The Alchemist

The Alchemist (Nhà Giả Kim) is a masterpiece by Paulo Coelho - one of the best-selling books of all time. This is not just a fairy tale about Santiago, a shepherd boy, but a journey to find life’s meaning that all of us are experiencing.

If There Were a Time Capsule…

If there were a time capsule for the future, for my future self, I’d want my “2020 response” to be a gentle, magical story - not monotonous or illusory, but a profound story filled with positive energy, faith, perseverance, and above all, “me” at age 20. That in-between age, wavering but still having to overcome to realize many things, encountering many things I’d never thought of before.

May I place the book, no longer brand new, “The Alchemist” into my time capsule. A bit worn from too many times in my hands, in my friends’ hands, even with a few tears accidentally soaked into the pages during moments of weakness from stumbling and fears.

About Paulo Coelho

Paulo Coelho - a Portuguese-language writer with numerous bestselling works. His life has had many ups and downs, but from another perspective, one could say quite rich. The more I read “The Alchemist,” the more it feels like he’s writing about his own life.

As a young man who dreamed of becoming a famous writer, but with family expectations and societal barriers, it seemed he would abandon the dream that everyone considered far-fetched. But with complete perseverance, determination, and always trusting his heart, he achieved that dream completely - complete in his life, complete in the long journey like the story in “The Alchemist.”

Santiago’s Story

The book tells of Santiago - a Spanish shepherd who loves reading and traveling. Though growing up in poverty, he always dreamed of becoming a traveler exploring the world.

On his journey to find life’s treasure, Santiago encountered countless difficulties and challenges, but also many fortunes and miraculous things in life. After so many stumbles, painful falls - truly painful - he found the treasure along with sweet love beside Fatima.

More importantly, what he received wasn’t just that, but the value of the entire journey. Both he and I gained many meaningful lessons from failures to messages from the success of a young man who dared to “be himself.”

The Perfect, Meaningful Ending

What I’ve always cherished most is the perfect, meaningful ending in “The Alchemist.”

At the moment when he seemed about to touch the treasure at the Pyramids, Santiago encountered bandits who beat him severely. But through the bandit’s words, Santiago was astonished to realize where the real treasure was.

He had traveled so far, overcome so many challenges to reach the Pyramids, only to discover that the treasure was in his homeland, right beneath his feet - where he knew best. And that treasure wouldn’t have been his if the bandit had also been willing to believe and pursue his own dream.

The Closing Message

An extremely profound closing message from Paulo Coelho is:

People need to move forward, find ways to realize their dreams. Even if the path is long and might require returning to the starting point, you still need to move forward to realize your dream is within reach.

Through a small story, the author conveyed a grand message: “Never give up on your dreams” and don’t fear suffering when pursuing them.

With simple prose and gentle storytelling - it’s a fairy tale for children, but for someone with some life experience, they’ll view the story from many different angles and naturally have different feelings.

The Only Book I’ve Read 3 Times

In my life, I’ve read many books. But “The Alchemist” is the only book I’ve read 3 times - and with each reading, I discovered and absorbed new things.

• 1st reading: Read it like a fairy tale, fascinated by Santiago’s adventure
• 2nd reading: Started seeing profound philosophies about dreams and destiny
• 3rd reading: Understood why Paulo Coelho doesn’t write directly, but lets readers discover themselves

The book has just over 200 pages but consumed more of my time than I expected, because reading it once isn’t enough to grasp its depth. A thin book but densely packed with lessons within each sentence, each philosophy contains multiple layers of meaning that readers must contemplate themselves.

Why Not Write Directly?

I naively wondered: “Why does Paulo Coelho have to ‘hint’ at life philosophies instead of stating them clearly so readers can easily grasp and not miss any message?”

But from the 3rd reading, I seemed to understand this subtext. Reading “The Alchemist” is like joining the treasure-hunting adventure myself:

• Each reading, I can contemplate a few more new lessons
• Perspectives on previous philosophies also differ
• This makes me cherish it more and always carry special emotions for this book

Changes in Me

As humans, stumbling is normal. Mixed with achieved goals, I sometimes still hesitate and doubt the path I’ve chosen, often losing direction. During those times when I want to act but don’t know what to do, I choose “The Alchemist” as my solution.

I have changed:

• I value myself because I know I was born to fulfill my mission and seek my destiny
• I can see the best things in the worst situations
• I dare to step into new positions and jobs
• I know that truly striving for something, even without success, won’t make me regret
• I’ve dared to dream and am still on the path building my dreams

I love my authentic self, love people around me, love my work, love my habits. Life truly became wonderful after days of giving love to everything.

Memorable Quote

“When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”

Why 5 Stars?

• The only book read 3 times: Each time revealed something new, never boring
• Profound philosophy: Not explicit but lets readers discover through each reading
• Changes mindset: Helped me dare to dream, dare to pursue dreams
• Beautiful prose: Simple yet emotional
• Timeless value: Meaningful at any time, at any age, with different insights

Final Thoughts

“The Alchemist” is the book for my time capsule. A book worn from too many readings, with tear stains from moments of weakness. But this very book gave me faith, perseverance, and energy to keep moving forward.

If you’re 20, in that in-between wavering stage, doubting your chosen path - read “The Alchemist.” And if you’ve passed that age, still read it, because the journey to find life’s meaning never has an endpoint.

Santiago found his treasure. And you - are you ready to start walking?