Inspirational
From Addict to Novelist
Paulo Coelho’s life is a story of depression to inspiration, despair to enlightenment, anonymity to fame, poverty to wealth, jail and torture to freedom, and deep darkness to blinding light. His novel The Alchemist sold 26 million copies in 56 languages. But what was in this book by a deranged ex-drug-addict ex-convict that fascinated readers worldwide? It was ironically his ‘subversive’ ideas that transported him to stardom. This is his story.
Born into a conservative Catholic family in Rio de Janeiro, Paulo Coelho was an introverted rebel who was committed to a mental institution by his parents at the age of 17. He tried to escape three times and was finally released at the age of 20. In the 60s, he dropped out of law school, picked up a backpack, took wings, and roamed South America, North Africa, Mexico, and Europe, where he started taking drugs.
He then became a songwriter, when he was influenced by magic and occultism in his music. In 1974, he was tortured by the military for his ‘subversive’ lyrics. He worked as an actor, theater director, and journalist before exploding into fame and fortune as a novelist.
The beginning of explosion happened in 1986 when he walked 500 miles to Santiago de Compostela, a noted pilgrim’s road in Northern Spain. There, he saw the light, the same light that blinded St. Paul from a life of persecution to a life of service to the Lord. He had a spiritual awakening that would turn his world upside down, a free fall that would fulfill a long-lost dream when he was 17. He began writing on top of his lucrative songwriting profession.
the more critics pounced on him
the more readers wanted to read his book
catapulting him into fame and fortune
The Alchemist was first published by a small Brazilian firm, then headed for the stratosphere when it was picked up in 1994 by a titan in the publishing industry, Harper Collins (since 1817, with offices across the world). When it came out, he was the object of biased press criticism from all sides. They pounced on his being a former drug user and ‘subversive’ ex-convict. Society sometimes has a way of condemning then extolling great men. His ‘subversive’ ideas were in reality bits of wisdom that people never knew in their frenzied world. He touched and inspired his millions of readers with a simple story.
But what was in the book by a deranged drug-prone ex-convict that fascinated readers? What is its mystique that awed the world? The story was simple but the spirituality was profound. It revolved around a peasant shepherd boy, Santiago, who had a dream where, in his travels, he encounters people and places which helped him fulfill his dream. That is the simple story. Love is the energy behind every dream.
Paulo writes, “We all need to be aware of our personal calling.” He says that we all have a path that God chose for us here on Earth. Not all have the courage to confront one’s dreams. The obstacles can be immense but love is the stimulus, the energy. We have to overcome the fear of failure, the same fear of a baby eagle during its first flight, when he either soars or he dies in a matter of seconds. Paolo knew a lot about failure. He was an ‘expert’ in it.
His biography was made into a movie in 2014 – The Pilgrim – Story of Paulo Coelho. Film magazine Screen International wrote, “The film tells the story of a man who has a dream. It’s a little like Alice in Wonderland – he’s someone who is too big for his house.”
