Siddhartha's Idea Of Good Life

Wisdom is a trait many people desire, but wisdom is gained through self-experience and cannot be taught. In the novel, Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse the protagonist Siddhartha identifies he can only learn from himself, when he converses with Gotama and discovers his teachings have flaws. “You have learned nothing through teachings, and so I think, O Illustrious One, that nobody finds salvation through teachings. (Hesse 27)” This is the pivotal moment for Siddhartha, from this moment forward, he knows to follow his own path in order to achieve Nirvana.

The river is a central symbol in Siddhartha, representing unity and the eternity of all things in the universe. At times of great transition in his life, such as when he leaves the Samanas, and later when he abandons his wealth, Siddhartha returns to the river. Eventually, as Siddhartha studies the river and comes to recognize it metaphorically for all that it represents about existence and time, he is able to attain enlightenment. What does a river stand for? What does it symbolize?

Siddhartha, the protagonist of Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha, was a young man born from a Brahmin family perceived as a gifted thinker even from a young age. His goal, like many others’, was to reach enlightenment, the release of worldly desires, and he went to many extents to achieve that goal. He left his comfortable lifestyle for the life of a Samana; one of extreme fasting and meditation in the effort to let go of all connections to the self. Later on he became a merchant and finally, a ferryman before reaching enlightenment. Siddhartha’s life as a Brahmin and ferryman helped him on his path to Nirvana, and his life as a merchant hindered him on his path to enlightenment.

In the book, Siddhartha hears the teaching of Buddha but in the film, this is left out. This could have been for the purpose of saving time and as such, the idea is presented in a nut shell. It is only an 80 minutes film, so the filmmaker has to leave certain things out to make space for some other inclusions. The oriental feel to the film (Rooks, 1972) is something one cannot ignore. The scenes of rural India, Rabindra Sangeet, sweeping shots of forests, lakes and sunsets, the character of Kamala dressed in clothes that seem to be inspired from classic Sanskrit plays.

Most people say they know how to describe emotions. They feel them all day long, but most know not the scientific definition which states, “emotions are a neural impulse that moves an organism to action”. So technically emotions control most of an organism's actions. Some people hide their emotions or choose to not take actions . In the Herman Hesse’s book, Siddhartha, the main character, Siddhartha, expresses many emotions.

The quote, “you learn from your mistakes”, is very true. Hermann Hesse writes in Siddhartha, “to find meaning, a person needs to follow many paths and make many mistakes.” Siddhartha, the son of a Brahmin, attempts to find himself by experiencing the world around him. He encounters many new teachings and many new paths to choose from. Hermann Hesse wants the reader to realize that in order to find meaning in life, many different paths have to be chosen and many mistakes have to be made.

From a grandpa’s last steps to a baby’s first steps, circularity can be seen in the all phases of life. The Grandpa’s last steps were taken through wisdom, while the baby’s steps were taken with the ignorance and innocence of a child. While circularity may be considered cut and dry, one’s experience or inexperience is essential to their roles in the circle of circularity. Siddhartha would have never truly achieved enlightenment without his experience with circularity throughout his search for Nirvana. Siddhartha experienced circularity through his relationships with his father and own son, During his journey with Vasudeva through the River and eventually returning to listen to the river, also Siddhartha having to feel ruin before being able to feel genuine

Siddhartha's journey to enlightenment is not the only path to enlightenment, Based on this novel, there is no one set path to enlightenment, and one can find enlightenment by following their own path in life. If enlightenment is found by following one's own path, then that means that there are thousands, maybe even millions, of different paths to enlightenment. Govinda does not have to follow Siddhartha's path to attain

In Siddhartha, throughout the entire book. Wisdom and knowledge are two of the most topics brought up. It is either brought up by what Siddhartha believes or by the religion SIddhartha, believes it does not teach wisdom or you can not learn from others about wisdom. But are able to communicate about knowledge.

The first teachings of the Buddha were not recorded until about 400 years after the Buddha died. With this in mind, it can be difficult to analyze the specifics of concepts that were solely Siddhartha Gautama’s. In turn, some of the secondary sources are based on educational assumptions of the time period and not on proved concrete fact. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, gives a simplified version of the reason why Siddhartha Gautama created Buddhism, “Buddhist tradition tells how Siddhartha Gautama, born a prince and raised in luxury, renounced the world at the age of 29 to search for an ultimate solution to the problem of the suffering innate in the human condition. After six years of spiritual discipline he achieved the supreme enlightenment