Siddhartha: An Indian Tale

By Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha is a simple yet powerful and lyrical novel. Siddhartha is a man in search of enlightenment in the time of Buddah. He learns that experience is the best way to approach understanding of reality and attain enlightenment. Hermann Hesse won the 1946 Nobel Prize in Literature. A landmark novel.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wilder Publications, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9781515451402

Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse was a highly acclaimed German author. He was known most famously for his novels Steppenwolfand Siddhartha and his novel The Glass Bead Game earned Hesse a Nobel prize in Literature in 1946. Many of his works explore topics pertaining to self-prescribed societal ostracization. Hesse was fascinated with ways in which one could break the molds of traditional society in an effort to dig deeper into the conventions of selfhood. His fascination with personal awareness earned himself something of a following in the later part of his career. Perceived thus as a sort of “cult-figure” for many young English readers, Hesse’s works were a gateway into their expanding understanding of eastern mysticism and spirituality. Despite Hesse’s personal fame, Siddhartha, was not an immediate success. It was only later that his works received noticeable recognition, largely with audiences internationally. The Glass Bead Game was Hermann Hesse’s final novel, though he continued to express his beliefs through varying forms of art including essays, poems, and even watercolor paintings.

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Siddhartha

by Herman Hesse

© 2021 Wilder Publications

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, used, or transmitted in any form or manner by any means: electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the express, prior written permission of the author and/or publisher, except for brief quotations for review purposes only.

Hardcover ISBN 13: 978-1-5154-3455-9

Trade Paperback ISBN 13: 978-1-6045-9592-5

E-book ISBN 13: 978-1-5154-5140-2

Table of Contents

FIRST PART

THE SON OF THE BRAHMAN

WITH THE SAMANAS

GOTAMA

AWAKENING

SECOND PART

KAMALA

WITH THE CHILDLIKE PEOPLE

SANSARA

BY THE RIVER

THE FERRYMAN

THE SON

OM

GOVINDA

FIRST PART

To Romain Rolland, my dear friend

THE SON OF THE BRAHMAN

In the shade of the house, in the sunshine of the riverbank near the boats, in the shade of the Sal-wood forest, in the shade of the fig tree is where Siddhartha grew up, the handsome son of the Brahman, the young falcon, together with his friend Govinda, son of a Brahman. The sun tanned his light shoulders by the banks of the river when bathing, performing the sacred ablutions, the sacred offerings. In the mango grove, shade poured into his black eyes, when playing as a boy, when his mother sang, when the sacred offerings were made, when his father, the scholar, taught him, when the wise men talked. For a long time, Siddhartha had been partaking in the discussions of the wise men, practising debate with Govinda, practising with Govinda the art of reflection, the service of meditation. He already knew how to speak the Om silently, the word of words, to speak it silently into himself while inhaling, to speak it silently out of himself while exhaling, with all the concentration of his soul, the forehead surrounded by the glow of the clear-thinking spirit. He already knew to feel Atman in the depths of his being, indestructible, one with the universe.

Joy leapt in his father’s heart for his son who was quick to learn, thirsty for knowledge; he saw him growing up to become great wise man and priest, a prince among the Brahmans.

Bliss leapt in his mother’s breast when she saw him, when she saw him walking, when she saw him sit down and get up, Siddhartha, strong, handsome, he who was walking on slender legs, greeting her with perfect respect.

Love touched the hearts of the Brahmans’ young daughters when Siddhartha walked through the lanes of the town with the luminous forehead, with the eye of a king, with his slim hips.

