The River In Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha

He says “...slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water, in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings that were as many-tinted as an opal”. This statement demonstrates the flaws that could be overlooked, but soon realized after moment of familiarizing with the river. The use of comparing it to an opal is to express that the surface may be beautiful, but when it is broken it's easier to see the features it truly cares. His last evident statement that adds to him viewing the river as beautiful is when he says “It is the faintest and simplest expression the water ever makes, and the most hideous to a pilots eye.” This statement shows how perspective can change after really truly discovering the works beyond the exterior beauty of something. Overall, the bigger interpretation of his perception changing of the river is because after discovering the unruly aspects of the river, he does not only see the beauty it holds on the outside, but the disturbance it has also on the

   In Herman Hess's, Siddhartha, Siddhartha's constant growth and spiritual evolution is elucidated through the symbolism of the snake, the bird and the river.

        The stage of transcendence was when the inner voice that has guided Siddhartha thus far surges out and becomes boldly manifest in this river, which, far more than simply water, is the voice of life itself.  In the river, Siddhartha sees images come together, just as he hears voices come together.  Here, "He saw that the water continually flowed and flowed and yet it was always there, it was always the same and yet every moment it was new."  The river can be everywhere at the same time.  Only the present means anything to the river, not the past or the

Comparing the River and the Village of Desires is like comparing peanut butter and jelly, separately they have no relations but when you combine them they create something magnificent and something many can relate to. The village, for example, represents a distraction for Siddhartha. This distraction prevents Siddhartha from focusing on his enlightenment journey but also he eventually comes to a realization which helps guide him on the right path again, "He had finished with that. That also died in him. He rose, said farewell to the mango tree and the pleasure garden. As he had not had any food that day he felt extremely hungry, and thought of his house in town, of his room and bed, of the table with food. He smiled wearily, shook his head and said goodbye to these things" (68). Siddhartha finally leaves the city, leaving lonely and empty with no wealth, nor lover or any belongings where he realizes he hates the

   In Siddhartha's quest for enlightenment, Herman Hesse makes the river the final focal point of the novel. Siddhartha is set on his journey to the river by listening to his inner voice and questioning authority. The river comes to represent the ideas through which Siddhartha reaches enlightenment. The essential concepts of time and how it relates to life are discovered by Siddhartha through listening to the river. He comes to realize that his previous conclusion is correct, wisdom cannot be taught. When he reaches nirvana, he also sees how spiritualism and materialism both have a place in the cycle of life. Acting as Siddhartha's inspiration to his ultimate goal, the river

The motions symbolize how in Buddhism the now is perfect, that everything comes back to you, and in life you have to go through many things to gain different aspects of a whole. These three concepts, Siddhartha learns from the flowing of the water, help him in the concepts of the cyclical journeying during life. The living in the now, the past coming back, and life being transitory form different journeys in their own ways, and become reasons that help in the idea of the constant journeying Siddhartha will go through during life. Buddhism teaches the same topic, that life keeps going and you are always in a constant state of journeying to achieve components of a whole, Enlightenment. The water acts as a symbol in Buddhism because it teaches the exact same things the religion lectures about. The water symbolizes a metaphor for the journey of the Buddha, or Siddhartha, learning from multiple different ways of living, to find a life-style knowledgable enough for him. Siddhartha is Buddha and his journeys lead him to become a ferry man that learns from the water who's life-likeness is equal to the laws of Buddhist thinking,

Significance: This displays Siddhartha’s first stage in his development. His life as a Brahman brings him much discontent, which prompts him to follow a path toward enlightenment. In order to dismiss his current state and discover his true inner being, he believes he needs to pursue a life as a Samana. This choice requires him to leave his current life and parents behind in the Brahman community.

This situation enhances the theme of light and darkness present in the novel. As Govinda is portrayed as a shadow, at this point in the story he is only a by-product of the “light” of enlightenment that Siddhartha is metaphorically facing. This theme is communicated largely through these two characters. If it was communicated in any other way, as through imagery, for example, the story would not have been as complex.

Siddhartha and Shrek contain similarities as mono-myths; however the story of Shrek is the more creative work of the two. Both stories are good examples of mono-myths, but the appeal of each story is very different. The audience reading Siddhartha and the audience watching Shrek are most likely polar opposites. Siddhartha’s audience is probably more adults and religiously based. Shrek’s audience is probably more children and family friendly.

Everything we do in the world is absolutely pointless. We as humans are irrelevant specks in the vast universe that go about our repetitive lives for no apparent reason. At the end of the day, it makes no difference how much good or bad we do in the world. This is the ignorant view of the world that fails to see the perfect harmony in which we all live our lives. The redundant cycles that we try so hard to get away from are part of our overarching connectedness as humans. As parts of a whole, all of us have a role to play in making our lives better for ourselves and others. Our role is the very meaning of life, and we should embrace it wholeheartedly. The novel Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse stresses this cyclical unification through various circular constructions throughout Siddhartha’s life. Siddhartha had to deal with many individual stages of his life that seemed pointless. These cycles almost drove him to the point of suicide, but he was saved by the river which acted as a symbol for his entire life, as a united whole. This was the gateway to his attainment of enlightenment, allowing him to feel closer to everyone around him.

On the contrary, seeing the river once again inspired him to change and believe “ How he loved this river how it enchanted him, how grateful he was to it! In his heart, he heard the newly awakened voice speak, and it said to him: Love this river, stay by it, learn from it” ( 82 ). Overflowing with realization, Siddhartha learned “ I reviewed my life and it was also a river, Siddhartha the boy, Siddhartha the mature man and Siddhartha the old man, were only separated by shadows, not through reality” ( 87 ). In my opinion, he came to see that life is about the journey simply living in the moment because life will flow by quietly so you have to be at peace to reach

(P.121). Govinda has finally found his own wisdom and that everything is a cycle, always existing. His journey to enlightenment had just

When reading Hesse’s novel, as young people did back then, I wondered how Siddhartha managed to get on without Govinda all those years, and how Govinda managed to get on without Siddhartha. How is it people just get up and leave? These leavings, like every breath, are little deaths. Even when the two reconnected as old men by a river, it was not the same. How could it be? People find you on Facebook after years of wandering in forests. Your beard might as well be matted with betel juice; your crazy eyes peer out from the hollow caves of your face. You are not the same “you” they are trying to find. How in God’s name could you be? You’ve been doing what Mary Oliver expressed in that one final, beautiful line—you’ve been “saving the only life you

Herman Hesse evokes the deeper meaning of the river in Siddhartha. The river serves as a symbol of spiritual awareness and eternity. It enabled the pathway for Siddhartha to reach enlightenment. Siddhartha travels on a lifelong journey in order to gain knowledge about nirvana. Throughout the novel, he encounters the river several times and as a son of a Brahmin, he performed his ritual ablutions in the water. Each time Siddhartha encounters the river, it ultimately leads to his salvation. It holds great importance to the story.

He travelled the way of self- denial through meditation, through the emptying of the mind of all images. Along these and other paths did he learn to travel. He lost his Self a thousand times and for days on end he dwelt in non-being. But although the paths took him away from Self, in the end they always led back to it… he would again find himself in sunshine or in moonlight, in shadow or in rain, and was again Self and Siddhartha, again felt the torment of the onerous life cycle (13).