Fernando Morais, an acclaimed biographer from Brazil, has written the “authorized biography” of his fellow Brazilian entitled Paulo Coelho: A Warrior’s Life (2009). Firstly I don’t see why he calls Coelho a warrior. Coelho, for the most part, seems to be tumbling through life rather than navigating through it.
Morais is a good writer and presents a balanced and candid view of Coelho’s life. In his childhood Coelho was sent to an insane asylum by his parents – apparently to cure him of his depression – where he was subjected to brutal electroshock therapy. His main defect seems to be that he was maladjusted to society.
In his youth, he lived a dissolute life: he had homosexual affairs, heavily indulged in drugs, was an incorrigible womanizer, was a member of a Satanist secret organization, and acted in porn movies. He teamed up with singer Raul Sexias and became famous as lyricist, writing songs that celebrated Satan worship.
Throughout this dissolute period he nurtured an ambition to be a world-class writer. His dream came true only in his mid-thirties when he had a religious experience and rediscovered his faith. He became a member of a secret society called RAM and was elevated to a position of magus. He claims he can make rain and control the wind.
As he got a grip on his faith, he wrote about his mystical experiences in the book The Pilgrimage (1987). Later followed his most famous book The Alchemist (1988). These books were to bring him enduring success and world fame and honour.
I must confess that I did not find The Alchemist very impressive but I was reading it from the perspective of a nonbeliever (I am not an atheist but I am quite uncomfortable with religious rituals and cannot quite comprehend mysticism, never having had a religious experience). But belief is strong all over the world and the fact that Coelho has sold over a 100 million copies of his books proves it.
I enjoyed reading Paulo Coelho: A Warrior’s Life even though I could not quite come to terms with Coelho’s worldview and all that transpired in his life.
Morais is a good writer and presents a balanced and candid view of Coelho’s life. In his childhood Coelho was sent to an insane asylum by his parents – apparently to cure him of his depression – where he was subjected to brutal electroshock therapy. His main defect seems to be that he was maladjusted to society.
In his youth, he lived a dissolute life: he had homosexual affairs, heavily indulged in drugs, was an incorrigible womanizer, was a member of a Satanist secret organization, and acted in porn movies. He teamed up with singer Raul Sexias and became famous as lyricist, writing songs that celebrated Satan worship.
Throughout this dissolute period he nurtured an ambition to be a world-class writer. His dream came true only in his mid-thirties when he had a religious experience and rediscovered his faith. He became a member of a secret society called RAM and was elevated to a position of magus. He claims he can make rain and control the wind.
As he got a grip on his faith, he wrote about his mystical experiences in the book The Pilgrimage (1987). Later followed his most famous book The Alchemist (1988). These books were to bring him enduring success and world fame and honour.
I must confess that I did not find The Alchemist very impressive but I was reading it from the perspective of a nonbeliever (I am not an atheist but I am quite uncomfortable with religious rituals and cannot quite comprehend mysticism, never having had a religious experience). But belief is strong all over the world and the fact that Coelho has sold over a 100 million copies of his books proves it.
I enjoyed reading Paulo Coelho: A Warrior’s Life even though I could not quite come to terms with Coelho’s worldview and all that transpired in his life.
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