I remember walking a part of the Camino de Santiago, on a winding path thru a forest. After walking for many days something was troubling me, I can’t even remember what it was now!! I thought of this monk Thich Nhat Hanh, when he said that “to walk on God’s green earth is a miracle”….I was also thinking of the writings of a famous magician as a delighted in the sounds of that place.

It wasn’t long before I again saw how incredibly beautiful the forest was. Continuing with just the thought, “I’m walking on the Camino” I felt such a great peace, I felt blessed and your article has again brought that to me. (or me to that…) :-)

Best wishes on your new journey,

John.

With greatest admiration for your courage,

Dasha

Adabz :) (means Hello in Urdu Language)

I am Fatima… And you are there In Fatima Too..
Your words have mystical power to keep on touching my soul deep down inside.
Giving me more hope and to tell you the truth Hope has always dominated my life :)
I am curious, curious about what lies beyond my reach. I love human soul because everyone has something to offer, something to teach.
In my world, there are no boundaries to fascinations.
Mr. Coelho your words put a smile on my face and made me think from different dimension and always take me to another tangent in life’s journey of self discovery.
so just want to say to you a very simple word with all my heart and soul
“Thank You ”
Your words are the vibration of life.
Time goes on. People forget…people need to be constantly reminded and you do that by your repeated come backs…then its a matter of whether you live to satisfy yourself or you live to satisfy others…keep a balance between the two.
Keep making the difference and be on the journey of self-discovery forever…. Mr. Paulo Coelho in your life journey do you have any plan to visit my part of the world also that’s Pakistan? And When?

ps : waiting for your more comments about the equation 0=1. ( i mentioned about this equation in my last response to `The tempest is approaching` )

Warmest Regards,
Fatima Saeed Khan.

Some of the simplest things we read often have the greatest impact. It almost brought tears to my eyes when I read, “If you think peace and joy always lie ahead, you will never manage to achieve them.”
I have spent many years missing a lot of peace and joy because I thought I would find them when this was finished, or I reached some goal, or if I could make more money. What a shame and I almost feel tears coming again as I type this.
Hopefully, this will help me change my attitude. Thank you.
I also love the suggestion of smiling as you walk. One of the most interesting things is the change on the faces of others, when we smile as we walk. Even the countenance of coworkers changes when I smile as I walk through the office. Unfortunately, they are sometimes surprised by my smile. That also makes me sad, but gives me hope that at least I now realize this and feel some emotion.
Thank you so much, and I especially love that your writings stir emotions within me that I have grown accustomed to not feeling. I am a better person for it.
May God bless the remainder of your trip.
Stan

My guide, my Pole Star, thank you for being there…Shine forever…
With Love;
Hande

Da ich mich derzeit auch auf einer Pilgerreise befinde :-) – 20 Kilometer Reisegeschwindigkeit, allerdings per Rad- und nicht in Frankreich oder Spanien, sondern am nahen Fluss und im Leben, möchte ich dir ein Ereignis schildern, welches mir gestern zugefallen ist. Ich lese gerade deine jüngsten Gedanken und mache mich über die fehlenden Vokabeln im Dictionary her, als der Wind mir ständig die Blätter vom nahe Stuhl weht. Ich sage ihm er solle das sein lassen, er aber weht weiter. Plötzlich ein sehr heftiger Windstoß, drei Blätter deines Buches “Pilgrimage”, das neben mir liegt, werden mir mitten ins Gesicht geblasen. Es sind die Seiten des Boten. Da musste ich wirklich lachen und radelte dankbar an den nahen Fluss.
- Manchmal ist es in mir leer und obwohl ich die Liebe suche und lächle, geht das Gefühl nur sehr schwer weg. Auch der Daumen gibt wenig Auskunft, über den Zustand. Hast oder hattest du das auch?

Ich wünsche dir auf deiner Reise weiterhin gute Gefühle und Gedanken und
May love always be your guide in every moment of your life.

Alles Liebe
Hubert

good travel mr Coelho… and enjoy your life always more and more…

Thinking about the beautiful words of Your latest text and reading replies of people from all over the world, all warriors of light discovering their paths and letting You know how much Your words guide them on their ways and support, i realized that i could not be what i am now if not YOU.

That was the point of my life when the magic of “present” moment and spontaneous decision changed my life, and it was You who like an Angel helped me to return to my genuine path at the time when my wings forgot how to fly. That was the moment when courageously entering unknown returned me to myself, and Your belief in me as an artist made me feel through some particular part of my life Divine love and MY path again; You returned me on it when challenges almost made me think about turning aside. For this, i thank You and this magic will always live in my heart.

I have learned a lot and all these experiences make me brightly see how the world is similar to the garden with branching out roads. Life is like a labyrinth where we are faced with different puzzles while looking for the way and the light at the end of the road. But we should also remember that every puzzle is here to remind us something. Sometimes we look for the key for happiness so long… untill one day we realize that it has been already put in the keyhole and everything is within you. But you must be brave enough to make a turn and open the door. And we are all magicians in each moment, as how incredible is to realize that each moment is a door into endless potential possibilities and they are all WITHIN us.

