Paulo Coelho: Trending quotes

“We humans have two great problems: the first is knowing when to begin; the second is knowing when to stop.”

Source: The Alchemist

“The wise are wise only because they love.”

Paulo Coelho book The Zahir

As quoted in Elders on Love: Dialogues on the Consciousness, Cultivation, and Expression of Love (1999) by Kenneth R. Lakritz and Thomas M. Knoblauch.
Unsourced variant: The wise are wise only because they love. The fools are fools only because they think they can understand love.
Variant: The wise are wise only because they love.
Source: The Zahir

“But if you believe yourself worthy of the thing you fought so hard to get, then you become an instrument of God, you help the Soul of the World, and you understand why you are here.”

“The lake was silent for some time. Finally, it said:
"I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected.”

Source: The Alchemist

“She would consider each day a miracle - which indeed it is, when you consider the number of unexpected things that could happen in each second of our fragile existences.”

Source: The Alchemist

“That is why I write - to try to turn sadness into longing, solitude into remembrance.”

Source: Veronika Decides to Die

Paulo Coelho book By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

Source: By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

“In order to have faith in his own path, he does not need to prove that someone else's path is wrong.”

“My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer.”

Source: Warrior of the Light

“Only two things can reveal life's great secrets: suffering and love.”

Source: The Alchemist

Paulo Coelho book Aleph

Source: Aleph

“Faith is not Desire. Faith is Will. Desires are things that need to be satisfied, whereas Will is a force. Will changes the space around us,…”

“The universe only makes sense when we have someone to share our feelings with.”

Source: The Witch Of Portobello

“Sometimes life is very mean: a person can spend days, weeks, months and years without feeling new. Then, when a door opens - a positive avalanche pours in. One moment, you have nothing, the next, you have more than you can cope with.”

Source: Eleven Minutes

“Life can seem short or life can seem long, depending on how you live it.”

Source: Eleven Minutes

Paulo Coelho book The Devil and Miss Prym

Source: The Devil and Miss Prym

“Dreaming is very pleasant as long as you are not forced to put your dreams into practice.”

“Considering the way the world is, one happy day is almost a miracle.”

Source: Eleven Minutes

“Talent is a universal gift, but it takes a lot of courage to use it. Don't be afraid to be the best.”

Source: Eleven Minutes

Paulo Coelho book The Winner Stands Alone

Source: The Winner Stands Alone

“You can either be a victim of the world or an adventurer in search of treasure. It all depends on how you view your life.”

“Scars speak more loudly than the sword that caused them.”

Variant: I can choose either to be a victim of the world or an adventurer in search of treasure. It's all a question of how I view my life.
Source: Eleven Minutes (2003), p. 37.

Paulo Coelho book Manuscript Found in Accra

Source: Manuscript Found in Accra

“It's only those who are persistent and willing to study things deeply, who achieve the master work.”