“It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.”

I read this book while I was still in Uni and thought I’d pick it up again and man, it’s such a lovely book. Short but good!

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.

Paulo Coelho’s masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. Santiago’s journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life’s path, and, most importantly, following our dreams.

People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.

And while I love the message, some of the book (upon a second re-read) sounds like trite inspirational literature dressed up as an adventure quest.

Everything that happens once can never happen again. But everything that happens twice will surely happen a third time.

It’s good if you’re like Santiago and ready to leave your home and go on a quest but it kinda sucks if you have other responsibilites which keep you here. Everyone has a Personal Legend, which is life’s plan for you. However, most of us give up on our Personal Legend in childhood. If you are fortunate enough to hang onto and pursue your Personal Legend, then The Soul of the World will help you obtain it. All of nature conspires to bring you luck and good fortune so that you can fulfill your destiny, whether it’s to be a shepherd on a quest for treasure at the pyramids, a butcher, a baker, a candlestick maker, or, one would assume, a prostitute, drug dealer, or a radio star.

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.

Here’s some more cheesy quotes:

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.

When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.

And, when you can’t go back, you have to worry only about the best way of moving forward.

This reminded me now of the other “Go get it!” inspirational book I’ve read: The Secret by Rhonda Byrne or the shittiest book of the year

making a decision was only the beginning of things. When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision

I think I’ll go read a book of Hasidic tales collected by Martin Buber (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52024.Tales_of_the_Hasidim_Vols_1_2), a book of Sufi stories collected by Idries Shah (https://idriesshahfoundation.org/books/the-sufis/), or a book of parables and sayings by Anthony de Mello instead.

https://insighttimer.com/tonydemello/guided-meditations/the-parable-of-the-bells