The Answer is Within...

Life’s Journey

“I have in side me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the same hand, and we have the same soul.” – (Coelho 140). Santiago, the protagonist in the story ‘The Alchemist’, is explaining to the wind, why the creations of God share the same soul and how Santiago, could be turned into the wind. Santiago is a shepherd, who is on a voyage to discover his destiny. An old man tells him, that hidden treasure lies beneath the sands of the pyramids of Egypt, so he embarks on this odyssey. He begins his journey in Andalusia, Spain; he then moves to Egypt, only to discover that his treasure was where his quest had begun. Santiago believed that by embarking on this mission he would be able to achieve his destiny, find true love and welcome new people into his life. Santiago had many traits that helped him progress through the novel, such as, courage, observance and resilience. These three qualities helped Santiago understand the meaning of life and combined together to help him achieve his destiny.

Santiago needed strength to progress further in order to fulfill his destiny. While he was talking with the King of Salem, he was given two very vital objects, “The boy put the stones in his pouch. From then on, he would make his own decisions.” – “Alchemist” page: 29. The one person that made Santiago realize that searching for his destiny was the right thing to do, was the King of Salem or Melchizedek, who disguised himself as an old man. When they met in the plaza, at the very beginning of Santiago’s journey, Melchizedek gave Santiago two stones which were called Urim and Thummin. They had magical powers that enabled them to answer the questions he had about the omens. Once he received the stones, he was told that there would be good and bad happenings that will assist and hinder him on his journey, but Santiago was prepared to take on anything. Santiago had just come out of the tribal chieftain’s tent, feeling sick to his stomach because… “If he died tomorrow it would be because God was not willing to change the future. He would at least have died after crossing the strait, after having worked in a crystal shop, and after having known the silence of the desert and Fatima’s eyes. He had lived every one of his days intensely…(and) he was proud of that.” – “Alchemist” page: 104. After seeing the chieftains about the omen he saw, he was told that if the battle did not proceed, Santiago would lose his life. On his way back to his tent, after receiving the bad news, he was thinking about how good his life had been up to that point, and that if he were to die, he would have died a grateful person. Santiago had enough bravery to think of the good that would come out of dying the next day. He had enough courage to tell himself that it was okay. This would have helped Santiago on his way to achieve his destiny because he looked at every bad obstacle in a good way. When he first met the alchemist, he thought of him in a very different way, “It is I who dared to do so,” he repeated, and he lowered his head to receive a blow from the sword. “Many lives will be saved because I was able to see into the Soul of the World.” – “Alchemist” page: 105. He initially thought he was one of the attackers Santiago had seen in the omen. The alchemist tested Santiago, by acting as if he were one of the attackers, by demanding to know who had read the flight of the two hawks, an omen interpreted by Santiago that said that there was going to be a surprise battle against the oasis. His destiny was helped at this point because now he knew that humanity would test him, so he had to build up his courage to get passed the tricks that would come. Santiago had enough bravery to stand up for himself and confess to the alchemist that he was the one who read the omen. The courage Santiago had built upon on his journey, took him closer to achieving his destiny, but without his observance skills, he would never have reached his final destination.

Santiago’s main learning technique was to observe everything that would help him get closer to his goal. This quality really helped Santiago cross most of the obstacles that got in the way of his learning. His journey began with a dream, “He had had the same dream that night as a week ago, and once again he had awakened before it ended.” – “Alchemist” page: 3. If it weren’t for Santiago’s recurring dream, he would never have even made his trip to the plaza, where he met Melchizedek. Santiago’s dream recurred in an old church, which in the end turned out to be where his treasure was all along. If he had not interpreted his dream and found out that it meant something deeper, his journey to achieve his destiny, would be non-existent. “It was love…she smiled and that was certainly an omen – the omen he had been awaiting, without even knowing he was, for all his life… - “Alchemist” page: 88/89. Santiago looked into Fatima’s eyes, and knew that it was love at first sight. Santiago met Fatima at the oasis where she lived; he was helping the Englishman look for the alchemist when he first laid eyes on her. Santiago observed Fatima and knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. If Fatima had never come into his life, he would not have successfully achieved his destiny because she was a major part in making him who he was today. The alchemist was explaining to Santiago, that the Emerald Tablet was one of man’s simplest creations and that once you can understand that, you have taken a direct passage to the Soul of the World, “It’s like the flight of those two hawks it can’t be understood by reason alone. The Emerald Tablet is a direct passage to the Soul of the World.” – “Alchemist” page: 121. Once Santiago was shown the drawing, by the alchemist, of the Emerald Tablet he knew that if he could understand the writings, he could uncover the secrets of Alchemy. To his dismay, just by looking at it, it didn’t make any sense to him at all. The Tablet had been written years ago, and should have been easy to decipher but as time went on, men wanted to show that they were more knowledgeable, so they made it more confusing to learn the secrets of Alchemy. Over time, due to the added complications, their own understanding of the tablet was lost. This resulted in only a few people knowing the true secrets of Alchemy. In almost anything the alchemist does, Santiago observes closely and understands what the master can do. Santiago discovered that while he was trying to overcome an obstacle, he was often knocked down. Without Santiago’s determination, he would have given up a long time ago, and he would have never even come close to achieving his ultimate destiny.

