by Vishnu | Dec 31, 2015 | Abundance, Dreams
Alchemists are the magical medieval cooks of ancient traditions who transformed metal into gold and silver.
But for many of us, the book, The Alchemist, has literally transformed our lives and inspired us to stay true to our destiny.
It’s written by the Brazilian author, Paulo Coelho, who has sold 65 million copies of this book. Pharell loves this book. Madonna loves this book. Julia Roberts. Oprah. Will Smith and countless other famous and not so famous people.
This is the story of Santiago, the Andalucian shepherd boy, who is inspired by omens, gypsies and wise men to leave his sheep in Spain and go a journey to find his life’s treasure.
In the pursuit of his dreams, Santiago has a strong message to each and everyone of us on achieving our own destinies.
The book is a quick read that will inspire you to pursue your life’s purpose. If you haven’t read it, pick it up here.
In the meantime, here are 15 Life Changing Quotes from The Alchemist to help you do what you were meant to do here on earth. Each quote is followed by a brief explanation.
1. “A shepherd always takes his chances with wolves and with drought, and that’s what makes a shepherd’s life exciting.”
If you don’t take chances and take risks, you won’t be able to reap the awards of the opportunities that come your way. Sometimes, you have to take risks and overcome your fears to follow your dreams.
2. “(That’s the world’s greatest lie.) It’s this: that a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what’s happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate.”
You can choose your destiny. You have a choice on how your life is going to turn out. The future is in your hands. Even when things get out of control, you can shape your destiny.
3. “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
When you pursuing your purpose and your destiny, the universe will do its part to support you and to help you succeed. Circumstances will fall in place and in your favor to help you achieve your destiny.
4. “People learn, early in their lives, what is their reason for being,” said the old man, with a certain bitterness. “Maybe that’s why they give up on it so early too. But that’s the way it is.”
Keep your dreams alive. Don’t sacrifice the thing that matters most in your life – staying true to your purpose.
5. “In order to find the treasure, you will have to follow the omens. God has prepared a path for everyone to follow. You just have to read the omens that he left for you.”
You will have signs that will lead you along the way – let them guide you on your path. Follow the signs and guide posts along the journey. Pay attention to messages that the universe is sending you.
6. “And above all, don’t forget to follow your destiny through to its conclusion.”
Don’t give up half way – keep going!
7. “He could always go back to being a shepherd. He could always become a crystal salesman again. Maybe the world had other hidden treasures, but he had a dream, and he had met with a king. That doesn’t happen to just anyone!”
If you have a dream, you’re obligated to pursue it. You have been given a gift of a dream – don’t let it slip through your hands. If you fail, you can go back to whatever you were doing before.
8. “If I could, I’d write a huge encyclopedia just about the words luck and coincidence. It’s with those words that the universal language is written,” the Englishman said.
The universe sends us messages through luck and coincidences –pay attention to them.
9. “Everything on earth is being continuously transformed, because the earth is alive…and it has a soul. We are part of that soul, so we rarely recognize that it is working for us.”
You are being guided by the earth which shares the same soul that you do. See how the earth is working in your favor.
10. “When I have been truly searching for my treasure, I’ve discovered things along the way that I never would have said had I not the courage to try things that seemed impossible for a shepherd to achieve.”
When you’re following your dreams and on your path, you’ll find the courage to do things you wouldn’t have otherwise done.
11. “It is said that the darkest hour of the night came just before the dawn,” (the boy remembered).
Your most difficult time will be right before you reach your destination. Keep going when it is darkest.
12. “You will never be able to escape from your heart. So it’s better to listen to what it has to say. That way, you’ll never have to fear an unanticipated blow” (the Alchemist said)
Be more aware of your intuition and you inner voice. When you listen to your heart, you’re less likely to listen to your fears.
13. “But the payment goes well beyond my generosity,” the monk responded. “Don’t say that again. Life might be listening, and give you less the next time.”
You’ll get what you ask from the world. Ask for your heart’s desires – don’t shortchange yourself.
14. “Where your treasure is, there will also be your heart,” the alchemist had told him.
Your heart will lead you to your destination – listen to your heart because that’s where you’ll find your riches.
15. “It’s true; life really is generous to those who pursue their destiny the boy thought.”
The people who overcome their fears and go after what they were meant to do will find abundance and success in their lives.
If you enjoyed these quotes with explanations, please share on Twitter, Facebook and Google+.
by Vishnu | Dec 13, 2015 | Love and Relationships, Vulnerability
https://youtu.be/bFgZMe7mHgg
“Loving can heal. Loving can mend your soul.” Ed Sheeran
It’s officially been four years.
