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The Fear Of Life In Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha

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So often people go along with a life that’s unsatisfying, for the approval of others, living a life with discontent due to the fear of living differently than the rest. The novel Siddhartha, written by Hermann Hesse is a story about a man named Siddhartha who is unsatisfied with his given life at the top of the caste system. He drops everything and goes on a journey exploring many different lifestyles in order to achieve enlightenment. The novel showcases the Buddhist lifestyle while displaying several different life lessons that the protagonist, Siddhartha, learns through hardships. The lessons that Siddhartha learns throughout the book consist of the harder path in life paying off, loss and letting go, and not letting anything hold …show more content…

They talk themselves down into taking the easier path. They end up shaping their goals into what the easier path in life can uncover for them. For example, if I wanted to live a different path and travel the world; there would be a lot of people telling me that I wouldn’t have enough money to sustain myself. It might be hard figuring out the details and how I was going to go through with my plan; I might have to learn new skills and live completely different than I had before. Most importantly there is the want to live an easy and comfortable life. When joining the Samanas, Siddhartha let go of all of his luxuries and threw away the easier path in order to take one that was more challenging. “He only ate once a day and never cooked food. He fasted 14 days. The flesh disappeared from his legs and cheeks.” Siddhartha gave away everything in life he grew up to know, he put himself out there and risked his entire life and the respect of his father in order to follow the path he wanted. He went above and beyond to challenge himself, which is something that I can really learn from as I develop my life and decide what path it is that I want to

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Siddhartha was an exemplary man who was loved by all. He was well educated, strong, handsome, and graceful. He pleased everyone, but he himself was never content. He did not find peace because the teachings of the elders and the customs of his culture were never enough for him. The quote is metaphor

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Siddhartha’s experiences with the Brahmins, the Samanas, Kamala and the City and as a Ferryman all contribute to his idea of what is right and essentially good. Overall, he leaves the establishments and people he finds because he does not believe their ways anymore but instead wants to pursue something else until he finds peace as a ferryman. Throughout Siddhartha’s journey he encounters people who question what he believes in and show them what they think is the ‘good life’ but he ultimately follows his own beliefs despite of this.

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Following strict and certain rules and instructions created by this “higher power” in which to live a successful life. This is exactly why Religion isn’t highly or 100% thought upon in contemporary society. Yes, religion is just as important then as it is now, it is just not practiced word for word or taken as literally on how our lives should be lived unlike it was in historical times. This novel is set in ancient India at the time of Gotama the Buddha, whose Eightfold Path guides the faithful toward Nirvana, six centuries before the birth of Christ. Throughout this novel, it is Siddhartha’s quest to seek Nirvana, the state of the highest form of enlightenment, liberation, and illumination and it frees the person from suffering, death, and rebirth, by going on this spiritual

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Siddhartha realizes he is no longer comfortable just sitting around as the big fish in a little pond, and he would like to seek true illumination that he feels cannot be found in their town. As he states to his father, “I have come to tell you that I wish to leave your house tomorrow and join the ascetics.” (Hess, p. 10). In other words, he decides to break away from his childhood village and pursue enlightenment by practicing self-discipline (becoming an ascetic). Although he tries to reach nirvana in numerous different manners, his final goal never truly changes.

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Siddhartha discovers his inner peace when he goes through diverse experiences, and gains wisdom. As a young kid, Siddhartha grows up being a Brahmin’s son. His father and elders taught Siddhartha

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I am not very religious. When I go to church, I feel more at peace. When I do not go to church, my life feels hectic and sometimes out of control. It is almost as if walking into the doors of the church have a calming factor to my life and I suddenly find that element missing from my life. Siddhartha embarks on a journey for himself to see what this element of his life is that is missing.

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The story of Siddhartha tells the tale of a boy who grows up in a wealthy Brahman family. He grows to be intelligent and handsome and is loved by all his family and friends. Siddhartha seems to have everything he could want but eventually becomes frustrated with his life. He seeks enlightenment and believes that the elders in his community have nothing more to teach him spiritually. Much to his parent’s frustration, Siddhartha decides he needs to leave home and find the inner peace he seeks.

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Throughout the book, it is a constant roller coaster of Siddhartha experiencing joy but then also enduring suffering. As a young boy, Siddhartha had everything. "There was happiness in his father's heart because of his son who was intelligent and thirsty for knowledge; he saw him growing up to be a great learned man, a priest, a prince among Brahmins" (Hesse 4). It was until Siddhartha asked his father to leave his home and go out on his own.

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Any individual lives their life with many different types of influences, coming from both objects and people. In Hermann Hesse’s novel Siddhartha, a man unknowingly travels down the path of enlightenment. The man known as Siddhartha travels to seek the knowledge he longs for and encounters multiple influences along the way. These influences play an important role in the novel for him. Some of the influences in Siddhartha’s life include Kamala, his son, and the river since they help him to understand what he seeks and are the main reasons for him achieving enlightenment.

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Each individual embarks on his or her own hero’s journey in life, some finding peace and enlightenment while others suffer greatly. In Hermann Hesse’s novel Siddhartha, the author slowly shows Siddhartha’s path towards finding the self and enlightenment through conflict and resolution. Finding himself is difficult, but once he does, Siddhartha is released from sorrow and depression, which finally enables him to reach enlightenment and peace. Hesse portrays Siddhartha’s spiritual hero’s journey by using unique conflicts to reveal his true self through independence, mindfulness, and responsibility.

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Siddhartha Fishbowl Discussion Reflection My understanding of cultural and contextual considerations in Siddhartha by Herman Hesse during the oral discussion increased because I was able to easily see how different interpretations drawn from the text can lead to different conclusions based upon a person 's preconceived notions. A significant cultural difference I had not previously considered was after someone in the class asked “how could a war be bad” and many people seemed to agree with them (thus indirectly implying belief in absolute morality), and even stated about how they essentially found Siddhartha’s proclamation at the end of the book that “everything was good” to be in direct interference with their own personal beliefs. This was

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"There Will Come Soft Rains" is a science fiction short story by Ray Bradbury. It incorporates many expressive languages, provides detailed clues for the reader to make inferences and it conveys deep messages. To start with, the narrative is set in the future on August 4th, 2026. The story took place inside an abandoned mechanical house beside surrounded by ruins. Throughout the story, there was an anonymous voice repeating the time and indicating reminders to complete jobs.

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Siddhartha left the city and got rid of all possessions, he cut his hair, and exchanged his robes for the clothing of a simple beggar. He would only eat what was put in his begging bowl. Siddhartha would then study the next six years, trying to achieve blissful concentration through meditation. Siddhartha joined a group of 5 ascetics, or simply people who got rid of all material satisfaction. They worked with extreme forms of self- mortification, or mutilating yourself for spiritual reasons.

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If we lead ourselves and encounter a hardship, we will not fall back as if we were following, but we learn from it and add to the knowledge gained from our journey. This lesson is actual to us in all phases of life: school, friends, and work. We should always try to keep Siddhartha’s model to reach our final goal and gain knowledge on the

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And Herman Hesse shows this by showing their trust for each other. When Siddhartha first leaves home he experiences many trials and tribulations From being a Samana, to going to the city, to almost committing suicide. Who was always there? The Ferryman. Siddhartha trusts him almost like a father, he understands all that he has gone through.

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