Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

more photos (1)

read book

Siddhartha

by Hermann Hesse, Hilda Rosner (Translator)

3.91 of 5 stars 3.91 · rating details · 177,846 ratings · 5,411 reviews

In the novel, Siddhartha, a young man, leaves his family for a contemplative life, then, restless, discards it for one of the flesh. He conceives a son, but bored and sickened by lust and greed, moves on again. Near despair, Siddhartha comes to a river where he hears a unique sound. This sound signals the true beginning of his life -- the beginning of suffering, rejection,...more

Paperback, 152 pages

Published December 1st 1981 by Bantam Books (first published 1922)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

Best Books Ever

99th out of 24,600 books — 93,863 voters

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Books That Everyone Should Read At Least Once

78th out of 8,123 books — 38,185 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Oct 31, 2012 Paquita Maria Sanchez rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature, invisible-pink-unicorn

If I could turn back time*or perhaps pass through some portal which brings me face-to-face with my 14-year-old self, there are so many books I would recommend to little me, grabbing my shoulders to shake my malnourished frame and insisting that I get to reading them as soon as effin possible instead of waiting until I'm too old and cynical and hyper-critical to appreciate and relate to what they have to say. If this ever is/was the case, this time-warp, today I would probably see a lot more nove...more If I could turn back time*or perhaps pass through some portal which brings me face-to-face with my 14-year-old self, there are so many books I would recommend to little me, grabbing my shoulders to shake my malnourished frame and insisting that I get to reading them as soon as effin possible instead of waiting until I'm too old and cynical and hyper-critical to appreciate and relate to what they have to say. If this ever is/was the case, this time-warp, today I would probably see a lot more novels as earth-shattering and brain-splattering magic rather than, well, pretty good stuff that I interrupted much better reading over the last two days to absorb for no good reason save for the mild satisfaction of completing a task.

The main wrong idea I had about this novel--which had quite a bit to do with it taking so long for me to get around to reading it--is that it's specifically about the Buddha. (I don't have to explain the reason for that misconception, right? Cool, moving on.) I thought maybe it was like a biography or some sort of weird Hessian alt-history or, well...honestly, I didn't think about it very far beyond that, and even those assumptions were fuzzily formed and essentially microscopic. Fortunately, Hesse takes his novel in a much more engaging direction by focusing in on a formerly devout and self-restricting member of the Samana movement who falls in love with a real Playboy Bunny™ of a gal, a lusty little obsession which quickly moves him away from his faith and into her privates. Drugs, drink, gambling, greed, and fornication ensue for years. And years. And years. And years.

Some of you may be familiar with the place he eventually finds himself: remorse, self-hatred, what-if's, what if not's, physical illness, years of wasted time, obsessive reflection i.e. largely pointless yet still horrifyingly circular cap-D Dwelling, nothing to show for your indulgences, spiritually crushing and tooth-grinding depression, et mofuggin' cetera.

Was there still any kind of filth he had not soiled himself with, a sin or foolish act he had not committed, a dreariness of the soul he had not brought upon himself? Was it still at all possible to be alive?

A dark place, no doubt. Unfortunately, this is the point where the book I was at first mildly bored with and then fully engaged in suddenly became just really fucking irritating. Hesse takes the word-slash-concept "Om" and uses it as the ultimate--and probably shortest named--deus ex machina of all time in my personal brain library's dusty archives. After spending unnumbered decades living like Robery Downey Sheen, our protagonist sits by a river for, I dunno, a couple of minutes reciting "Om" before it just miraculously all comes back to him and he's all enlightened and at peace again and shit (this is not even remotely the end of the novel, so please don't spoiler-mark me out of spite). So wait, what? Not for nothin', but if I have even a mildly snaggle-toothed hangover, I practically require endless supplies of coffee and 800mg ibuprofen, an animal and/or person to cuddle with, liquid b12 drops, at least an entire season of some television drama to fall into, and various plush surfaces to flail about on as I frantically loop Stuart Smalley quotes in my head just to keep the demons at bay. Sure, I am not enlightened and I know I sound like a total wimp right now, especially compared to one so self-disciplined as a monk-type, but I'd say his story of basically spending half a lifetime dipped in chocolately booze pools with naked bodies slithering all around him while he passed the glass n' rolled up dollar bill around gives new meaning to the phrase "falling off the wagon." Then again, I guess being at one with the spiritual path could be sorta like riding a bike, maybe? I don't suppose my hair turns white from shock every time I hear about an Amish kid returning to his village après Rumspringa. Anyway, my point is that everything just happened so fast and I wasn't ready.

All this nitpicking makes it sound like I didn't like the book, even though I pretty much did. Trite as the whole "setting free the bird" image was (as in, one character literally sets free a bird on the day her lover decides to leave her because it's symbolic), my heartstrings did play a purdy song when Siddhartha and his gal split ways, and everything that happened after the whole Om Affair did snap me back into the story. I particularly dug the ending, as there was ambiguity in a lot of the right places, and the very last scene was quite lovely. Read it, young me. Read it right after you get the almanac back from Biff. Oh, and speaking of the almanac, you're definitely gonna want to hold on to that thing because, honey, let me tell you a little something about the world economy in the early 21st century...

*Haha, Cher's totally stuck in your head now. Sucker.(less)

73 likes · like · see review

Jul 05, 2011 Stephen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics, ebooks, easton-press, religion-spirituality, life-changers, literature, classics-european

My apologies if this review reeks of "GUSHness." However, it gave me that ONE-OF-A-KIND reading experience that doesn't come along often and so I think it is certainly worthy of the praise I shall heep upon it. Beautifully written and a deeply personal story, Hesse has created the ultimate expression of the journey of self-discovery.

