Workshop : The Zahir

Hi Paulo, just to say thank you for the energy that you print in your work , we should understand each other, I´ve been in a relationship for 8 years, my Zahir is not the same that she was before , and so I am. After read the book I found myself in a meditation moment and I belived that every person in life has a chance to change or to find a new way to face this begining, our personal stories are specials and as you say we have to forget our past to reborn in present and live in happines,

Thanks for the inspiration to live

A friend

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Hola Paulo!
Quiero compartirte que desde la primera vez que leì el Zahir tocò y trastocò mi vida y corazòn, en ese momento estaba pasando por cosas muy duras para mì y el leer el Zahir me dio ese pequeño empujoncito que todos necesitamos para seguir en este sendero llamado vida. Como toda guerrera me llenè de valor y he ihece un alto para ver mi vida y ver que lo que estaba haciendo no era lo que en verdad querìa, a tres años de distancia mi vida como la de Esther a los 30 cambiò, hoy se sigue transformando y quiero agradecerte por este libro que es como si lo hubieras escrito para mì para que lo leyera para que persiga mis sueños para que no me detenga, para mucas cosas. Hoy el Zahir sigue siendo mi consentido y debo confesra que lo he leìdo màs de 8 veces y aun cada vez que lo leo voy captando màs y màs y como decimos en Monterrey, Mèxico mi tierra me van cayendo los veintes. Definitivamente sigues siendo un Hermes en tiempos modernos en donde los sueños se van perdiendo en el consumismo y materialismo y otras tantas necedades, el Zahir inspira a volver a soñar a realizar esos proyectos pospuestos, a redireccionar tu vida y encontrar lo que nunca se ha perdido mi persona, mi esencia. Dios te bendice, un abrazo muy grande. Con cariño se despide de ti: Patty Castillo :)
Confìo muy pronto tener la oportunidad de conocerte en persona. Asì es, asì es, decretado està.

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Hola pablo, tengo 17 años y quiero decirte que El Zahir es el libro mas impresionante que revela casi todas las respuestas a las interrogantes que nos depara la vida y nunca la habia visto desde ese punto de vista.
Eres increible sigue adelante!

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estimado pablo es singular afecto que despiertas con tus letras y la como nos las das, simplemente te digo que como los grandes sin ti la literatura estaria huerfana,como lo estaria sin quenes han hecho de la lectura una motivacion para disfrutar esta poarte de la vida.

en hora buena, y muchos años mas

Potoco.

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i read thix book when i lost his love… he became my ZAHIR…that was most painful period of my life. I still rememeber each agony, each day when i cried and why i cried…

i got my zahir back… he took one step towards me… i took two … thank u paulo… i really want to meet you, with him one day

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Dear Paulo! Reading your books is a great pleasure for me, and “Zahir” is my favourite one.I have the only question to you: why you dont`t write the book about “love without answer”? I think, this theme troubles so many people.

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Hola Paulo,

He leído unos 4 de tus libros, ahora estoy por acabar El Zahir.
Al princpio, éste último no me pareció tan cautivador como los otros (El Alquimista, La Bruja de Portobello, 11 Minutos,etc.), tal vez era yo la que no estaba en un momento adecuado para interesarme por él.
Me encuentro algo menos de un tercio de acabarlo y he encontrado el hilo que me amarra a la historia.
Es gracioso, porque le pedí a mi mamá que me envíe libros tuyos en español para leerlos acá en Florida. Cuando los recibí no tuve ganas de leerlos, hasta un tiempo después que empecé la Bruja de Portobello.
En cuanto termine El Zahir seguiré con otro de tu colección. Me fascina leer y alimentar mi alma al mismo tiempo.
Gracias por tu óptica diferente.
A propósito, leí tu biografía y veo que tu destino era tan importante que tuviste que sobrevivir al accidente que tuviste el momento de nacer.
Mucho cariño para ti,
Rossana.

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Caro amigo Paulo Coelho:

Permita-me cumprimentá-lo especialmente por esse livro, que em minha opinião veio assinalar sua maturidade absoluta como escritor. Já escrevi antes no seu blog, colocando um “post” para cada um de seus textos durante sua jornada Encontros no Caminho – Novo Diário de um Mago. Li recentemente sua biografia e fiquei surpreso com todas as voltas e reviravoltas na vida de alguém que soube preenchê-la em pleno com sonhos, erros e acertos. Penso que essa magia será o maior legado quando nos próximos séculos alguém tomar um livro seu nas mãos e disser: “Esse autor ainda vive em algum lugar, porque quem acredita em sonhos escreve sua própria Eternidade!”.

Quando vier a Lisboa seria uma honra poder recebê-lo para um almoço em casa, com a família. Comida simples e uma experiência de agradecimento eterno!

Do sempre amigo,

José Luiz Silva Nunes

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Michael, foi um personagem que me marcou muito.Muito querido. Eu acho que ele não era doente, mas era mais fácil para as pessoas terem a explicação de que sim; pela falta de crença pessoal. Achei, bem interessante o jeito de como você escreveu essa parte do romance. Faz com que a gente possa viajar no personagem. Sentir a beleza da luz que vinha dele.
beijos,
Mari.

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Dear Paulo .,

I have read the Zahir in a very sad period of my life because the satory with my love was arrive at the end, and your book help to give the right sense to my love to my memory to my sensation , thank a lot , and it will be one of the book that I always suggest to read.

Roberta

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This is one of the best among them. so close and so far. It is a selfish book but dedicated at the same time. First time I read it I thought it is desperately trying to flash out the reality and personal emotion but as you go on you see that there is a lot more to make you look inside yourself and think about all unthinkable corners of yourself which you have forgotten long time ago……

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I bought the book “Zahir” because I was interested when I saw the character chose “No One” to be his name as I browsed through. Later, I remember being excited to see that the character said to have understood true love speaks in present tense all the time.
There are books that makes me happy or even peaceful while reading them. Zahir is definitely one of them.
Even now, I don’t quite understand the message of the book, or to find a quote to remember. But, I believe this is those books to be read without reading the words.

