Throughout The Alchemist by: Paulo Coelho there are moments in which Santiago is purifying himself by understanding nature and the deeper aspects of life. These ultimately lead him to finding the treasure at the end but the real treasure was the life lessons learned. The author uses symbolism, character development and allegories to develop the theme that true wisdom is all about purifying the soul, community with the universe, and finding the hidden treasures of life. The authors use of symbolism throughout the book was amazing, lumping alchemy in with a universal language and world religion to make it easier to comprehend that alchemy is another way of understanding the language of the universe. One of the major symbols was Santiago’s sheep,
