Siddhartha Essay, Research Paper

SIDDHARTHA

KEY LITERARY ELEMENTS

SETTING

The first chapter of Siddhartha is set in a Brahmin household located in the serene and peaceful atmosphere of an Indian village. In the second chapter, the scene shifts to the forest where the Samanas lead an austere life of self-denial. The third chapter takes the reader to the Jetavana grove in Savathi town, where the Buddha delivers a sermon. In the fourth chapter, Siddhartha is on his way from the forest to the town.

After Siddhartha crosses the river, the second part of the novel is set in an unspecified town where Kamala the courtesan lives. Up until Siddhartha’s departure from the town, this part of the novel takes place amid the world of the senses and material things as seen in Kamaswami’s house and in Kamala’s grove and her lovely

pleasure garden. The river becomes the setting for the remaining five chapters of the novel.

LIST OF CHARACTERS

Major

Siddhartha – the son of a Brahmin. He is a “strong, handsome, supple – limbed youth,” endowed with “ardent thoughts,” “strong will” and a “high vocation.” He is the protagonist of the novel.

Govinda – Siddhartha’s “friend and companion, his servant, his lance bearer, his shadow.”

The Buddha – “the Illustrious One,” who, having realized Nirvana, teaches the eightfold path.

Vasudeva – the illiterate ferryman who has discovered his inner self by communing with the river.

Kamala – a beautiful courtesan with a “bright face” and “clever arched eyes.” She initiates Siddhartha into the mysteries of love.

Kamaswami – a rich and clever merchant. He initiates Siddhartha into the tricky world of business and material pleasures of the world.

Minor

Siddhartha’s Son – a spoiled child who has been brought up in an atmosphere of luxury and comforts. Siddhartha learns how to love through him.

The Samanas – members of a religious sect known for leading indigent lives of austerity and self-denial.

The Buddha’s disciples – people who have vowed to follow “the Eightfold path” preached by “the Illustrious One.”

Vasudeva’s wife – the lady who was cremated after her death on the same hill on which the dead Kamala is cremated. Children – inhabitants of a village which Siddhartha passes through during his journey from the Jetavana Grove to the town. They are described as dancing, playing, shouting and wrestling. A young woman – the one who entices Siddhartha by making sexual overtures. The Buddhist Monks – followers on their way to see the dying Buddha.

CONFLICT

Protagonist

The protagonist in the novel is Siddhartha, a Brahmin’s son who is a restless seeker on a path towards self-realization and inner knowledge. He leaves his father’s household to join the Samanas in the forest to lead a life of austerity and self-denial. He then leaves the Samanas to go to the Jetavana grove to listen to the Illustrious One. He does not follow the Buddha but instead joins Kamaswami, a businessman and associates with Kamala, the courtesan. Finally, at the end of his quest, he joins Vasudeva, the ferryman, who initiates him into the mystery of communion with the river.

Antagonist

The antagonist in the novel is Siddhartha’s baser instincts which force him to indulge in the ordinary pleasures of life in an atmosphere created by Kamaswami, the businessman, and Kamala, the courtesan. It is through the wrestling of his spiritual and physical sides that Siddhartha comes to understand his place in the world.

Climax

The climax of the novel is reached in Chapter 9 when Siddhartha experiences regeneration in the presence of Vasudeva. In this chapter Vasudeva bends towards Siddhartha and whispers the holy Om into his ear. This is precisely what he has heard as something emanating from the river. This revelation leads to a synthesis of transience and permanence, of the movement of life and the unity of it.

Outcome

Siddhartha is concerned with the protagonist’s quest for spiritual peace. After going through the spiritual and physical aspects of life, Siddhartha moves towards a resolution of the two. His ascetic phase involves the renunciation of the world, and his other phase involves the enjoyment of pleasures suited to the world, Samsara. The outcome of Siddhartha’s quest is the experience of Being and Becoming. The book has a comic resolution when Siddhartha finally overcomes his antagonist and finds supreme peace.

