Siddhartha: An Indian Tale

Written by Hermann Hesse

Narrated by The Synthetic Voice of Brian

Hermann Hesse's profound novel, Siddhartha, is a spiritual journey of self-discovery and enlightenment set in ancient India. Siddhartha, a young Brahmin, embarks on a quest for meaning and truth, leaving behind a life of privilege and embarking on a path of asceticism and contemplation.

As Siddhartha encounters different teachers, experiences love and loss, and explores various paths to spiritual awakening, he ultimately discovers that wisdom cannot be taught but must be experienced firsthand. Hesse's lyrical prose and philosophical insights illuminate the universal quest for inner peace and understanding.

Please note: The audiobook narration was digitally synthesized, and the cover was made in collaboration with AI tools.

• Language: English
• Publisher: RetroSynth Classics
• Release date: Mar 5, 2024
• ISBN: 9781094471679

Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse was born in Germany in 1877 and later became a citizen of Switzerland. As a Western man profoundly affected by the mysticism of Eastern thought, he wrote novels, stories, and essays bearing a vital spiritual force that has captured the imagination and loyalty of many generations of readers. His works include Steppenwolf, Narcissus and Goldmund, and The Glass Bead Game. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1946. Hermann Hesse died in 1962.

Reviews for Siddhartha

[janna dorry · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the most best self observed and self growing books i ever read.

[kqc98cpsjd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A story as old as time itself - we are travelers on a quest towards self realization. It is a simple repetitive storyline, yet it is complexly weaved into the tapestry of every civilization.

A simple solution of nirvana lies ahead whose path seems obvious - absolution from material & worldly pleasures. Too straightforward! But how we all tumble. Its attainment still remains vexing to most of us.

This story is one answer to this ever challenging quest. The zen garden is open to everyone-to the knowledgeable master, to the persevering student, to the seductive muse, to the crooked murderer.

The world, as we know it, lays the traps that forever show us that the body can be violated & even a venerated mind can be corrupted. But the atma that lies within each of us is one! It remains untouched by the elements and is the only true seeker we shall ever know.

[celia · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Brilliant for those in life that are searching for meaning and truth

[garybrady · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

August 2016 - In the same section of Waterstones where I saw a Jhumpa Lahiri short story collection I saw a copy of Herman Hesse's Siddhartha. I first became aware of this book many years ago reading James W Sire's very helpful book The Universe Next Door. He mentions it in his chapter on Basic Eastern Pantheistic Monism. The book is certainly a great advertisement for that way of thinking. It relates the story of the eponymous hero from his Brahmin youth, through his time as a samana and encountering the Buddha, through a sansara period of sex, riches and gambling then back into a more traditionally Hindu approach to life. It is very well written and so lures in the unsuspecting. It was written (in German) in the twenties but reached popular heights only by the sixties when the Beatles and others were looking east for inspiration. It is still worth a read - in order to understand eastern thought and read well written and simple prose.

[sucharita1986 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is a thought-provoking work of religious fiction. It is a person's journey to spirituality amidst all their worldly pleasures. Siddhartha's voyage towards a spiritual awakening can be said to be a motivating one. The narrator's voice also did a good job. The book narrates a conflicting opinion between people who try to find salvation through renunciation and people who try to achieve it by being in the normal world. While listening to it alone, I had so many viewpoints about it. For me, the book was something that I can think about every time I am trying to find my way towards spiritualization. I loved the message from the author that spiritual awakening can come in any form and shape. It is only us who are rigid and do not open ourselves to it.

[farrhon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sweet simple

[pomo58 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is a classic and this edition is a beautifully illustrated (illuminated?) version.

I don't recall exactly when I first read this novel, I went through all of his English translations for the first time in the mid-70s, but this is one of a handful I have revisited several times since then. There has been so much written about the book I don't think I need to say more, other than some of the criticism as an outsider writing about Buddhism are overstated. I have read writers from non-Christian faiths include less than accurate portrayals of Christianity in works that highlight some of Christianity's positive lessons, and I don't think there was anything wrong with that. Same here. Not to say one should read this as a way to Buddhist enlightenment, but it can be read as how one character used some of the Buddha's teachings to find his own path.

As for this edition, though this is obviously not a handwritten text I lean toward thinking of this as more illuminated than illustrated. I think of illustrated as being where scenes from a story are scattered throughout, specific enough that the reader can find the corresponding passage if they so choose. Illuminating, as I'm using it here, consists of flourishes and decorative illustrations that try to capture the emotion and spirit of the work rather than a faithful reproduction of a scene. That is minor semantics, I realize, but I want a potential reader to be prepared for what they are getting. And it is beautifully done, so with the proper expectations you will be more than pleased.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

[mykl8s · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A great story about a great religious leader.

[grahzny · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I don't know if this is Buddhism, something living next to it, or something else, but it's resonant, absorbing, and thoughtful. I read it as a teen, like many, and sort of thought it wouldn't hold up to my 33-year-old reading palate. But I was wrong--I read it on a long bus ride, and it clicked strongly.

