Part 1 of the interview of Paulo Coelho,
author of The Alchemist by Oprah
MARKING 25
anniversary of the Alchemist
Quote”
“God will only ask
you one question? Did you love enough
and if so welcome...” -P Coelho
-Will smith – he says
he can create whatever he wants to create through the book.
It is a spiritual
guide book for our times. 65 million
copies so far sold. It has been translated
to the most languages in the world. We
are still learning form this book.
He is impressed at the 25 anniversary of the book and it is
still NY best seller’s book. He is enthusiastic
about his work. The book built and grew
and was Madonna favourite book where she said it changed her life. Thereafter everyone passed it on and on.
Bill Clinton was filmed reading the book. Celebrities
like Julie Roberts also read the
book. Every time you read it you learn
something new from the book. He is also
amazed how he wrote the book in two weeks.
“When you want something all the
universe conspires to help you” – quote.
He started knocking doors and informed them he had a book
and it was published. This was fate! In your personal legend you are
guided to meet the right person at the right moment.
Readers quote – “You
are on the right path, it is making a decision and taking steps towards that
direction – reader’s comments
The universe works on your behalf and not against you. – if you realize that you achieve much –
readers comments –
Where did those
words, theme come from: “ The universe……………..”
He learned this from what he
experienced in life in that whatever he wanted he got whether positive or
negative. The conscious mind attracts
tragedy as you want to be a victim and to justify failures, the universe is
helping. It is based on how you think consciously
and project.
We almost discover
our personal legend. We all have our
personal legend. What is a personal
legend? - it is the reason we are here,
it is that simple as to honor the
miracles of life. To fulfill your hours of
the day is something that is meaningless.
It the only thing that give you enthusiasm and you know when you betray your legend when
you do something without enthusiasm. Not being ready is just an excuse, i.e waiting
for the right moment, your family wants to see you happy ,and not doing work that you don’t like. The clue to know your personal
legend or purpose is to know what you are enthusiastic about.
God guides you if you are honest even
if you take wrong steps. God recognized
you have a pure heart and will put you back on tract. “(As the universe rises up to me wherever you
are with your heart). – (MY FAVOURITE – Margaret Maingi)
The reason we are
here is a mystery until we die. When we
face God may be we will know. God will
ask only one question? Did you love enough? If you say yes, welcome to heaven if you say
no you are in the limbo.
It is not only
romantic love, it means did you open your heart to fully embrace every
moment. Did you love fully everybody and
everything, so it means.
The book – Alchemist
People try to hide
their dreams , they know their dream but are not brave enough to fulfill them. Real courage is being able to step up
and live that dream regardless of the fears. He dreamed to be a writer. Most write ones and then stop as they are
afraid the next book won’t work.
The world’s greatest
lie is that you loose control of your life.
There is this establishment that tells you you cannot control anymore
anything. Is the biggest lie, and that
you have to obey some rules that are not your rules. His parents tried to bribe him not to become
a writer by asking him to be an engineer. They thought he was crazy as he did not obey
their rules as other teens were obeying their parents to become lawyers,
engineers etc and was put into a mental institute as he wanted to be an
artist. The parent said artist drink to
death and the family cannot stand it as is shameful to to have one in the
family so they wanted to control him and
hence they put him into a mental institute. They actually thought he was crazy as he did
not want to go to university. He could
not conform to the idea of what a son should be so he was put into a mental
institute. He escaped the mental
institute three times.
How did he learn the language of
life?
Page 146 – don’t give into your
fears, if you do you won’t be able to talk to your heart.
Every heart is very
fearful. Heart is like a flower it can
be brave but can be easily hurt. So talk
through your heart as a tough
person. He still fears a lot of
things. But one would not give up.
People fear they will not fulfill their supreme potential. He thinks if God bestowed him with this
potential, then what else and else it is not enough. We are hear to improve the state of the
world.
Innocence is not naivety
– look at everything like you are seeing it for the first time and learn what
you have to learn. – quote.
The Sheppard boy in
the alchemist learned to follow the sign.
You only learn this language by making mistakes and paying
attention. If the universe is there to teach
you the right signs and when you take the wrong steps it corrects you. The Sheppard boy realized that the sheep did
no need to be awaken up but there was a rhythm in the air, there was a free
flow. He learned when he understand that
the universe what not focused around him, when you think that you are the only
one who exist, he had a sensation that he was alive, and he is not the centre
of the universe, he said he has to pay attention to what is going on.
Courage is important and if
the first spiritual quality one need to have. You don’t need to believe or have
a connection with God but needs to have courage. It is the most important to understand the
language of the world. Otherwise you
start to reduce the world to things you cant explain. You become fluent by starting to DARE. If you don’t know the fear of the unknown the
unknown and the world will be kind to you.
Listen to your heart,
it knows all things as it comes from the soul of the world and it will go back there and as water goes up and it fall
back down again, there is an endless cycle.
Alchemist was in control of his destiny are we? Depends the door has to entries of compassion
and discipline. You need to set a moment
in your life for discipline and moments to be guided by life. By paying attending to the momens around
you. If you want something stand aside
and let it arrive to you.
Oprah, restates this as - having the will power, the desire, the
enthusiasm and then you surrender to the flow.
What is the
difference of Destiny and fate. Fate is
when you think you have no choice and are going to die in the end. Destiny is - How you get there and it is up
to you. Every one will die but how you
get there is upto you. Your destiny is your way to your fate.
Always listen to your heart it will
take you to the direction of your dreams. Page 136. –(Feelings – I call it )– Margaret Maingi)
Before a dream is
realized the soul of the world tests everything that was learned along the
way. We are tried in the way so that we
master the lessons we learned. When the
test comes, that’s when people give up.
