“In the valley of silence
“In the valley of silence
I found my soul,
And in the stillness between two hills
my heart heard
the whisper of eternity.
For the valley is not empty
it is the cup that gathers the voices of heaven.”
(attributed to Khalil Gibran).
Some 12 years ago I visited the Bsharre village up in the mountains of Lebanon, and stayed for a few days near the birthplace of the celebrated poet Khalil Gibran. Bsharre village overlooks the ancient Qadisha Valley. On the steep rocky mountain sides of the Holy ( =Qadisha) valley Christian monks and believers cut into the rock and built monasteries, caves for hermits and churches.
For some 1600 years the valley provided protection for the inhabitants from various conquerors. We can also see legendary Cedars of Lebanon protected in the valley. ( As I write these words, some 120 km away from the deeply quiet Quadisha valley, part of the city of Beirut on the eastern Mediterranean is literally under fire, quivering from fatal missiles and bombs. The stillness and silence of the Holy Valley could be broken by the deafening violence and helpless moaning of people from down there).
Brought up in traditional Christian homes in Kerala, we children were taught to babble the 23rd Psalm at the age of 3 to 4.
“Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me..”
We children never understood what that frightening phrase “valley of the shadow of death” meant. Much later to our dismay we understood a little bit, but we are comforted to know that the Great Shepherd’s compassionate rod and staff protect us from all fear of evil. In these dark days the arrogant and self seeking masters of the world show no pity for the common people who elect them, enthrone them, and feed them. Let us pray, ‘ Lord, have mercy’, and return to that hearty hymn of absolute trust, contentment and gratitude that we used to recite as little children.
(7 March 2026)