The Prophet (2014) Movie Script
1
Go away. Shoo, shoo!
Hey! Child! Come back here.
Bring that back!
Watch it!
Stop!
Ooh! Whoa!
Little savage!
Almitra!
Almitra!
Eggs, honey, fruit, nuts.
Let's say, seven silver ones.
What? Oh, yes, of course. Let me...
Almitra!
Quite a handful, your daughter, no?
Actually, she's very sweet.
Yes. Like lemons.
With honey.
That's four, five, six...
Almitra! I mean it!
...and seven.
Almitra, get down from there!
No, no, no. No, I mean, don't move!
No, no, no.
Easy, boy!
Oh, dear!
Oh!
Are you all right?
Not again. My dates, ruined.
It's the mother's fault.
Letting her run wild like an animal.
Sorry. Sorry. I'm so sorry.
Here, here's some.
This one's still good.
These are okay.
It will not happen again.
It takes a village, no?
An apology would be nice.
I said I was sorry.
No. From her. She's the one
causing all the trouble.
You know she doesn't speak.
Or won't.
Not since her father died.
Ugh. That was over two years ago.
Look, I'll pay you later.
All of you. At the end of the week,
when I get paid.
And what about all she's stolen?
My daughter is not a thief!
That's what she says, yes.
Hey, Almitra, look.
We found the cat that got your tongue.
You ought to be ashamed of yourselves.
Darling, pay no attention to them.
They're just dumb kids.
What's this?
Eee!
Baby, I know you miss your father.
Me, too.
And if I could bring him back, I would.
But it's just us now.
And you know what?
We're going to be all right.
We just need to stick together.
You know what I miss the most?
Your voice.
All right, my little one.
It's school for you and work for me.
Try to be good, okay?
Oh. Please let it be a goat.
Almitra.
Why are you following me?
You know you're supposed to be in school.
Well, there's no time
to take you all the way back,
and I can't lose this job.
I guess you're just going to
have to come with me.
But listen.
You better not take anything.
I'm serious, Almitra.
In this family, we do not steal.
Understood?
Oh!
Ya!
Good morning, Halim.
Kamila.
Morning, ma'am.
Are you okay?
Excellent.
Oh. You've brought along some help today.
Or perhaps you're a spy.
Yeah, she's the leader of the Resistance.
Excuse me.
Wait! Don't go yet.
I mean...
I can't allow entry without
the appropriate documents.
For the girl.
What? Oh, come on, Halim.
I don't have time for this.
I've got work to do.
You know this prisoner
is a high security risk.
A dangerous criminal.
Why do you think they assigned
me to guard him?
- I have no idea.
- Whoa, whoa!
Hey.
Fine. Then you can babysit her.
She's very well behaved, by the way.
Shouldn't give you any trouble at all.
Uh...
So, Almitra, what do you do for fun?
Ahh!
Geez!
Hey!
What did you say to him?
Almost.
Okay.
This is great. I'm having a wonderful day!
Hey, come back here. That's my hat.
It's an official hat, you know.
It's a government hat.
Come back here! Here, birdie, birdie...
Do I hear a mouse?
Careful, little mouse.
There are traps everywhere.
I never get visitors.
It'd be nice to have a chat,
even with a mouse.
Oh. Where did you go?
Little mouse?
Hmm. No. Not there.
Ha-ha! I know. The cookie jar.
Hello.
Hmm.
Mmm.
Hmm.
No. Not there either.
Well...
Hmm.
A-ha! There you are!
Oh. A mouse in a cage.
Want a cookie, little mouse?
Mmm.
My name's Mustafa.
What's yours?
A-ha.
Almitra. That's a pretty name.
Well, Almitra,
there are all kinds of cages.
This house has been mine for seven years.
My crime?
Poetry.
Hmm.
Oh. The lady with the mousetraps. Quick!
We prisoners have to be sneaky.
You know what's funny?
They think I'm their prisoner,
but I've flown away many times.
Oh, yes.
Right out that window.
High above the whole island.
Let me tell you a secret.
We are not imprisoned by houses
or our bodies.
Not even by other people.
We are spirits.
Free as the wind.
It's a secret not everyone knows.
"I have seen people throw themselves
down and worship their own freedom
"Like slaves before a tyrant
"Praising him though he slays them
"I have seen the freest among them
"Wear their freedom as a handcuff
"And my heart bled within me
"For you can only be free when
You no longer speak of freedom as a goal
"And how can you be free
"Unless you break the chains
You have fastened around yourself?
"In truth, that which you call freedom
"Is the strongest of these chains
"Though its links glitter in the sun
"And to become free, what would you
"Remove that is not a part of yourself?
"If it's a tyrant
His throne was built within you
"If it's a care you would cast off
"That care has been chosen by you
"And if it's a fear you would drive away
"The root of that fear is in your heart
"And not in the hand of the feared
"These things move within you
"As lights and shadows
In constant half embrace
"You'll be free indeed
"Not when your days are without a care
"Nor your nights without grief
"But rather when these things
Bind up your life
"And yet you rise above them
"Unbound"
That's it! Where is he?
I'd like to wring his
little feathered neck.
Halim?
Where is...
Almitra.
Didn't I tell you to stay out of trouble?
Halim! You were supposed to babysit her!
Oh, Mustafa, I'm so sorry my daughter
has interrupted your work.
I'll just get her out of your way.
Don't worry.
No, no, no. We're fine.
We were just chatting. Right, Almitra?
Chatting?
Yes, we were sailing
on the wings of the wind.
Mmm.
That reminds me, last night
I had the sweetest dream.
I dreamt of a ship
sailing into the harbor,
coming to take me back to my homeland.
Hmm.
Halim, you haven't today,
by any chance, seen a ship?
No,
but to tell you the truth,
I wasn't looking.
Mmm! Mmm!
- Almitra, get down from there!
- Ahhh!
Ooh!
Oh! Mustafa, I'm so sorry!
I mean, Almitra is sorry.
Oh! Here, let me...
You do it.
That must hurt so much.
No, no, no. I'm fine. I'm fine, really.
Oh, no, no, no. Look at your painting.
It's completely ruined.
No, no. Not at all.
In fact, it's improved.
No, no, Mustafa, you cannot mean that.
I do, I do!
But it's so ugly. Look at it!
Now, now, now.
I don't know what to do.
- Come and sit down. Here.
- I've tried everything!
Nothing I do or say gets through to her.
She's just completely beyond my control.
Well, of course, she is.
What?
She doesn't belong to you.
She doesn't?
Oh, no, no, no, no, no, Mustafa.
I remember clearly that it was me
who brought her into this world.
Yes, yes, that's true.
She came through you, but not from you.
