Paulo Coelho

Many attribute the success of your work, or at least in part, to the times we live in. Since the announcement of the death of all ideologies, it seems that men desire to return to times where he has reflected more about his own human condition. Your work, in all its simplicity, seems to have met these desires. What can you say about my comments?
 
The death of ideologies has not been announced. What has been announced is the death of a whole system of archaic thoughts. Men will always need an ideal because this is part of the human nature.
 
All men in my view are like volcanoes. The mass accumulates but nothing is transformed in the surface. A man asks himself: will my life always be like this? In a given moment the process of eruption begins. If he is an intelligent man, he will allow the lava in the interior to leave and change the scenery in his surroundings, if he is not, then he will try to control the explosion. From then on, he will use all his energy in trying to keep the volcano under control. I have been pragmatic enough during my life to understand that in certain moments of my life, it is necessary to withstand the pain caused by the explosion in order to be able to enjoy the new scenery around me.
 
There are many opinions as for why humanity is always searching for its own ethics. A friend of mine sent me a story once by the Internet about a man that used to tell his grand daughter about the two animals that used to inhabit his soul: a dog that protected it, and a wolf that used to devour anything it could find around. The grand daughter asks him then which one of the two was the strongest, to what the man answers: the strongest is always the one I feed the most, depending on the circumstances.
 
The central ideology of the human race, from the beginnings of the times is this: respect your neighbor, please.

Savoir attendre

Le guerrier de la lumière a besoin de temps pour lui. Il met ce temps í  profit pour le repos, la contemplation, le contact avec l’í‚me du Monde. Míªme en plein combat, il parvient í  méditer.

Quelquefois, le guerrier s’assoit, se détend et laisse se poursuivre tout ce qui se passe autour de lui. Il regarde ce qui l’entoure comme s’il était un spectateur, il ne tente ni de progresser ni de régresser – il se laisse simplement aller sans résistance au mouvement de la vie.

Peu í  peu, tout ce qui semblait compliqué commence í  devenir simple. Et le guerrier se réjouit.

Découvrir l’objectif

Quand nous désirons quelque chose, tout l’Univers conspire en notre faveur. Le guerrier de la lumière le sait.

Alors, il fait très attention í  ses pensées. Cachés derrière toutes sortes de bonnes intentions, se trouvent des sentiments que personne n’ose s’avouer : la vengeance, l’autodestruction, la culpabilité, la peur de la victoire, la joie macabre devant la tragédie qui affecte les autres.

L’Univers ne juge pas : il conspire í  la réalisation de nos désirs. C’est pourquoi le guerrier a le courage de regarder vers les zones d’ombre de son í¢me et tí¢che de les illuminer de la lumière du pardon.

Comprendre la routine

Le chemin du guerrier traverse parfois des périodes de routine. Il applique alors un enseignement de Nahman de Bratzlav :

« Si tu ne parviens pas í  te concentrer, ou si ta journée est ennuyeuse, contente-toi de répéter un simple mot, parce que cela fait du bien í  l’í¢me. Ne dis rien de plus, répète seulement ce mot sans arríªt, d’innombrables fois. Il finira par perdre son sens, puis acquerra une signification nouvelle. Dieu ouvrira les portes, et finalement tu n’utiliseras plus que ce simple mot pour dire tout ce que tu voudras. »

Quand il est forcé d’accomplir la míªme tí¢che plusieurs fois, le guerrier recourt í  cette tactique et transforme son ouvrage en prière.

Célébrer l’année qui se termine

Le guerrier a vécu tous les jours de l’année qui est passée et, míªme s’il a perdu de grandes batailles, il a survécu et il est lí . C’est une victoire. Cette victoire a eu pour prix des moments difficiles, des nuits de doute, d’interminables jours d’attente. Depuis les temps anciens, célébrer un triomphe fait partie du rituel de la vie.

La commémoration est un rite de passage.

Les compagnons du guerrier de la lumière le voient manifester sa joie, et ils pensent : « Pourquoi fait-il cela ? Il risque d’íªtre déí§u dans son prochain combat. Il risque de s’attirer la fureur de l’ennemi. »

Mais le guerrier connaí®t la raison de son geste. Il profite du plus beau cadeau que la victoire puisse apporter : la confiance.

