English IVA Mrs. Dorety

Siddhartha Resource Guide

Introduction to Buddhism and Siddhartha

Buddhism:Four Main Points

1. There is suffering

2. There is a cause of suffering3. There is the cessation of suffering4. There is a way leading to the cessation of suffering

The Noble Eightfold Path

1. Right Understanding2. Right Thought3. Right Speech 6. Right effort4. Right Action 7. Right mindfulness5. Right Livelihood 8. Right Meditation

The Lotus Flower: The lotus flower grows in muddy water and rises above the surface to bloom with remarkable beauty. At night the flower closes and sinks underwater, at dawn it rises and opens again. Untouched by the impurity, lotus symbolizes the purity of heart and mind. The lotus flower represents long life, health, honor and good luck.

The Lotus Flower:In the East, the lotus flower is viewed as a symbol of spiritual

unfoldment. The lotus has its roots in earthly mud, but as it grows upward in aspiration toward the light, its petals

open out in a beautiful flower. Om Mani Padme Hum, meaning, "Hail to the Jewel in the Lotus" is the sacred mantra of the Tibetans.

Siddhartha

Meet Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha background: Group

presentationso Hermann Hesse’s lifeo The historical Buddhao 3 Main Groups:

Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana

o 4 Noble Truthso 8 Fold Patho Meditation and ‘Om’

Creative Writing Meditation

Guided Reading QuestionsPart One:

1. What is “Om” and what is its purpose?2. What is Atman?3. How is Siddhartha’s character revealed in the loyal thoughts and feelings

expressed by his friend, Govinda?4. Observe and take notes on the

references to the river beginning on page 5.

This is a prominent symbol in the novel. The view is a metaphor which grows in meaning

throughout the novel.

5. What is Siddhartha’s conflict (p.5 and 6)?

6. List his questions on page 5 and 6.7. Who are the Samanas and how do they affect

Siddhartha?8. What features of Siddhartha’s character, religion, and respect for his

parents does he show on pages 10-12?9. As a Samana, what was Siddhartha’s goal?10. What does Siddhartha learn to do as a Samana (pgs 14-15)?11. Who is Gotama?12. What display of his mental powers does Siddhartha use on the

Samana elder?13. On page 19 Siddhartha redefines Atman, what is the new definition?14. How is the Illustrious One described on pages 27-28?15. What is meant by the Four Main Points and Eightfold path?16. What does Siddhartha’s conversation with the Buddha reveal about

his journey (pgs 32-36)?17. How has the Buddha given Siddhartha himself?18. What had left Siddhartha like a snake’s old skin?19. What realization about Self does he discover on page 38?20. What awakening or rebirth does he experience on page 40?

21. What images reveal the fear of aloneness which his awakened state has caused on pages 40-41?

22. In his awakening Siddhartha loses his past identity. Explain.

Part Two1. How does his new mental state affect his vision? (Page 45)2. Why has Siddhartha never found self? 3. What unity is necessary to discover self? 4. What is the significance of Siddhartha’s dream? (Page 48)5. Note the mention of the ferryman, his words regarding the river and

Siddhartha’s return. What is the significance? (Page 49)6. Note Siddhartha’s thoughts about the ferryman’s friendliness, his likeness to

Govinda and their childlike behavior. What is the significance of this?7. Explain Siddhartha’s new feelings toward women.8. As Siddhartha awakens to Kamala, how does his perception of his past life of

begging change?9. How does Siddhartha explain to Kamala the way to reach his goals?10. What does the banter between the merchant and Siddhartha reveal

about their future relationship?11. Does Siddhartha consider love a game as well as business? Why or

why not?12. Note the image of “real life flowing past him” (71). What is the

significance of this?13. What do Siddhartha and Kamala have in common that in evidenced in

pages 71-72?14. What does the image of the fountainhead refer to? The potter’s

wheel?15. What entered Siddhartha’s soul “like moisture entering the dying tree

trunk, slowly filling and rotting it…?” (76)?16. Although Siddhartha acts like most men, how does he feel toward

them?17. What do ordinary people posses that Siddhartha lacks?18. What settled over Siddhartha “like a veil…a thin mist” (78)?19. What image is used to discuss the passage of time on page 78? Why

is this significant?20. What activity gives Siddhartha a feeling of happiness on page 79?21. Siddhartha sees in Kamala the signs of the same fear he sees in

himself. What fear do they share?22. Explain the meaning behind Siddhartha’s dream of the rare, dead

song bird.23. Why does Kamala release the song bird?24. Why does Siddhartha desire suicide?25. While contemplating the river, what happens to Siddhartha?

