The boy then encounters a wise alchemist, who teaches him to realize his true self. Frustrated at first, he later learns that true love will not stop nor must one sacrifice one's destiny to it, since to do so robs it of truth. She promises to marry him only after he completes his journey. When they reach an oasis, Santiago meets and falls in love with an Arabian girl named Fatima, to whom he proposes marriage. Santiago then has to work for a crystal merchant to earn enough to get to the pyramids.Īlong the way, the boy meets an Englishman who has come in search of an alchemist and continues his travels with his new companion. Early on his arrival in Africa, a man who claims to be able to take Santiago to the pyramids instead robs him of the money he had made from his flock. The woman interprets it as a prophecy, telling the boy that he will discover a treasure at the Egyptian pyramids.Īfter Santiago sets out he meets an old king, Melchizedek, or the king of Salem, who tells him to sell his sheep so as to travel to Egypt and accomplish his 'Personal Legend'.

He consults a Gypsy fortune-teller about the meaning of the recurring dream. An allegorical novel, The Alchemist follows a young Andalusian shepherd in his journey to the pyramids of Egypt, after having a recurring dream of finding a treasure there.Īn Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago dreams of a treasure while in a ruined church. Originally written in Portuguese, it became a widely translated international bestseller. The Alchemist ( Portuguese: O Alquimista) is a novel by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho which was first published in 1988.

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