Herman Hesse's Siddhartha

Siddhartha, the son of a Brahmin, progresses on a quest for the true meaning of Nirvana, through constant movement between distinct paths to fulfill his feeling of emptiness. Throughout the novel “Siddhartha” by Herman Hesse, Siddhartha learns that enlightenment comes from within and commences initially to seek extrinsic guidance from the Brahmins, Samanas and Buddism. Since his childhood, the Brahmins deposited their absolute knowledge into his “waiting vessel”, also referred to as his spiritual mind, yet he was still not at peace. The Brahmins teach Siddhartha the virtue of patience, the art of prayer as well as make him well-versed in the different rituals. The feeling of desolation immersed in him provokes Siddhartha’s determination to

His next primary goal is learning the art of love from Kamala, a famous courtesan. Although he rejected other teachers, he accepts Kamala, a teacher of admiration, and he consciously decides to follow her teachings. After years filled with indulgence of vices, he finally awakens from a dream of Kamala’s songbird and realizes that he lived pointlessly, and he leaves immediately. With utmost desolation, he turns to suicide, but the sound “Om” emanates within him compelling him to stop. Upon awaking from a deep sleep, Siddhartha is rejuvenated and becomes entrenched in the beauty of the river and exclaims, "Nothing is mine, I know nothing, I possess nothing, I have learned nothing". He concludes that every trail he took in life has ultimately resulted in a stalemate. Lastly, he finally finds the characteristics of a quintessential teacher in Vasudeva, a ferryman, and lives with him beside the river. Vasudeva accepts Siddhartha as a disciple when he deduces that the river spoke to him. Siddhartha devotes himself to listen to the river and learns influential lessons from it. With the help of the river and Vasudeva, he finally learns the final components necessary to gain