But more than all the others he was loved by Govinda, his friend, the son of a Brahman. He loved Siddhartha’s eye and sweet voice, he loved his walk and the perfect decency of his movements, he loved everything Siddhartha did and said and what he loved most was his spirit, his transcendent, fiery thoughts, his ardent will, his high calling. Govinda knew: he would not become a common Brahman, not a lazy official in charge of offerings; not a greedy merchant with magic spells; not a vain, vacuous speaker; not a mean, deceitful priest; and also not a decent, stupid sheep in the herd of the many. No, and he, Govinda, as well did not want to become one of those, not one of those tens of thousands of Brahmans. He wanted to follow Siddhartha, the beloved, the splendid. And in days to come, when Siddhartha would become a god, when he would join the glorious, then Govinda wanted to follow him as his friend, his companion, his servant, his spear-carrier, his shadow.

Siddhartha was thus loved by everyone. He was a source of joy for everybody, he was a delight for them all.

But he, Siddhartha, was not a source of joy for himself, he found no delight in himself. Walking the rosy paths of the fig tree garden, sitting in the bluish shade of the grove of contemplation, washing his limbs daily in the bath of repentance, sacrificing in the dim shade of the mango forest, his gestures of perfect decency, everyone’s love and joy, he still lacked all joy in his heart. Dreams and restless thoughts came into his mind, flowing from the water of the river, sparkling from the stars of the night, melting from the beams of the sun, dreams came to him and a restlessness of the soul, fuming from the sacrifices, breathing forth from the verses of the Rig-Veda, being infused into him, drop by drop, from the teachings of the old Brahmans.

Siddhartha had started to nurse discontent in himself, he had started to feel that the love of his father and the love of his mother, and also the love of his friend, Govinda, would not bring him joy for ever and ever, would not nurse him, feed him, satisfy him. He had started to suspect that his venerable father and his other teachers, that the wise Brahmans had already revealed to him the most and best of their wisdom, that they had already filled his expecting vessel with their richness, and the vessel was not full, the spirit was not content, the soul was not calm, the heart was not satisfied. The ablutions were good, but they were water, they did not wash off the sin, they did not heal the spirit’s thirst, they did not relieve the fear in his heart. The sacrifices and the invocation of the gods were excellent—but was that all? Did the sacrifices give a happy fortune? And what about the gods? Was it really Prajapati who had created the world? Was it not the Atman, He, the only one, the singular one? Were the gods not creations, created like me and you, subject to time, mortal? Was it therefore good, was it right, was it meaningful and the highest occupation to make offerings to the gods? For whom else were offerings to be made, who else was to be worshipped but Him, the only one, the Atman? And where was Atman to be found, where did He reside, where did his eternal heart beat, where else but in one’s own self, in its innermost part, in its indestructible part, which everyone had in himself? But where, where was this self, this innermost part, this ultimate part? It was not flesh and bone, it was neither thought nor consciousness, thus the wisest ones taught. So, where, where was it? To reach this place, the self, myself, the Atman, there was another way, which was worthwhile looking for? Alas, and nobody showed this way, nobody knew it, not the father, and not the teachers and wise men, not the holy sacrificial songs! They knew everything, the Brahmans and their holy books, they knew everything, they had taken care of everything and of more than everything, the creation of the world, the origin of speech, of food, of inhaling, of exhaling, the arrangement of the senses, the acts of the gods, they knew infinitely much—but was it valuable to know all of this, not knowing that one and only thing, the most important thing, the solely important thing?

Surely, many verses of the holy books, particularly in the Upanishades of Samaveda, spoke of this innermost and ultimate thing, wonderful verses. Your soul is the whole world, was written there, and it was written that man in his sleep, in his deep sleep, would meet with his innermost part and would reside in the Atman. Marvellous wisdom was in these verses, all knowledge of the wisest ones had been collected here in magic words, pure as honey collected by bees. No, not to be looked down upon was the tremendous amount of enlightenment which lay here collected and preserved by innumerable generations of wise Brahmans.— But where were the Brahmans, where the priests, where the wise men or penitents, who had succeeded in not just knowing this deepest of all knowledge but also to live it? Where was the knowledgeable one who wove his spell to bring his familiarity with the Atman out of the sleep into the state of being awake, into the life, into every step of the way, into word and deed? Siddhartha knew many venerable Brahmans, chiefly his father, the pure one, the scholar, the most venerable one. His father was to be admired, quiet and noble were his manners, pure his life, wise his words, delicate and noble thoughts lived behind its brow —but even he, who knew so much, did he live in blissfulness, did he have peace, was he not also just a searching man, a thirsty man? Did he not, again and again, have to drink from holy sources, as a thirsty man, from the offerings, from the books, from the disputes of the Brahmans? Why did he, the irreproachable one, have to wash off sins every day, strive for a cleansing every day, over and over every day? Was not Atman in him, did not the pristine source spring from his heart? It had to be found, the pristine source in one’s own self, it had to be possessed! Everything else was searching, was a detour, was getting lost.

