Paulo Coelho’s “The Alchemist” is the book who many claimed have somehow changed their lives or their way of thinking. I heard people leave their jobs to look for their “Personal Legends” and I know one who did. So what’s so special about this book?
I read the book about a month ago. But somehow I’m having a hard time writing an objective review for it. As with other fables I previously read like Richard Bach’s “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” and Trina Paulus’ “Hope for the Flowers“, their writings are really simple and age old wisdom are embedded throughout the story. In the end, it comes down to personal impressions. Personally I found the snippets about life here nothing new. It has been written in other books of old, but somehow, Paulo Coelho managed to write a character named Santiago who we can identify with.
This book talks about “Personal Legends” or what others refer as “Dreams“. Santiago, an Andlusian Sheperd, so good with his craft had this recurring dream of treasures in the Egyptian Pyramids. It kept on bothering him that he went to see a local Gypsy who stated the obvious to him, and to help him get started, a man who claims to be a King offered to buy his sheep to get him started on his journey. Again, he stated the obvious about his dreams. There are notable moments throughout the book that may somehow strike a chord. For me, here are some of what I remembered:
+ When you want something, the universe conspires to help you to have it
+ Sometimes, things are staring right at you in the face and you just need a push to get started
+ The Oil on the spoon exercise is a classic example of of enjoying everything the world but not forgetting your responsibilities
+ A good job doesn’t mean you have accomplished your “Personal Legend”, Santiago worked on a glass store and managed to make it grow, he could have stayed and be rich but he moved on to accomplish his personal legend.
+ Finding your true love is different from accomplishing your “Personal legend”. Santiago found his love of his life in the desert Oasis. He was so tempted to stop, for he had found his love. He would be happy with her. But the girl in the dessert knew that she had to let him go. They may get marry now but she knew in years time that “Personal Legend” will persist, he will regret, and soon their marriage will break apart. So she had to wait for him to come back for her.
+ It is important to listen to what your heart has to say but also be wary as it may lie to you as well. Converse with your heart
+ Learn to listen to the language without words
There are more wisdom in the book, but these are the ones that I seem to remember a month after reading it.
For me, it’s a book worth paying for, a classic that may stay there for generations and generations to come to inspire more people.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