Life tests you a lot but don’t loose your faith.
PART 2 – of the
interview
Quote - If you think big you become big, if you think small you become small.
How to discover your
own personal legend or purpose.
Paulo was born in 1947 , in a devoted catholic home. As a teenagee he yearned to be a writer but
parent thought he was mad and was committed to a mental institute three times. He later
enrolled in law school but fate had other plans and he became a writer.
He engaged in a hippy life and became a political activist and wrote rock songs. He went back to the catholic believe and he
had an epiphany that gave him the desire to write.
He has written 31 books.
Alchemist has sold over 65 million copies.
He wrote and became the famous man who wrote the book of the
century - the thought of the millennium:
“The universe inspires….” He wrote he
will reach his ideal of being famous and projected it. Like Jimmy carry wrote a check of a million
dollar and put it in his chest and it became.
When you think big your world becomes
big. Self fulfilling prophecy.
Asked did I write the Alcahemist ? He is not sure, but he
was an instrument. He went through
an ordeal in his life whatever he was three.
Then he wrote this book he thinks is better than he is. He manifested and everybody has this possibility.
MJ - she read a story that MJ when he did thriller, that his
greatest fear was that he could not repeat the phenomena of thriller and he
kept chasing and chasing it. Not knowing it was the phenomenon. She also realized the OpraH show was a phenomenon. One
should do what they are enthusiastic about.
Paulo wrote… and thought he could
not continue to wait and started to write.
As a teen, his parent sent him to a mental institute three
time. Here he learned that I could never
run for presidency as he people would say he was in a mental institute. Second
the thought I am crazy so i can do anything I want, as people thought he was crazy.
He started writing lyrics for song and was making money and
his parents were impressed. The sister fulfilled all the parent’s wishes as she
thought, she was going to be the good girl an compensate for Paulo, but they were surprised when he made more money than she was as a
chemical engineer so they relaxed as he was crazy and could still make money.
Our only obligation
is to discover our personal legend.
Alchemist Is a road map of how to lead our live - readers
comments.
Receive all the gifts in the book – readers comments.
Sex drug and rock and roll and travelling – he lived as a
hippy and learned how to leave out of nothing, in the USA all over the world. He crossed NY to mexico as a hippie. His personal legend was to be a writer.
The journey to Santiago changed his life, he kept saying he
was working on a book but he was not writing, so the journey taught him that if
he wants to be a writer he has to write, as he said he was a writer but was not
writing anything. (NICE ONE, I like – self).
He wasn’t happy with his work as it lacked enthusiasm. He told his wife they had all but lacked joy
and asked her if they could go try and find
meaning of life with all their chums.
OUR ONLY OLBIGATION IS TO FIND
OUR PERSONAL LEGEND, HONOR AND FULFIL IT.
Alchemist , Every person has a destiny and not everyone will
know and fulfill it. Oprah calls it your
purpose instead of personal legend. But everyone knows but people don’t accept it
and hence don’t do it. People postpone
and then realize they will never fulfill their dreams.
Metaphor of life – there are obstacles that take us out of
our way but as long as you get back on tract that’s fine. Do what you want not
just know what you want to do.
If a gardener, then be a gardener. Parents ask kids to go to college but if you
enjoy the soil and then you are convinced to do otherwise it is not good for
you both as you are creating the order of frustration in yourselves.
Reflection: ….
What is your personal
legend – to be a great wife, parent???
Do not betray your heart the book says.
The alchemist – he was told it would not sell. And it was up to him to say a - let me write
another one but it was also up to him so
say no. “I believe in this book and I will fight for this book” When is a no a no? Ops asks.
Sometimes a no is a no, but if you listen to your heart it is never a
NO. YOU
HAVE TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOUR HEART AND YOUR HEAD.
Dreams are the language of God. Is the language of God same as the language
of the world?
Yes. Dream is the moment
we connect to the so called language of the world and may not understand but if
you pay attention, there is a symbol and if you put the symbols together then
you understand.
The publishers did not like the title. As people don’t know what an alchemist is and
he said “but that is the title of my book” Now he has power to say No. The publishers wanted to call the book the Sheppard
and his dream.
He was not afraid when told he had cancer.
The fear of suffering is worse than
suffering itself, tell your heart and that no heart does not suffer
when it goes for search of its dreams – derricks police officers, best quote of
the book.
We all have to listen to your heart.
Why do we human’s respond to the hero’s journey? We have personal bliss or personal legend or destiny;
we are here for a reason. It resonates
as everyone wants to take the hero’s journey but most don’t as we are AFRAID.
He had a severe heart blockage; He did a stress test after
pressure from a friend and was not afraid as did not have time to be
afraid. He said if I die tomorrow, I
spend half my life with the woman I loved, but people say I have done this and
that, he has no regrets as he did everything he knew how. He fought for his dream and did not take no for an answer.
SOUL TO SOUL
QUESTIONS TO PAULO
He believed in his book and it was great to believe and have
courage to believe in his work – Readers comments
What is his definition of God? - I am who I am
What is the difference between spirituality vs religion – religion
is sharing same mystery, spirituality is our responsibility as you cannot blame
the imam or priest for our attitude.
Longest lesson he has taken to learn and is still learning -
HUMILITY.
What happens when we die?
– He does not know but will tell when he dies. Ha!
What does the world need - LOVE
His greatest passion – is to live everyday
Soul of the world is you and I.
He is fullest in the present moment – everyday; it can be anything
that sparks it.
He thanks Oprah for using her power to improve the
world.
God’s blessings.
“non – verbatim” transcript. – for lifeskill’s
From Oprah’s super-soul Sunday episode -streamed live on 7th
and 14th September 2014, www.oprah.com