"Your children are not your children
"They are the sons and daughters
Of Life's longing for itself"
Your children are not your children
They're the sons and daughters of
Life's longing for itself
They come through you
But not from you
Though they're with you,
they belong to themselves
You may give them your love,
but not your thoughts
For they have thoughts of their own
You may house their bodies,
not their souls
For their souls
dwell in a house of tomorrow
Which you cannot visit,
not even in your dreams
You may strive
To be like them
But seek not to make them like you
For life goes not backward
Nor tarries with yesterday
You are the bows from which your children
As living arrows are sent forth
The archer sees the mark
upon the path of the infinite
And He bends you with His might
That His arrows may go swift and far
Let your bending in the archer's hand
be for gladness
For even as he loves the arrow that flies
He loves the bow that is stable
Let your bending in the archer's hand
be for gladness
For even as he loves the arrow that flies
He loves the bow that is stable
"For even as he loves the arrow that flies
"So He loves also the bow that is stable"
- Halim!
- Ow! Ohh!
Sergeant, to what do I owe this honor?
I've come to inform you that you
are released from your confinement.
What? Released?
But we should throw a party, with music.
Released, released.
Mustafa!
You are released on the condition
that you return to your own country
and never again set foot on Orphalese.
Oh.
If Halim is up to it...
Hmm!
...we will escort you to
your port of emigration.
Now.
What, now?
Oh.
Well, I'll help you pack up your things.
All your work.
No, you'll clean up and then leave.
We will deal with his
personal effects later.
Sergeant, come on now.
Surely, there's time to gather...
You will come with us now.
Unless you want to remain locked up
here for another seven years.
Hmm-hmm.
Difficult decision, that one.
Here is your final pay.
After today, your services
are no longer required.
I'm so sorry, Kamila.
I hope that you will find work soon.
Your visits have been
a bright spot in my time here.
Goodbye.
Thank you, Mustafa, for everything.
Ugh.
And please say goodbye
to my new friend, Almitra.
I wish we had had more time.
What?
Mmm.
Ha!
I should have known. The silent thief.
You're developing quite the reputation
at the marketplace.
Don't think you're too young to spend
a few nights in jail, my friend.
Heh! And you, too!
Ow!
Rat traps!
Halim!
Almitra, no!
You heard the Sergeant.
We can't afford any more trouble.
I know, I know. I'm gonna miss him, too.
All right, I guess I'd better finish up.
Look! It's the poet!
Mustafa?
Is he free?
It's been so long.
Mustafa!
- Have you been freed?
- Where are they taking you?
To the harbor. This is a happy day.
For all of you, of course, but for me too!
I'm being released. I'm going home.
- Great!
- Wonderful!
Then you must join us in celebrating!
Absolutely not!
We have a schedule to stick to.
Sergeant! You don't
like braised lamb shank?
All right. Five minutes, not a moment longer!
Yes, yes, thank you.
Strike up the band.
We have two occasions to celebrate.
Kissing. That's all he knows.
Give her time to eat, for heaven's sake.
Mmm.
They're newlyweds. That's what
they're supposed to do, right?
Who knows? The last time
I kissed a pretty girl,
the Dead Sea was only sick.
- Enough.
- Grandpa.
Oh.
Thank you.
I've missed this!
A toast to the happy couple!
And for Mustafa!
To love and freedom!
To love and freedom!
To freedom!
To love?
Mustafa,
please, would you give a blessing
to my daughter's marriage?
It would be my honor.
"You were born together
And together you shall be forevermore
"You shall be together when
The white wings of death scatter your days
"Yes, you shall be together
Even in the silent memory of God
"But let there be spaces
In your togetherness
"And let the winds of the heavens
Dance between you
"Love one another
But make not a bond of love
"Let it rather be a moving sea
"Between the shores of your souls
"Fill each other's cup
But drink not from one cup
"Give one another of your bread
"But eat not from the same loaf
"Sing and dance together and be joyous
"But let each one of you be alone
"Even as the strings of a lute are alone
"Though they quiver with the same music
"Give your hearts
But not into each other's keeping
"For only the hand of Life
Can contain your hearts
"And stand together
Yet not too near together
"For the pillars of the temple stand apart
"And the oak tree and the cypress
"Grow not in each other's shadow"
- Thank you, Mustafa.
- It was lovely.
My pleasure.
Ha-ha!
I said "five minutes."
And you've taken advantage
of my generosity.
- Let's go. Now!
- Oh!
Killjoy.
Goodbye, everybody.
And good luck to the two of you.
And thank you, Mustafa, for our blessing.
Again with the kissing.
Come here.
Goodbye, Mustafa.
Goodbye!
Ah! It's a beautiful day for sailing.
If Mustafa sets foot
on that ship, I'll eat my fez!
Take care of yourself.
Goodbye, good people. Goodbye!
Safe journey!
Farewell!
My cake!
I'll stick with the baklava.
Those foolish peasants.
They hang on your every word.
After all this time, they still see you
as their great leader.
With all due respect, Sergeant,
they're neither foolish nor peasants.
And I'm no leader.
What, then? A teacher?
What is a teacher?
He can only lead you
to the threshold of your own mind.
We all stand alone
in our understanding, Sergeant.
You and I.
You hear that, Mustafa?
That's who the people are.
Sheep, waiting to be led
by the strongest...
Ow!
Are you, uh, all right, sir?
Who did that? Hmm?
Well, Sergeant,
I suppose even the sheep
have the last word, sometimes.
Whoa!
Good boy.
Well,
I did...
Huh? Huh! Oh!
Huh?
Oh!
You see?
Mustafa?
It's him.
Hurry.
Mustafa?
Mustafa.
Ooh!
Oh!
Ugh.
Oh!
Oh! Ho! Ho!
- Oh, my!
- Are you okay?
That was a close one.
It's all right, it's all right, I...
Oh, I am fine, thanks.
- Welcome back.
- Good to see you again.
- How's your wife?
- We missed you.
How are the children?
So big now you wouldn't recognize them.
That's terrific.
So glad you're back.
Yes, yes, yes.
We're all pleased as punch
to see Mustafa again.
But it's time to get back to
whatever it is you people do.
That's right, Gramps.
Your olives aren't going to
press themselves, are they?
You've important work to do.
Oh, no, sir.
His words are worth
more than my sacks of olives.
Nonsense, my friend.
Oh! It's true, Mustafa.
I don't know how I could have
gotten through that terrible drought year
without your words to reassure me.
Or us, when our child was ill.
Or me, putting up with my mother-in-law.
Truly, your work means more than ours.
Oh, shut up!
Oh, dear, let me help you.
My friend, all work is noble.
"You work that you may keep pace
"With the earth and the soul of the earth
"For to be idle is to become
A stranger unto the seasons
"And to step out of life's procession
"That marches in majesty
And proud submission towards the infinite
"When you work you are a flute
"Through whose heart
The whispering of the hours turns to music
"And when you work with love
You bind yourself to yourself
"And to one another, and to God
"And what is it to work with love?
"It is to weave the cloth
With threads drawn from your heart
"Even as if your beloved
Were to wear that cloth
"It is to build a house with affection
"Even as if your beloved
Were to dwell in that house
"It is to sow seeds with tenderness
And reap the harvest with joy
"Even as if your beloved
were to eat the fruit
"It is to charge all things you fashion
"With a breath of your own spirit
"And to know that all the blessed dead
"Are standing about you and watching
"Often I have heard you say
As if speaking in sleep
"'One who works in marble, and finds
"The shape of their own soul in the stone
"'Is nobler than one who plows the soil
"'And one who seizes the rainbow
"'To lay it on a cloth
in the likeness of man
"'Is more than one who makes
The sandals for our feet'
"But I say, not in sleep
But in the over-wakefulness of noontide
"That the wind speaks
Not more sweetly to the giant oaks
"Than it does to
the smallest blades of grass
"And they are great, who turn
the voice of the wind into a song
"Made sweeter by their own loving
"Work is love made visible"
Well, that was lovely, wasn't it?