Thus were Siddhartha’s thoughts, this was his thirst, this was his suffering.

Often he spoke to himself from a Chandogya-Upanishad the words: Truly, the name of the Brahman is satyam—verily, he who knows such a thing, will enter the heavenly world every day. Often, it seemed near, the heavenly world, but never he had reached it completely, never he had quenched the ultimate thirst. And among all the wise and wisest men, he knew and whose instructions he had received, among all of them there was no one, who had reached it completely, the heavenly world, who had quenched it completely, the eternal thirst.

Govinda, Siddhartha spoke to his friend, Govinda, my dear, come with me under the Banyan tree, let’s practise meditation.

They went to the Banyan tree, they sat down, Siddhartha right here, Govinda twenty paces away. While putting himself down, ready to speak the Om, Siddhartha repeated murmuring the verse:

Om is the bow, the arrow is soul, The Brahman is the arrow’s target, That one should incessantly hit.

After the usual time of the exercise in meditation had passed, Govinda rose. The evening had come, it was time to perform the evening’s ablution. He called Siddhartha’s name. Siddhartha did not answer. Siddhartha sat there lost in thought, his eyes were rigidly focused towards a very distant target, the tip of his tongue was protruding a little between the teeth, he seemed not to breathe. Thus sat he, wrapped up in contemplation, thinking Om, his soul sent after the Brahman as an arrow.

Once, Samanas had travelled through Siddhartha’s town, ascetics on a pilgrimage, three skinny, withered men, neither old nor young, with dusty and bloody shoulders, almost naked, scorched by the sun, surrounded by loneliness, strangers and enemies to the world, strangers and lank jackals in the realm of humans. Behind them blew a hot scent of quiet passion, of destructive service, of merciless self-denial.

In the evening, after the hour of contemplation, Siddhartha spoke to Govinda: Early tomorrow morning, my friend, Siddhartha will go to the Samanas. He will become a Samana.

Govinda turned pale, when he heard these words and read the decision in the motionless face of his friend, unstoppable like the arrow shot from the bow. Soon and with the first glance, Govinda realized: Now it is beginning, now Siddhartha is taking his own way, now his fate is beginning to sprout, and with his, my own. And he turned pale like a dry banana-skin.

O Siddhartha, he exclaimed, "will your father permit you to do

Reviews for Siddhartha

[thedivineoomba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful book about the happiness of taking your own path, of learning the world your own way. Its full of good messages, but is not preachy. Highly recommended, and a Book I intend to come back to.

[dreesie-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this much more than I expected to. As a young man the Brahmin Siddhartha leaves his father to be a samana, a monk of sorts, searching for truth and enlightenment. He then begins to follow one man known as a Buddha. After much time with him, he decides he is ready for something else, knowing nothing of women or the ways of the world. He becomes a successful businessman and a lover--and years later realizes how much of his wisdom and skill has been lost (how to wait, how to fast...). He leaves his lover and business and becomes a ferryman, with the man who ferried him years before. There he gains happiness and wisdom, and knowledge of the cycle and sameness of all life and time.

[trotsky731 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A great, spiritual read. Tells the tale of Siddhartha, a young man with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, till he finally hears the answer from a river.