[andjhostet-527429 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

So far, I have loved everything I've read by Hermann Hesse, and I'm excited to dig into the rest of his works.

This was a book that felt like it should be cliche, but somehow wasn't? There's just a consistent authenticity present that just makes it feel so... human?

The lessons and ideals expressed seem like they could be very shallow, but the more you think about them, the more depth is revealed. This feels like the type of book you could read 10 times, and take away something differently every time you read it depending on what stage of life you are in. I do think a lot of the philosophy was lost on me, due to not being read at the right time in life.

That being said, the discussions about the river were amazing, and very profound. I loved that whole section: the lesson that a river is simultaneously the small stream at it's source, as well as the large body of water, ending, and returning the water to the ocean and not one or the other. Similarly, a person is not removed from their past, their source, nor defined by their future, but it is a part of them. To accept that is the only way to truly exist in the present, and live, and grow. Time does not exist. (sidenote: this greatly reminded me of Slaughterhouse Five, one of my favorite books of all time).

[kslade-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

OK novel based on life of Buddha

[cecrow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This might have influenced me when I was younger, as it has many others. While Hesse is again exploring his theme of the intellectual's place in society, this famous novel of course is also strongly centered on Eastern religion. But it follows a character arc I never saw coming. The opening chapters lulled me with their expected tone, filled with contemplative and indulgent overlapping sentences. I had falsely assumed this was a fictionalized biography of the Buddha, but in an early chapter Siddhartha actually meets the Buddha (Gotama), and from that point on I had no idea where this was going.

Siddhartha steps away from the Buddha's teaching - from all teaching - in the belief that he cannot find true peace of soul through following anyone else's path, only through pursuing his own to self-discovery. He begins to indulge in the world, to experiment with the senses, beginning with sexual pleasure and then proceeding to capitalism and riches. This proves to be a dead end that I felt was an unfair analysis, but Siddhartha has more stones to turn over before his journey is complete and these bring missing shades of meaning to his experience. The lesson about fathers allowing sons to make their own errors and follow their own paths was well portrayed. There are many paths up the spiritual mountain and all may arrive at inner peace. We must allow for this in witnessing the journeys of others, and in looking back on our own.

[squeakychu · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

As a preface to my reaction to this book, I must say that the choice of this book was not my own, but rather the choice of my book club. I personally do not care for books I feel are allegorical. I find them too simplistic with philosophical thought cast at the reader and carefully delineated rather than allowing the reader freedom of thought about what was just read.

After reading half of the book, I found Siddhartha truly annoying and would have bailed, had I not agreed to read this book for someone other than myself. I hated that he left his father and then left his friend Govinda, first to seek the life of an ascetic and then to simply pursue riches...which was also accompanied by greed, lust and other vices. Nothing against those last three things other than they had no antithesis in Siddhartha's life at that time. There was later a character I liked very much...a ferryman by the name of Vasudeva. He was a hard-working, thoughtful, kind and caring man. He certainly seemed more well rounded than Siddhartha.

At the end of the book, as I suspected, we the readers were told what we should have gotten out of this story. I read it. Yeah. Yeah. Beautiful and all that...but very abstract. I like more literal story-telling.

I am glad I read this book, though, as I had never before read a book by Herman Hesse, and this author was one of my dear late aunt Emma's favorite writers. I might later explore more of his works to see if there are other books of his I might like better.

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Although Siddhartha by Herman Hesse was originally published in 1922, I remember that it was very influential during the 1960s and was touted as a book to help lead one to a higher level of enlightenment and towards learning the meaning of life. I was able to avoid the book back then but picked it up recently as it fit both the challenge of reading 1,001 Books and the topic of Eastern Philosophies for another challenge. I found the book was easily read, but this type of internal belly-button gazing really isn’t my cup of tea.

The book details the life of Siddhartha, a son of a prominent Brahmin in ancient India. Although born to a life of privilege, he turns his back on home and family and chooses instead to join a group of Samanas, who live as hermits, giving up all possessions in the hope of finding himself and reaching a higher level of self awareness. After a number of years he felt he had learned all that he could from the hermits and chose to continue his journey of self-discovery in a different direction, including the embracing of an excess of material goods. He experiments with different teachers and methods but finds no satisfaction. Eventually he turns to a simple life and this helps him as he strives to approach Nirvana.

This allegorical tale was written by a westerner for a western audience and as such barely skims the surface of Indian philosophy. I think this could be a good place to start one’s journey to understanding karma but most likely lacks the depth that one would need in order to fully grasp the wisdom and ascetics of eastern spirituality. Personally I never felt that this book resonated with me or offered me any type of revelation so it was a book of interest but not one of learning.

[mbmackay · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Last read in the 1970s when Hesse was very trendy. Re-reading in 2020s has been an experience. The book doesn't quite hold up to my memories. Rather than being deep and very meaningful, I found it to be a simple short saga of the stages of life. The oriental mysticism no longer seems deep, but the book is not without wisdom.
So, a nice read, but not the answer to question of the meaning of life!

