Once upon a time there was a wise man called Sidi Mehrez. He was very annoyed with the place where he lived, a beautiful town on the Mediterranean Sea where men and women lived in depraved fashion, and money was the only value that mattered. As Mehrez was also a saint and worked miracles, he decided to enfold Tunis in his long scarf and toss it into the ocean.
Buildings began to tumble, the ground rose up, the inhabitants started to panic on seeing that they were being hurled towards their death. In despair, they decided to ask for help from a friend of Mehrez, called Sidi Ben Arous. Ben Arous managed to convince the strict saint to interrupt the destruction, but ever since then the streets of Tunis have been rough and uneven.
I stroll through the bazaar of this African city, borne by the winds of this pilgrimage to celebrate the 20th anniversary of my first walk to Santiago in 1986. I am accompanied by Adam Fathi and Samir Benali, two local writers; fifteen kilometers away stand the ruins of Carthage, which in the remote past was capable of challenging powerful Rome. We discuss the epic of Hannibal, one of the city’s warriors: the Romans expected a sea battle (the two cities were separated only by a few hundred sea kilometers), but Hannibal braved the desert, crossed the straits of Gibraltar with an enormous army, marched through Spain and France, climbed the Alps with soldiers and elephants, and attacked the Empire from the North. He defeated all the enemies in his path and then suddenly, without anyone knowing exactly why, he stopped before Rome and did not attack it at the opportune moment. The result of this indecision was that Carthage was scored off the map by the Roman ships.
We pass by a beautiful building: in 1754, one brother murdered another and their father decided to erect this palace to house a school that would keep alive the memory of his murdered son. I comment that by doing so, the murdered son would also be remembered.
“That’s not quite true,” answers Samil. “In our culture, the criminal shares the blame with all those who allowed him to commit the crime. When a man is executed, the one who sold him the arm is also responsible before God. The only way for the father to correct what he considered a fault was by changing the tragedy into something that can help others: instead of vengeance limited to punishment, the school has enabled instruction and wisdom to be transmitted for over two centuries.”
On one of the doors of the old wall hangs a lantern. Fathi comments that I am a well-known writer, whereas he is still struggling for recognition:
“Here we have the origin of one of the most famous of Arab proverbs: “light only illuminates strangers.”
I reply that Jesus made the same comment: no-one is a prophet in his own country. We always tend to lend value to what comes from afar, without ever recognizing all the beauty that is around us.
We go into an old palace that has been transformed into a cultural center. My two friends begin to explain to me the story of the place, but my attention is completely distracted by the sound of a piano and I begin to follow it through the labyrinths of the building. I end up in a room where a man and a woman, apparently oblivious to the world, are playing the “Turkish March” for four hands. I remember that some years ago I saw something similar – a pianist in a shopping center, engrossed in his music, paying no attention at all to the people who passed by talking loud or with their radios turned on.
But here there are only the three of us and the two pianists. I can see the expression on both their faces: joy, sheer and utter joy. They are not there to impress an audience, but rather because they feel that this is the gift that God has given them to talk with their souls. Likewise, the souls of Adam, Samil and Paulo also end up talking to one another, and we all feel closer to the meaning of life.
We listened in silence for an hour. At the end we applauded, and when I returned to the hotel I thought for a while about that lantern.
Yes, it may be that it only shines on the stranger, but what difference does that make when we are possessed by this vast love for what we do?
Thank God the room is packed for my talk in this African country. I am to be introduced by two local intellectuals; we have met before – one of them has a two-minute text, the other has written a quarter-hour thesis on my work.
The coordinator very carefully explains that it will be impossible to read the thesis, since the meeting is to last 50 minutes at most. I imagine how hard the intellectual must have worked on his text, but I think that the coordinator is right: I am there to talk to my readers, who are the main reason for the meeting.
The lecture begins. The introductions last five minutes at most, so now I have 45 minutes for an open dialogue. I say that I am not there to explain anything and that it would be interesting to try to hold a dialogue.