Le guerrier célèbre l’année qui est passée, pour avoir plus de forces dans les batailles de demain.

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Saber esperar

El guerrero de la luz necesita tiempo para sí­ mismo. Y dedica este tiempo al descanso, a la contemplación, y al contacto con el Alma del Mundo. Incluso en mitad de un combate, él consigue meditar.

En ciertas ocasiones, el guerrero se sienta, se relaja, y deja que todo lo que ocurre a su alrededor simplemente continúe ocurriendo. Lo mira todo lo que le rodea como un espectador, sin pretender crecer o disminuir, tan sólo entregándose sin resistencia al movimiento de la vida.

Poco a poco, todo lo que parecí­a complicado empieza a simplificarse. Y el guerrero se alegra.

Descubriendo el objetivo

Cuando alguien quiere algo, el Universo entero conspira a su favor. El guerrero de la luz lo sabe bien.

Por esta razón, es muy cuidadoso con sus pensamientos. Escondidos bajo algunas capas de buenas intenciones, se encuentran los deseos que nadie se atreve a reconocer: la venganza, la autodestrucción, la culpa, el miedo a la victoria, la alegrí­a macabra con las tragedias ajenas…

El Universo no juzga: conspira a favor de lo que deseamos. Por eso, el guerrero tiene el valor necesario para encarar las sombras de su alma, y procura iluminarlas con la luz del perdón.

El guerrero de la luz es señor de sus pensamientos.

Comprendiendo la rutina

A veces el camino del guerrero pasa por periodos de rutina. Entonces él aplica una de las enseñanzas de Nachman de Bratislava:

“Si no consigues concentrarte, o cierto dí­a estás irritado, basta con que repitas una misma y sencilla palabra, pues esto le hace bien al alma. No digas nada más, limí­tate a repetir esta palabra sin parar, incontables veces. Dicha palabra acabará perdiendo su sentido, para a continuación ganar un nuevo significado. Dios abrirá las puertas, y tú acabarás empleando esta simple palabra para decir todo lo que querí­as”.

Cuando se ve forzado a repetir la misma tarea varias veces, el guerrero utiliza esta táctica, transformando su trabajo en oración.

Celebrando el año que termina

El guerrero vivió todos los dí­as del año que acaba de pasar, y aun habiendo perdido grandes batallas, sobrevivió, aún está aquí­. Eso ya es una victoria. Una victoria que costó momentos difí­ciles, noches de dudas, interminables dí­as de espera. Desde los tiempos más remotos, celebrar un triunfo forma parte del propio ritual de la vida.

La celebración es un rito de pasaje.

Los compañeros presencian la alegrí­a del guerrero de la luz, y piensan: “¿Por qué lo hace? Puede decepcionarse en su próximo combate. Puede atraer la furia del enemigo”.

Pero el guerrero conoce el motivo de su gesto. Él se beneficia del mejor regalo que la victoria puede darle: la confianza.

El guerrero celebra el año que termina, para tener más fuerzas en las batallas futuras.

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Knowing how to wait

The Warrior of Light needs time to himself. And he uses this time to rest and contemplate and contact the Soul of the World. He manages to meditate even in the middle of a combat.

On some occasions the warrior sits down, relaxes and lets everything that is happening around him go on happening. He looks around him as if he were a spectator, does not try to grow or diminish, just commits himself unresistingly to the movement of life.

Little by little everything that seemed so complicated becomes simple. And the warrior becomes happy.

Discovering the objective

When we want something, the whole Universe conspires in our favor. The Warrior of Light knows this.

That is why he takes great care with his thoughts. Hiding under a bunch of good intentions are desires that no-one dares confess to themselves: vengeance, self-destruction, guilt, fear of victory, macabre happiness at the tragedy of others.

The Universe does not judge: it conspires in favor of what we want. That is why the warrior is brave enough to look at the shadows of his soul and tries to illuminate them with the light of pardon.

The Warrior of Light is the master of his thoughts.

