Salma Hayek has been visiting Lebanon. While Salma Hayek herself was born in Mexico, her paternal grandfather was Lebanese. But this was not just some family roots trip.

Salma Hayek was in Lebanon for the international premiere of the animated feature film The Prophet.

The Prophet was written and directed by Roger Allers, the maker of the Disney production The Lion King. It is based on the book of the same name by celebrated Lebanese poet Khalil Gibran.

“Through this book I got to know my grandfather. Through this book I got to have my grandfather teaching me about life. So it is a very personal movie for me,” Salma Hayek said. “It encourages the new generation to go somewhere else to break out of the box.”

The book by Khalil Gibran is still immensely popular around the world. It is a relatively small, easy-to-read book noted for its heartfelt message.

“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.”
– Khalil Gibran, The Prophet

“I think the whole world could use a little bit of message of peace, and more than a message of peace, to watch something that’s uplifting for the spirit and joyous, and that you can share with your family, ” Salma Hayek said

While the book is a simple narrative about the teachings of a prophet about to leave to return to his homeland after many years, the animated film tells the story of Almitra, a young girl, and Mustafa, a poet imprisoned for his ideas. Salma Hayek does the voice of the girl’s mother, Kamila.

Salma Hayek noted that Gibran, “is an Arabic writer who wrote philosophy and poetry and who brought all religions and the world together.”

“And if you would know God be not therefore a solver of riddles.
Rather look about you and you shall see Him playing with your children.”
– Khalil Gibran, The Prophet

“It’s hard for a kid to understand (the Prophet) as it’s written, that’s why we made the movie. [My daughter] understands it in the film, because she sees the images of the words,” Salma Hayek said.

“This has been the most amazing trip. I was not prepared for how emotional it was going to be for my family to be here,” she said.

“You have been told that, even like a chain, you are as weak as your weakest link.
This is but half the truth.
You are also as strong as your strongest link.
To measure you by your smallest deed is to reckon the power of the ocean
by the frailty of its foam.
To judge you by your failures is to cast blame upon the seasons for their inconstancy.”
– Khalil Gibran, The Prophet