PLOT (Synopsis)

The son of a Brahmin, Siddhartha, at first seems content to follow the pious Hindu’s path to salvation. He religiously reads the scriptures and performs sacrifices. He realizes, however, that the doctrine of his parents and tutors do not comply with his spiritual needs. He decides to leave home to seek his own salvation. His friend Govinda goes with him. Both Siddhartha and Govinda learn to restrain their impulses and concentrate on the spirit. Such concentration is achieved by the practice of the Samana discipline of self-denial. Soon they realize that the Samana way does not yield true satisfaction. It is only a means to realization of the self but not the end.

Siddhartha, through Govinda’s urgings, listens to the teachings of Gotama Buddha. He strives “to die from himself, to be an ego no longer,…to be open to the miracle in a selfless spirit.” He learns that the Buddha teaches his disciples to restrain their senses without necessarily denying them. This leads to Nirvana or salvation. Govinda becomes a Buddhist monk, but Siddhartha cannot accept the whole doctrine. He must seek his own path of

salvation.

Siddhartha enters a stage in Hindu, which is called “Samsara”, the disturbing cycle of earthly happenings. In order to become the lover of the courtesan, Kamala, he must become a rich merchant. He also begins to gamble and drink, slowly letting the precepts of the Samanas as well as his inner voice dwindle to a whisper. This life proves empty, since it is related to the world of humans and material things. Siddhartha leaves his wealth behind and in a moment of despair sets out to drown himself in the river. He is saved, however, by the resounding of Om within his spirit, which

he hears from the river. Siddhartha goes to live with the ferryman, Vasudeva, and is taught by him to live in harmony with nature by communing and listening to the river. Siddhartha has a momentary vision of absolute divinity beyond all worldly deceptions. He pronounces the sacred syllable Om and anticipates a life of mystic intuition. He has taken the first step by giving up his luxurious existence and living a simple life of solitude, yet he must also learn to love. Kamala, who has borne him a son, dies of snakebite. Siddhartha attempts to become a father to his son, but his son rejects his ways and leaves him. Through this experience, Siddhartha learns the pains of love. Once Vasudeva retires to the forest to die, Siddhartha himself becomes the ferryman. He lives beside the river and consoles all travelers. Govinda, who comes to visit him, believes Siddhartha to be a saint. He is taught by Siddhartha the unity of life, the unity of night and day, of “I” and “thou,” of poverty and affluence, of flesh and spirit. In a soliloquy, Siddhartha explains that only by living a life of both the spirit and the senses can a person gain peace. THEMES

Major

The major theme of Siddhartha is that happiness comes from spiritual peace. Throughout the novel, the protagonist seeks such peace, which is finally achieved through several different stages of life. The first stage is that of an orthodox Brahmin’s son. In this stage, he reads the scriptures and performs ritualistic sacrifice. The second is an ascetic stage in which he practices the Samana austerity of self-denial. In the third stage he is caught in the vortex of the material desires of the world, Samsara. The final stage is that of self-realization achieved in the presence of Vasudeva, the ferryman. It is through this cycle that Siddhartha discovers the path to salvation, but what is most important is that he undertakes this path on his own. His inner, spiritual peace is singular in vision.

Minor

A minor theme is that love, both parent/child and male/female, is important. Parental love is treated in developing the relationship between Siddhartha and his father and is later paralleled by the relationship between Siddhartha and his son. The tension which arises between these relations is also the cause of a deep, abiding love between the parent and the child. In contrast, the relationship between Siddhartha and Kamala, the courtesan, is limited by its physical nature and is, therefore, unfulfilling, for it is not based on love. Only when a man and woman base their relationship upon a deep, abiding love does it become permanent and rewarding.

Another minor theme explored in the novel is that friendship is very important. It is seen in the early part of the novel in the friendship between Siddhartha and Govinda, his long-time friend. In the second part of the novel this theme is developed in the friendship between Siddhartha and Vasudeva, the ferryman, who initiates him into the mysteries of spiritual life and whom Siddhartha becomes one with in thoughts and goals.