Understanding routine

There are moments when the warrior’s path goes through periods of routine. Then he applies a lesson given by Nachman of Bratzlav:

“If you can’t manage to concentrate, or if you are bothered about your day, you should repeat just one simple word, because that does the soul good. Don’t say anything else, just repeat that word no end of times without stopping. It will eventually lose its meaning, and then take on new significance. God will open the doors and you will end up using that simple word to express all that you wanted.”

When the warrior is forced to perform the same task over and over again, he uses this tactic and turns his work into prayer.

Celebrating the year that is ending

The warrior has lived each and every day of the year that has gone by, and even though he has lost some great battles, he has survived and here he is. This is a victory. This victory has cost many difficult moments, nights of doubts, endless days of waiting. Since ancient times, celebrating a triumph has been part of the ritual of life itself.

Commemorating is a rite of passage.

His companions look at the happiness of the Warrior of Light and think to themselves: “why does he do this? He could be beaten in his next combat. He may provoke the enemy’s fury.”

But the warrior knows the reason for his gesture. He gains strength from the best present that victory can offer: confidence.

The warrior celebrates the year that has come to an end so he can be stronger for tomorrow’s battles.

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By Paulo Coelho

The Warrior of Light pays attention to small things because they can severely hamper him.
(Manual of the Warrior of Light)

Welcome to Share with Friends – Free Texts for a Free Internet

By Paulo Coelho

A group of wise men met together in a castle in Akbar to discuss God’s works; they wanted to know why he had left creating man until the sixth day.

‘He wanted to get the Universe sorted out first so that we could have all its marvels at our disposal,’ said one.

‘He wanted to experiment with animals first so that he wouldn’t make the same mistakes when he created us,’ argued another.

A wise Jew turned up at the meeting. He was told the subject of discussion: ‘In your opinion why did God create man only on the final day?’

‘Very simple,’ said the wise man. ‘So that whenever we were afflicted by pride, we could reflect that, in the Divine scheme, even a mere mosquito had priority over us.’

Welcome to Share with Friends – Free Texts for a Free Internet

Is it a condition, in a novel, that the war of the good should always win over the bad, even that in reality we face other experiences?
 
I may sound romantic, but when you use violence to fight violence, you generate more violence. We are free because we are committed without being forced to do so. Evil is more related to our attitudes to other people, and from other people towards us. Evil lives into the details. Everything is a matter of attitude.
 
I do believe that a person has a personal legend to fulfill, and his/her attitude will either help or destroy his/her neighborhood. What is a personal legend? It is the reason why we are alive. We have dreams, that are not necessarily the dreams that our parents, or society has for us. So, we must get rid of the idea of fulfilling what people expect us to do, and start to do what we expect from our lives. This is in The devil and Miss Prym: “dare to be different”. You are unique, and you have to accept you as you are, instead of trying to repeat other people’s destinies or patterns.
 
Insanity is to behave like someone that you are not. Normality is the capacity to express your feelings. From the moment that you don’t fear to share your heart, you are a free person.

Racconta una leggenda medievale che, nel paese che oggi conosciamo come Austria, la famiglia Burkhard – composta da un uomo, una donna e un bambino – era solita animare le fiere di Natale recitando poesie, cantando ballate di antichi trovatori e facendo giochi di prestigio per divertire le persone. Ovviamente, non avanzava mai il denaro per acquistare dei regali, ma l’uomo soleva ripetere a suo figlio:

– Lo sai perché il sacco di Babbo Natale non si svuota mai, anche se ci sono tanti bambini su questo mondo? Perché, malgrado sia pieno di giocattoli, a volte ci sono cose pií¹ importanti da consegnare, i cosiddetti “regali invisibili”. In una famiglia divisa, egli cerca di portare l’armonia e la pace nella notte pií¹ santa della cristianití . Dove manca l’amore, deposita un seme di fede nel cuore dei bambini. Dove il futuro sembra nero e incerto, porta speranza. Nel nostro caso, quando Babbo Natale viene a farci visita, l’indomani siamo tutti contenti di essere ancora vivi e in grado di fare il nostro lavoro, che è quello di rallegrare le persone. Questo, non dimenticarlo mai.