26. After sleeping near the river, what thoughts occupy Siddhartha?27. How is Siddhartha reborn on page 91?28. What meaning is there in Govinda watching over him?29. What does he discover after his sleep?30. How is he like a child (95) and like the river (96)?31. What part of self has died for Siddhartha?32. How does his rebirth make him see the river?33. Where has Vasudeva learned to listen?34. What lesson does the river teach Siddhartha about time (107)?35. What is the meaning behind Kamala’s snake bite?36. What does Siddhartha learn from Kamala’s death (114)?37. What Brahman and Samana characteristics does Siddhartha display in

the treatment of his son (118)?38. What does Vasudeva point out about Siddhartha’s son’s path (121)?39. How does the pain of losing his son cause him to feel like other

ordinary people (129)?40. What realization does he reach regarding the “thinkers of the world”

and the “men of the world” (130)?41. What is the wisdom and goal Siddhartha seeks?42. What cycle does Siddhartha see in the river?43. What is the music of life (135-136)?44. How do knowledge and wisdom differ?

MEDITATIONA BEGINNER’S JOURNEY

What counts most in meditation is attitude“A scattered mind cannot even accomplish worldly activity so you need a calm mind, especially for

dharma activity” –Milarepa

The premise we begin with is that every human being has great potential that can be realized. Each one of us is capable of experiencing a permanent state of total joy, love, clarity, and openness, a state usually referred to as being beyond description because our ideas and concepts of the human experience are inadequate to encompass it.

We have missed the point of living in today’s modern world. We meditate in order to create conditions that will bring about change in this state of affairs. Mediation reveals the state of egocentric fixation.

INSIGHT MEDITATION

1. Find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed

2. Sit comfortable in the lotus position with your back straight

a. Keep the spine straight b. Do not lean against anythingc. Lotus position

i. Feet- on opposite thighsii. Back-straight, careful to not have a concave bend in the lower

backiii. Shoulders- relaxed and pulled back a little, not hunched upiv. Head-neck very slightly bent forward so that your eyes

naturally look towards the ground ahead of youv. Hands- held in front of you, resting against the navel. Both

palms up, let supporting right with the tips of the thumb touching

vi. Tongue-relaxed, with the tip resting against the top teeth and the upper palate

vii. Eyes- ideally, kept open and defocused or looking in a relaxed way at a point ten inches away from your nose. If you cannot manage this at the beginning then close them and slowly train yourself to keep them open

3. Relax and focus on your breathing 4. Remain attentive to all that is around you. If a rogue thought enters your

mind, acknowledge and dismiss it5. During the day pay attention, are you mindful of your surrounding

Avoid Distractions: Don’t follow the past, get drawn into the present, or plan

for the future

Critical Article

DIRECTIONS: Read the following article which appeared in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism and respond to the related questions.

Siddhartha: Introduction

Published in Germany in 1922, Siddhartha is one of Hermann Hesse's most popular and widely read works of fiction. The novel, which examines themes related to spirituality and personal growth, such as the quest for enlightenment, is regarded by many critics as the pinnacle of Hesse's artistic achievement. Hesse conceived of the work a decade before its publication, after his extensive spiritual journey through the southeastern regions of Asia in 1911. That visit, in conjuction with his growing interest in psychoanalysis and introspection, directly influenced his conceptualization of Siddhartha and

the inward journey of its protagonist. In addition, the book reflects the growing interest in and admiration for Eastern culture among both readers and scholars of early twentieth-century Europe, who embraced the unifying philosophies of the East, in response to the fragmentation of Western society resulting from industrialization and the advance of science. Scholars generally agree that Siddhartha represents some of Hesse's best writing, partly because, as Hans Beerman has observed, the novel "telescopes most of the ideas and problems presented in his previous works and brings most clearly into focus the Eastern tendencies of thought which can be found ... in nearly all of his mature writings." Since its publication, critics have continued to assert the book's place in the canon of world literature. As George Wallis Field has affirmed, "in unity of style, structure, and meaning Siddhartha represents Hesse's highest achievement."

