Pilgrimage

The Pilgrimage is the first book by Brazilian author, Paulo Coelho, and translated into English by Alan Clarke. As a devotee of the Tradition, at 38 years old, Paulo makes the mistake, at the ceremony of his ordination as a Master of the Order of RAM, of assuming he is worthy of the sword, and then learns that he will have to travel the Road to Santiago de Castelin (aka the Jacobean route, the Milky Way) in Spain, to find it. This book is his account of that pilgrimage, undertaken in 1986 with a Master of RAM guide, Petrus. Previously published as The Diary of a Magus, this is apparently non-fiction, but often reads like fiction. His tale includes a demon in the guise of a gypsy, a possessed dog, and a guide whose advice is often enigmatic or cryptic. It features a generous helping of symbolism, quite a few (occasionally trite) aphorisms, and eleven ritual exercises that each Pilgrim must practice. Tedious, verging on boring, this feels more than a little contrived. 3 stars