yourchildren, and you assign each of them only the burden they can bear. May youunderstand my love–because it is the only thing I have that is really mine, the only thing that I will be able to take with me into the next life. Please allow it to be courageous and pure; please make it capable of surviving the snares of the world.

As he was about to climb yet another dune, his heart whispered, "Be aware of the place where you are brought to tears. That's where I am, and thats where your treasure is.

في النهاية، ما السعادة؟ الحب، يقولون لي. لكنّ الحب لا يجلب السعادة و لم يجلبها يوماً. فالحب، على العكس من ذلك! إنه حالة مستمرة من القلق، بل ساحة معركة؛ ليالٍ هجرها النوم، نتساءل فيها إن كان ما نفعله صواباً. الحب الحقيقي مزيج من الانتشاء و الغُصّة.

I’ve been through all this before,’ he says to his heart.“ ‘Yes, you have been through all this before,’ replies his heart. ‘But you have never been beyond it.

What you still need to know is this: before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we've learned as we've moved toward that dream. That's the point at which most people give up. It's the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.

Treason is a blow that comes unexpectedly. If you know your heart well, it will never be able to do that to you. Because you'll know its dreams and wishes, and will know how to deal with them. You will never be able to escape from your heart. So it's better to listen to what it has to say. That way, you'll never have to fear an unanticipated blow.

My brained warned me, but my heart didn't want to take its advice.