Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is a book about a man named Siddhartha who travels through Ancient India searching for enlightenment. He is born the son of a Brahmin and considered a learned man at a young age. Throughout the book, Siddhartha constantly searches for enlightenment in different places and different forms. First, he searches for it by letting go of all worldly connections. Next, he looks for it by learning about physical love and attachment. Lastly, Siddhartha searches for and finds enlightenment in Om, meaning perfection. Om helps him escape the senseless cycle of life and find a universal understanding of life, called Nirvana. Three significant stages of Siddhartha’s life on this journey to enlightenment are as a Samana and a ferryman
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He leaves his comfortable, entitled, and rich life for one of fasting, begging, and meditation. He decides that although the Brahmins are wise, none have truly reached enlightenment, and therefore they are unfit to teach him the way to enlightenment. Siddhartha and Govinda, Siddhartha’s close friend, make the bold decision to become Samanas, wandering ascetics, and live a life of self-denial. The first thing Siddhartha learns from the Samanas is to detach himself from the material world. He “gave his clothes to a poor Brahmin on the road… only ate once a day and never cooked… His glance became icy when he encountered women; his lips curled with contempt when he passed through a town of well-dressed people… they were all illusions of sense, happiness, and beauty. All were doomed to decay. The world tasted bitter. Life was pain,” (pg 13-14). Another important lesson …show more content…
The first stage was right when he left home and became a Samana helping him become more in touch with the world spiritually. The second stage was when he left the Samanas and became a merchant hindering him by bringing him into the material world. The third stage was when he left town and became a ferryman, helping him to find peace in the world. Throughout his life, Siddhartha discovers something not many others do: that to reach enlightenment you have to get there yourself without teachers. This is a thought that guides Siddhartha throughout his entire
He leaves his comfortable, entitled, and rich life for one of fasting, begging, and meditation. He decides that although the Brahmins are wise, none have truly reached enlightenment, and therefore they are unfit to teach him the way to enlightenment. Siddhartha and Govinda, Siddhartha’s close friend, make the bold decision to become Samanas, wandering ascetics, and live a life of self-denial. The first thing Siddhartha learns from the Samanas is to detach himself from the material world. He “gave his clothes to a poor Brahmin on the road… only ate once a day and never cooked… His glance became icy when he encountered women; his lips curled with contempt when he passed through a town of well-dressed people… they were all illusions of sense, happiness, and beauty. All were doomed to decay. The world tasted bitter. Life was pain,” (pg 13-14). Another important lesson …show more content…
The first stage was right when he left home and became a Samana helping him become more in touch with the world spiritually. The second stage was when he left the Samanas and became a merchant hindering him by bringing him into the material world. The third stage was when he left town and became a ferryman, helping him to find peace in the world. Throughout his life, Siddhartha discovers something not many others do: that to reach enlightenment you have to get there yourself without teachers. This is a thought that guides Siddhartha throughout his entire