MOOD

The dominant mood in Siddhartha is that of joy arising out of contemplation and fulfillment. It is a serene world that the author creates, one of thought and discovery of the mysteries of life. It also has an exalted feel to it, almost Biblical, in its tightly crafted prose and sense of timelessness. Time in the novel is compressed and extended; years may pass with no further development than that it is passing and then a moment will be extended for pages. Time in the novel does not parallel reality and contributes to the mood of peacefulness.

OVERALL ANALYSES

CHARACTERS

Siddhartha

At the beginning of the novel, Siddhartha is the handsome and learned son of a Brahmin who has studied the Hindu scriptures thoroughly and often enters into discussions with elders. He is well-versed in the Upanishads and the Sama Veda and is qualified to be a respectable Brahmin teacher. He is also handsome, strong, and supple-limbed, and many Brahmin girls admire his physical beauty. In fact, everybody loves Siddhartha, especially his father. But Siddhartha, as a young man, is discontented and restless. He questions all that has been taught to him and wonders whether the

sacrifices prescribed in the religious texts really bring happiness. He thinks that the texts discuss everything except the one and most important thing — the source of peace within oneself. It is this which he must discover on his own and which compels him to leave his family and home.

Siddhartha goes through drastic changes in his quest to discover himself. He starts off as an intelligent but impudent young man who openly seeks to attain Nirvana; since salvation cannot be found, only experienced, the young Siddhartha is always frustrated in his search, which takes him down many paths. As a Samana, he practices the art of self-denial, but finds no peace. He enters Samsara, the world of material things, but true happiness escapes him. Eventually he rejects both the world of the spirit and the world of the senses, and goes to live with the ferryman,

Vasudeva. Beside the river, Siddhartha experiences Nirvana, where the unity of life allows everything to co-exist. In the last stage of his life, when he is old and nearing death, Siddhartha comes to the understanding that time is illusory, for life flows on in continuity, the present become eternity.

From the river, Siddhartha learns the meaning of the holy syllable of Om; as a result, he finds supreme peace. He can blend all of his experiences in life into a unity that offers continuity and serenity. Like Vasudeva before him, he is also able to communicate the peace of the river to others. In the last scene, Siddhartha is seen facilitating Govinda’s passage into a state of Nirvana.

Kamala

Kamala plays an important role in the novel. She is a symbol of Samsara, characterized by her breathtaking physical beauty, her love of material possession, and her lovemaking skills. Through Kamala, Siddhartha is initiated into the world of the senses and materialism and learns of the time-bound world. She facilitates his journey through Samsara by finding him work with Kamaswami and teaching him about physical love; she also makes him aware of his inability to express real love. When Siddhartha leaves her, she is carrying his child.

Later in the novel, after Siddhartha has departed, Kamala undergoes her own metamorphosis. She turns from her life as a courtesan and becomes a follower of Gotama Buddha; she denounces her worldly ways, opens up her garden to Buddha’s followers, and cares for her son. On a pilgrimage to see the dying Buddha, she again encounters Siddhartha. She sees in him the serenity of Buddha himself and dies a happy person. She leaves behind a great gift for Siddhartha in the person of their son. Siddhartha finally learns to love through this child. Although her role is minor, Kamala is shown to be a great influence on Siddhartha, both directly and indirectly. She also goes through a significant change in life as she ages, gaining a wisdom that her youth did not grant her.

Vasudeva

Vasudeva is a ferryman who lives in solitude and takes people back and forth across the river, symbolizing their initiation into a new life. He acts as a facilitator to Siddhartha’s quest for Nirvana. Although he is illiterate, he is a great thinker and leans about life the through his communion with the river. Through his actions rather than words, he reveals to Siddhartha the secrets of life, teaching him not only how to listen but how to love. Without Vasudeva, Siddhartha could not have reached his state of resolution and inner peace. The, like the Illustrious One, acts as a model for Siddhartha, one who has achieved wisdom through reflection, attentiveness to life’s every detail, and direct experience.

Kamaswami

Kamaswami, unlike Kamala, does not change at all in the novel. He remains a sharp businessman who is completely puzzled by Siddhartha’s passive attitude towards money and material things. But he plays a key role in seducing Siddhartha into Samsara although Siddhartha disdains him and his child-like behavior towards material things; he eventually ends up like Kamaswami until he is awakened from his state of idleness.

