Is the alchemist a Sufi Master? - The Alchemist - A last word.

Paulo Coelho and Sufism

I’ve been wrestling with how I should end this month-long read of The Alchemist and as I debated the many topics I could write about, my mind went to the sayings of Rumi. In 2000, Paulo told Syria's leading English-speaking magazine, Forward, that his writings were influenced by Sufi traditions, emphasizing his great admiration of Sufi figures, such as the famed Sufi dervish and love poet, Jelaluddin Rumi.

"Indeed, Sufism has inspired me a lot throughout my life and I refer to this tradition in some of my books such as The Alchemist and more recently The Zahir. Rumi is of course the first figure that springs to mind. His teachings and visions are incredibly subtle and clear,"

Then I recalled a section in Paulo’s book Hippie (which I will be covering at a later date after our read along) and how he set out on the Hippie trail, heading for Nepal, but only made it as far as Turkey. This is the story of what happened in Turkey and why I am proposing that the character of the alchemist is indeed a Sufi Master.

Is the character of the alchemist a Sufi Master?