Paulo Coelho de Souza is a Brazilian writer, winner of numerous international awards, including the Crystal Award from the World Economic Forum. He has sold more than 200 million copies worldwide and is the most successful Brazilian writer in history.
Here are his best phrases, about life, friendship, love and more, several taken from some of his most famous books: The Alchemist, The Pilgrim of Compostela, Veronika decides to die, The victor is alone, Brida, The Fifth Mountain, Valkyries….
Source: Wikimedia Commons - Ricardo Stuckert / PR
Coelho was born on August 24, 1947 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As a teenager he already wanted to become a writer. In telling his mother, she replied: "Darling, your father is an engineer, a logical, reasonable man with a very clear vision of the world. Do you really know what it means to be a writer?"
At 17 years old, his introversion, opposition and rebellion to follow a traditional path led his parents to commit him to a mental institution from which he escaped three times before being released at the age of 20.
Born into a Catholic family, his parents were strict about religion and faith. Coelho later commented that "It wasn't that they wanted to harm me, but they didn't know what to do… They didn't do that to destroy me, they did it to save me"
Coelho enrolled in law school and gave up his dream of becoming a writer. A year later, he dropped out and lived life as a hippie, traveling through South America, North Africa, Mexico, and Europe and began using drugs in the 1960s.
Upon his return to Brazil, Coelho worked as a composer, composing lyrics for Elis Regina, Rita Lee, and Brazilian icon Raúl Seixas. The composition with Raúl led Coelho to be associated with magic and the occult, due to the content of some songs.
When he was 38 years old, he had a spiritual awakening in Spain and wrote in his first book, El peregrino. Later, his second book, The Alchemist, sold 35 million copies made him famous. You may also be interested in these phrases about life or these to think and reflect.
The best quotes from Paulo Coelho
-Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can replace experience.
-The strongest love is the one that can show its fragility.
-If you want to be successful you have to respect a rule; never lie to yourself.
-Waiting is painful. Forgetting is painful. But not knowing what to do is the worst kind of suffering.
-When a person really wants something, the whole universe conspires to help him realize his dream.
-No one can lie, no one can hide anything, when you look directly into his eyes.
-How does light enter a person? If the door of love is open.
-One day you will get up and there will be no more time to do the things you always wanted. Do them now.
-When you repeat a mistake, it is no longer a mistake, it is a decision.
-Love is discovered through the practice of loving and not through words.
-Avoiding the problems you have is avoiding the life you have to live.
-Straight roads do not make skilled drivers.
-When we strive to be better, everything around us also becomes better.
-If you want to achieve your goals, you must be prepared for a daily dose of pain or discomfort.
-The changes only happen when we face totally against everything that we are used to doing.
-All battles in life serve to teach us something, even those that we lose.
-You have to take risks. We only understand the miracle of life when we allow the unexpected to happen.
-Life was always a problem of knowing how to wait for the right moment to act.
-One is loved because one is loved. There is no necessary reason to love.
-Only two things can reveal the great secrets of life: suffering and love.
-The eyes show the strength of the soul.
-You are what you think you are.
-Fight for your dreams and they will fight for you.
-If you think the adventure is dangerous, try the routine: that one is lethal.
-Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can replace experience.
-Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury.
-Miracles only happen if you believe in them.
-Join those who are exposed and who are not afraid of being vulnerable.
-Sometimes you have to go a long way to find what is close.
-Don't give in to your fears. If you do, you won't be able to speak with your heart.
-The darkest hour of the night comes just before dawn.
-There are people who have money and people who are rich.
-Always remember the effect that your words have on others.
-It takes a great effort to free yourself from memory.
-If you want to see a rainbow, you have to learn to see the rain.
-The secret of life is to fall seven times and get up eight times.
-Life is truly generous for those who pursue their destiny.
-The enemy is just a pretext to test our strength.
-Tears are words that must be written.
-Sorry but don't forget, as they will hurt you again.
-Wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.
-Be brave enough to live differently.