Govinda

Govinda plays an important role in the book as a close friend of Siddhartha; he takes a different path from his friend, but in the end achieves his goal of Nirvana through his encounter with Siddhartha in later life. Through Govinda, Hesse shows that there are many ways to achieve salvation, some taking longer than others. Govinda spends his life seeking Nirvana through doctrines and teachers. It is in old age and through Siddhartha that he learns that Nirvana cannot be achieved through doctrine, but must be found through direct experience with the world. After many years of being a monk, Govinda finds his way to the river where Siddhartha serves as the ferryman and a model of contemplation and inner peace, much like Vasudeva was before him.

Siddhartha attempts to explain Nirvana to Govinda, but he cannot comprehend Siddhartha’s words, which are inadequate to express the state of salvation. In the end, Siddhartha facilitates Govinda’s entrance into Nirvana through a kiss, a giving of himself, that makes Govinda sees the continuity of life and the unity of all things. Because of his newfound happiness, Govinda falls down in front of Siddhartha and weeps tears of appreciation for his newfound knowledge.

Siddhartha’s son

Siddhartha’s son plays a small but important role in the novel. His interaction with his father, though slight, fosters a deep and genuine love in Siddhartha. It is the first time that he has experienced such an emotion. Unfortunately, the son, who is arrogant and spoiled, is unable to return his father’s love. Still, the love Siddhartha feels for his son makes him realize the continuity of life. His father must have loved him, just as Siddhartha loves his own son. When the son steals the ferryman’s boat and runs away from his father, Siddhartha is in great pain. This helps him to realize that love and pain, two strong but somewhat opposite emotions, are both part of the unity of existence.

Gotama

Gotama Buddha is based on the Buddha himself. He is a very peaceful person who exudes the serenity that Nirvana can bring. Seeking and imitating nothing, the Illustrious One has no external distractions. In his state of Nirvana, he has completely renounced the world of the life-death cycle and has freed himself of the constraints of time. Rather than being of this world, he becomes one with the world by eliminating his ego and transcending all

earthly desires.

Siddhartha expresses his dissatisfaction that Gotama is unable to teach his disciples about salvation, for at that stage of his development, Siddhartha still thinks he can simply seek and find Nirvana. He expects the Buddha to show him the way through sharing his knowledge. The Buddha quietly explains to him that his aim is to free people from suffering and to help them experience life. He does not teach people who are thirsty for knowledge; instead he tries to impart wisdom. He tells Siddhartha not to be clever, for that is a sign that his ego is still intact. Although the Buddha is not a god, he serves as a model for others and Siddhartha is greatly influenced by him.

PLOT (STRUCTURE) The novel, which is divided into three sections, follows a traditional pattern of plot development as is reveals the four phases of the protagonist’s quest to gain an understanding of himself and his place in the world. The first chapter is larger introductory, telling about Siddhartha family and Brahmin education. In the next three chapters, Siddhartha reveals his quest for knowledge through the precepts of the Brahmins, the priests and guardians of the Veda, and the Samanas, the men who live in self-denial. Although he has learned much from these first two doctrines, Siddhartha is satisfied by neither. In Part II, the rising action of the plot continues. Siddhartha lives his life among ordinary people and experiences the sensual and materialistic life of Samsara. Kamala, the courtesan, and Kamaswami, the merchant businessman, are his special teachers who expose him to a completely different life than he has ever known. Although he spends many years living a Samsara life, it does not satisfy him in the end; he longs for more, especially the ability to love and inner peace. The last section of the plot is centered on the river, which is the central metaphor of the book. The river teaches the unity and continuity of life and symbolizes salvation. Through his experiences with the river and Vasudeva, Siddhartha achieves Nirvana. The climax of Siddhartha’s quest is reached in chapter nine when Vasudeva the ferryman successfully initiates Siddhartha into a life of peace and contemplation. The remaining three chapters contain the falling action, where Siddhartha is seen living a peaceful existence as the ferryman and initiating his friend Govinda into Nirvana. The denouement comes when Govinda recognizes the Buddha in Siddhartha and fall on his knees in front of him.