Very edifying.
But we need to be moving along.
What's the hurry? He's just been released.
Yes, we haven't seen him for years.
Where are you taking him?
I thought he was free.
I am free, my friends.
Today, I'm being sent home to my country.
I must admit, it will be good
to see my home again.
Please, sir.
Before you go,
I insist we serve you a proper meal.
Yes, everyone knows
the food on those ships is terrible.
Come. Sit.
Out of the way, out of the way,
people. Come on.
Bashira! The best for Mustafa.
Oh!
And you'll need provisions for your trip.
Have some oranges.
Some pistachios.
Now just one minute. I'm in charge here!
And I say whether...
Ooh. Is that fresh halvah?
Mmm.
Oh! Oh!
All right, five minutes.
And not a moment longer.
What generosity! Enough, enough!
Thank you, dear people.
Thank you for the gifts of your labor,
and thanks to the earth for its gifts.
"Would that you could live
From the fragrance of the earth
"And like an airplant
Be sustained by the light
"But since we must kill to eat
"Then let it be an act of worship
"When you gather the grapes
For the winepress, say in your heart
"'I too am a vineyard
"'And my fruit shall be gathered
For the winepress
"'And the wine shall be kept
In eternal vessels'
"And when you crush an apple
With your teeth
"Say to it in your heart
"'Your seeds shall live in my body
"'And the buds of your tomorrow
Shall blossom in my heart
"'Your blood and my blood is the sap
That feeds the tree of heaven
"'And together we shall rejoice
Through all the seasons"'
Thank you, friends.
I'll miss you. I'll miss you all.
Watch him. I'll be back in a moment.
Right!
What...
No, listen... Listen to me!
He's a danger, and his influence
continues to grow.
I need at least five men here
and more when we get there.
No, he doesn't suspect anything.
But the people... There may be resistance.
Oh, yes, the Pasha will know
how to handle Mustafa.
Hey!
It's you! Open this door at once!
Mmm. Mmm!
Oh!
So true.
Mustafa, my friend, we feed the body,
but you, you feed the soul.
Sir? May I have a word with you?
"Sir"? After seven years?
Please, Halim. Here, have some wine.
Is something troubling you, Halim?
No! No, no, no. I was just...
Yes, there is.
Yes? Go on.
I know everyone sees me
as this self-assured, dauntless,
impenetrable fortress of strength.
Ahh!
But, um...
...the truth is, and this
might surprise you,
I actually have one thing
that fills me with fear.
And that is?
Expressing feelings of love.
Ah. Love.
For Kamila?
You knew?
I see her lovely face every day,
but I have no idea how she feels.
I mean, perhaps she's intimidated
by my status, my authority.
Intimidated? Your...
No. No, no, no, no.
Don't let that worry you.
Good. Okay. Good.
But now that you're leaving, I mean,
she won't be coming around anymore.
And if I don't do something soon,
I might just lose her forever!
What will I do?
I just... I mean, what can I do?
- Halim, Halim.
- I... I...
Yes?
You're mangling that mango.
Oh... Ha-ha.
So I am.
Halim, when love
beckons to you, follow him,
though his ways are hard and steep.
When love beckons to you
Follow him
Though his ways are hard and steep
And when his wings enfold you,
yield to him
Though he hides a sword among them
And when he speaks to you
Believe in him
Though his voice may shatter your dreams
Love will crown and crucify you
And though for your growth
so he is for your pruning
Love will caress your tenderest branches
And shake every clinging root
Like sheaves of corn
he gathers you unto himself
He threshes and sifts you
He grinds and he kneads you
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire
That you may become sacred bread
for God's sacred feast
All these things shall love do unto you
That you may know
the secrets of your heart
And in that knowledge become a fragment
A fragment of Life's heart
Now if in your fear you seek
only love's peace and love's pleasure
Better cover your nakedness
And pass out of love's threshing-floor
Into a seasonless world
where you shall laugh
But not all your laughter
And weep and weep,
but not all of your tears
Love gives naught but itself
And takes naught but from itself
Love possesses not
nor would it be possessed
For love is enough
You should say, "I am in the heart of God"
You cannot direct the course of Love
If Love, it finds you worthy,
directs your course
To wake at dawn with a winged heart
To come home in the evening with gratitude
Then to sleep with a prayer
for the beloved in your heart
And a song of praise on your lips
"And then to sleep with a prayer
for the beloved in your heart
"And a song of praise upon your lips"
Ah!
Ah! Caught you.
Yes.
Excuse me, have you met my friend?
Her name is Almitra.
Your friend, you say. Oh.
We have met, yes.
Oh, good, I'll feel better
knowing she has friends
to look after her when I'm gone.
What is it, Yousef?
It's just that, you see...
Well, it can be hard to get to know
someone who refuses to speak.
I can see how that might be.
On the other hand,
sometimes people talk when they cease
to be at peace with their thoughts.
But there are those who have the truth
within them, only they
tell it not in words.
In the heart of these,
the spirit dwells in rhythmic silence.
Oh. How did you...
And if I find that little ruffian,
I'll throw her in irons!
Break time's over.
Come on, let's get a move on.
- Shh.
- Oh. Don't leave now.
Mustafa, please.
You just got here, for Pete's sake.
Come on. Move it, move it.
Please step away!
Go on, go on, let's break this up!
Enough of this.
Get up. We haven't got all day.
Sorry, sir. You're right.
That ship won't wait forever.
Mustafa, sir, food for your voyage
from all your friends here.
Come on, Mustafa.
Time to leave all your admirers.
Go with God. We will miss you.
- Goodbye!
- Come back to us.
Goodbye! Take care of yourself.
Stay here in the cafe, okay?
You'll be safe until
I can find your mother.
- Safe travels!
- Thank you, everybody! Thank you!
Goodbye!
Goodbye!
There you are! I have
looked all over for you!
Huh? Kamila.
Oh, no, just tell me what I owe you,
and let's be done with it.
My dear lady, no, no. Everything is fine.
You owe me nothing.
Okay.
Thank you.
I have been out of my mind with worry.
Mmm!
Oh, no, you don't. Not this time.
I've lost Mustafa today.
I am not losing you to a police cell!
What, what? What do you want?
So help me, Almitra, don't test...
Mmm.
What is it?
Do you know what's going on?
Because I sure don't.
Goodbye, Mustafa!
Look, it's him.
- There he is!
- Yay!
Mustafa!
One minute, Mustafa.
There are some details
to be attended to at headquarters.
Please. Come with me.
I had no idea.
Of course not, Halim.
Very well, Sergeant.
- Hey, where are you taking him?
- Please step away.
What are you doing? The ship is this way.
Nothing to see here!
Where is he going?
Let him go!
What's going on?
Ludicrous!
