Courtney Sanders
Rel 130
Date 4/1/2016
Book Review

The book called “SIDDHARTHA” By: Hermann Hesse translated by Hilda Rosner and Published By: New Directions Publishing Corporation. Is about is about a story of a young man’s quest in search of the ultimate answers to what a men need to do in this world of ours. The young Indian boy was named Siddhartha. This book is about the young boy who will find his destiny and must go through challenges in his life, by facing love affairs, heartaches, struggle leaving his son and the temptations of wealth and power. Siddhartha will go through all of this to become what he known today in this day in age as the Great Buddha.
This book is intended for any reader that wants the life and struggles of the Buddha. As well as to know the struggles he faced with his farther, wife and son whom he just left and did not come back to until many years later. The author wanted to let the reader know how Buddhism came to be, and how the story of the Buddha’s life was growing up, finding his enter peace, and how the Buddha faced multiple daemons inside himself to help find Nirvana. The time line for this book was written in or around 5th century.
Hermann Hesse: author of the book “SIDDHARTHA” is a great Swiss writer who won the Nobel Prize in 1946 for this book. He also won the Nobel Price in Literature, Gotethe Prize, Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, Pour le Merite and Gottfried-Keller-Preis. Hermann was born on July 2, 1877, he was a German born and he was a fabulous Swiss poet, novelist and painter. Some of his best books include Steppenwolf, Siddhartha and the Glass Bead Game.

The story takes place in a town called Kapilavastu, where a little boy named Siddhartha lived. Siddhartha grow up in the Brahman religion family. He was the son of a King Suddhodana Thar. Siddhartha was very loved and but he was a unhappy little boy. He was a very bored little boy who believed that the elders in his community have nothing more to teach him. Siddhartha and one of his best friends named Govinda, had spent several years with a group called Samanas ( wondering ascetics), and their they learned how to withstand pain, hunger in an effort to know the their bodies limitations.
After a few years wondering around with the Samanas Siddhartha and Govinda were left with another void in their hearts and decided to hear the teachings of the Gotama Buddha. That beings said Siddhartha friend left him to go study with the Gotama Buddha and Siddhartha did not follow. He had decided he was going to learn independently.
Siddhartha then travels to a nearby town, he was then greeted by a young women named Kamala. He then asked her if he could join and offer himself has a student to her teachings. He teachings were in the art, love and beauty. Siddhartha then starts working for the wealthy women and for once in his life he was content. After years go on he then becomes dissatisfied and develops anxiety, gambling habits and self-hatred and finally he leaves her and never returns home.
After he leaves homes he sees his long lost friend Govinda, He then asks to join Govinda on his journey with the Ferryman named Vasuduva. After the travels they then sat down and started listening to the river. The river was like a spiritual guide, with that being said Siddhartha grows wiser and wiser. After several years Siddhartha then returns home to tell his son to follow in his own path. Days later after telling his son to follow in his own path Siddhartha reaches what is called enlightenment. Not long after that Vasudeva passes into Nirvana and Siddhartha then takes the ferryman’s place and ferry’s people across the river. While ferrying people across the river he helps his long lost friends reach his enlightenment.
I think the author purpose of this book is about finding your own pathway through the world. Teachers can help you along the way and give you something to think about but, only you can find the way. Also, with the river Siddhartha first spited the material world and tried to dissociate it from himself by reverting to extreme asceticism and disdaining everyday people. Then he loves the material world but quickly tires of it. He learns from the river that who he is in past, present, and future, who all the people who ever live and ever will live are, that the material and spiritual, that the Om, are all part of the same flow and are not truly separate of each other. The authors theme of this book is Wisdom and Knowledge that being said I think the author is trying to say that wisdom is knowledge and wisdom is prized. Knowledge can be transmitted from teacher to pupil. Secondly, Spirituality is closely linked to wisdom. Thirdly, is Time, in the book Siddhartha, time does not exist, for example after listening to the river, his biggest insight is that time is an illusion, and life is a continuum of events but instead it is a omnipresent. Fourth, theme is Love; In the book Siddhartha talks about love is tricky. For example it talks about his worldly love for his sons present. On the other hand, it is only when Siddhartha is able to appreciate his love-pains as love for the entire would that he reaches for enlightenment. Fifth theme is Mortality, example is a quote from Siddhartha “Death? Not a big deal.” In the book it portrays death as insignificant-enlightenment is much more important. Siddhartha abuses his body in an efforts to attain enlightenment, as well as when he doesn’t attain it, he thinks of some suicidal thoughts. Lastly, the last theme is Dissatisfaction; his yearning for spiritual growth for example in the first chapter to Govinda’s desperation for salvation in the last chapter. Siddhartha is fundamentally in the book about seeking and journeying. In the book we see Siddhartha’s dissatisfaction with moods of living, but he settles in the end for life as an enlightened ferryman.
In closing, my evaluation on the book Siddhartha in my opinion was a great book for someone who is wanting to know the origin and true meaning of Buddhism. The author gave great examples throughout the book. He was very knowledgeable when it came to talking about the Buddha’s childhood then when he leaves to go seek his enlightenment through his adult years. Through the book I found that it was not to informational but, it that he could paint a picture. When it comes to books that is what I like the most about them; is that they can paint a picture. As I discussed throughout the book review I can say that I liked the book.