The first question comes from a young woman: what are the signs that I speak so much about in my books? I explain that this is an extremely personal language that we develop all through our life by making mistakes and getting things right, until we understand when God is guiding us. Somebody else asks if it was a sign that brought me to this far-off country. I answer yes, I have been on a 90-day journey to celebrate the 20th anniversary of my first pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela.
The conversation continues, the time passes quickly, and I have to bring the talk to an end. From amid 600 people I choose a middle-aged man with a bushy moustache to ask the final question.
And the man says:
“I don’t want to ask any questions. I just want to say a name.”
And he says the name of a small hermitage located in the middle of nowhere thousands of kilometers from where I find myself, where one day I placed a plaque giving thanks for a miracle. And where I returned before this pilgrimage to ask the Virgin to protect my steps.
I no longer know how to continue the meeting. The following words were written by Adam Fethi, one of the two writers who made up the table:
“And suddenly the Universe in that room seemed to have stopped moving. So many things happened: I saw your tears. And I saw the tears of your sweet wife when that anonymous reader said the name of a chapel lost somewhere in the world.
“You lost your voice. Your smiling face grew serious. Your eyes filled with timid tears that trembled on the edge of your eyelashes as if apologizing for being there without being invited.
“I was there too, feeling a knot in the throat and not knowing why. I looked for my wife and my daughter in the audience, they are the ones I always look for when I feel on the brink of something I don’t understand. They were there, but their eyes were fixed on you, silent like everyone else there, trying to lend you support with their eyes, as if eyes could support a man.
“So I tried to concentrate on Christina, asking for help, trying to understand what was going on, how to end that silence that seemed infinite. And I saw that she too was crying, in silence, as if you were notes of the same symphony, as if your tears were joining the two of you despite the distance.
“And for long seconds there was no longer any room, no audience, nothing at all. You and your wife had parted to a place where no-one could follow you; all that existed was the joy of living all this, which was told only in silence and emotion.
“Words are tears that have been written. Tears are words that need pouring out. Without them no joy can shine, no sadness can come to an end. So, thank you for your tears.”
I should have told the young woman who asked the first question – about signs – that this was one of them, affirming that I found myself in the place where I should be, at the right moment, despite never properly understanding what took me there.
But I think that was not necessary: she must have realized.
tags technorati : Technorati Paulo Coelho Paulo Coehlo Warrior of Light Warrior of the Light Newsletter
oh Dear Paulo, as I am beginning to go through your previous entries I find how rich this blog is. I have a knot on my throat and I can feel with you. My tears are also silence as there is a room full of people around here. I know tears clean the soul and give us joy afterwards, but the knot is still there. I imagine you sitting down in front of the audience, feeling the warm embrace by our Mother Mary, may She walk with you all the days of our life. Reading this piece has been a sign, knowing our Mother is always watching after me. Thanks for sharing with humble love
Monica
I cried with you,but I don`t know why
Dear Mirjam,
Thank you for kind words.
It is nice to feel that one is not alone.
Thank you again for your wise words A.V.C., so beautiful how you describe everything. Like a poet. I agree with you, reading these words are like a mirror. That’s nice, especially during these rainy days.
The mind, the heart and let’s not forget: the body.
love
Aditya
aditya,
those are exactly my thoughts,us mortals did not create things that we appreciate but we created appreciation itself. after all we would not be exchanging these words if it werent for mortals, but then again if there werent mortals then we couldnt talk anyway because we wouldnt exist!!
The awakening awareness of nature, the interconnection. Tuning in, as you said Mirjam. It is so beautiful.
To watch the sun rise, and feel it rising also within one’s own heart. Or to enjoy the soothing stillness of the rain, calming one’s own worried mind in the same way, but after another manner.
All that happens outside, happens also inside, at the same time. So simple yet so magical. We are a reflection of the universe, a fragment or a piece of the gigantic puzzle. We are not detached as we tend to fear from time to time.
