The Alchemist (O Alquimista) is a novel by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho which was first published in 1988, originally written in Portuguese. The book follows the story of the Andalusian shepherd boy, Santiago, who after dreaming about finding treasure in Egypt decided to follow his "Personal Legend" despite odds along the way.
It has inspired many people to examine their lives from deep within if they are really living their "Personal Legend", following their dreams or just getting by with life.
The story of the first publication of the book is also an inspiration on how Paulo Coelho strived to follow his dream of making this book known and sell. Indeed, following his own Personal Legend, the book now has already sold 65 million copies, translated into 80 languages.
Here are some of the inspiring quotes from the "The Alchemist":
1. An old king tells Santiago that, "when you really want something to happen, the whole universe will conspire so that your wish comes true."
2. “Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.”
3.“If what one finds is made of pure matter, it will never spoil. And one can always come back. If what you had found was only a moment of light, like the explosion of a star, you would find nothing on your return.”
4. “There is only one way to learn. It’s through action.”
5. “When each day is the same as the next, it’s because people fail to recognize the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises.”
6. “Because I don’t live in either my past or my future. I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man.”
7. “When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he has never dreamed of when he first made the decision.”
8. “That’s what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.”
9. “I see the world in terms of what I would like to see happen, not what actually does.”
10. “If someone isn’t what others want them to be, the others become angry. Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.”
11. “The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.”
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My favorite story in the book is about the advice of the wisest man in the world to the son of a shopkeeper because it resonates many of our life's choices wherein we know what we wanted to achieve but because of either the inability to discern or we are lured in the moment of comfort or luxury we forgot our lifelong dreams,thus spilling the oil in our spoon.
And on the other hand, out of our eagerness to achieve our dreams, we forgot to enjoy and be grateful for the daily blessings and joy we receive by focusing our eyes only in the oil and the spoon in our hand.
“A certain shopkeeper sent his son to learn about the secret of happiness from the wisest man in the world.
The lad wandered through the desert for forty days, and finally came upon a beautiful castle, high atop a mountain. It was there that the wise man lived.
Rather than finding a saintly man though, our hero, on entering the main room of the castle, saw a hive of activity: tradesmen came and went, people were conversing in the corners, a small orchestra was playing soft music, and there was a table covered with platters of the most delicious food in that part of the world.
The wise man conversed with everyone, and the boy had to wait for two hours before it was his turn to be given the man’s attention. The wise man listened attentively to the boy’s explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn’t time just then to explain the secret of happiness.
He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours. “Meanwhile I want to ask you do do something,” said the wise man, handing the boy a teaspoon that held two drops of oil. ‘As you wander around, carry this spoon with you without allowing the oil to spill.”
The boy began climbing and descending the many stairways of the palace, keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. After two hours, he returned to the room where the wise man was. “Well,” asked the wise man, “did you see the Persian tapestries that are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?”
The boy was embarrassed, and confessed that he had observed nothing. His only concern had been not to spill the oil that the wise man had entrusted to him.
“Then go back and observe the marvels of my world,” said the wise man.
Relieved, the boy picked up the spoon and returned to his exploration of the palace, this time observing all of the works of art on the ceilings and the walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around him, the beauty of the flowers, and the tasted with which everything had been selected. Upon returning to the wise man, he related in detail everything he had seen.
“But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?” asked the wise man. Looking down at the spoon he held, the boy saw that the oil was gone.
“Well, there is only one piece of advice I can give you.” said the wisest of wise men. “The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon”
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Paulo Coelho best describes our life's journey in his very words:" I'm Santiago the shepherd boy in search of my treasure, just as you are Santiago the shepherd boy in search of your own. The story of one person is the story of everyone, and one man's quest is the quest of all humanity."
Warrior of the Light
The Pilgrimage
By the River of Piedra I Sat Down and Wept: A Novel of Forgiveness
Fifth Mountain
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alchemist_(novel)
http://mentalfloss.com/article/63535/15-things-you-might-not-know-about-alchemist
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