“I was not I, I was nothing - and that seemed to me quite marvelous.”

—  Paulo Coelho , book The Zahir

Source: The Zahir

Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "I was not I, I was nothing - and that seemed to me quite marvelous." by Paulo Coelho?
Paulo Coelho photo
Paulo Coelho 844
Brazilian lyricist and novelist 1947

Related quotes

Catherine of Genoa photo

“Faith seems to me wholly lost, and hope dead; for I am so plunged and submerged in the source of his infinite love, as if I were quite under water in the sea and could not touch, see, feel anything on any side except water it seems to me that I have and hold in certainty that which I believed and hoped at other times. I no longer see union, for I know nothing more and can see nothing more than him alone without me. I do not know where the I is, nor do I seek it, nor do I wish to know or be cognizant of it.”

Catherine of Genoa (1447–1510) Italian author and nurse
Stanisław Lem photo

“What gave you this idea of an imperfect god?'

'I don't know. It seems quite feasible to me. That is the only god I could imagine believing in, a god whose passion is not a redemption, who saves nothing, fulfills no purpose--a god who simply is.”

Stanisław Lem book Solaris

Source: Solaris

Oscar Wilde photo

“I hope, Cecily, I shall not offend you if I state quite frankly and openly that you seem to me to be in every way the visible personification of absolute perfection.”

Oscar Wilde The Importance of Being Earnest

Variant: Would you be in any way offended if I said that you seem to me to be in every way the visible personification of absolute perfection?
Source: The Importance of Being Earnest

Catherine of Genoa photo

“Faith seems to me wholly lost, and hope dead; for it seems to me that I have and hold in certainty that which I believed and hoped at other times. I no longer see union, for I know nothing more and can see nothing more than him alone without me. I do not know where the I is, nor do I seek it, nor do I wish to know or be cognizant of it.”

Catherine of Genoa (1447–1510) Italian author and nurse
Teresa of Ávila photo

“I feared them so little, that the terrors, which until now oppressed me, quitted me altogether; and though I saw them occasionally, — I shall speak of this by and by, — I was never again afraid of them — on the contrary, they seemed to be afraid of me.”

Teresa of Ávila (1515–1582) Roman Catholic saint

Source: The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus (c.1565), Ch. XXV. "Divine Locutions. Discussions on That Subject" ¶ 25
Context: I feared them so little, that the terrors, which until now oppressed me, quitted me altogether; and though I saw them occasionally, — I shall speak of this by and by, — I was never again afraid of them — on the contrary, they seemed to be afraid of me. I found myself endowed with a certain authority over them, given me by the Lord of all, so that I cared no more for them than for flies. They seem to be such cowards; for their strength fails them at the sight of any one who despises them. These enemies have not the courage to assail any but those whom they see ready to give in to them, or when God permits them to do so, for the greater good of His servants, whom they may try and torment.

Gaurav Sharma (author) photo

“Get along with me as I don't wait for anybody. I am time, and I welcome you to the world of Kali where nothing is as it seems.”

Gaurav Sharma (author) book God of the Sullied

God of the Sullied (2018)

Jean Paul Sartre photo

“I had found my religion: nothing seemed more important to me than a book. I saw the library as a temple.”

Jean Paul Sartre book The Words

Source: The Words

Isaac Asimov photo

“The undramatic fact is that I just think and think and think until I have something [for a story], and there is nothing marvelous or artistic about the phenomenon.”

Isaac Asimov book In Memory Yet Green

In Memory Yet Green (1979), pp. 301–302
General sources

Namwali Serpell photo

“I probably seem quite at ease now saying I’m mixed race, I’m black, I’m Zambian, but for a while that was quite torturous, quite angsty. As a young woman I wasn’t very tender or nice to myself…Now I’m older, I’m much more able to be tender and kind to the younger me that I see in the book.”

Namwali Serpell (1980) Zambian feminist academic and writer

Source: On coming to terms with her mixed race identity in “Namwali Serpell: 'As a young woman I wasn’t very nice to myself'” https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/apr/30/namwali-serpell-the-old-drift-interview in The Guardian (2019 Apr 30)

Related topics