A way with the heart is probably not a road of continuous self analysis and mystic flight; it’s a way of attracting all the joys and sorrows of the world. And just LIVE them. Because we all came here to express ourselves in the most fantastical and joyfull ways, to do something that can’t be done anywhere else in the universe… to dare to experience as much as possible, so at each moment we just need to follow the intuition that will lead us to our fullest realization and discovering our path. It seems to be so easy, but often we loose this trust to ourselves.
Now nothing will be able to put me away from my path and my personal craziness as life is to be lived with passion, and guided by heart’s sensations and strong heartbeat.
I got a lot of lessons from Your wisdom, Paulo and now i do walk this path with constant smile. As finally, nothing matters but divine love.
If we are alive at this moment, then nothing may be bad. Losts, breaks, fears, quarells, fallings are all just illusions. And when i realized that we are all totally free in everything, there stays only the genuine joy and sparkling smile, because when we are free and alive, everything is possible. All the branching roads are in front of you… The depth of your belief in tragedy or injustice is the sign of your ignorance. As what a caterpillar considers to be the end of the world, the Master calls a Butterfly.
And we are all Butterflies in the free flight here – each with a different ornaments, but all to make the world more beautiful and to fill the flight with joy.

May each of warriors of light, facing no matter what challenges just always stay themselve .
And may God bless You, Paulo for this light that You opened to the universe. Somehow we live at the time when people do need to return to their true paths and leave any conventions. To stay true to your heart – this is the most important thing You taught the world and this changed lifes of millions, including mine when i returned to my path and present moment doing what i feel like doing. Perhaps still being a child, those connections to my genuine essence have been always alive and i managed not to loose them. Except one moment in past when i was ready to turn aside and my way was crossed with Yours magically. And returned me :) Though i have still a lot to be revealed on this path and this is the joy of life itself. When you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.
And may we all be children, and we all will enter the kingdom of God.

Thank You, Paulo for Your constant wisdom and magic of walking the path! And may Your way be full of spontaneity and soaring in joy :) There is only one journey- Going inside yourself and follow the instincts. That’s where true wisdom and joy manifest themselves.
The road is smooth and free, so why do people throw rocks before themselves ? The life we want is not merely the one we have chosen and made. It’s the one we must be choosING and makING.

For this pilgrimage You have left the city of comfort, Magician, and go into the wilderness of Your intuition. What You discover is wonderful. What You discover is Yourself :)
And just think, how many people are in a journey with You and how fantastical is the fact that we all discover ourselves !!!!!

It is magic and happiness !!! :)
It’s where we go, and what we find there, that tells us who we are.
The wind and the waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators.
Know Your limits. Not so that You can honor them, but so that You can smash them into pieces and reach for the infinity of freedom :)

Love and thank YOU,
Dasha

Love to everyone, John

You are arriving in Bulgaria today and I’m happy to find out that your next posting in this blog will be from my country :) I will not see you at the book-signing, because I didn’t participate in the radio contest but I hope to meet you anyway :) It would be really wonderful to run into you during your visit so that I will have the chance to tell you how much I admire you and love your books :) I owe you gratitude and a big hug for all the joy and light you have brought in my life and I really, really want to see you :)))

Dear Mr. Coelho, have a nice and sunny stay in Bulgaria :) I hope you will enjoy your visit here :)

Best Regards,
Dimka :)

Thank you!
Keep walking and inspiring others.
Take care,Sir.
Zaheeruddin Zia
Raipur,C.G.
India.

Thank you for your wonderful books and the inspiring knowledge that come from within you. I have just finished reading The Alchemist (for the 4th time) and I spend all weekend telling every soul I met abt your brilliance. I got to work that Monday only to find mail from your office (not an every day occurence) – I know that was no co-incidence!

I read The Pilgrimage (twice) some time ago, my favourite part being the end… where your guide was waiting for you – I read that page over and over again. It gave me so much pleasure, I felt as tho I’d been on that entire journey and abt to be rewarded for my troubles.
And now you once again give us the pleasure of that journey. In many ways, we’re all making this journey with you, thank you for giving us this opportunity.
with love and appreciation
Ranjeethom Naidoo
South Africa