I can't believe this!
I thought he was free!
No, he was free!
Almitra, you knew?
- Let him go!
- He's done nothing wrong!
This is an outrage!
Out of our way.
No! Bring him back!
- Please step away!
- Return to your homes!
- Make way.
- He is an innocent man!
Almitra, no!
Ahh!
Almitra!
More men over here!
Move these people!
Watch it! Careful!
There! The girl! Get her!
Leave her alone!
You swine!
Almitra.
- No!
- Wait!
Clear the square!
- Return to your homes!
- Ahh!
Clear the area! This is your last warning!
Let me help you disappear into the crowd.
The people won't give you away. Quickly!
Thank you, Halim. But I won't put you...
Ahhh!
No, Sergeant. Let me help.
People of Orphalese!
My friends, I beg you!
Please! Be calm!
But they're taking you!
They're liars!
They're evil!
Let us not be too quick
to call others evil.
"For what is evil but good tortured
By its own hunger and thirst?
"Truly when good is hungry
It seeks food even in dark caves
"And when it thirsts
It drinks even of dead waters
"You are good
When you strive to give of yourself
"Yet you are not evil
When you seek gain for yourself
"For when you strive for gain
"You are but a root that clings to the earth
And sucks at her breast
"Surely the fruit cannot say to the root
"'Be like me, ripe and full
And ever giving of your abundance'
"For the fruit giving is a need
"As receiving is a need for the root
"You are good
When you are one with yourself
"Yet when you are not one with yourself
You are not evil
"A ship without a rudder may wander
aimlessly among perilous isles
"Yet not sink to the bottom
"You are good when you walk
to your goal with bold steps
"Yet you are not evil when you go limping
"Even those who limp do not go backward
"Pity that the stags
Cannot teach swiftness to the turtles
"But you who are strong and swift
"See that you do not limp before the lame
Deeming it kindness
"In your longing for your greater self
Lies your goodness
"But in some of you, that longing
is a torrent rushing with might to the sea
"Carrying the secrets of the hillsides
And the songs of the forest
"While in others, it is a flat stream
"That loses itself in angles and bends
"And lingers before it reaches the shore
"In our longing for our greater selves
Lies our goodness
"And that longing is in all of us"
So, Mustafa.
Your first day of freedom,
and you bring a riot to our doorstep.
It was your men and their billy clubs
that brought on the riot.
Order in the streets must be maintained.
Otherwise, anarchy.
I'm disappointed to see your presence
is just as incendiary
as it was seven years ago.
Did your stay on the mountain
give you no time for reflection?
Quite a bit, thanks.
Then why do you persist with these
treasonous acts and rebellious speeches?
Treasonous? I have only spoken with love.
Oh. Only love and flowers, was it?
I believe this is yours.
"Pity the nation that raises not its voice
"Save when it walks in a funeral
"Boasts not except among its ruins
"And will not rebel until its neck
"Is laid between the sword and the block"
"Love and flowers."
Nothing less than a call to rebellion!
I don't see it that way.
Apparently, we disagree.
It would, indeed, be tragic
if rash words from the past
prevented you from returning
to your beloved homeland.
You mean, there's still a chance
I may go home?
A chance? A certainty.
We are not vindictive.
We are not barbarians.
Simply do this.
Sign this statement
that your writings, your teachings,
were the product of a misguided
youth and are seditious.
That you reject them now, they are false,
and you hold the State blameless
in its duty to preserve
the peace, etc., etc.
I can't do that.
Of course you can.
Here is your opportunity to be repentant
and for us to be magnanimous.
What would I have left
if I disavowed all that I believe?
Your life, for one.
I remind you, Mustafa,
the penalty for treason is death.
Fine, have it your way.
I'll give you the night in prison
to think it over.
Guard!
Now!
Mmm. Mmm!
How in the world do we get up there?
Almitra?
What are you doing up there?
You should go.
There's only trouble here.
Only trouble.
You... You can fly.
What?
What did you say?
You can fly away.
Like you did before.
If only I could.
But you said!
Not houses, not bodies.
Spirit.
Yes.
Spirit.
Okay. Come on.
Come out. Fly away.
Almitra, I'm afraid
I'm going to have to stay here
and face what comes.
But they might do bad things to you.
No! You might die!
Dear Almitra, we don't need
to be afraid of death.
"For life and death are one
"Even as the river and the sea are one
"How would we know the secret of death
"Unless we look for it
in the heart of life?
"The owl whose night-bound eyes
Are blind in the day
"Cannot unveil the mystery of light
"In the depth of your hopes and desires
"Lies your silent knowledge of the beyond
"And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow
Your heart dreams of spring
"Trust the dreams for in them
is hidden the gate to eternity
"For what is it to die but to stand naked
"In the wind and to melt into the sun?
"And what is it to cease breathing
"But to free the breath
from its restless tides
"That it may rise and expand
And seek God unencumbered?
"Only when you drink from
The river of silence shall you indeed sing
"And when you have reached The mountaintop
"Then you shall begin to climb
"And when the earth shall claim your limbs
Then shall you truly dance"
Almitra?
Yes.
I'd like you to do something for me.
Sure.
Remember all those paintings in my house?
And all those papers I had written on?
You know, the ones the Sergeant
wouldn't let me take?
I want you to have them.
- Me?
- Yes.
I want you to go gather them
before anyone else gets them.
To make sure they're not destroyed. Okay?
Mmm-hmm.
Good. Then later you can
share them with people.
Remember when you and I flew on the wind?
My words are my wings.
And you are my messenger.
So, go on. Go!
I'll keep them safe, Mustafa.
Wait.
You're gonna crush me.
Are you all right, Mama?
Oh, yes, I'm very all right.
The guards. Go, go, quick!
I'll handle them.
Hey there, boys,
anybody want to see
some of my French postcards?
I offer you one last chance
to renounce your teachings.
I have only spoken to the people
of things they already
knew in their hearts.
This would change nothing.
Refuse to sign this,
and there will be nothing left of you.
Not even your work.
We'll burn it all.
Every last word and image.
The people will remember them
long after I'm gone.
To the poet's house.
Look, Mama, I found another one!
Good, good.
Huh!
Mustafa!
- Mustafa!
- Mustafa!
We'll miss you, brother!
Farewell, people of Orphalese!
"Patient is the captain of my ship
"And restless are the sails
"The mariners have heard the song
of the sea and will wait no longer"
I am ready.
"Do not forget
that I will come back to you
"A little while,
and my longing shall gather
"Dust and foam for another body
"A little while
"A moment of rest upon the wind
"And another woman shall bear me
"Farewell to you
And the youth I have spent with you
"It was just yesterday we met in a dream
"But now sleep has fled
Our dream is over and we must part
"If in the twilight of memory
We should meet once more
"We will speak together again
And you shall sing me a deeper song"
Phew!
Look! There he is, Mama!
What? Who, Almitra?
Where?
Mustafa! There!
I'm sorry, my little one, but he's...
No, look! On the ship!
See?
I do, Almitra.
I do.
"When you part from your friend
You grieve not
"For that which you love most in him
May be clearer in his absence
"And let there be no purpose in friendship
"Save the deepening of the spirit"
Go away. Shoo, shoo!