And so it becomes possible to recognize the direction of events by observings our surroundings, because it is governed by the same laws as our consciousness. And the knowledge of these laws, stored in our sub-conscious, is vast and available to all of us who seek it.
It has nothing to do with superstition. It is the combination of rational thinking with emotional feeling.
It is the science and art of life.
Tom: a beautiful poem, thank you.
For a very long time the Moon has been my guide, for 365 days I followed the path of the Moon every year. The Sun was with me too, but now I really sense it’s powers, they are magnificant. It’s a pleasure to read about the Sun here.
Aditya: your words on our ego are so true to me. Our ego melts in the sunlight.
Love,
Mirjam
HI Tom !
is it necessary to see the magnificance of something in contrast to something else. While appreciating beauty of the sun do we must remember that mere mortals could not create it. Mere moratls have created many things so beautiful. mere moratls created apperciation.
Can we not marvel at both a magnificiant sun and a magnificiant van gough or leonardo or …., both.
Afterall what are we mortals, are we not a product of the earth’s yearning to enjoy consciousness. moratls are made of the same immortal stuff of which everything else is made of. Our ego, our sence of I is the real mortal; after this brief journey called life, consciousness merges back with its source and matter with matter. In this interplay of consiousness and matter, our ego inflates itself needlessy & suffers.
aditya
A.V.C and mirjam,
the sun is a beautiful thing. i watch it rise every morning and set every evening. 365 days a year , it amaze’s me how it can give life to an entire world. as the gods created it, we may gaze at its beauty and know that no mortal could create something so marvelous.
Thank you Tom for your thoughts. As 6 could also be a status quo, the figure 1 could liberate (= 7).
Thank you A.V.C. again for your beautiful words of sunlight. I had such an experience with the sun last week, such a blessing.
When you look up into the skies above just breathe and be still. Look at the miracles taking place, unfolding before your eyes. Let the light go into your hearts.
And think for a moment of those who cannot see the sun or the heavenly skies. Just send your sunlight into their hearts.
Love,
Mirjam
A.V.C,
what beautiful words about the sun. here is a poem about the sun. it was written by one of the greatest egyptian pharoah’s, Akhenaten.
You arise beauteous in the horizon of the heavens
Oh living Aten who creates life.
When you shine forth in the Eastern horizon you fill every land with your beauty.
You are so beautiful: you are great; gleaming and high over every land.
Your rays embrace the lands and all you have created;
You are Re and reach out to all your creations, and hold them for your beloved Son.
You are afar, but your rays touch the earth;
Men see you, but know not your ways.
When you set in the Western horizon of the sky
The earth is in darkness like the dead.
People sleep in their rooms with covered heads;
They do not see each other.
If all their possessions were stolen
They would know it not.
Every lion leaves its lair;
All snakes bite;
Darkness covers all.
The world is silent
For the creator rests in his horizon.
And you, my dear A.V.C, have used six paragraphs to write your text (smile).
Slan go foil …
Paulo,
Thank you for another great warrior of the light post! always on time!
love, light, hugs, and smiles
marie
Perhaps everyone are now tired of the various interpretations of 6, but to anyone who cares – here is another:
6 the sun. Dying every evening, but arising to new life every morning. The life-giving energy, when tempered with rain, but a merciless killer in the desert.
Hence, 6 also the cycle of life and the son, where the mystery of sacrifice is suddenly resolved and we realize that death is just a phase that we all must go through.
And when the soul is momentarily brought into equilibrium, an instance of perfect balance and stillness. A flash of light, so bright it almost makes us blind; a reflection of the most high.
The experience of the endless generosity of our own Guardian Angel.
