The Alchemist is the most inspiring and unique book I have ever read.It speaks of the age old
wisdom of following your
dreams and listening to your heart. In this modern world where human existence has been marred with brutal mechanisation and life has become a rat race of survival, it is extremely refreshing to read a story of an Andulasian shepherd boy, Santiago, who renounces his secured and predictable life, to follow the longings of his heart.Santiago chooses to become a shepherd instead of a priest, so that he can travel to far off lands , meet different people and benefit from their wisdom. Just when he thinks he had seen all he could see, has met people from different lands and experienced everything under the sun, he
meets the mysterious King Of Salem.The old king challenges every belief held by the boy and inspires him to undertake a journey to the
pyramids of Egypt in search of a long lost treasure. Santiago, on his way to pyramids, is robbed at Tangier and after cleaning few crystals, is offered job at the same shop. As soon as Santiago starts working at the
shop the business picks up, and the owner considers him a good omen for his business.After working for a year at the crystal shop where he learns the language of omens, he leaves, to join a caravan heading towards the pyramids of Egypt.On his way to pyramids he meets an English man who is researching on alchemy. He learns that the English man is in search of Alchemist who will teach him to turn lead into gold. Due to the war caravan halts at an Oasis. Santiago meets Fatima, a desert woman and realises she is the one whom he has awaited for years , without even realising he has. Santiago interprets his love for Fatima as his reason to travel to this far off land. Just when he is about to relinquish his desire to find the treasure, he meets the Alchemist, who reminds him of the omens and that if he does not find the real treasure, everything he has learnt on his way would loose its meaning.The Alchemist teaches Santiago about the soul of the world and the language of the universe. He tells Santiago that when you desire something with all your heart, entire universe conspires in helping to achieve it. Santiago sets on his journey once again, where his determination to pursue his goal is and his faith in all the wisdom he has gained on his way towards the pyramids, is tested. Eventually he succeeds in finding his treasure, when a man at pyramids tells him about a recurrent dream of finding a
treasure in the ruins of an old Spanish church, the very place where Santiago had lived as a Sheperd.
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