[nosborm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A bit short but I was told to pause at the end of every chapter (which I did) to fully absorb the work. I appreciated it but I think I would have liked it more had I "studied" it. A pretty good read.

[kcshankd · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this early, I think in high school. Re-reading as a father with three sons nearing launch (18, 17, 13) it still slaps, though now it stings... Should call dad

[angelajmaher · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very interesting read that addresses the idea of meaning in life, and which might perhaps incite some deeper thinking in the reader. This is not a difficult book to read, but it is a worthwhile read.

[hippielunatic · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I cannot fully comprehend this book, and yet it clearly states all of my intrinsic beliefs.

[seriousgrace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

How do I describe Siddhartha? In simple terms I would say it’s one man’s journey to find his identity. In the end he finds peace in listening to a river and hearing his heart. In listening, he learns. In hearing, he loves. There is a great deal that happens in between, of course. The proudest and more profound moment was when Siddhartha recognized the pain he currently experiences as the exact same pain he inflicted on his father so long ago. What goes around comes around, as they say.

[schneider_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Not a bad short philosophical read. Gave me a few moments of reflection, which I felt was a good thing...a book that makes one think. Novel concept.

[evelyn.b · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My brother let me borrow his copy that he has had for years. This book was a beautiful, thought-provoking prose that got me asking myself some really good questions. We see the stages of life that Siddhartha goes through, the people he meets along the way, the scenery that is so beautifully captured by Hesse. This book is a quick read, but definitely a must read for anyone who wants to read a beautiful story and look in to themselves just as Siddhartha does on his journey through life.

[bhiggs-822148 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I don't remember enjoying this much. Yet, I also don't have any memory of hating it. Maybe one day I'll revisit it.

[technodiabla · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found this little tome to be packed with messages I'll likely ponder for some time. This quick easy read (often assigned in high school) has layers of meaning that warrant revisiting later in life. It is the story of Siddhartha-- the youth, then man, as he wanders through life searching for meaning and Nirvana.

[eldang-1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I first read this book half a lifetime ago, and loved it. Siddharta's searching spoke to 16-year-old me, and the simplicity of the prose struck me as beautiful and appropriate. So re-reading it was very disappointing - this time around the skeleton of the story still speaks to me, but the prose just feels unfinished, more like reading a storyboard than a completed work. And the westerner's-eye-view of India and Buddhism just feels painfully naive and reifying: odd, given that Hesse actually did know what he was talking about, but all the same it was painful enough that I didn't finish the book the second time around.

[stevenjohntait · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very good book. Gives everything apart from actual enlightenment.

[amerynth · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Having only read one novel by Hesse before ("The Glass Bead Game,") this slim little volume wasn't what I expected when I requested "Siddhartha" from the library. Although this is a rather simple story, I found it to be a pretty enjoyable read.

Siddhartha is a young Brahmin who goes through a number of phases in his lifetime, which contribute to his ultimate understanding of the universe.

Hesse's simple style in this novel works well for the story, which was a fun read.

[oacevedo-792047 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed Siddhartha. It was a beautiful, inspiring read. Highly recommend it!

[datrappert · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This review is specifically for the audio version read by Geoffrey Giuliano. This is a pretty suitable book for audio. It is only about five hours long and the story is straightforward. The narrator does a good job, but whoever records the intro and outro sections sounds like a maniac. I almost stopped listening after a few seconds.

As for the book, it is one I've had on my shelf for decades but never read. I read Hesse's Steppenwolf, when I was a teen or maybe in my early twenties; I remember liking it but don't remember anything else about it. I thought Siddhartha was about the Buddha, but in fact, it is about someone who meets the Buddha but, while appreciating his teachings, realizes that you cannot achieve nirvana through teachings. One line I particularly remember is that knowledge can be taught, but wisdom cannot. During the course of the story, Siddhartha tries out many lifestyles and can be said to succeed in all of them, but he is still finding. Which relates to another great quote, which is that those who seek cannot find, because they are too focused on what they are seeking. Meaning they miss out on all the other things around them. By the end of the book, Siddhartha seems to have found what he needs to find. Whether or not you as a reader can embrace his ultimate philosophy is up to you. The contradictory nature of the book is that Siddhartha would probably tell you not to--you have to find your own.

[carmenere_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you've come to this novella, you, like Siddhartha, may be a seeker. You, like Siddhartha, may be struggling to discover the meaning of life, looking for enlightenment. Perhaps, you may be required to read it, surely, there is a reason this story is assigned reading, right? Well, truthfully, you may not find all the answers here but consider Hesse's poetic prose as a continuation of your personal journey.
Like Odysseus, there is much to lure Siddhartha off his path and which deter him from achieving his goal.
Still, his associations with Kamala, Kamaswami and Govinda are not wasted moments in Siddhartha's life, rather they are a piece of his learning experience.
Surprisingly, it is when Siddhartha struggles the most, when he is at his lowest, the moment he finds his love is not reciprocated that he finds the answer.
This is a book to be read and reread and although each read may be different than the last it will surely leave its impression upon your journey.