I’m still here. You’re still here.
All of us – survivors of divorce, heartbreak and heartache – are still here and still standing.
Some of us are barely here, but we’re still here!
Over the past four years I had gone out of my way to close off all the personal relationships in my life.
I stayed behind my fort, my moat, my castle of unscalable walls so that I wouldn’t have to open my heart to anyone.
I liked being there – hidden, closed and impossible to hurt.
Until I had an awakening – until I started questioning my beliefs and becoming more mindful of what I was doing.
I had used one dramatic experience in my life – heartbreak and a marriage gone wrong – to make up my mind about all relationships and love in general.
To me, love registered as painful, life-crushing and destructive.
It was my reality, my experience and my journey until I realized – exactly – that it was my experience, my reality and my journey which gave me the power to change how I viewed these past events in my life.
Yes, I could stay in the self-created prison of sabotage and loneliness or I could break through, throw off the shackles of heartbreak and stand up again.
See, when I was a recluse, holed up and walled-in, heartbreak won.
When I decided, by free will and choice, that my past was no longer going to imprison me, love won.
And you know what’s really motivating me to love again?
Why I signed up for those dating sites, why I said okay to meeting women my family has been introducing me to and why I said okay to blind dates? Why I even responded to a woman my brother’s landlord tried to set me up – in another state?
Why yes to love?
Because here’s what I’ve found by opening my heart to love again – as Ed Sheeran points out in this soulful song above, love may hurt but love also has the ability to heal. And mend your soul.
You can do two things after divorce and heartbreak: 1) run away, hide and never love again; or 2) grieve, heal and open up your heart to love again. And in loving, find that you can heal your heart by loving again.
By opening your heart, you allow it to piece itself together. All those broken pieces gather and join back together. Your heartbreak has allowed your heart to grow and become fuller.
So, that’s why I need to love – and that’s why you need to love.
You need to take down the walls.
Let go of all the false beliefs. Let go of the anger and the bitterness you may be harboring toward your ex.
Believe that love is possible again and believe that love can help you heal.
Your heartbreak was experience, and the more you do something, the better you get at it.
The more we learn about what didn’t work, the more we can learn what does.
The more insight we have about ourselves, the more we can share with others.
You don’t have to wait for anyone to love you.
You don’t have to wait for some kind-hearted, compassionate, caramel-skin Indian woman who’s in her 30s, in the five-foot height range, into yoga and working as a pharmacist to fall in love with you – I mean, of course if you know that person and she’s in Southern California, dial the number 909-263-5463 as soon as possible. No, that’s not my personal cell phone number which I’ll pick up in one ring.
What were we talking about?
Oh yeah, you. And love.
And why you need to love again.
You need to love again. It doesn’t have to be romantic love, either. And you don’t have to wait for someone to love you.
Loving again means the following:
1) Making peace with your past.
Forgiving those who hurt you and forgiving yourself for your mistakes in your past relationship.
2) Saying whatever needs to be said for closure.
Don’t say it to your ex – write it down or say all those things you wanted to say but couldn’t, out loud to someone you trust. Say those things that will give you closure and help you move on with your life.
3) Start loving those around you.
The people who are close to you – friends, family, colleagues, neighbors and anyone who needs some love. What does loving look like? Read this post here, which describes ways to cultivate relationships and take action on love. Loving someone doesn’t have to be in the romantic sense – loving is simply giving, sharing and making connections.
4) Confront your disempowering and negative beliefs about love.
You likely have strong love blocks that you should examine. What are those beliefs or feelings that are preventing you from loving again? What are you going to do to work through them and to let go of disempowering thoughts?
5) Practice opening your heart.
Put yourself in situations that allow you to open your heart and give to others. Feel compassion and sympathy for people around you – donate your time or energy to improving their lives.
Practice saying yes to things that scare you when you want to say no.
Visualize what a loving and supportive relationship looks like and be open to that.
Be open to loving yourself – be compassionate to yourself and kind to your thoughts and the demands you have of yourself.
6) Take small steps of courage on the daily to be vulnerable.
Vulnerability is saying that you’re looking for someone new in your life.
Vulnerability is putting up your dating profile. Vulnerability is uploading your photo. Vulnerability is telling someone you like them. Vulnerability is sending an email to someone you’re interested in. Vulnerability is responding to a message. Vulnerability is saying no. Vulnerability is saying yes. Vulnerability is saying yes to coffee. Yes to meeting. Yes to sushi. Yes to a movie. Yes to your friend who’s trying to set you up. Yes to your family who wants to introduce you to a friend’s daughter.
For my book, 10 Sacred Laws of Healing a Broken Heart, click here.