THEMES OF THE NOVEL

The Theme of Quest:

The quest for self-knowledge and salvation is the central theme in the novel. Siddhartha, the protagonist, goes on a quest to search for Atman, the individual spirit within him. Although Siddhartha is well educated in Brahmin doctrine, he is not satisfied with what he has learned or the course of his life. He does not want to become just another priest; he strives for something greater and wants to know how he fits into the world. As part of his quest, he lives for awhile in self-denial, living amongst the Samanas; but he finds no happiness. Siddhartha then seeks to live the materialistic

and sensual life of the Samsara; but it gives him no greater peace. He then lives in simplicity with Vasudeva and learns to listen to the river, the greatest teacher about the unity of life. By the river, Siddhartha’s quest comes to an end; he hears the holy syllable of Om, becomes one with the world, and finds peace and serenity; Siddhartha has found what he has sought — the state of Nirvana.

The Theme of Love:

Learning to understand love, in its many different forms, is an important part of Siddhartha’s quest. Familial love is shown in the first of the novel when Siddhartha’s father loves him enough to allow his son to go on his own path. Siddhartha will not understand the meaning and depth of this love until he has his own son, whom he loves dearly and loses. It is the pain which follows the loss that reveals to Siddhartha the true meaning of love, not just for his son, but for everyone and life in general. In contrast to the depth of love for a son and love for humanity is the shallow physical love between Kamala and Siddhartha. Although they both admire each other greatly, they are unable to really love

each other, for their relationship is built upon desire. The reach a more spiritual love when they encounter one another in old age and Kamala finds what she is seeking in Siddhartha’s gentle face. In a similar manner, Siddhartha will find what he is seeking in the love he feels for his son, a true gift from Kamala.

The Theme of Friendship:

The theme of friendship is highlighted in the first chapter and continues throughout the book. Govinda is Siddhartha’s good friend and seeks to follow him; but they go their separate ways when Govinda chooses to become a monk. When they encounter one another two times later in the book, the depth of their friendship has not waned. In the closing chapters, Govinda returns to Siddhartha to learn the truth about life from him. Siddhartha gladly shares the secrets of Nirvana with his friend, teaching him how to experience the wholeness of life. The theme of friendship is also highlighted in the relationship between Siddhartha and Vasudeva, who listens carefully to whatever Siddhartha tells him. Like a real friend in need, he helps Siddhartha attain peace. Rather than direct him with words or proffer a right way, he shows Siddhartha how to experience the river and find his own values in life. As a friend, Vasudeva is extraordinary, for he accepts Siddhartha for who he is and grants him the freedom to discover his own Nirvana.

SIDDHARTHA AS A QUEST ROMANCE

Siddhartha is written by Hesse in the tradition of a quest romance, a genre popular in the Middle Ages as can be seen in the Legend of the Holy Grail, Spenser’s poem The Fairie Queene, and Bunyan’s novel The Pilgrim’s Progress. Siddhartha’s quest occurs in four phases: the orthodox phase of a Brahmin’s son, the ascetic phase of the Samanas, the worldly phase of the Samsara, and the spiritual phase of Nirvana. The first phase of his quest is characterized by innocence and ignorance. Although Siddhartha is book-learned in Brahmin ways and inquisitive about life, he is impatient and sometimes arrogant in his search for answers, as can be seen in his conversation with Gotama Buddha. In the second phase of his quest, Siddhartha goes through total self-denial in the hope of attaining salvation, but this also falls short. The third phase is characterized by his immersion into the time-bound world of sensualism and materialism. It is in this world of ordinary people that Siddhartha is most despairing and even thinks about killing himself. When he finally abandons the Samsara life, he places himself beside the river, which reveals to him the unity and continuity of all things. In this phase, Siddhartha experiences a degree of peace and comes close to Nirvana; but he still has an ego and harbors personal desires, as seen when he attempts to latch onto his son. By transcending his earthly wants, experiencing real and unconditional love for his son, and undergoing the pain of loss, Siddhartha achieves spiritual completion. Siddhartha is not an explorer into the human spirit who shuts out the world and withdraws into himself. The very nature of his quest involves an immersion into life in all different forms. In spite of his long search, until he reaches the river and listens to its message, Siddhartha does not find happiness. With the help of Vasudeva and the river he finally learns how to experience the whole of creation, reaching a state of Nirvana and becoming much like the Buddha. When Govinda sees the face of Siddhartha in old age, he recognizes the genuine and deep serenity reflected there. He also sees in his friend’s face a continuous stream of gods, humans, and animals “which all came and disappeared,” indicating the unity and continuity of life. When Govinda kisses Siddhartha as instructed, he sees in him the “thousand-fold smile of Gotama, the Buddha” and falls reverently before him. Govinda recognizes that Siddhartha’s quest has brought him perfect peace.

