Balance, although not easily obtained, is vital to a life of peace and happiness. Too much of anything-- even a positive thing-- is not beneficial. Balance, known to Buddhists as the Eightfold Path, is seen as the single way to reach Nirvana, the ultimate goal. One often attains Nirvana through an internal inquiry of the spiritual self, just as Siddhartha, a once young and inexperienced Brahmin, found salvation through a long journey of religious discovery. Siddhartha, a novel by Hermann Hesse, illustrates the vitality of balance in the symbolism of the river, as the troubled protagonist travels between a materialistic and bountiful life, to one of poverty and deprivation. Initially, Siddhartha first becomes a Samana, learning to deprive himself of all desire, and live without materialistic goods by thinking, waiting, and fasting, hoping that those would be the pillars to his life. After leaving his family and Brahmin ways, Siddhartha embarks on a journey to …show more content…
After Siddhartha meets Vasudeva, the ferryman, he learns the gift of listening, and adopts a life of balance, through his life on the river. “And when I learned that, I reviewed my life and it was also a river, and Siddhartha the boy, Siddhartha the mature man, and Siddhartha the old man, were only separated by shadows, not through reality” (107). Through reflecting on his life, he discovers that his life is a river, and that all of his experiences led him to this moment of inner tranquility-- of Nirvana. Here, balance is reflected in the importance of the river, but is also signified in the representation of Siddhartha’s life, elucidating that life constantly goes on, just as the river continues to flow. Moreover, it exemplifies the relations between all living things, and emphasizes the unity that everything
In this paper, I will be explaining how Siddhartha had arrived at the Four Noble Truths. The first paragraph contains how Siddhartha’s life was full of suffering, pain, and sorrow. The second paragraph will be the cause of suffering is the desire for things that are really illusions in Siddhartha’s life. Following, in the third paragraph I will be explaining how the only way to cure suffering is to overcome desire. Finally, I will be explaining that the only way to overcome desire is to follow the Eightfold Path.
In Herman Hesse's Siddhartha, Unity is a reflecting theme of this novel and in life. Unity is first introduced by means of the river and by the mystical word "Om." Siddhartha's quest for knowledge began when he left his father and sought the teachings of the Samanas. By becoming a Samana Siddhartha had to give up all of his possessions and learn to survive with practically nothing. He quickly picked up all of the Samanas' tricks like meditating, abandonment of the Self, fasting, and holding of the breath. By abandoning the Self, Siddhartha left himself and took on many other forms and became many other things. At first, this excited Siddhartha and he craved more. He took on the shape and life of everything, but he would always return to himself. After he began to notice this endless cycle he realized how dissatisfied it really made him. He had learned all the noble tools the samanas had taught for attaining the innermost Being that is no longer Self, yet even after mastering all of the arts he never progressed further than his cycle of abandoning his Self and returning to it.
"It is this what you mean, isn't it: that the river is everywhere at once?” Siddhartha took many journeys in his life all of which were necessary for him to reach enlightenment. There are multiple factors that lead to Siddhartha's enlightenment such as his journey through the city and meeting Kamala and Kamaswami. The plays a massive role in his journey to enlightenment. Without any of these he wouldn't have reached enlightenment
Siddhartha is a much respected son of a Brahmin who lives with his father in ancient India. Everyone in their town expects Siddhartha to act like his father and become successful. Although he lives a very high quality life, Siddhartha is dissatisfied and along with his best friend Govinda- wants nothing more than to join the group of wandering ascetics called Samana’s. This group starves themselves, travels almost naked and must beg for the food they survive on. This group of people believes that to achieve enlightenment and self-actualization: body image, health, physical and material desires must be thrown away. Although this is the life Siddhartha wished for himself, he soon discovers that it is not the right choice for him. Near desolation, Siddhartha happens upon a river where he hears a strange sound. This sound signifies the beginning of the life he was born to live – the beginning of his true self. Hesse uses many literary devices to assure Siddhartha’s goal of self-actualization and creates a proper path for that success.
In Hesse's novel, Siddhartha the title character, Siddhartha leaves the Brahmins in search of Nirvana - spiritual peace. The journey he endures focuses on two main goals - to find peace and the right path (http://www.ic.ucsb.edu/~ggotts/hesse/life/jennifer/html). Joseph Mileck, the author of Hermann Hesse: Life and Art, asserts that Siddhartha focuses on a sense of unity developed through Siddhartha's mind, body, and soul (Baumer). Hesse's Siddhartha revolves around three central journeys - a physical, a mental, and a spiritual journey.
Vasudeva, the ferryboat captain, was the most important person in Siddhartha’s life. If he hadn’t allowed Siddhartha to live with him and share the beauty of the river, Siddhartha may have never reached Nirvana. Sitting with his pupil by the water and forcing him to listen and look into the depths led Siddhartha to his place of peacefulness.
Frequent allusions to the river correspond w/ Siddhartha's infinite thoughts of Unity and his initial plans to strive for it. Siddhartha has a number of specific goals during the course of this novel, but in no way does this detract from the bare nature of his ultimate goal. The accomplishment of specific goals was an important part of the progression approaching his absolute state of Unity.