True beauty in any meaning of the word.
hello everyone,
i have found out that 6 means to teach and 9 means to heal. i dont know if this has anything to do with the circumstances that i am in at the moment or wether it means something to me personally.
i also had a dream last night, now before this in my horoscope for leo it said that i should look out for some omens. i woke up after the dream and wrote down all of the signs i got from people and objects in that dream. i found a book talking about signs and all of them in the dream mean the same thing. this has boosted my faith in my beliefs so look out for signs in dreams.
aditya,
for my religious beliefs to work, there has to be more than one person in the universe otherwise a very important cycle shall be broken. but that is again relating to religion. i do believe in many ideologys and philosophies and i have heard of a philosophy with gods. but you see if there was only one person in the universe, then there would only be one religion.
Mirjam,
thankyou for the theory there. as i said before, 6 means to teach but 1 is to lead and 5 is to be adventurous or to venture.
I am a very superstitious person and i always keep a numerology guide by my side.
Hi Tom: 69: 6 plus 9 makes 15, 1 plus 5 makes 6… :-)
Apart from personal meanings of signs, there is also such a thing as ‘collective consciousness’, we are all connected by earth, air, fire, water. I believe that this transcends religion, ideology, philosophy or spiritual movement.
If humans would tune in they would see that it does not matter which God, Goddess or whatever divine power one believes in: it’s all One and the same and we’re All connected.
HI Tom ! friends
may I speak like an old freind -
religion is entirely diffrent from ideology and philosophy, just to highlight the diffrence – if there is only one person in the universe – u then there won’t be any need for idealogy, even philosophy would be not really of any use, only thing that would still remain is u and your religiosity; if thankfullness has arisen in me I am relegious, and that relegiousness will remain with me.
what do u say !
aditya
aditya,
signs are very ersonal indeed. and yes so ar the signs of differant religions. some religions have multiple gods, others have just one. it also depends wether you class them as a religion or an ideology or philosophy. thanks,
tom
Hi Friends !
The people here have become generally more silent, maybe !
Paulo ! I still am eger to know what r u’r views on relegion, something about u’r expereinces we know, something more direct, how u became relegious (if u did, ) or spiritual person, why ? anything that comes to your mind as u ponder over what is relegion.
reading the contributions from others here, it seems Signs are supposed to be personal language, meaning for me (one) may differ from menaing for u ( other ). does it boils down to belief ! being alert over a period of time, we start associating some events with others, and as our belief grows stronger ( or weaker ), it somehow becomes that much stronger in manifesting the belief !! hmmmmm …
I was just reading your new book “the witch….”
if you get some time, please grab a copy of this movie http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137100/ from somewhere….
i am not going to tell you anything else, but trust me it’ll be worth a journey to find it…..
Anyways….thanks for the love you are spreading….you are my Zaheer in a sense…. :)
God Bless you.
Hi Paulo, and all.
What was the miracle for which you had given thanks and a memorial plaque, that was so special to make you cry infront of an audience?
Not that the tears should not have happened to the public, more beauty from yourself….just wondering.
Lovingly LJ
hello,
mirjam, i sort of agree with you. i believe that everyone has there own devil. what you fear most is within that devil. whatever 69 is, it seems lucky. i say it when im in trouble or when i feel discouraged or sad, and all of my troubles feel just that little bit more bearable. maybe it is me making the number lucky by thinking it is. maybe….
Dear Everyone,
Numbers are very personal, I agree with AVC.
And furthermore, 6 to me is a holy number (actually, every number is). Wisdom and balance (3 3), God and Goddess, above and below, heaven and earth, dark and light. Look at the six-pointed star, 2 triangles. Or, for some: heaven and hell.
I personally believe that the ‘devil’ means darkness in ourselves. If you meet with your ‘devil’, you can gain knowledge. Or you can remain afraid and the ‘devil’ will have power over you. It’s a choice one has to make: the crossroads.