[supermanlver · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very inspiring story about Siddhartha's transcendence to become the Buddha. This novel takes the reader through Siddhartha's entire journey starting from his decision, as a child, to trade in his life of luxury, for a more simplistic one as he sets off to reach enlightenment. A very intriguing book. I felt enlightened as i read it! Enjoy :)

[razinha-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I seem to remember writing a book report for this in junior high or high school, but I don't recall that I ever actually read it. I wonder what the then me, being naive and impressionable, would have thought if I had read it. I know that I couldn't then, as now, read into a book and pull out what the author was thinking - or at least make up some nonsense about what I think the author was thinking. Regardless, the current me found this to be rather simple and preachy...with yet another, "oh, please" ending.

[auntmarge64 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A well-to-do Brahman by birth, as a young man Siddhartha leaves home to pursue a spiritual satisfaction he hasn’t found in his father’s traditional teachings and practices. Throughout his life he follows his inner voice, learning from forest-dwelling ascetics, a brief stay with Gautama Buddha, friendships he forms with a courtesan and a wealthy businessman, and, finally, from an old ferryman, with whom he lives his own elder years. Slowly Siddhartha finds his own path to holiness, which he reaches only when he finally leaves teachings behind and simply recognizes the unity of all existence. What a beautiful tale this is, and one I’ll be revisiting again and again.

[nikg83 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A classic covering a man's journey in his discovery of the purpose of life. Easy to read and a most agreeable conclusion.

[rsplenda477 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is quite possibly the most beautiful book I have ever read. It touched me emotionally, philosophically, spiritually, etc. Hesse really knocked this one out of the park about a man in search of truth and self-identity.

[mathmaverick-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A thought provoking and inspirational novel. It has been 30+ years since I first (and last) read Siddhartha. I recall now just how influential and interesting it was for me. It is the story of the journey of an individual who is seeking his way. Along his trek he leaves his family, meets the Buddha, departs from a friend, finds (learns and experiences) love, learns "business", meets a true friend and discovers a son. From everyone, he learns and from him everyone is given the opportunity to learn (although not all gain from this opportunity). The book is short and its written very concisely (at least my translation was). Each paragraph has something to say, building on the general theme. This book can be read in a sitting, however I recommend reading a bit and then contemplating, playing it again in your mind. Siddhartha is certainly one of my favorites and I strongly recommend it to everyone.

[suzemo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is easily one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read.

Nothing new or amazingly thought provoking (dude leaves his promising life to find meaning as an ascetic, a wealthy and debauched merchant, and then back to a simple living ferryman), but everyone should read it.

[nandadevi_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well there are over a hundred reviews of this in LT already. What I thought of it? A well told little parable of the process of seeking after (either) meaning and (or) contentment. As someone else mentioned it would have likely had a different impact on me 40 years ago. But as it stands with me today, I enjoyed the way it was put together, and the way it seemed to start and end and how it got from one to the other so economically. What does fascinate me though, is how Hesse came to be writing about this at all, and how much (if at all) this novel played a part (or was a reflection?) of Germany's 20th Century flirtation with Indian concepts. And what the Indians made of Hesse (and the Nazi's). So in the sense that some part of the worth of a book is the degree to which it opens up further interest I rate this a little higher than I might otherwise.

[tloeffler_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Siddhartha leaves his family as a young man to search for happiness. He travels, trying on and then discarding several different lives, until he ends up living on the river with a ferryman. What he finds is that happiness is a culmination of everything in life. Like the river, life is not only the now but what has come before and what is yet to be. I'm not explaining the philosophy very well, but it was very inspirational to me. Although the first part of the book moved slowly, the second half was fascinating, and I would recommend the book to anyone. It doesn't try to teach you a religion; it tries to show you that everything in your life is your religion.