-It is the possibility of making a dream come true that makes life interesting.
-Every day God gives us a moment in which it is possible to change everything that makes us unhappy.
-Keep in your memory for the rest of your days the good things that arose from difficulties.
-The fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.
-Life always waits for a crisis to occur before revealing itself in the most brilliant way.
-Join those who experiment, risk, fall, injure themselves and risk again.
-It is the simple things in life that are most extraordinary.
-When you are enthusiastic about what you do, you feel positive energy. It's very simple.
-You can become blind by seeing each day as similar. Every day is different, every day brings a miracle. It is simply a matter of paying attention to that miracle.
-Remember your dreams and fight for them. Know what you want from life. There is only one thing that makes your dream impossible: the fear of failure.
-No, I have never seen an angel, but it is irrelevant whether I have seen it or not. I feel his presence around me.
-You don't drown when you fall into a river, but when you stay submerged in it.
-Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the fear itself. And no heart has suffered in pursuit of its dream.
-Everything that has happened once may not happen again. But everything that happens twice will surely happen a third time.
-Love is a trap. When it appears we only see its lights, not its shadows.
-The more violent a storm is, the faster it passes.
-Everyone has creative potential and from the moment you can express it, you can start to change the world.
-I am not saying that love always takes you to heaven. Your life can turn into a nightmare. But with that said, the risk is worth taking.
-We have to be humble enough to stop and understand that there is something called mystery.
-Let's be absolutely clear about one thing: we must not confuse humility with false modesty or servility.
-Things do not always happen the way I would like and it is better that I get used to it.
-The more in harmony you are with yourself, the more you enjoy and the more faith you have. Faith does not disconnect you from reality, it connects you with it.
-Happiness is simply another trick that our genetic system uses for the survival of the species.
-I was always a rich person because money is not related to happiness.
-I am above all a writer. I followed my personal legend, my teenage dream of becoming a writer, but I can't say why I am.
-What interests me in life is curiosity, challenges, good fights with their victories and defeats.
-I believe that enlightenment or revelation comes in daily life. I am looking for the enjoyment, the peace of the action. I would have stopped writing years ago if it was for the money.
-Write means to share. It is part of the human condition to want to share things, thoughts, ideas, opinions.
-Everything tells me that I am about to make the wrong decision, but making mistakes is part of life.
-No matter how you feel today, get up every morning and prepare to let your light shine.
-Don't explain yourself. Your friends don't need it and your enemies won't believe you.
-Choosing a path means having to lose others.
-It is not the expectations that guide us forward, it is our desire to go forward.
-Life moves quickly. It plunges us from heaven to hell in a matter of seconds.
-Sometimes you don't have a second chance and it is better to accept the gifts that the world offers you.
-The ship is safer anchored in the port, but that is not the role of the ships.
-It's better to live as if it were the first and last day of my life.
-When we love, we always strive to be better than we are. When we strive to be better than we are, everything around us becomes better.
-The secret of life is to fall seven times and get up eight.
-Simple things are also the most extraordinary things and only the wise can see them.
-When someone leaves it is because someone else is about to arrive.
-A child can teach an adult three things: to be happy without reason, to be always busy with something and to know how to demand with all his will what he wants.
-Nothing in the world is completely wrong. Even a stopped clock is correct twice a day.
-Love is not in others, it is within ourselves.
-Everything is allowed, unless interrupt a manifestation of love.
-Love will never separate man from his Personal Legend.
-The wise man is wise because he loves, the madman is mad because he thinks he understands love.
- Accumulating love means accumulating luck, accumulating hatred means accumulating calamity.
-Whoever loves waiting for a reward is wasting time.
-This is freedom: to feel what the heart desires, regardless of the opinion of others.
-Live in the present, it's the only thing you have.
-Never give up on a dream. Try to see the signs that lead you to him.
-When every day seems the same it is because we have stopped perceiving the good things that appear in our lives.
-Do something instead of killing time. Because time is what is killing you.