The opportunity this allows me to share your eyes & your heart with my words is a powerful feeling. I write you amidst a journey of my own in search of buried treasure. A few years ago I was blessed to have been given a book of yours that helped interpret my dream and set my path before me. It was during my travels around the world on a “Semester at Sea” that I was given this book. It was a gift from a girl with whom I fell in love and traveled this world hand-in-hand. It was through this girl that I was invited to share the language of the universe for the first time as well. Our love was magical and meant to find both of us when we crossed paths. That very voyage of discovery was merely a door left partially open for my life to find; it was your wisdom that gave me strength to push its weight wide-open to a world I had never known existed.
I realize that I am only twenty-one years old, and so I know that much of my road has yet to be traversed. I have kept this dream alive inside me though, and each day find myself one step closer to my purpose. There have been times in which I discovered fear & loneliness & doubt, but your story has granted me a flame of hope that to this day burns brightly. Your books, your stories have filled my life with a joy & eagerness to live each moment passionately. I am just that – a passionate person. Your wisdom has shed light in corners of my heart I had not known existed, and for that I continue to be grateful for a mind & soul such as yours to be in this world. You truly are a Warrior of the Light.
My name is Daniel and I am a college student attending Arizona State University, Phoenix, Arizona in the USA. I am over 3,000 miles from my home, my loved ones, my flock, my mother & my father. I miss them dearly, but I assure myself they are well with me each morning the sun rises. I guess you could say that I am crossing a desert of my own out here (the Mojave Desert), but this sand & drought will never suffocate my hope and steal my thirst for adventure. Indeed, my life is quite a story excitedly waiting for the next page to turn. As you once said, there is in fact a treasure out there for me; although I have yet to find it, your love & strength & example continues to help my ship stay afloat in even the greatest of storms. Thank you.
I wish you the best on your return to Santiago. I look forward to joining your words, your soul on this journey so that I too may capture a small taste of each step you take into the “present” moment. God bless you, Warrior of the Light.

Love,
Daniel,
A fellow dreamer.

luisa

I just want to tell you that i love you!!! :)

Over the years, your words kept reaching out to me, touching my soul. And through all the difficulties of this path i travel, you have in some ways become a treasured companion, a mentor and a friend. I can’t begin to explain how your words have saved me and helped me get back on track, to continue with life, fight the good fight, and once again live with hope. Your light and warmth shines and I hope everyday you are reminded of how your life is a blessing to a lot of us who journey on this path with you.

I don’t know what it is about you, exactly. Maybe it’s the wealth of experience that you share or your finding wisdom in the ordinary or maybe it’s your simple but sincere efforts to embrace and live life. I just know your heart resonates with love and your soul with light. And being touched by that, i also feel profound love overflowing within me, and i hope it is not presumptuous of me to think it is lighting up my soul as well. :) I imagine you being like fire, igniting all the lives you touch. And I thank you for that!!

Again, as I think of you, i feel my heart sincerely overflowing with love. I don’t know if I can express it enough. I know I’m just one of your millions of readers but, still, it wouldn’t hurt to say it again, I love you Paolo!!

Love,
Aleli

With love,
Sophia

My life is richer for having read your work. Thank you.

Simon Godsell
Guerreiro da Luz

Also I am amazed that you talk of RAM so much. Except for the meditation school I am with, I’ve never heard anyone (from “the west”) talk about RAM. It makes me wonder whether RAM you talk about is the same as RAM we practise.

As you want to be reminded of the fact that you donot walk this Path alone, so you remind us (your readers). Thank you.

Love,
Carla

This made me consider what I’d say to you if I only had one opportunity.
The selection is easy.

For years most nights I wake hearing the Lord’s Prayer and the Hail Mary and since reading the Pilgrimmage I also now hear three words: ‘Rigor, Adoration and Mercy.’
While I sense understanding of each word I feel there is a depth or link between them and that is what I long to see and know. How can I know RAM?

Now I have asked my one question and add that last night I had the beautiful experience of remembering myself as a very young child whose eyes longed to see the patterns between the stars and to know where the wind and waves began and ended and how old was the sand and did my ancestors walk on the same sand before it came to Australia.
My pull to understand RAM comes from the same fascination to know reality beyond one dimension.

It is a joy to have the wisdom of two Masters on one site.
walk gently Christine

It is a joy to find the wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh & Paulo Coelho together.

those were the words of great wisdom which saints of all parts of the world have always spoken. When shall we ever really going to follow what is written by Thich Nhat Hanh and his likes? Why do we make life so difficult for ourselves, always.

When will that piligrim within me arise?

Regards

I have also found myself engaged in what I call the “Great Conversation”, and it’s not easy to explain what I mean sometimes, even to myself. Perhaps travelling is my way of meditating – I take my questions on the road, and there I often find my answers. I thought of your words when travelling across Nebraska last summer, wondering what to do with my life.

I stopped in a little town called Cozad, and had a coffee in a diner that faced the electronic billboard of the First Bank & Trust Company. Glancing at it to see what the time was, or perhaps the temperature, I was stunned instead to see it broadcasting, in red letters: NOW – THE JOURNEY – IS – THE – REWARD. I was so amazed I pulled out my camera, and photographed this sequence of words, flashing over and over in the hot, dusty street.

“I let my life be guided by a strange language that I call “signs”. I know that the world is talking to me” you wrote.

Thankyou, once more.

Lauren Raine

Sitting in the sun on a hot Shanghai day, my mind wanders to the possibility and joy that would fill the heart that may share the privilege of walking at your side for this journey.

Alas, you have anticipated this desire felt by so many who follow you and true to yourself you have graciously provided a virtual path for us to follow. Thank you for sharing as you have done since the publication of your first work. What a legacy of sharing you shall leave behind…

Your safe travels will be in my prayers. May you think to offer a prayer for those that follow you at an appropriate and special point on your journey. I’m sure our Universal Source has a special place for your prayers just as we have a special place for your inspiration.

Best,

- V