Hey! Child! Come back here.
Bring that back!
Watch it!
Stop!
Ooh! Whoa!
Little savage!
Almitra!
Almitra!
Eggs, honey, fruit, nuts.
Let's say, seven silver ones.
What? Oh, yes, of course. Let me...
Almitra!
Quite a handful, your daughter, no?
Actually, she's very sweet.
Yes. Like lemons.
With honey.
That's four, five, six...
Almitra! I mean it!
...and seven.
Almitra, get down from there!
No, no, no. No, I mean, don't move!
No, no, no.
Easy, boy!
Oh, dear!
Oh!
Are you all right?
Not again. My dates, ruined.
It's the mother's fault.
Letting her run wild like an animal.
Sorry. Sorry. I'm so sorry.
Here, here's some.
This one's still good.
These are okay.
It will not happen again.
It takes a village, no?
An apology would be nice.
I said I was sorry.
No. From her. She's the one
causing all the trouble.
You know she doesn't speak.
Or won't.
Not since her father died.
Ugh. That was over two years ago.
Look, I'll pay you later.
All of you. At the end of the week,
when I get paid.
And what about all she's stolen?
My daughter is not a thief!
That's what she says, yes.
Hey, Almitra, look.
We found the cat that got your tongue.
You ought to be ashamed of yourselves.
Darling, pay no attention to them.
They're just dumb kids.
What's this?
Eee!
Baby, I know you miss your father.
Me, too.
And if I could bring him back, I would.
But it's just us now.
And you know what?
We're going to be all right.
We just need to stick together.
You know what I miss the most?
Your voice.
All right, my little one.
It's school for you and work for me.
Try to be good, okay?
Oh. Please let it be a goat.
Almitra.
Why are you following me?
You know you're supposed to be in school.
Well, there's no time
to take you all the way back,
and I can't lose this job.
I guess you're just going to
have to come with me.
But listen.
You better not take anything.
I'm serious, Almitra.
In this family, we do not steal.
Understood?
Oh!
Ya!
Good morning, Halim.
Kamila.
Morning, ma'am.
Are you okay?
Excellent.
Oh. You've brought along some help today.
Or perhaps you're a spy.
Yeah, she's the leader of the Resistance.
Excuse me.
Wait! Don't go yet.
I mean...
I can't allow entry without
the appropriate documents.
For the girl.
What? Oh, come on, Halim.
I don't have time for this.
I've got work to do.
You know this prisoner
is a high security risk.
A dangerous criminal.
Why do you think they assigned
me to guard him?
- I have no idea.
- Whoa, whoa!
Hey.
Fine. Then you can babysit her.
She's very well behaved, by the way.
Shouldn't give you any trouble at all.
Uh...
So, Almitra, what do you do for fun?
Ahh!
Geez!
Hey!
What did you say to him?
Almost.
Okay.
This is great. I'm having a wonderful day!
Hey, come back here. That's my hat.
It's an official hat, you know.
It's a government hat.
Come back here! Here, birdie, birdie...
Do I hear a mouse?
Careful, little mouse.
There are traps everywhere.
I never get visitors.
It'd be nice to have a chat,
even with a mouse.
Oh. Where did you go?
Little mouse?
Hmm. No. Not there.
Ha-ha! I know. The cookie jar.
Hello.
Hmm.
Mmm.
Hmm.
No. Not there either.
Well...
Hmm.
A-ha! There you are!
Oh. A mouse in a cage.
Want a cookie, little mouse?
Mmm.
My name's Mustafa.
What's yours?
A-ha.
Almitra. That's a pretty name.
Well, Almitra,
there are all kinds of cages.
This house has been mine for seven years.
My crime?
Poetry.
Hmm.
Oh. The lady with the mousetraps. Quick!
We prisoners have to be sneaky.
You know what's funny?
They think I'm their prisoner,
but I've flown away many times.
Oh, yes.
Right out that window.
High above the whole island.
Let me tell you a secret.
We are not imprisoned by houses
or our bodies.
Not even by other people.
We are spirits.
Free as the wind.
It's a secret not everyone knows.
"I have seen people throw themselves
down and worship their own freedom
"Like slaves before a tyrant
"Praising him though he slays them
"I have seen the freest among them
"Wear their freedom as a handcuff
"And my heart bled within me
"For you can only be free when
You no longer speak of freedom as a goal
"And how can you be free
"Unless you break the chains
You have fastened around yourself?
"In truth, that which you call freedom
"Is the strongest of these chains
"Though its links glitter in the sun
"And to become free, what would you
"Remove that is not a part of yourself?
"If it's a tyrant
His throne was built within you
"If it's a care you would cast off
"That care has been chosen by you
"And if it's a fear you would drive away
"The root of that fear is in your heart
"And not in the hand of the feared
"These things move within you
"As lights and shadows
In constant half embrace
"You'll be free indeed
"Not when your days are without a care
"Nor your nights without grief
"But rather when these things
Bind up your life
"And yet you rise above them
"Unbound"
That's it! Where is he?
I'd like to wring his
little feathered neck.
Halim?
Where is...
Almitra.
Didn't I tell you to stay out of trouble?
Halim! You were supposed to babysit her!
Oh, Mustafa, I'm so sorry my daughter
has interrupted your work.
I'll just get her out of your way.
Don't worry.
No, no, no. We're fine.
We were just chatting. Right, Almitra?
Chatting?
Yes, we were sailing
on the wings of the wind.
Mmm.
That reminds me, last night
I had the sweetest dream.
I dreamt of a ship
sailing into the harbor,
coming to take me back to my homeland.
Hmm.
Halim, you haven't today,
by any chance, seen a ship?
No,
but to tell you the truth,
I wasn't looking.
Mmm! Mmm!
- Almitra, get down from there!
- Ahhh!
Ooh!
Oh! Mustafa, I'm so sorry!
I mean, Almitra is sorry.
Oh! Here, let me...
You do it.
That must hurt so much.
No, no, no. I'm fine. I'm fine, really.
Oh, no, no, no. Look at your painting.
It's completely ruined.
No, no. Not at all.
In fact, it's improved.
No, no, Mustafa, you cannot mean that.
I do, I do!
But it's so ugly. Look at it!
Now, now, now.
I don't know what to do.
- Come and sit down. Here.
- I've tried everything!
Nothing I do or say gets through to her.
She's just completely beyond my control.
Well, of course, she is.
What?
She doesn't belong to you.
She doesn't?
Oh, no, no, no, no, no, Mustafa.
I remember clearly that it was me
who brought her into this world.
Yes, yes, that's true.
She came through you, but not from you.
"Your children are not your children
"They are the sons and daughters
Of Life's longing for itself"
Your children are not your children
They're the sons and daughters of
Life's longing for itself
They come through you
But not from you
Though they're with you,
they belong to themselves
You may give them your love,
but not your thoughts
For they have thoughts of their own
You may house their bodies,
not their souls
For their souls
dwell in a house of tomorrow
Which you cannot visit,
not even in your dreams
You may strive
To be like them
But seek not to make them like you
For life goes not backward
Nor tarries with yesterday
You are the bows from which your children
As living arrows are sent forth
The archer sees the mark
upon the path of the infinite
And He bends you with His might
That His arrows may go swift and far
Let your bending in the archer's hand
be for gladness
For even as he loves the arrow that flies
He loves the bow that is stable
Let your bending in the archer's hand
be for gladness
For even as he loves the arrow that flies
He loves the bow that is stable
"For even as he loves the arrow that flies
"So He loves also the bow that is stable"
- Halim!