During this period-the realm of the mind, Siddhartha actively sets about letting the self die, escaping his Self. This attempt reaches its most concentrated form during his stay with the ascetic Samanas, during which he discards all material possessions and tries further to flee his own body and control his other needs. This is shown when he says, "He killed his senses, he killed his memory, he slipped out of his Self in a thousand different forms." S...
Eventually, Siddhartha realizes the error of his ways and leaves Kamala, for a new way of life, but he leaves behind an unborn child. He leaves all his riches and Kamaswami, which was very desperate to find him at the time of his “disappearance.” Siddhartha had reached a stage in his life where he thought there was no meaning, he’s been on the trek for knowledge all his life but he had not attained satisfaction. He wanted to die. “With a distorted countenance he stared into the water…soul suddenly awakened and he recognized the folly of his action.” (89) He became so lost and distressed he did not see a path for him in the world, but then he met the river. This is where he finally reaches his Nirvana; through further scrutiny and under the guidance of Vasudeva, he becomes cognizant of the flow of the world. “The river knows everything…you will learn the other thing too.” (105) Vasudeva is a man that his lived on the river for a long time, and he has learned its ways. The river is a cycle, and everything depends on it. Animals, plants, and even humans need rivers to survive. Most ancient civilizations were based on river banks, so that they can reap plentiful crops. “Siddhartha tried to listen better…thousands of voices.” (134-135) Siddhartha’s study of the river made him realize who was, who he is, and who he will be. The pictures in the water were his life and all other lives that flowed like rivers, and ultimately began anew with
Siddhartha's path lead him through constant re-evaluations, keeping him focused on himself. He began as the son of a wealthy Brahmin, sheltered from the real world and any experience with it, but having the best education he could obtain. He began his life at home, as a thinker, possessing wisdom and thoughts he had yet to earn through experience.
When Siddhartha was about 29 he saw a series of images that opened his eyes to the preciousness of human life. He saw an ill man, an elderly man, a dead body and a holy man. These images inspired him to try and reach enlightenment (“Buddha” Reynolds). Siddhartha had many questions about life outside the palace, which led him on many explorations. His journeys led him to leave the palace to live a life of abstinence (Editors of Biography.com). For six years Siddhartha lived a life of fasting, meditation. Five religious people followed him in his ways of life (Editors of Biography.com). When none of these things helped him reach enlightenment, he fasted more vigorously. One day, a bowl of rice was offered to him by a little girl, he soon realized that none of his previous attempts were working so he ate the rice and abandoned that way of life (Editors of
Living with the Samanas, Siddharth learns most of their skills, such as how to think, wait, and fast. Siddhartha will lose these skills when he becomes a merchant and lives a luxurious life (p. 95). This proves knowledge is temporary, meaning it will be forgotten if not practiced for a while. In his path to enlightenment, Siddhartha meets an enlightened ferryman named Vasudeva who lives by a river. He tells Siddhartha that he has learned everything from the river. Vasudeva also tells him that the river symbolizes life, stating, “The river is everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfalls, at the ferry, in the ocean and in the mountains, and that the present only for it, not the of the past, or the of the future” (p. 107). The river reveals many things about enlightenment. Similar to a river, wisdom flows through everything. Reading about the natural process of the river reminds the readers of the challenges that exist in life, which is the path to enlightenment. Vasudeva emphasizes that the river is beautiful because it only exists at present. This demonstrates the happiness in the wise people’s lives. In particular, wise people enjoy the moment because they do not regret their past mistakes and do not have any concerns about their future. Overall, wisdom is a lifelong understanding of life, while knowledge is transitory information acquired through
Siddhartha, written by Herman Hesse, is a novel about a man's progression towards his goal to center his life with a combination of peace and balance. Many of the displayed philosophies can be applied to today's world. Through my reading, I noticed many similarities between my life and Siddhartha's. First, Siddhartha felt a need for independence, that to truly be happy with his success, he must attain his achievements in his own way, and not others. Even though, he feels he must acquire this by himself, he tries to be as removed from his human side as possible. Only later does he learn that individuality and freedom from necessity must be united to procure his objectives and free him from his imperfections. Second, Siddhartha discovers that things and riches do not bring happiness. They are only temporary. No matter the extent of wealth a person has this never satisfies the insatiable need for possessions. Lastly, Siddhartha found that balance is the key to peace and happiness. Although a simplistic teaching, it is very complex to learn and apply. In my life, I can relate to his path and lessons, because I feel the same struggles and battles with attaining serenity.
Siddhartha has the urge to become enlightened There was something telling him to endure on his journey to enlightenment and thus begins the Hero Journey This is the first step towards his journey After seeing the Samanas, he decides he wants to follow in their footsteps to learn more about himself and the world that he has been sheltered from his whole life When he tells his family about his decision of becoming and Samana they refuse to let him go, especially his father who has done most of
This shows that people have to suffer to discover their true self and achieve their goals. Even though Siddhartha spend his entire life working towards his goal, he eventually found enlightenment. This story shows how the identity of one man changes throughout his entire life, which goes in hand with people living in society. To become their ideal selves, they must go through certain phases of various identities, to figure out who they really want to