Like the Flowing River: Thoughts and Reflections by Paulo Coelho Page B
Authors: Paulo Coelho
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me from going in. I walk towards the door. He looks at me, but does nothing.
As I am leaving, two other tourists arrive and they, too, walk in. The old man does not try to stop them. I feel as if, thanks to my resistance, the old man has decided to stop inventing ridiculous rules. Sometimes the world asks us to fight for things we do not understand, and whose significance we will never discover.
Statutes for the New Millennium
1 We are all different, and should do what we can to remain so.
2 Each human being was given two possibilities: action and contemplation. Both lead to the same place.
3 Each human being was given two qualities: power and the gift. Power directs us towards our destiny; the gift obliges us to share with others what is best in us.
4 Each human being was given a virtue: the ability to choose. Anyone who fails to use this virtue transforms it into a curse, and others will choose for them.
5 Each human being has his or her own sexual identity and should be able to exercise that identity without guilt as long as they do not force that sexual identity on others.
6 Every human being has a personal legend to be fulfilled, and this is our reason for being in the world. This personal legend manifests itself in our enthusiasm for the task.
7 One can abandon one’s personal legend for a time, as long as one does not forget about it entirely and returns to it as soon as possible. 8 Every man has a feminine side, and every woman a masculine side. It is important to use discipline with intuition, and to use intuition with objectivity.
9 Every human being should know two languages: the language of society and the language of signs. One serves to communicate with other people, the other serves to understand God’s messages.
10 Every human being has the right to search for happiness, and by ‘happiness’ is meant something that makes that individual feel content, not necessarily something that makes other people feel content.
11 Every human being should keep alive within them the sacred flame of madness, but should behave as a normal person.
12 Only the following items should be considered to be grave faults: not respecting another’s rights; allowing oneself to be paralysed by fear; feeling guilty; believing that one does not deserve the good or ill that happens in one’s life; being a coward.
We will love our enemies, but not make alliances with them. They were placed in our path in order to test our sword, and we should, out of respect for them, struggle against them.
We will choose our enemies.
13 All religions lead to the same God, and all deserve the same respect.
Anyone who chooses a religion is also choosing a collective way of worshipping and sharing the mysteries. Nevertheless, that person is the only one responsible for his or her actions along the way and has no right toshift responsibility for any personal decisions on to that religion.
14 It is hereby decreed that the wall separating the sacred and the profane be torn down. From now on, everything is sacred.
15 Everything that is done in the present affects the future in the form of consequence and affects the past in the form of redemption.
16 All statutes to the contrary are revoked.
Destroying and Rebuilding
I am invited to go to Guncan-Gima, the site of a Zen Buddhist temple. When I get there, I’m 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 is for and the man in charge explains:
‘That is where we will build the next temple. Every twenty years, we destroy the temple you see before you now and rebuild it again on the site next to it. This means that the monks who have trained as carpenters, stonemasons, and architects are always using their practical skills and passing them on to their apprentices. It also shows them that nothing in this life is eternal, and that even temples are in
As I am leaving, two other tourists arrive and they, too, walk in. The old man does not try to stop them. I feel as if, thanks to my resistance, the old man has decided to stop inventing ridiculous rules. Sometimes the world asks us to fight for things we do not understand, and whose significance we will never discover.
Statutes for the New Millennium
1 We are all different, and should do what we can to remain so.
2 Each human being was given two possibilities: action and contemplation. Both lead to the same place.
3 Each human being was given two qualities: power and the gift. Power directs us towards our destiny; the gift obliges us to share with others what is best in us.
4 Each human being was given a virtue: the ability to choose. Anyone who fails to use this virtue transforms it into a curse, and others will choose for them.
5 Each human being has his or her own sexual identity and should be able to exercise that identity without guilt as long as they do not force that sexual identity on others.
6 Every human being has a personal legend to be fulfilled, and this is our reason for being in the world. This personal legend manifests itself in our enthusiasm for the task.
7 One can abandon one’s personal legend for a time, as long as one does not forget about it entirely and returns to it as soon as possible. 8 Every man has a feminine side, and every woman a masculine side. It is important to use discipline with intuition, and to use intuition with objectivity.
9 Every human being should know two languages: the language of society and the language of signs. One serves to communicate with other people, the other serves to understand God’s messages.
10 Every human being has the right to search for happiness, and by ‘happiness’ is meant something that makes that individual feel content, not necessarily something that makes other people feel content.
11 Every human being should keep alive within them the sacred flame of madness, but should behave as a normal person.
12 Only the following items should be considered to be grave faults: not respecting another’s rights; allowing oneself to be paralysed by fear; feeling guilty; believing that one does not deserve the good or ill that happens in one’s life; being a coward.
We will love our enemies, but not make alliances with them. They were placed in our path in order to test our sword, and we should, out of respect for them, struggle against them.
We will choose our enemies.
13 All religions lead to the same God, and all deserve the same respect.
Anyone who chooses a religion is also choosing a collective way of worshipping and sharing the mysteries. Nevertheless, that person is the only one responsible for his or her actions along the way and has no right toshift responsibility for any personal decisions on to that religion.
14 It is hereby decreed that the wall separating the sacred and the profane be torn down. From now on, everything is sacred.
15 Everything that is done in the present affects the future in the form of consequence and affects the past in the form of redemption.
16 All statutes to the contrary are revoked.
Destroying and Rebuilding
I am invited to go to Guncan-Gima, the site of a Zen Buddhist temple. When I get there, I’m 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 is for and the man in charge explains:
‘That is where we will build the next temple. Every twenty years, we destroy the temple you see before you now and rebuild it again on the site next to it. This means that the monks who have trained as carpenters, stonemasons, and architects are always using their practical skills and passing them on to their apprentices. It also shows them that nothing in this life is eternal, and that even temples are in
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