- Ow! Ohh!
Sergeant, to what do I owe this honor?
I've come to inform you that you
are released from your confinement.
What? Released?
But we should throw a party, with music.
Released, released.
Mustafa!
You are released on the condition
that you return to your own country
and never again set foot on Orphalese.
Oh.
If Halim is up to it...
Hmm!
...we will escort you to
your port of emigration.
Now.
What, now?
Oh.
Well, I'll help you pack up your things.
All your work.
No, you'll clean up and then leave.
We will deal with his
personal effects later.
Sergeant, come on now.
Surely, there's time to gather...
You will come with us now.
Unless you want to remain locked up
here for another seven years.
Hmm-hmm.
Difficult decision, that one.
Here is your final pay.
After today, your services
are no longer required.
I'm so sorry, Kamila.
I hope that you will find work soon.
Your visits have been
a bright spot in my time here.
Goodbye.
Thank you, Mustafa, for everything.
Ugh.
And please say goodbye
to my new friend, Almitra.
I wish we had had more time.
What?
Mmm.
Ha!
I should have known. The silent thief.
You're developing quite the reputation
at the marketplace.
Don't think you're too young to spend
a few nights in jail, my friend.
Heh! And you, too!
Ow!
Rat traps!
Halim!
Almitra, no!
You heard the Sergeant.
We can't afford any more trouble.
I know, I know. I'm gonna miss him, too.
All right, I guess I'd better finish up.
Look! It's the poet!
Mustafa?
Is he free?
It's been so long.
Mustafa!
- Have you been freed?
- Where are they taking you?
To the harbor. This is a happy day.
For all of you, of course, but for me too!
I'm being released. I'm going home.
- Great!
- Wonderful!
Then you must join us in celebrating!
Absolutely not!
We have a schedule to stick to.
Sergeant! You don't
like braised lamb shank?
All right. Five minutes, not a moment longer!
Yes, yes, thank you.
Strike up the band.
We have two occasions to celebrate.
Kissing. That's all he knows.
Give her time to eat, for heaven's sake.
Mmm.
They're newlyweds. That's what
they're supposed to do, right?
Who knows? The last time
I kissed a pretty girl,
the Dead Sea was only sick.
- Enough.
- Grandpa.
Oh.
Thank you.
I've missed this!
A toast to the happy couple!
And for Mustafa!
To love and freedom!
To love and freedom!
To freedom!
To love?
Mustafa,
please, would you give a blessing
to my daughter's marriage?
It would be my honor.
"You were born together
And together you shall be forevermore
"You shall be together when
The white wings of death scatter your days
"Yes, you shall be together
Even in the silent memory of God
"But let there be spaces
In your togetherness
"And let the winds of the heavens
Dance between you
"Love one another
But make not a bond of love
"Let it rather be a moving sea
"Between the shores of your souls
"Fill each other's cup
But drink not from one cup
"Give one another of your bread
"But eat not from the same loaf
"Sing and dance together and be joyous
"But let each one of you be alone
"Even as the strings of a lute are alone
"Though they quiver with the same music
"Give your hearts
But not into each other's keeping
"For only the hand of Life
Can contain your hearts
"And stand together
Yet not too near together
"For the pillars of the temple stand apart
"And the oak tree and the cypress
"Grow not in each other's shadow"
- Thank you, Mustafa.
- It was lovely.
My pleasure.
Ha-ha!
I said "five minutes."
And you've taken advantage
of my generosity.
- Let's go. Now!
- Oh!
Killjoy.
Goodbye, everybody.
And good luck to the two of you.
And thank you, Mustafa, for our blessing.
Again with the kissing.
Come here.
Goodbye, Mustafa.
Goodbye!
Ah! It's a beautiful day for sailing.
If Mustafa sets foot
on that ship, I'll eat my fez!
Take care of yourself.
Goodbye, good people. Goodbye!
Safe journey!
Farewell!
My cake!
I'll stick with the baklava.
Those foolish peasants.
They hang on your every word.
After all this time, they still see you
as their great leader.
With all due respect, Sergeant,
they're neither foolish nor peasants.
And I'm no leader.
What, then? A teacher?
What is a teacher?
He can only lead you
to the threshold of your own mind.
We all stand alone
in our understanding, Sergeant.
You and I.
You hear that, Mustafa?
That's who the people are.
Sheep, waiting to be led
by the strongest...
Ow!
Are you, uh, all right, sir?
Who did that? Hmm?
Well, Sergeant,
I suppose even the sheep
have the last word, sometimes.
Whoa!
Good boy.
Well,
I did...
Huh? Huh! Oh!
Huh?
Oh!
You see?
Mustafa?
It's him.
Hurry.
Mustafa?
Mustafa.
Ooh!
Oh!
Ugh.
Oh!
Oh! Ho! Ho!
- Oh, my!
- Are you okay?
That was a close one.
It's all right, it's all right, I...
Oh, I am fine, thanks.
- Welcome back.
- Good to see you again.
- How's your wife?
- We missed you.
How are the children?
So big now you wouldn't recognize them.
That's terrific.
So glad you're back.
Yes, yes, yes.
We're all pleased as punch
to see Mustafa again.
But it's time to get back to
whatever it is you people do.
That's right, Gramps.
Your olives aren't going to
press themselves, are they?
You've important work to do.
Oh, no, sir.
His words are worth
more than my sacks of olives.
Nonsense, my friend.
Oh! It's true, Mustafa.
I don't know how I could have
gotten through that terrible drought year
without your words to reassure me.
Or us, when our child was ill.
Or me, putting up with my mother-in-law.
Truly, your work means more than ours.
Oh, shut up!
Oh, dear, let me help you.
My friend, all work is noble.
"You work that you may keep pace
"With the earth and the soul of the earth
"For to be idle is to become
A stranger unto the seasons
"And to step out of life's procession
"That marches in majesty
And proud submission towards the infinite
"When you work you are a flute
"Through whose heart
The whispering of the hours turns to music
"And when you work with love
You bind yourself to yourself
"And to one another, and to God
"And what is it to work with love?
"It is to weave the cloth
With threads drawn from your heart
"Even as if your beloved
Were to wear that cloth
"It is to build a house with affection
"Even as if your beloved
Were to dwell in that house
"It is to sow seeds with tenderness
And reap the harvest with joy
"Even as if your beloved
were to eat the fruit
"It is to charge all things you fashion
"With a breath of your own spirit
"And to know that all the blessed dead
"Are standing about you and watching
"Often I have heard you say
As if speaking in sleep
"'One who works in marble, and finds
"The shape of their own soul in the stone
"'Is nobler than one who plows the soil
"'And one who seizes the rainbow
"'To lay it on a cloth
in the likeness of man
"'Is more than one who makes
The sandals for our feet'
"But I say, not in sleep
But in the over-wakefulness of noontide
"That the wind speaks
Not more sweetly to the giant oaks
"Than it does to
the smallest blades of grass
"And they are great, who turn
the voice of the wind into a song
"Made sweeter by their own loving
"Work is love made visible"
Well, that was lovely, wasn't it?