Plot and Major Characters

Siddhartha takes place in India during the sixth century, b.c. The protagonist, Siddhartha, is the obedient son of a wealthy Indian Brahman, who has been devout throughout his life, strictly observing his religious practices. He discovers that his life is empty, however, and leaves home, hoping to encounter God, who thus far has been a vague concept in his mind. Siddhartha gives up both material wealth and social status to become a Samana, an ascetic monk. He is accompanied by his friend, Govinda. As monks they are required to fast and endure physical hardship in order to empty themselves of their worldly longings. Through this process, they believe, they will hear God speak.

Over time Siddhartha realizes that this practice has not brought him closer to God or his goal of finding peace and happiness. He learns of Gotama Buddha, who has broken the cycle of reincarnation and entered Nirvana in a state of godliness. Siddhartha and Govinda set out to find the holy man and hear him teach. After spending time with Gotama and having a private conversation with him, Siddhartha realizes that though Gotama is indeed an enlightened being, no one can teach the path to salvation. Siddhartha knows that he must discover the answers he seeks through experience rather than the teachings of another man, and so he leaves. Govinda, however, decides that he can learn from Gotama and stays with him.

At this point Siddhartha embraces the world around him, from which he had always fled, and tries to obtain an understanding of humanity. He leaves the wilderness and travels to the city, where he encounters Kamala, a beautiful courtesan. Siddhartha and Kamala enter into a sensuous affair, in which Kamala teaches him about the pleasures of the world and the senses. Siddhartha also enters into a partnership with a businessman named Kamaswami and quickly acquires wealth and power as a successful merchant. His thoughts are focused on worldly possessions and money, and

he dwells less on spiritual matters. These things fail to bring him happiness, however, and, filled with self-loathing, he once again leaves his possessions and status behind.

Siddhartha returns to the river that he had previously crossed, when he gave up his life as a Samana. Sitting on the river's edge, he recalls his past and becomes discouraged, even though he knows that all of his experiences have been a necessary part of his journey. As his self-doubt reaches a climax, he considers drowning himself. But at the decisive moment, the sound "om" enters his mind and overwhelms his thought. Through contemplation of the word, which means "having completed," he realizes the foolishness of his desire to end his life. He begins to understand the connectedness of all living beings, including nature and humankind. Finally, Siddhartha joins Vasudeva, the ferryman, who teaches him about the timelessness of the river, which exists without a beginning or an end, without a past or a future. Vasudeva shows him that happiness is only possible when, like the river, a person is able to exist outside of time.

At this point in the narrative Siddhartha has almost reached his goal, but he is faced with one more challenge. Kamala has also become dissatisfied with her life and seeks to find Gotama Buddha for enlightenment. Her son, named after his father, Siddhartha, has accompanied her on the journey. She stops at the same river, not knowing that Siddhartha lives there. Before they encounter each other, however, she is bitten by a poisonous snake. As she is dying, her former lover finds her and recognizes her. He buries her and devotes himself to caring for and educating their son, who is now approaching adolescence. The young Siddhartha, however, does not ascribe to his father's way of thinking. He wants to live his own life, and he eventually breaks away and pursues his own path.

With the final loss of his son, Siddhartha is no longer tied to the earth and is able to give himself entirely to his spiritual journey. He finally achieves his goal and enters a state of Nirvana. As he achieves enlightenment, Vasudeva disappears into the "oneness" of all things, and Siddhartha takes over his position, ferrying people across the river. The story ends when the hero once again encounters Govinda, who recognizes that Siddhartha has arrived at a godlike state of being. Siddhartha allows Govinda to kiss his forehead, and in so doing glimpse the wisdom that he has found.

Major Themes

One of the primary themes of Siddhartha, which governs both the narrative and the structure of the novel, is the individual's quest for enlightenment. At the opening of the story, the protagonist, Siddhartha, is faced with a sense of emptiness. Despite his adherence to Hindu religious practices, he has yet to feel the presence of God and a sense of peace. His yearning for

enlightenment and spiritual truth drives him to leave the comforts of home and established religion, to search for something authentic and real. Siddhartha's quest for self-enlightenment leads him first to the Samanas, then to Gotama Buddha, and finally to Kamala and a world of complete sensual pleasure, all of which he eventually rejects as insufficient. It is only when he turns away from dogmatic religious practices, eschews the trap of materialism, and plumbs the depths of his own soul, that he finds spiritual truth and "oneness" in the world. Ironically, he achieves self-transcendence through self-realization, reflected in his inward focus and his experience of the timelessness of the river. As Joseph Mileck has observed, "life for Siddhartha consists primarily of two areas of experience: the world of the mind and thought, and that of the body and physical action. ... Siddhartha exhausts both possibilities, and in their exhaustion, transcends them and finds himself miraculously in yet a third realm, that of the soul, that ultimate stage in being when the individual lives in complete accord with himself and with life, when he is finally able, fully and not just for chance moments, to experience the essential oneness and meaningfulness of it all."