[nataliec7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is quite low down on my TBR's but I wanted a quick read as I'm going on holiday soon and have a whole set of books to take with me but wanted to start them whilst I was away!I liked this book. It was very easy to get into, and I lost myself within it. I enjoyed the rather simple language, what it was about, the characters and the feel of the book in general.

[mwhel_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I remember this being a mind-expanding book when I first read it as a teenager. That memory led me to reread it recently but, sad to say, it didn't deliver the same punch that I remember from earlier. Maybe that's because Siddhartha's journey to enlightenment seemed to offer a relatively little-known path to a harmonious, peaceful existence in my young impressionable mind. I think I now see that path as well-worn and less enticing. That jaded insight aside, the prose is very digestible, and the idea that true enlightenment is discoverable in the daily routine is a powerful concept. I'm glad I first read it at a more impressionable age since I think it helped to distill my lifelong values.

[kdwade_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I don't think there's a wasted word in this book; it's everything Hesse did in his other novels, condensed into a very slim story full of beautiful prose and mesmerizing passages. I read it twice in one day, you should probably try it at least once.

[kristelh_15 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

LibraryThing predicted I would not like this one. The story is set in Nepal during the time of Buddha and tells the story of Siddhartha (achieved what was searched for). Siddhartha is a young privileged Brahmin youth. He spends his life searching. Really is is just a story of life stages; the arrogance of youth, the materialistic pursuits of middle age and the contentment of old age. It reminded me of Ecclesiastes. Hermann Hesse was the son of a missionary who served in India and his family wanted him to go into the ministry. His themes are self discovery and spirituality.

[nx74defiant · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I am not that interested in Indian mysticism.

[arctic1stranger · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is, and is not the story of the Buddha. It is Hesse's attempts to find sanity, and we are glad he takes us along with him.

[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.

[jimocracy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Nonsensical ideologies and philosophies aside, I really enjoyed this book. From a literary perspective, the author (and translator) did a masterful job of sucking me into the life and mind of Siddhartha. I felt like I was on a roller coaster of emotions and story lines and the protagonist journeyed through a life of seeking.

[reluctanttechie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Considered a classic, but very repetitive in English. Perhaps it is better in the original German. It touches on the paradoxes of life and is difficult to truly understand, which I guess is the point.

[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.

[bookaldea · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book cleared my path in my quest for the truth. I was 23, a great believer hidden behind a clueless "atheist." I have read it about eight times since then in various stages of my life. I have read it in Spanish and in English, but once I ventured to read it in the original German, one of my favorite languages. This is the book I always recommend to seekers.

[amelia_smith-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was a huge influence on me at one point, but years later I re-read it with better knowledge of Buddhism and life, and it was not as great as I remembered. Still, a classic.

[vincentdarlage · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is one of the best novels ever written. Whenever I am deeply troubled, I re-read this book and find peace.

[steadfastreader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First word that comes to mind. Transcendent. This is a fictional account of a man seeking peace and wisdom. Excellent book.

[jphamilton-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Back when I was in college in the 1970s, I went on a serious, and predictable, Hermann Hesse reading jag ... and SIDDHARTHA was among those many, many titles. I have reread it many times in the years since then.. Presently, having just finished the book, I'm still glowing from the book's conclusion. Feeling a light and warm breeze, in a garden buzzing with bees, it was my favorite experience with a book in quite some time. These feelings are why I read.

[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.

[haidji-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Books can be magical things. This is one of themSiddhartha is a character that portrays the initiate in his early stages of development, immersed in life, yet desiring the ultimate knowledgeThe book is about the process experienced on the road to enlightenment. Based on the lives of Gotama Buddha the book describes the journey of Siddhartha as he looks for the meaning of life, hoping to achieve a greater state of being known as nirvana.The book shows that Knowledge that can be taught, but not wisdom.Siddhartha can be the tale of every human that begins the journey toward understanding. A very good read. .

[dr_cicle · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is very enlightening! I really liked the plot but the way the author wrote bothered me so much. That is why I rated this as a 3