Very edifying.
But we need to be moving along.
What's the hurry? He's just been released.
Yes, we haven't seen him for years.
Where are you taking him?
I thought he was free.
I am free, my friends.
Today, I'm being sent home to my country.
I must admit, it will be good
to see my home again.
Please, sir.
Before you go,
I insist we serve you a proper meal.
Yes, everyone knows
the food on those ships is terrible.
Come. Sit.
Out of the way, out of the way,
people. Come on.
Bashira! The best for Mustafa.
Oh!
And you'll need provisions for your trip.
Have some oranges.
Some pistachios.
Now just one minute. I'm in charge here!
And I say whether...
Ooh. Is that fresh halvah?
Mmm.
Oh! Oh!
All right, five minutes.
And not a moment longer.
What generosity! Enough, enough!
Thank you, dear people.
Thank you for the gifts of your labor,
and thanks to the earth for its gifts.
"Would that you could live
From the fragrance of the earth
"And like an airplant
Be sustained by the light
"But since we must kill to eat
"Then let it be an act of worship
"When you gather the grapes
For the winepress, say in your heart
"'I too am a vineyard
"'And my fruit shall be gathered
For the winepress
"'And the wine shall be kept
In eternal vessels'
"And when you crush an apple
With your teeth
"Say to it in your heart
"'Your seeds shall live in my body
"'And the buds of your tomorrow
Shall blossom in my heart
"'Your blood and my blood is the sap
That feeds the tree of heaven
"'And together we shall rejoice
Through all the seasons"'
Thank you, friends.
I'll miss you. I'll miss you all.
Watch him. I'll be back in a moment.
Right!
What...
No, listen... Listen to me!
He's a danger, and his influence
continues to grow.
I need at least five men here
and more when we get there.
No, he doesn't suspect anything.
But the people... There may be resistance.
Oh, yes, the Pasha will know
how to handle Mustafa.
Hey!
It's you! Open this door at once!
Mmm. Mmm!
Oh!
So true.
Mustafa, my friend, we feed the body,
but you, you feed the soul.
Sir? May I have a word with you?
"Sir"? After seven years?
Please, Halim. Here, have some wine.
Is something troubling you, Halim?
No! No, no, no. I was just...
Yes, there is.
Yes? Go on.
I know everyone sees me
as this self-assured, dauntless,
impenetrable fortress of strength.
Ahh!
But, um...
...the truth is, and this
might surprise you,
I actually have one thing
that fills me with fear.
And that is?
Expressing feelings of love.
Ah. Love.
For Kamila?
You knew?
I see her lovely face every day,
but I have no idea how she feels.
I mean, perhaps she's intimidated
by my status, my authority.
Intimidated? Your...
No. No, no, no, no.
Don't let that worry you.
Good. Okay. Good.
But now that you're leaving, I mean,
she won't be coming around anymore.
And if I don't do something soon,
I might just lose her forever!
What will I do?
I just... I mean, what can I do?
- Halim, Halim.
- I... I...
Yes?
You're mangling that mango.
Oh... Ha-ha.
So I am.
Halim, when love
beckons to you, follow him,
though his ways are hard and steep.
When love beckons to you
Follow him
Though his ways are hard and steep
And when his wings enfold you,
yield to him
Though he hides a sword among them
And when he speaks to you
Believe in him
Though his voice may shatter your dreams
Love will crown and crucify you
And though for your growth
so he is for your pruning
Love will caress your tenderest branches
And shake every clinging root
Like sheaves of corn
he gathers you unto himself
He threshes and sifts you
He grinds and he kneads you
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire
That you may become sacred bread
for God's sacred feast
All these things shall love do unto you
That you may know
the secrets of your heart
And in that knowledge become a fragment
A fragment of Life's heart
Now if in your fear you seek
only love's peace and love's pleasure
Better cover your nakedness
And pass out of love's threshing-floor
Into a seasonless world
where you shall laugh
But not all your laughter
And weep and weep,
but not all of your tears
Love gives naught but itself
And takes naught but from itself
Love possesses not
nor would it be possessed
For love is enough
You should say, "I am in the heart of God"
You cannot direct the course of Love
If Love, it finds you worthy,
directs your course
To wake at dawn with a winged heart
To come home in the evening with gratitude
Then to sleep with a prayer
for the beloved in your heart
And a song of praise on your lips
"And then to sleep with a prayer
for the beloved in your heart
"And a song of praise upon your lips"
Ah!
Ah! Caught you.
Yes.
Excuse me, have you met my friend?
Her name is Almitra.
Your friend, you say. Oh.
We have met, yes.
Oh, good, I'll feel better
knowing she has friends
to look after her when I'm gone.
What is it, Yousef?
It's just that, you see...
Well, it can be hard to get to know
someone who refuses to speak.
I can see how that might be.
On the other hand,
sometimes people talk when they cease
to be at peace with their thoughts.
But there are those who have the truth
within them, only they
tell it not in words.
In the heart of these,
the spirit dwells in rhythmic silence.
Oh. How did you...
And if I find that little ruffian,
I'll throw her in irons!
Break time's over.
Come on, let's get a move on.
- Shh.
- Oh. Don't leave now.
Mustafa, please.
You just got here, for Pete's sake.
Come on. Move it, move it.
Please step away!
Go on, go on, let's break this up!
Enough of this.
Get up. We haven't got all day.
Sorry, sir. You're right.
That ship won't wait forever.
Mustafa, sir, food for your voyage
from all your friends here.
Come on, Mustafa.
Time to leave all your admirers.
Go with God. We will miss you.
- Goodbye!
- Come back to us.
Goodbye! Take care of yourself.
Stay here in the cafe, okay?
You'll be safe until
I can find your mother.
- Safe travels!
- Thank you, everybody! Thank you!
Goodbye!
Goodbye!
There you are! I have
looked all over for you!
Huh? Kamila.
Oh, no, just tell me what I owe you,
and let's be done with it.
My dear lady, no, no. Everything is fine.
You owe me nothing.
Okay.
Thank you.
I have been out of my mind with worry.
Mmm!
Oh, no, you don't. Not this time.
I've lost Mustafa today.
I am not losing you to a police cell!
What, what? What do you want?
So help me, Almitra, don't test...
Mmm.
What is it?
Do you know what's going on?
Because I sure don't.
Goodbye, Mustafa!
Look, it's him.
- There he is!
- Yay!
Mustafa!
One minute, Mustafa.
There are some details
to be attended to at headquarters.
Please. Come with me.
I had no idea.
Of course not, Halim.
Very well, Sergeant.
- Hey, where are you taking him?
- Please step away.
What are you doing? The ship is this way.
Nothing to see here!
Where is he going?
Let him go!
What's going on?
Ludicrous!
I can't believe this!