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Every time I read a book, I have a notebook with me, so that when I read a striking sentence, I can write it down. I cant afford to buy the books, I have to borrow them from the library.Thank god for the library. So, the notebook is really useful in my case. Later i read the quotes over and over.

It hasnt been long since I finished reading “Zahir”. I dont have it quite figured out. All my knowledge about love is based on experiences of other. I am an observer. I analyze people I know, people I see on streets. I can read their eyes.
I liked the example with the rails. It is so often that people think that they should be like rails, always on the same distance from each other. Thats how my parents marraiage was. And they werent happy, not even a slightest bit. My dad, he was always on the same place and when my mom tried to grow and break the distance, he always pulled her back to her place.Only after my dad died, my mom started to grow, now that she had unlimited space, no one to pull her back. She is happy now. She is a different person, closer to herself than ever before.
It is sad that she spent more than 30 years standing on the same place. Only because he wasnt smart enough to let her grow and grow with her. Also, my mom was silly for staying with him, only because of us, the children. I always tell people, that it doesnt do good for anyone if two people stay together only for children. Children are much more happier if their parents are happy. In the book, the couple didnt have children. I wonder how it would have been, if there were children involved, would Esther still have left? Despite that, there was much to learn from the book. It defenately changed my view on life and love and marriage. Like always, right books come to my life at the right time. I am certain that I will read this book again when i have learned something new ,and it will open another things to me.
Thank you for writing such an amazing book!

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I like this book a lot.
One of the highlights for me was the talk about “He died while he was still alive”. This is something I am sure that a lot of people are struggling for, including myself.

When reading this book, I am encouraged to pay more attention to my own true beliefs in life, and encouraged to be a little less afraid of doing things differently that the people around me.

Also I think it is a good thing that after all these years, Paulo Coelho (no matter if the story is 100% facts or adjusted for the book), is not described as someone perfect who is in control of everything in life. I would be tempted to think that after having written “The Alchemist”, Paulo had reached so much great truth in life that he would hardly ever be able to do anything wrong or have much doubt about anything, for the rest of his life. But after all these years he still seems very “human” and struggling with things like obsession and with telling what is just own desires and what is the best for other people involved in his life. (PS! Again, I don’t know if most of what the writer is experiencing has really happened in Paulo Coelhos life or not.)

Personally, I get a little surprised by reading about his strong love for other women while being on a path back to his wife. I find this unusual for this kind of story. And also the ending where it is revealed that his wife is pregnant with someone else. It makes me wonder what to think about it, and not least what did really Paulo and his wife think about it (as I don’t know anything about how the story went on from there).

I am thinking that this ending would convince some people that Paulo and his wife had lost all control of their lives and of what is right and what is wrong. Whereas others would say that Paulo and his wife had gained a lot of knowledge about themselves and a lot of love for eachother by being a long time apart. The ending of the book gives me the feeling that it is hard to gain any true happiness and love in life without going thru any pain, and without doing mistakes and without inflicting pain on others. Those who set the goal of having a life without pain and without mistakes, could well end up being most hurt of all as they are unlikely to get anywhere at all.

And still, I find it easy to use these arguments as an excuse of inflicting pain on others in the name of “trying to be alive” and “seeking truth”, when all I am really looking for is satisfying my own desires.

But I really think that knowing the difference between these two aspects , and struggling to stay on the “right” path and not just the one satisfying ones own desires, will make one a happier person, both to oneself and to others.

I am grateful for this book by Paulo Coelho. I don’t know how well I understand it, but it feels like it shows me good and truthful things about life. Thank you for this book!

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It was a pleasure reading it. I loved your story, of a famous writer and his love story. You have in that book so many wonderful passages, as the one when you talk about writing, and u describe it with metaphors as a boat on a stormy ocean. The way you express feelings, made me see many mistakes we make, included me. For u talk about our fear of losing freedom, but we still long for a mate. We cant have both, only if we give up to something. Than the love story that make the writer put himself some questions, force him to react. He miss Esther only when she is gone. We all do that mistake. Than, the Sufi dance in the restaurant Michael brought the writer, you show it as a moment of eluding reality, a way of passing time.There too we encounter the feminine part of God, and the Universal Language.
The story of Michael, again with more options, one might think he is sick, or believe in his visions, is a way to grow, a lesson for the writer.I loved the customs u presented from the country Esther
lived. You presented her as a modern Penelope, with the difference she was expecting a child from another man. But where is love, that is the thing most count.

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Of course they do.
The WSA is even linked to Brida.

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It doesn’t matter if she got pregnant or not.
They each knew that the other had sex partners outside marriage, so I guess when she went to that faraway land, she just couldn’t provide herself with birth control protection.
Let’s not forget what the author permitted himself to do while on his journey in Spain while he was supposedly writing his first book.

On the other hand, I can understand why the author forgave her (not easily though, since he had a shock that he didn’t wish to express): love that is possessive isn’t true love and degrades by time as the values that it is based upon aren’t solid.
I think that even when married people should consent of a certain physical freedom since faithfulness in regards to that is almost impossible, first reason I can give is sex incompatibilities between the two. Marriage shouldn’t bound you to live with that your whole life.

There’s a film I like a lot where it’s the woman who betrays her husband: The Painted Veil, an independent film with great acting and outstanding scenery, that I recommend seeing as it resembles The Zahir in some ways.

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Thank you KeyOnLife. Your point is a very important one. And I do agree! Sorry, for my late reply.

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