Paulo Coelho's Blog, page 35
November 25, 2017
The beggar and the guru
A baker wanted to get to know a great guru in his town a little better, so he invited him to dinner. The day before, the guru went to the bakery disguised as a beggar, picked a bread roll off the display and began to eat it. The baker saw this and tossed him out […]
November 21, 2017
Too shy to dance
When I was an adolescent I envied the great ballerinos among the kids on the block, and pretended I had other things to do at parties — like having a conversation. But in fact I was terrified of looking ridiculous, and because of that I would not risk a single step. Until one day a […]
November 20, 2017
The 3 symptoms of killing our dreams
____________________________ ESPANOL CLICAR AQUI: Matando los suenos PORTUGUES CLICAR AQUI: Matando os sonhos ____________________________ The first symptom of the process of our killing our dreams is the lack of time. The busiest people I have known in my life always have time enough to do everything. Those who do nothing are always tired and pay […]
November 18, 2017
Ninja training
The Ninja warriors go to the field where some wheat has just been planted. Obeying the trainer’s command, they jump over the places where the seeds were sown. Every day the Ninja warriors return to the field. The seeds turn into buds, and the warriors jump over them. The buds turn into small plants, and […]
November 13, 2017
20 SEC READ: The Chinese bamboo
After the bamboo seed is planted, you don’t see anything for approximately five years, other than a tiny shoot. All of its growth happens underground; a complex root system that extends vertically and horizontally in the earth begins to form. At the end of the fifth year, the Chinese bamboo grows until it is approximately […]
November 11, 2017
20 SEC READ: Learning to live with some wounds (ENG, PORT,ESPA)
Illustration by Ken Crane____________________ EN ESPANOL CLICAR AQUI: Puercoespines EM PORTUGUES CLICAR AQUI: Os Porcos-Espinhos ____________________ During the Ice Age many animals died because of the cold. Seeing this situation, the porcupines decided to group together, so they wrapped up well and protected one another. But they hurt one another with their thorns, and so […]
November 10, 2017
Destroying and rebuilding
I am invited to go to Guncan-Gima, the site of a Zen Buddhist temple. When I get there, I am surprised to see that the extraordinarily beautiful building, which is situated in the middle of a vast forest, is right next to a huge piece of waste ground. I ask what the waste ground […]
November 5, 2017
The Worst Reviews of Classic Books
selected from a post By Bill Henderson, Publishers Weekly “The final blow-up of what was once a remarkable, if minor, talent.” -The New Yorker, 1936, on Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner “Whitman is as unacquainted with art as a hog is with mathematics.” -The London Critic, 1855, on Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman “That […]
October 31, 2017
10 second reading: the wrong gift
A friend of mine, Miie T. decided to abandon everything she knew “” she was an economist “” in order to dedicate herself to painting. For years she sought an adequate master until she met a woman who lived in Tibet and specialized in miniatures. Miie left Japan and went to the Tibetan mountains and […]
October 28, 2017
Incompetence behind authority
Jean was walking with his grandfather through a public square in Paris. At a certain point, he saw a shoemaker being mistreated by a client, whose footwear showed a flaw. The shoemaker listened calmly to the complaint and apologized, promising to correct the error. Jean and his grandfather stopped to have coffee at a bistro. […]