I thought he was free!
No, he was free!
Almitra, you knew?
- Let him go!
- He's done nothing wrong!
This is an outrage!
Out of our way.
No! Bring him back!
- Please step away!
- Return to your homes!
- Make way.
- He is an innocent man!
Almitra, no!
Ahh!
Almitra!
More men over here!
Move these people!
Watch it! Careful!
There! The girl! Get her!
Leave her alone!
You swine!
Almitra.
- No!
- Wait!
Clear the square!
- Return to your homes!
- Ahh!
Clear the area! This is your last warning!
Let me help you disappear into the crowd.
The people won't give you away. Quickly!
Thank you, Halim. But I won't put you...
Ahhh!
No, Sergeant. Let me help.
People of Orphalese!
My friends, I beg you!
Please! Be calm!
But they're taking you!
They're liars!
They're evil!
Let us not be too quick
to call others evil.
"For what is evil but good tortured
By its own hunger and thirst?
"Truly when good is hungry
It seeks food even in dark caves
"And when it thirsts
It drinks even of dead waters
"You are good
When you strive to give of yourself
"Yet you are not evil
When you seek gain for yourself
"For when you strive for gain
"You are but a root that clings to the earth
And sucks at her breast
"Surely the fruit cannot say to the root
"'Be like me, ripe and full
And ever giving of your abundance'
"For the fruit giving is a need
"As receiving is a need for the root
"You are good
When you are one with yourself
"Yet when you are not one with yourself
You are not evil
"A ship without a rudder may wander
aimlessly among perilous isles
"Yet not sink to the bottom
"You are good when you walk
to your goal with bold steps
"Yet you are not evil when you go limping
"Even those who limp do not go backward
"Pity that the stags
Cannot teach swiftness to the turtles
"But you who are strong and swift
"See that you do not limp before the lame
Deeming it kindness
"In your longing for your greater self
Lies your goodness
"But in some of you, that longing
is a torrent rushing with might to the sea
"Carrying the secrets of the hillsides
And the songs of the forest
"While in others, it is a flat stream
"That loses itself in angles and bends
"And lingers before it reaches the shore
"In our longing for our greater selves
Lies our goodness
"And that longing is in all of us"
So, Mustafa.
Your first day of freedom,
and you bring a riot to our doorstep.
It was your men and their billy clubs
that brought on the riot.
Order in the streets must be maintained.
Otherwise, anarchy.
I'm disappointed to see your presence
is just as incendiary
as it was seven years ago.
Did your stay on the mountain
give you no time for reflection?
Quite a bit, thanks.
Then why do you persist with these
treasonous acts and rebellious speeches?
Treasonous? I have only spoken with love.
Oh. Only love and flowers, was it?
I believe this is yours.
"Pity the nation that raises not its voice
"Save when it walks in a funeral
"Boasts not except among its ruins
"And will not rebel until its neck
"Is laid between the sword and the block"
"Love and flowers."
Nothing less than a call to rebellion!
I don't see it that way.
Apparently, we disagree.
It would, indeed, be tragic
if rash words from the past
prevented you from returning
to your beloved homeland.
You mean, there's still a chance
I may go home?
A chance? A certainty.
We are not vindictive.
We are not barbarians.
Simply do this.
Sign this statement
that your writings, your teachings,
were the product of a misguided
youth and are seditious.
That you reject them now, they are false,
and you hold the State blameless
in its duty to preserve
the peace, etc., etc.
I can't do that.
Of course you can.
Here is your opportunity to be repentant
and for us to be magnanimous.
What would I have left
if I disavowed all that I believe?
Your life, for one.
I remind you, Mustafa,
the penalty for treason is death.
Fine, have it your way.
I'll give you the night in prison
to think it over.
Guard!
Now!
Mmm. Mmm!
How in the world do we get up there?
Almitra?
What are you doing up there?
You should go.
There's only trouble here.
Only trouble.
You... You can fly.
What?
What did you say?
You can fly away.
Like you did before.
If only I could.
But you said!
Not houses, not bodies.
Spirit.
Yes.
Spirit.
Okay. Come on.
Come out. Fly away.
Almitra, I'm afraid
I'm going to have to stay here
and face what comes.
But they might do bad things to you.
No! You might die!
Dear Almitra, we don't need
to be afraid of death.
"For life and death are one
"Even as the river and the sea are one
"How would we know the secret of death
"Unless we look for it
in the heart of life?
"The owl whose night-bound eyes
Are blind in the day
"Cannot unveil the mystery of light
"In the depth of your hopes and desires
"Lies your silent knowledge of the beyond
"And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow
Your heart dreams of spring
"Trust the dreams for in them
is hidden the gate to eternity
"For what is it to die but to stand naked
"In the wind and to melt into the sun?
"And what is it to cease breathing
"But to free the breath
from its restless tides
"That it may rise and expand
And seek God unencumbered?
"Only when you drink from
The river of silence shall you indeed sing
"And when you have reached The mountaintop
"Then you shall begin to climb
"And when the earth shall claim your limbs
Then shall you truly dance"
Almitra?
Yes.
I'd like you to do something for me.
Sure.
Remember all those paintings in my house?
And all those papers I had written on?
You know, the ones the Sergeant
wouldn't let me take?
I want you to have them.
- Me?
- Yes.
I want you to go gather them
before anyone else gets them.
To make sure they're not destroyed. Okay?
Mmm-hmm.
Good. Then later you can
share them with people.
Remember when you and I flew on the wind?
My words are my wings.
And you are my messenger.
So, go on. Go!
I'll keep them safe, Mustafa.
Wait.
You're gonna crush me.
Are you all right, Mama?
Oh, yes, I'm very all right.
The guards. Go, go, quick!
I'll handle them.
Hey there, boys,
anybody want to see
some of my French postcards?
I offer you one last chance
to renounce your teachings.
I have only spoken to the people
of things they already
knew in their hearts.
This would change nothing.
Refuse to sign this,
and there will be nothing left of you.
Not even your work.
We'll burn it all.
Every last word and image.
The people will remember them
long after I'm gone.
To the poet's house.
Look, Mama, I found another one!
Good, good.
Huh!
Mustafa!
- Mustafa!
- Mustafa!
We'll miss you, brother!
Farewell, people of Orphalese!
"Patient is the captain of my ship
"And restless are the sails
"The mariners have heard the song
of the sea and will wait no longer"
I am ready.
"Do not forget
that I will come back to you
"A little while,
and my longing shall gather
"Dust and foam for another body
"A little while
"A moment of rest upon the wind
"And another woman shall bear me
"Farewell to you
And the youth I have spent with you
"It was just yesterday we met in a dream
"But now sleep has fled
Our dream is over and we must part
"If in the twilight of memory
We should meet once more
"We will speak together again
And you shall sing me a deeper song"
Phew!
Look! There he is, Mama!
What? Who, Almitra?
Where?
Mustafa! There!
I'm sorry, my little one, but he's...
No, look! On the ship!
See?
I do, Almitra.
I do.
"When you part from your friend
You grieve not
"For that which you love most in him
May be clearer in his absence
"And let there be no purpose in friendship
"Save the deepening of the spirit"