“Eat, Pray, Love” author Elizabeth Gilbert posted a tribute to her partner Rayya Elias on Thursday after Elias died from cancer.
“I loved you so much Rayya. Thank you for letting me walk with you right to the edge of the river. It has been the greatest honor of my life,” Gilbert wrote an Instagram post dedicated to Elias. “I would tell you to rest in peace, but I know that you always found peace boring. May you rest in excitement.”
She was my love, my heart, my best friend, my teacher, my rebel, my angel, my protector, my challenger, my partner, my muse, my wizard, my surprise, my gift, my comet, my liberator, my rock star, my completely impossible non-cooperator, my otherworldly visitor, my spiritual portal, and my baby. I loved you so much, Rayya. Thank you for letting me walk with you right to the edge of the river. It has been the greatest honor of my life. I would tell you to rest in peace, but I know that you always found peace boring. May you rest in excitement. I will always love you.
A post shared by Elizabeth Gilbert (@elizabeth_gilbert_writer) on
Gilbert announced her relationship with Elias, who was an author, songwriter, and short filmmaker, in 2016 just two months after separating from husband Jose Nunes. Around the same time, Elias was diagnosed with pancreatic and liver cancer.
Gilbert and Nunes later divorced. Gilbert met Nunes when she was traveling in Italy, India, and Bali after her first marriage failed. The trip later became the 2006 bestselling memoir “Eat, Pray, Love,” which was made into a film in 2010.
Gilbert and Elias had been best friends for 15 years prior to becoming a couple. They had a private commitment ceremony in June 2017.
Elias wrote her own memoir in 2013. “Harley Loco: A Memoir of Hard Living, Hair and Post-Punk” detailed her life as a gay Middle Eastern American who also spent time homeless, in prison, and addicted to drugs.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.