Il tempo passí², il bambino si trasformí² in un ragazzo e, un giorno, la famiglia si troví² a passare davanti all’imponente abbazia di Melk, che era stata appena costruita.

– Padre mio, vi ricordate che tanti anni fa mi avete raccontato la storia di Babbo Natale e dei suoi regali invisibili? Io penso di avere ricevuto una volta uno di questi regali: la vocazione a diventare prete. Vi dispiacerebbe se adesso facessi il primo passo verso cií² che ho sempre sognato?

Sebbene avesse molto bisogno della presenza del figlio, la famiglia comprese e rispettí² il suo desiderio. Cosí¬ bussarono alla porta del convento, dove furono accolti con generosití  e amore dai monaci, che accettarono il giovane Buckhard come novizio.

Arriví² la vigilia di Natale. E proprio quel giorno accadde a Melk un miracolo speciale: la Madonna, portando fra le sue braccia il Bambino Gesí¹, decise di scendere sulla terra per visitare il monastero.

Orgogliosi, tutti i religiosi formarono una lunga fila, e ciascuno si fermava davanti alla Vergine, cercando di rendere omaggio alla Madre e al Figlio. Uno di loro mostrí² i bellissimi dipinti che decoravano il locale, un altro mostrí² un esemplare di una Bibbia che aveva richiesto cento anni per essere manoscritta e illustrata, un terzo recití² i nomi di tutti i santi.

All’ultimo posto della fila il giovane Buckhard attendeva ansioso. I suoi genitori erano persone semplici, e tutto cií² che gli avevano insegnato era lanciare in aria alcune palle e fare dei giochi di prestigio.

Quando arriví² il suo turno, gli altri religiosi avrebbero voluto concludere gli omaggi, perché l’antico prestigiatore non aveva nulla di importante da dire e avrebbe potuto pregiudicare l’immagine del convento. Eppure, in fondo al suo cuore, anch’egli sentiva un’immensa necessití  di offrire qualcosa di sé a Gesí¹ e alla Vergine.

Pieno di vergogna, sentendo su di sé lo sguardo di riprovazione dei fratelli, egli trasse dalla tasca alcune arance e comincií² a lanciarle verso l’alto e a riprenderle con le mani, creando dei bei circoli nell’aria, proprio come soleva fare quando lui e la sua famiglia giravano per le fiere della regione.

Fu solo in quell’istante che il Bambino Gesí¹ comincií² a battere le mani per la gioia in braccio alla Madonna. E fu verso di lui che la Vergine tese le braccia, lasciando che tenesse un po’ il bambino, che continuava a sorridere.

La leggenda si conclude dicendo che, per via di questo miracolo, ogni duecento anni un nuovo Buckhard bussa alla porta di Melk e viene accolto: e fintanto che egli si trova lí¬, i “regali invisibili” sono in grado di trasformare il cuore di tutti coloro che lo conoscono.

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By Paulo Coelho

The Warrior of Light also knows the importance of intuition.
(from Manual of the Warrior of Light)

Welcome to Share with Friends – Free Texts for a Free Internet

Could you tell me a little bit about your latest novel The Witch of Portobello?
 
In my latest book, The Witch of Portobello I wanted to explore the prejudices that we have when we go for a spiritual quest.
 
I was reading Karen Armstrong’s book on the Prophet ( Muhammad, Harper Collins), and there is a part that she mentions: ” each recitation began with the invocation: In the name of Allah, the Compassionate (Al-Rahman), and the Merciful (Al-Rahim)…the divine names Al-Rahman and Al-Rahim are not only grammatically feminine, but related etymologically to the word for womb.”
 
I am not an expert in Arabic etimology, but I believe that Mrs. Armstrong is. My new book explores this Compassion and this Mercy, as I see from my perspective. I felt the need to question why society had tried to lock away the feminine side. The character of Athena, with her freedom and courage, was my way to tackle this subject and to unveil the shackles of dogma.

I’ve received a video from a reader and decided to share her experience with you.
Please visit YouTube to watch the video : Permission to Experience Success
Thank you Sara!
Love
Paulo