-No matter what you do, every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world. And normally you don't know.
-The really important meetings are planned by the souls long before the bodies meet.
-Sometimes you have to decide between one thing you are used to and another that we would like to know.
-Wisdom is knowing and transforming.
-There is a moment to leave everything.
-Mistakes are a way of reacting.
-No person is capable of choosing without fear.
-There is no sin in being happy.
-We all know how to love, because we were born with that gift. Some people naturally practice it well, but most have to relearn, remember how to love themselves.
-As we cannot change the physics, let's focus the extra energy and if we will be able to take the first step.
-In all the languages of the world there is the same saying: eyes that do not see, heart that does not feel.
-Every morning, God shows us His smile.
-Everyday the sun lights up a new world.
-Certain things are so important that they need to be discovered alone.
-Where hardness only manages to destroy, softness manages to sculpt.
-Each person, in their existence, can have two attitudes: build or plant.
-God's decisions are mysterious, but always in our favor.
-Warfare is an act of love. The enemy helps us to develop and perfects us.
-When you love, you have to be prepared for everything. Because love is like a kaleidoscope, like the ones we used to play with as children.
-Imagine a place where people pretend to be crazy to do exactly what they want.
-The universe was created by a language that everyone understands
-Forgetting is the wrong attitude. The right thing to do is face.
-Men and women with immense willpower are generally loners, because they transmit coldness.
-To find peace in heaven, we must find love on Earth.
-There is only one way to learn. It is through action. Everything you need to know you have learned throughout your journey.
-Not everyone can see dreams in the same way.
-We do not show our feelings, because people may think that we are vulnerable and take advantage of it.
-A life without a cause is a life without effects.
-Money is seldom used to delay death.
-Each ignored blessing becomes a curse.
-You must always know what you want.
-We don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
-People are afraid to pursue their most important dreams, because they feel that they do not deserve them.
-When you love, things make even more sense.
-Don't try to be useful. Try to be yourself - that's enough, and that makes all the difference.
-Deception, defeat and despair are the tools that God uses to show us the way.
-There are things in life that have to be experienced and never explained. Love is one of them.
-In every moment of our lives, we all have one foot in a fairy tale and the other in the abyss.
-Don't waste your time with explanations, people only listen to what they want to hear.
-Close some doors. Not out of pride, inability, or arrogance, but simply because they don't get you anywhere.
-Sometimes, we are so attached to our way of life that we reject wonderful opportunities.
-Emotions are wild horses. It is not explanations that lead us forward, but our will.
-Men can resist almost anything, but they will always be jealous of the victory of others.
-Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about yours.
-One day you will wake up and you will not have more time to do the things you always wanted to do. Do it now.
-Don't be intimidated by other people's opinions. Only mediocrity is sure of itself.
-When you find your way, you should not be afraid. You need to have the courage to make mistakes.
-If you are brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.
-The act of discovering who we are will force us to accept that we can go beyond what we think.
-In love lies the seed of our growth. The more we love, the closer we are to spiritual experience.
-God is love, generosity and forgiveness. If we believe in this, we will never allow our weaknesses to paralyze us.
-The two most difficult tests on the spiritual path are patience to wait for the right moment and the courage not to be disappointed with what we find.
-Do you know what "noble" means? It means someone who acts in a dignified manner. That is the mystery of love.
-If we want to change the world, we have to go back to the time when warriors sat around a fire to tell stories.
-When you grow up, you will discover that you already defended lies, deceived yourself or suffered for nonsense. If you are a good warrior, you won't blame yourself for it, but you won't let your mistakes repeat themselves either.
-Life teaches every moment and the only secret is to accept that, by learning from everyday life, we can be as wise as Solomon and as powerful as Alexander the Great.
-What I can say about all my characters is that they are in search of their souls, because they are my mirror.
-Although happy people say they are, no one is satisfied: we always have to be with the most beautiful woman, with the biggest house, changing cars, wishing for what we don't have.