Love,
Mirjam
hello everyone,
well, wow, thankyou for all of the feedback. also i am going to talk about omens and signs in your dreams.
if you dream of an altar then it signals that your spiritual strength will help you to climb to a higher place.
a baby signals a new world and a new life, also new enterprises
dreaming of a burning candal signals that soon a beacon shall help you from the darkness.
dreaming of death means that soon an imminent transition shall take place.
dreaming that you are a dwarf may indicate that your troubles shall soon disappear as if by magic….
dreaming of an eagle may indicate that soon the dreamer shall be able to soar to a new level of spirituality.
marta martia. well generally 6 is the devils number and has always been considered unlucky at least were i come from. certain examples, such as the year 1666 in england, there was the great fire of london and the plague sprung back up aswell. another example is that any bar code you see when you purchase say, a bottle of milk or one of paulo’s books, the bar code has three large bars. one on the very left, one on the very right and one in the middle, they stand for 666 as you can not purcgase anything with money without the devils concent. this proves that we are still a suspicious people.
kealan. i have heard of that number to be sexual, but i think that it is very unlikely in my situation. i shall not go any further with that but i thank you for your advice.
ka. i do not mind wether i have to make hard decisions or not because i know that my destiny shall guide me to were i need to get and when i have surved the purpose that i was given to do i can rest in peace.
Marta Maria,
Find it out for yourself. No one can tell you what the number 6 means to you.
Use your heart AND your reason, and you’ll do just fine.
Fear not. Where fear is, God is not.
hi. signs ,we meet signs,the point is how to interprete them on our your personal path,Numbers are more objective, they symbolize vibrations ,the state of our consiousness even karmic lessons.To tom I would say, if you meet the number69,that could mean that you will be confronted with choises.THe road to enlightment is a hard one, on that road you will have to make difficult choises.That is the objective meaning,but maybe there is a subjective meaning that only you know.To marta maria I would say ,if you see the number 66 ,that could mean 6 6 makes 12 This number indicates that you could be confronted with situations in which you you cant change anything.You will have to see the situation from a different point of view That means if you cant change the situatian, you will have to change yourself.But maybe there is some personal meaning in the number66 To paulo, indeed a great sign ,the moment we fail to use words, we fail to be in control,these are moments when we really approach(the holy grail)the bottom of our harts.greetings
Hi Tom!
Hi Paulo! :)
Hi everyone! :)
Atma Namaste to all! :)
Tom: could you say to me where did you hear this information or why are you saying that the number 66 is the number of the devil? For what I know (and for sure I can be wrong and I’m open and searching for the truth, the real meaning of that number, in my life) the number 6 is the number of the family, so it’s a good number, anyway. And the 12 is also a good number. The 12 signs of the Zodiac, the 12 disciples of Christ, and so on, but I don’t know so much about numbers. So I would like to ask for help and ask for more informations too. Everyone that is reading this message and know more about number or have some suggestions about websites, etc, that I can read, please say that to me. I’m really opening my heart to the voice of God and the sings and I don’t think that it was a “bad” sign, or a sign of something bad… But anyway, I’m paying attention in what’s going on with all the insights and all the signs that I’m seen lately. Thanks for your feedback, Tom! :) And thanks for the possibility of this dialogue, Paulo! :) It’s always good to exchange knowlegde and our personal experience about different subjects!
A blessed and happy weekend to all my friends here!
Marta :)
The Sign
Once upon a time there was a wise man called Sidi Mehrez. He was very annoyed with the place where he lived, a beautiful town.
Paulo, where you come from is a torn place. Gangs and crocked police, drugs and death. 80% of the country’s wealth is held by 20% of the population. Can you expand on this in your next article in the warrior of light; South America is hidden to many people.
69, truly is sexual in nature as is the number 3 (Freud) There is no need to look any further!
Marta Maria, from Brazil and aditya ,
thankyou for your insights to this sign. i have spent many hours thinking of how this sugn may be connected to me and what i am supposed to do with it. i am sure it shall come clear to me in the end. by the way your sign of 66 marta, may be warning you of a danger ahead. 6 is the number of the devil. maybe it is something like 6 6 = 12 but just watch out for numbers. if paulo has taught me one thing, it is not to ignore omens and signs.