It was this resilience that made Santiago even more determined than ever to reach his goal. Santiago had encountered a thief at the beginning of his travels and he didn’t know what to do, “As he mused about these things, he realized that he had to choose between thinking of himself as the victim of a thief and as an adventurer in quest of his treasure. “I’m and adventurer, looking for treasure,” he said to himself.” – “Alchemist” page: 40. If he had chosen to take the other option, to feel sorry for himself, he would never have achieved his destiny. Santiago chose the decision of becoming an adventurer, because he knew that what he was searching for was definitely worth it. He knew that taking control of his own destiny would lead him to where he needed to be. You can’t be the wind,” the wind said. “We’re two very different things.” “That’s not true,” the boy said. “I learned the alchemist’s secrets in my travels.” – “Alchemist” page: 140. Whenever the wind said that he couldn’t be turned into the wind, Santiago never gave up trying to convince it otherwise. Santiago was indeed able to turn himself into the wind, which in the process, made him realize, that he was a direct descendent of God, and that God could communicate through Santiago to the rest of the world. As Santiago had been digging all day at the pyramids and found nothing, he met a group of Arabs who gave him an advantage in getting closer to his destiny, but at the same time knocked him back, “But I’m not so stupid as to cross an entire desert just because of a recurring dream.” And they disappeared. The boy stood up shakily, and looked once more at the Pyramids. They seemed to laugh at him, and he laughed back, his heart was filled with joy. Because now he knew where his treasure was.” – “Alchemist” page: 155. Although the Arabs had beaten up Santiago, they had inadvertently told him where his treasure was and this benefitted him greatly. Even though his treasure was right where he began, which was a long way away, he still went back to gain what he had been looking for throughout his whole quest. If Santiago hadn’t come across the Arabs, he would never have found his treasure. It is also ironic, seeing as though the Arab, who didn’t go looking for the treasure, knew exactly where it was. In the meantime Santiago, who thought his treasure was going to be in the Pyramids, found out that it was right where he had begun. The chiefs of the tribe, who wanted to see Santiago transform himself into the wind, put a lot of pressure on him. He knew that if he couldn’t transform himself, he would have suffered severe consequences. Santiago was resilient ever since the beginning of his journey. He needed this quality to make his destined path as clear as is could possibly be.

Throughout Santiago’s journey to achieve his destiny, he had many qualities that assisted him in the quest to achieve his goal. He was courageous because whatever problem Santiago came upon, he dealt with it and was able to stand up for himself in any situation. Santiago’s main learning technique, which helped him in his journey, was to observe everything he was told or taught. He was able to learn with his eyes and his mind throughout his quest. Resilience was one of Santiago’s strongest qualities because, he was knocked down so many times but he was always able to stand up again and continue with his dream. Many times he wanted to give in, but he knew that if he gave up, his life would never be the same. All of these qualities combined created Santiago’s strong personality and helped him realize where his destiny lay. Destiny is a goal inside everyone’s life, in which they want to achieve. Santiago was told, that sometimes, people decide not to reach their destiny, because it’s the will that makes them live another day, it makes them know that there is always something good that exists when they are feeling down. Everyone has a destiny, whether they understand it or not. Destiny creates life and transforms someone into who they really are and on the journey to achieving that destiny, it shows you how you have progressed since the beginning of your life’s journey.

Picture from: www.amazingbiblerace.com

Resilience, is a quality that I believe I possess, that would make me a strong participant in my destiny. Not everyone has enough resilience to continue to follow their dreams and "fight the tough fight". I believe that determination, which is the same as resilience, is a strong personal trait, which can be called upon whenever I need it. If knocked down, I am able to re-bound again, just like Santiago, in the book "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. If one gives up every time, it's impossible to get over life's obstacles. I would never be able to achieve anything, because after capitulating, it would, most likely, leave me with no other options. Giving up is a sign of weakness, most of the time. If people are not resilient, I believe it shows a possible weakness in their make-up. However I know that in most situations, my nature is to stand up for myself, even if I get knocked down. I know that resilience is not something everybody has, but I do know, that everybody can develop this reliable quality, whenever their heart desires to. They just have to keep trying and never accept that they have no other option but to give in. Resilience is a quality that, if I didn't have, would limit the path I choose to take, through life. Everybody gets knocked down, but the resilient ones, who "never say die", get up again.