Another important theme of the novel, which runs parallel to Siddhartha's quest for truth and enlightenment, is the importance of self-education and personal experience. Eugene F. Timpe has remarked that "the search for Self, almost a Hesse colophon and therefore a matter of preponderant importance in Siddhartha, took place concurrently with the trial and error search for correct action. From the beginning, Siddhartha divined the need to discover the Self, just as he suspected its true nature." The protagonist takes his first steps toward self-awareness when he breaks ties with his family and begins his journey. He is dissatisfied with the religious practices that have been prescribed for him and seeks to find his own authentic truth. After listening to Gotama Buddha, Siddhartha realizes that enlightenment cannot be taught or learned but can only be achieved through personal experience. Despite this knowledge, Siddhartha still seeks answers through contact with others and is disappointed with the results. It is not until he is sitting by the river, inwardly reflecting on the events of his past, that the key to his search, the mystical sound "om," surfaces within his own mind. Although he is guided by Vasudeva to listen to the river, his understanding of the connectedness of all things comes from within himself. The theme of self-education is reiterated at the end of the novel, when Siddhartha's son rejects his father's teachings and leaves to discover his own truth, as his father did before him.

Standing in contrast to Siddhartha's successful quest is the journey of his friend, Govinda. Initially Govinda leaves home with Siddhartha because he wants to follow his friend, and not because of an innate drive to discover peace and truth. The two friends part ways, however, after their encounter with Gotama, when Govinda chooses to stay with the teacher and discover enlightenment through him. Because Govinda chooses to stay instead of

educating himself through personal experience, his quest for truth and inner peace is thwarted. When he meets Siddhartha again at the river, he once again relies on the wisdom of another person, rather his own experience. As Mark Boulby has observed, "so Siddhartha concludes with the confrontation of the two 'friends,' two students of the eternal, the one who, by turning his back not only upon family but also upon teacher and tradition, by bursting into the vast Without alone, has found serenity and wisdom, the other who has failed because he remained with the other monks within the grove of Jetavana, celibate within the walls of the Spiritual Academy."

Siddhartha's understanding of love and the effect it has on his spiritual life are important thematic elements of the novel as well. At the beginning of the story, Siddhartha has experienced familial love as a devoted son. He cannot fully participate in this love, however, and breaks away from the source of it, his family. Further along in his spiritual development, he encounters Kamala and experiences physical, or carnal, love. She lives with him for many years and teaches him the ways of the Kama Sutra, but Siddhartha is still unfulfilled by his experiences. After he leaves Kamala and learns of the connectedness of life, he begins to understand, although not fully, a different kind of love. When he takes responsibility for his son, Siddhartha experiences an intense love for him. With that love, however, comes suffering. When his son leaves, Siddhartha grasps a new concept of love. Through this experience with his son, he finally understands his own father's love as well. This final experience transforms Siddhartha, and he is able to arrive at the ultimate state of being. He takes over the ferryman's post and dedicates the rest of his life to the service of others. Edwin F. Casebeer has declared that "Hesse wishes to stress in his last chapter that man's most important act in the universe is the act of love, for it is the act of 'joining' together that which in reality has never been apart." Casebeer observed that the protagonist, "torn, humiliated, wounded by love," is finally reduced "to the level of the ordinary man. ... A brother now to mankind, Siddhartha has erased from his psyche his sense of difference between self and society." In a similar vein, Ernst Rose has suggested that Siddhartha's love for his son and for others indicates an embrace of divine, Christian love. Rose argued that "love for one's neighbor and love for the world are ways to self-realization. Siddhartha's experience of mystic union does not lead to spiritual aloofness" but to "humble, Christian charity. In all his awareness of the infinite realm of God and the universe, he remains a simple ferryman and farmer."