Good day,
I’ve just received a text about Tunis called “The sign”. I’m the daughter of man who pronounced the word Pietat, Christian. He also told me about this meeting and this moment was more than magical, I would even say that it was a blessing, a rejoice of the soul. I believe in signs and all my life and the life of those close to me have been marked and punctuated by them.
So much so that, two nights ago, I had a wonderful dream where I found myself in a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary. In this place there is a very strong mystic place where Jesus walked.
It’s a place that resembles a grotto and hasn’t any ornaments. It’s the second time I find myself in such a place and I know that I’m profoundly bound to these two historical figures. I knew this dream was announcing beautiful things and today, while reading this text I thanked “Him”, my heart and my soul are avid for seeing “Him” in these signs.
Thank you
Thank you Paulo for your wonderful, inspired words. I do have one question. When you said,
“I comment that by doing so, the murdered son would also be remembered.”
Did you mean that the murderer would be remembered? If so, it changes the meaning of the passage for me. But regardless, I respect you and your work very much. As a fellow writer, I hope to someday produce a work that is 1/500 as insightful and moving as your work is. I thank God for you.
Thanks,
Ben
…And lately I have seen the number 66 everywhere, and in all different situations that you can imagine my friends.
Maybe it’s more like 6 6=12, all related with the number 12 and 1 2=3, the Holy Trinity and the special number 3. Besides this particular sign, I have been seen many others, lots of them, but like Paulo said, it’s a personal path, the signs are related with my personal life. But I’m truly impressed how they are all related or interconnected in some way. Maybe soon I’ll discover why and where they’re related with other people too. I already had some great insights too. The most important thing is that now I’m sure that God is talking to me and giving me Guidance. Thank you Paulo, again, because I heard about the Signs Language, the World Voice, the way that the Divine can talk to me, with you. Lots of Gratitude for that! :)
Love & Light to all my friend here!
Marta :)
Hi Paulo, freinds !!
beautiful words, as always. Hope u don’t get tired of the compliments u receive. paulo ! would u callu’r self relegious ! if yes were u always ‘relegious’ ? have there been any changes in the intensity of u’r being religious. U’r answers will help, eitherway. U’r silence may also help, but i am not ‘enlightened’ enough to understand silence, will appreciate u’r words, with u’r phenomenol skill in simplifying things, even a small para would suffice.
Tom ! buddy u asked u’r qestion to paulo so he may answer, this is not to answer u’r querry, but am curious to know u’r conjectures, what u think, it may mean, what all, what r the posibilities, anything comes to mind ?.
regards
aditya
wow… a touching moment. you have enlightened me paulo and thank you for this amazing story. i would like to ask you some questions. and i would also like to answer some. Hanibal stopped just before rome because he had requested more men from the council at carthage. they were jealous and so they would not give him anymore men to help him take rome. so there own ego’s ultimately destroyed them. also, i have been getting signs. i was wondering wether you may enlighten me paulo. everywhere i look i see the number 69. i dream about it, i keep seeing it when i go out for a walk, maybe you could tell me what this means. i would be truly greatful if you were to enlighten me as all my efforts to figure out what this omen may be has left me baffled.
“Words are tears that have been written. Tears are words that need pouring out. Without them no joy can shine, no sadness can come to an end. So, thank you for your tears.”
Thank you Paulo, for such a wonderful message…
Happiness in my soul, some tears and emotions through silence back to you… It’s a honour to me to be your friend… You are a friend of my soul…
Atma Namaste, Beautiful Soul!
Be blessed you, Paulo! Always!
Be blessed you, Christina! Forever!
With Love & Light,
Marta :)
love!
the signs sing simultaneously suffering such sorrow such sun ….
love :)
faith and hope :)
vishesh
the light shines the brightest
“Words are tears that have been written. Tears are words that need pouring out. Without them no joy can shine, no sadness can come to an end. So, thank you for your tears.”
Dear Paulo, thank you for those beautiful words.
Love, light and life to you all, warriors.
Mirjam