IMAGERY AND SYMBOLISM

The magical charm of Siddhartha lies in its dreamy quality where time is free-floating and life is a quest. Throughout the novel, Hesse develops unforgettable images and symbols to uphold the dreamy mystery surrounding Siddhartha. His childhood among the Brahmins, his ceaseless ascetic wanderings with the Samanas, his mad worldly pursuits with Kamala and Kamaswami, and finally his meeting with Vasudeva awaken the reader’s senses and become parts of an interwoven tapestry of images which reverberate throughout the novel. There are three major symbols in the novel: the potter’s wheel, the caged bird, and the river. “The potter’s wheel, once set in motion, turns for a very long time and then eventually stops; it is similar to the wheel of the ascetic, the wheel of thinking, the wheel of discrimination which revolve for a long time in Siddhartha’s soul.” The comparison of life to a potter’s wheel that shapes the clay is an apt metaphor for Siddhartha’s experiences. In the end the potter’s wheel turns out a lovely creation from an ugly and cold lump of clay; in a similar manner, Siddhartha’s experiences in life, not always pleasant or pretty, turn him into a lovely and peaceful human being. In the process of becoming a valuable piece of pottery or a valuable human being, there is much shaping and reshaping to be accomplished. The second symbol is that of the caged bird kept by Kamala in her grove. The bird stands for Siddhartha, and the cage symbolically represents the Samsara life. Engulfed by the world of the senses, like the bird is by the cage, Siddhartha seems unable to free himself. The dream in which Siddhartha sees the bird dead stirs him to action. He recognizes that he is stuck, nearly dead, in a temporal world, from which he must escape. When Siddhartha leaves Kamala to complete his quest and find himself, Kamala symbolically releases the bird from the cage. The last symbol is the river, which is a powerful symbol for the flow of life, its continuity, and its ability to hold a myriad of things while still representing unity and oneness. Traditionally, a river stands for baptism, purification, and rebirth, and the river of the ferryman serves this purpose for Siddhartha. It is from the river that Siddhartha learns about life and hears the holy syllable of Om. Because of the river, he attains Nirvana.

STYLE Although written in German originally, the translation of Siddhartha is written in prose, which has a Biblical tone and simplicity. Hesse’s style in the novel is highly descriptive, especially when he is depicting scenes of nature. There is also a poetic lyricism at moments of crisis and revelation. Hesse also uses repetition in themes, motifs, and events to hold the novel together in spite of the great amount of time that passes within its pages. He also uses repetition of thoughts and words to emphasize a point. An example is when Hesse says that “Siddhartha did not fashion joy for himself, he did not live for his pleasure . . . but a joy for everybody . . .yet bore no joy in his heart.” Parallelisms also occur throughout the book, giving the structure a natural unity and resolution. The key parallel is when Siddhartha is rejected by his son, just as he once rejected his father. Additionally, Siddhartha smiles peacefully at Govinda, just as the Buddha had once smiled at him. Finally, the novel starts with Govinda following Siddhartha in friendship; at the end of the novel, the two friends encounter one another in old age, and Govinda still wants to follow the serene Siddhartha.