Buddhism In Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha

A variety of traditions, beliefs and spiritual practices largely based on original teachings attributed to the Buddha and about detaching from non-materialistic objects in order to find your true self - these are all characteristics of Buddhism (SP6). The book Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse captures these ideas of Buddhism perfectly throughout the book as the main character, Siddhartha Gautama, journeys away from home to try and find a bigger meaning to life other than what his perfect life as a prince holds for him. He makes the trip far from home never to return to try and clear his soul and find enlightenment. Siddhartha knows that he only needs two things to truly be happy: to stop his suffering and to reach enlightenment (SP10). To do this, …show more content…
Siddhartha was a prince living in a very sheltered and wonderful life; however he was suffering in his home before with his father because he felt that he had learned everything that he could learn already (SP1A). So, in order to detach from this suffering, he became a Samana, which are groups of people who roam around trying to attain non-attachment. Sidhartha “...killed his senses, he killed his memory, he slipped out of himself in a thousand different forms. He was an animal, carcass, stone, wood, and each time he reawakened...felt thirst, conquered thirst…” (12). This represents one of the extreme experiences because he deprived himself of everything (food, water, shelter, sleep, bathing) to try and find peace with himself by getting rid of his sufferings. He is trying to clear his mind and empty himself so he can become very wise and reach inner peace and find a brand new heightened perspective. He realizes that in order to do this he needs to detach from all of his suffering to start with a blank slate, so he “...ceased to fight against his destiny. There shone in his face the serenity of knowledge, one of who is no longer confronted with conflict of desires, who has found salvation…” (111). This is non-attachment because he has stopped fighting against his supposed destiny that his parents expected from him. With no burdens, and with no suffering, he is now free of any hindrances that …show more content…
He crosses the river into a town where he meets people who help him become a merchant. He ends up having an incredibly satisfying life, satisfying because of his riches and satisfying because of career (SP9A). Siddhartha is very unhappy with his life this way though. Once he experiences all of these pleasures and desires, he realizes that he must lose this state of wealth because he is very unhappy to the point where “...the world and inertia creep into Siddhartha’s soul; it slowly filled his soul, made it heavy, made it tired, sent it to sleep.” (76-77) Siddhartha realized he forgot about the whole reason why he left his home town in the first place and thinks about how disappointed his dad would be in him knowing he let him leave and Siddhartha didn’t even find his peace or become wise with a new perspective. He became irritable; he started to feel again the suffering that came with all his desires and pleasures. Siddhartha “...realized that the desire that drove him to this place was foolish…” (103) Siddhartha leaves his riches and pleasures once more, like a repeat of history, and travels back to a ferryman he once met. He knows that at this place he can detach from all suffering, pleasures and desires so he can truly find himself and reach a brand new heightened

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