More than a century later, his thoughts still feel like a mirror held up to our confused modern life. This universality is particularly important in the modern age, when societies are increasingly fractured by identity politics, intolerance and ideological extremism. In modern times, when public life is often dominated by cynicism and confrontation, Jibran’s emphasis on compassion is especially significant. Yet to appreciate Jibran in modern times is also to recognise a certain tension. For the modern reader, then, Khalil Jibran is not merely a literary figure from the past.