The Zahir: A novel of Obsession

I simply adore this novel by Paulo Coelho. I can't just take this out of my mind and go back to work; It took 5 days to read this novel. Believe me every day I went over some of his lines again and again. I was just wondering why I never saw things in such way Coelhi sees. 


This novel is neither just philosophical nor fictional nor spiritual; its mix of all emotions. You will get questioned and given a way to see Love, Obsession, Life and Truth. 


Instead of I write my words, I would love to share his own from this novel,

“Marie, let’s suppose that two firemen go into a forest to put out a small fire. Afterwards, when they emerge and go over to a stream, the face of one is all smeared with black, while the other man’s face is completely clean. My question is this: which of the two will wash his face? 
That’s a silly question. The one with the dirty face of course.’ 
No, the one with the dirty face will look at the other man and assume that he looks like him. And, vice versa, the man with the clean face will see his colleague covered in grime and say to himself: I must be dirty too. I’d better have a wash.’ 
What are you trying to say?’ 
I’m saying that, during the time I spent in the hospital, I came to realize that I was always looking for myself in the women I loved. I looked at their lovely, clean faces and saw myself reflected in them. They, on the other hand, looked at me and saw the dirt on my face and, however intelligent or self-confident they were, they ended up seeing themselves reflected in me thinking that they were worse than they were. Please, don’t let that happen to you.” 

Well I colored those few lines for general reading; and the rest other gives meaning to who are in relationship. 
It's just a sample; here are few more extracts,

“All you have to do is to pay attention; lessons always arrive when you are ready, and if you can read the signs, you will learn everything you need to know in order to take the next step”

“Love is a disease no one wants to get rid of. Those who catch it never try to get better, and those who suffer do not wish to be cured.” 

“Free again, but it's just a feeling; freedom is not the absence of commitments, but the ability to choose - and commit yourself to what is best for you.” 

Love is an untamed force. When we try to control it, it destroys us. When we try to imprison it, it enslaves us. When we try to understand it, it leaves us feeling lost and confused.

‘A fatally wounded soldier never asks the medical team: “Please save me!” His last words are usually: “Tell me wide and son that I love them.” At the last moment, they speak of love.’

“When someone leaves, it's because someone else is about to arrive.” 

"There is always an event in our lives that is responsible for us failing to progress: a trauma, a particularly bitter defeat, a disappearance in love, even a victory that we did not quite understand, can make cowards of us and prevent us from moving on. As part of the process of increasing his hidden powers, the shaman must first free himself from that giving-up point and, to do so, he must review his whole life and find out where it occurred."

Don't you also get inspired to read The Zahir. If you are kind of person who is in-between good & bad; hate & love; philosophical & Spiritual; can't judge who yo are, then this Novel is for you :-).