The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

1st published in 1988

Think about the PEOPLE HE MET: Old King, Gypsy Woman, Thief, Merchant, Englishman, Alchemist And the OTHER GUIDES/TEACHERS: Sheep, Glass, Desert, Love? What LESSONS did he (and you) learn?

We talked about taking journeys (rambles, treks, walks, trips) and why some people feel the wanderlust need and others don’t. We heard about K.’s journey on El Camino this past summer. It was interesting and inspiring to hear about her journey: alone and with others; through country farm land and along city highways; and from ancient ruins to modern buildings.


We thought about following your authentic path. In the book, the main character traveled, met people, changed his path, and then ended up at home.

• Your path may lead you home; it may lead you somewhere else
• It may be a straight path; it may meander
• It may be toward the same goal all along the way; it may change along the way
• Sometimes, you can’t see three steps in front of you; you can only see one step at a time
• As you travel along your path, there may be a need to return to family and familiar people and things, as we move forward

We reflected on what reading about the journey meant to us.

• The book made some of us want to travel and live (or at least visit) with cultures in unfamiliar settings and languages.
• Traveling is a chance to live in the moment and not worry about every day mundane things.
• When traveling, you are thinking about basic things (where will I eat?).
• Being in a new place means “my head is open.”
• Do you open up and talk more when traveling and meeting new people compared to being at home?
• When we travel (through life? To places?), we can let things go…

Below are some highlights and summaries from the book.
LESSONS

• Old King taught him to have faith in destiny
• Universal language of omens
• The language without words is about noticing omens (and following them)
• Eternal optimism
• Finding (and sticking to) your personal legend
• The universe conspires to help one reach their personal legend
• Learning the language of enthusiasm – move through life and do tasks with love and purpose
• Learning that courage is essential to understanding the language of the world
• The secret of the future is here in the present
• When god reveals the future, it is because he wants it to change
• Alchemy – soul is the world transformation
• Elixir of Life – give eternal life
• Philosopher’s Stone – makes gold from lead
• Did he teach the sheep (e.g. to follow his sleeping patterns) or did he learn from them (e.g. he rose early like they did)?
• One important lesson is to learn confidence
• It’s not what enters one’s mouth which is evil, it’s what leaves it…
• Wherever your love is, there you will find your treasure, then everything you learn along the way will make sense…