I just finished reading a book that has many layers of meaning. I am still trying to wrap my brain around them, so this may seem a bit random.
The alchemist is a story about a shepherd boy who decides give up the security of the known in pursuit of his Personal Legend and plunge into a journey of the unknown.
When I first began reading, I was a bit turned off because it seemed "new age"; a reoccurring quote from the book is "When you want something enough, the whole universe conspires to help you achieve it." While to some this may be the overarching message, I looked a bit deeper.
This wonderfully woven tale of a shepherd boy gave light to the truth that persistence pays, you should never give up, never loose sight of your dreams and goals, especially those that are inspired by God.
The author, Paulo Coelho, brings light to the complex topics of creation, life, and heaven with simple conversations such as: "The wise men understood that this natural world is only an image and copy paradise. The existence of this world is simply a guarantee that there exist a world that is perfect. God created the world so that, through its visible objects, men could understand His spiritual teachings and the marvels of his wisdom." Reminding me that in everything around me I see the face and love of my creator.
Coelho, just as poetically, discusses the role that man plays in God's creation and the importance of love in our existence: "It is we that nourish the Soul of the World, and the world we live in will be either better or worse, depending on whether we become better or worse." and it is love that gives us our reason to become better, to continue to improve.
The greatest "ah ha" came at the very end when the boy finally found his treasure, I won't spoil it here for you, instead I suggest you read the book.
Learned? It is the journey,the things we learn along the way, not the destination, that make life worthy of living.
1 comment:
I (Danny) have also read this book. It was one of the more inspiring books that I have read in a long time. Not only does the journey matter but the persistence, endurance, and faith that we should possess even when all seems hopeless is a lesson we all can apply into our lives regardless how large or small our purpose may seem. I have also read some other books by Coehlo and unfortunately they don't come close to "The Alchemist".
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