The Wise King
Once there ruled in the distant city of Wirani a king who was bothmighty and wise. And he was feared for his might and loved forhis wisdom.
Now, in the heart of that city was a well, whose water was cool andcrystalline, from which all the inhabitants drank, even the kingand his courtiers; for there was no other well.
One night when all were asleep, a witch entered the city, and pouredseven drops of strange liquid into the well, and said, "From thishour he who drinks this water shall become mad."
Next morning all the inhabitants, save the king and his lordchamberlain, drank from the well and became mad, even as the witchhad foretold.
And during that day the people in the narrow streets and in themarket places did naught but whisper to one another, "The king ismad. Our king and his lord chamberlain have lost their reason.Surely we cannot be ruled by a mad king. We must dethrone him."
That evening the king ordered a golden goblet to be filled from thewell. And when it was brought to him he drank deeply, and gave itto his lord chamberlain to drink.
And there was great rejoicing in that distant city of Wirani,because its king and its lord chamberlain had regained their reason.
Words in this poem
- drank n.
- Wild oats, or darnel grass. See Drake a plant. [Cf. 3d Drake.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Wise King is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Madman: His Parables and Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #5616; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Kahlil Gibran, The Wise King, in The Madman: His Parables and Poems (1918), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #5616, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/gibran-madman/the-wise-king.html, id L27293.
About this section
The Wise King is prose, printed in 7 paragraphs. It is part of the edition and is kept for reading, but nothing here is measured: the line breaks are the printer's, so no metre, rhyme scheme or scansion is stated.
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