Critical Reception

When Siddhartha was published in 1922, Hesse's popularity in Germany and Europe, which had peaked the previous decade, was gradually waning. His reputation and readership declined even more rapidly once the Nazi regime came to power in 1933, after which he was blacklisted by German periodicals and newspapers. Following World War II German readers once again

returned to Hesse's works, including Siddhartha, attracted to their positive, life-affirming themes and concepts. When Hesse was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1946, publishers scrambled to produce translations of his extensive canon to meet the growing demand and interest. The first English translation of Siddhartha appeared in 1951. During the late 1950s and 1960s Siddhartha became extremely popular in America, particularly among younger audiences engaged in the countercultural movement. Young readers, who had become disillusioned by the growing materialism of Western culture, found solace in the novel's focus on the inner self, Eastern thought, and the quest for enlightenment. The book garnered a cult-like following, partially due to the fact, as Casebeer has suggested, that it was "one of the few affirmations being made in a society dominated by pessimism and hyperrationalism."

Since its publication in English Siddhartha has been the subject of an increasing body of criticism. Much of this commentary has focused on the religious and philosophical elements of the novel, exploring both the significance and the extent of the influence of Eastern thought on the work. Scholars disagree, however, over whether the book gives Hindu practices and beliefs precedence over Buddhist ones, or even whether the elements of Eastern thought in the novel--its plot and setting--are more significant than its Western themes. For example, while some critics have described Siddhartha as a parable of the life of Buddha, others, such as Theodore Ziolkowski, have rejected this idea. In his often-cited 1965 study of the work, Ziolkowski asserted that "any attempt to analyze the novel according to Buddha's life or his teaching about the Four Truths and the Eight-fold Noble Path does violence to the natural structure of the book." However, Brigitte Schludermann and Rosemarie Finlay have maintained that "the lives of the historical Buddha and the novel's Siddhartha, though differentiated by Hesse's use of names, are linked through the plot of the novel." Other critics have emphasized the presence of Hindu philosophy in the novel. Hans Beerman has argued that Siddhartha rejects Buddhist teachings, and that his "attitudes and his final Realization clearly follow the essense of the Bhagavad-Gita," a fundamental text in Hindu religion. Some scholars have even traced ideas within the novel to Chinese philosophy, asserting that Siddhartha's revelation at the end of the book of the underlying unity of all things points to Taoism.

Another camp of scholars has maintained that, regardless of its allusions to Eastern texts and philosophies, Siddhartha is deeply indebted to Western culture and, especially, Christian thought. Ernst Rose has argued: "Despite the Eastern coloration, the message of Siddhartha is Christian, even Protestant Christian, not Asiatic." In Rose's estimation, "Hesse aims at a synthesis of Eastern and Christian thought. Western intellectual arrogance and impatience is tempered by Eastern contemplation and humility. Eastern mysticism is expressed in a Western concern for the world's creatures."

Robert C. Conard has maintained that the formal structure of the book is also informed by Western influences, arguing that it contains all of the conditions of the "isolato-archetype in Western literature," and is thus closely linked to such American classics as Herman Melville's Moby Dick and Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. As Conard stated, "While Hesse's work has cultural determinants which distinguish it from other works employing the same archetype, his Siddhartha proclaims a primordial image, emerging from the deepest strata of unconscious, which reveals the bodily structure of the work as Western despite the Indic garment it wears."

Despite the divisions over the presiding influences in Hesse's novel, most critics agree that, with respect to form and content, Siddhartha deserves its prominent place in the twentieth-century literary canon. In his introduction to a 2006 English edition of the novel, American novelist Tom Robbins described the book as "a tough little wind-tossed blossom of a novel," which "comes to rest in a place of deep wisdom." Robbins concluded that while the book "has continued, decade after decade, to inspire its readers, to expose them to the mysteries of wisdom, it has never pretended that it could make them more wise. ... It is because we must travel its last miles unencumbered and alone that Hesse had his traveler remind us emphatically that 'Wisdom cannot be passed on.' And in that reminder may be the hardest, most valuable jewel in this literary lotus."

Source Citation "Siddhartha." Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Thomas J. Schoenberg and Lawrence J. Trudeau. Vol. 196. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 12 May 2010.

QUESTIONS:

1. What influenced Hesse’s writing of Siddhartha? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Which three themes does the article regard as the most important within the text?

Theme One:

Theme Two:

Theme Three:

3. Give evidence from the text (quotes from the novel) and article that support the role of each theme within Siddhartha.

One: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Two: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Three: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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4. How has Siddhartha been received by critics? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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