The book details the story of Siddhartha, the young and brilliant son of a Brahmin in ancient India. The Brahmin are the uber revered caste comprised of poets, pri...more

114 likes · like · see review

Jun 25, 2010 Kemper rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 100, sky-cake, classic-lit

So there’s a damn dirty hippie in India named Siddhartha who is supposed to be seeking spiritual enlightenment, but instead of going to a good Christian church like a normal person, he wanders around the woods for a while with some other damn dirty hippies. After he meets Buddha, he finally gets tired of being broke-ass and homeless, and he goes into town where he makes a pile of money. This is good because everyone knows that engaging in capitalism is the only proper way to go through life. As...more

306 likes · like · see review

Oct 22, 2012 Keely rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: asia, philosophy, german, novella, reviewed

By the latter part of the 19th Century, the colonial spread of European powers across the world was in full swing. The British ruled India and Australia and had gone to war with China to force opium on the population. Africa, South America, and the Philippines had been portioned out for Western rule and control of resources.

But tyranny does not travel only in one direction, from conqueror to subject. When Medieval European knights returned from the crusades, they brought with them mathematical p ...more

19 likes · like · see review

Jul 23, 2012 Nandakishore Varma rated it 4 of 5 stars

Most religions know of it as "Enlightenment" - when the individual transcends himself and sees himself as one with the ultimate reality. It can be theistic (the Aham Brahma Asmi - "I am the Brahman" or Tat Tvam Asi - "Thou Art That" of Hinduism) or atheistic (the Buddhist Nirvana, based on the Anatman - "non-soul"); but the person who achieves it, according to all sources, is caught up in profound rapture. To reach this stage, one has to tread an arduous path. Carl Gustav Jung called the process...more Most religions know of it as "Enlightenment" - when the individual transcends himself and sees himself as one with the ultimate reality. It can be theistic (the Aham Brahma Asmi - "I am the Brahman" or Tat Tvam Asi - "Thou Art That" of Hinduism) or atheistic (the Buddhist Nirvana, based on the Anatman - "non-soul"); but the person who achieves it, according to all sources, is caught up in profound rapture. To reach this stage, one has to tread an arduous path. Carl Gustav Jung called the process "individuation": Joseph Campbell called it "the hero's journey". Herman Hesse's eponymous protagonist of Siddhartha is a man who embarks on this enterprise.

Siddhartha, the handsome Brahmin youth who apparently has everything, is dissatisfied with life: with the whole pointlessness of it. He leaves home with his friend Govinda and joins a group of ascetics (the Samanas) who have made renunciation a way of life. However, the true seeker he is, Siddhartha finds that simple renunciation does not work for him: he joins the Buddha in pursuit of enlightenment. However, he soon understands that whatever knowledge he must possess, must be experiental.

Leaving Govinda to become a Buddhist ascetic, Siddhartha buries himself in the sensual world across the river, where Kamala the courtesan trains him up in the pleasures of the flesh and Kamaswami the merchant instructs him in the secrets of commerce. Siddhartha soon tires of these too: he returns to the river in penury (not knowing that his child is growing within Kamala), and is taken up by the aged boatman Vasudeva as a helper.

Here, ferrying people across the river, Siddhartha finally attains enlightenment - not from a great teacher, not from years of penanace and not even from the kindly Vasudeva (even though he points the way) - but from the river. Kamala's death and his son's abandonment of the stranger father completes his education, as distress turns to peace. Then it's time for Vasudeva, the mentor, to disappear - leaving his student alone with the river.

What the river told Siddhartha

The river flows, and becomes one with the ocean. The vapour from the ocean form into clouds, and descend on the mountains, becoming the river. The river keeps on flowing: it is inconstant, ever-renewing, never the same - yet it is eternal. The river flows, and the river is. On its surface, you can see the faces of all your loved ones: whether alive, dead or yet to be born. In the roar of the river, if you listen carefully, you can hear the sacred AUM - the first syllable outward, the second one inward, the third one silence...and the fourth one, the all encompassing silence which bears the sound of the cosmic ocean in its womb.

Highly recommended.(less)

39 likes · like · see review

Nov 02, 2007 John rated it 4 of 5 stars

I taught this book to juniors, and when I did I became frustrated with a student when I introduced it, because he let his classmates know that he'd already read it and it sucked. I'm happy to report, now that we've finished it, that his comments didn't seem to hurt the class's opinion of the book too badly. In fact, that student himself said it was pretty good and that he'd only skimmed it the last time he read it. Lousy kids.... Another student said it was his favorite book that we'd read so fa...more I taught this book to juniors, and when I did I became frustrated with a student when I introduced it, because he let his classmates know that he'd already read it and it sucked. I'm happy to report, now that we've finished it, that his comments didn't seem to hurt the class's opinion of the book too badly. In fact, that student himself said it was pretty good and that he'd only skimmed it the last time he read it. Lousy kids.... Another student said it was his favorite book that we'd read so far. And that it made him want to quit school and start living. I guess that's praise for the book...

The book is divided pretty neatly into thirds, and that's how we broke it up as a class. The first third is the main character (who is a contemporary of Siddhartha Gotama, the Buddha) as a youth; he is smart and talented and loved by all. He's a prodigy in all things intellectual and religious, but he's not satisfied, he's not happy. So he ends up pursuing a spiritual path through extreme self-deprivation. This part is easy enough for my students, as they're young themselves, and part of Siddhartha's growing up is leaving home and striking out on his own path. They're really (I hope) in much the same circumstance, starting to find a path for themselves that may be independent from their parents.

The second portion of the novel is harder. Siddhartha gives up his ascetic way of life and now indulges in all the pleasures he formerly eschewed. He learns all about sex from a courtesan, he becomes a wealthy businessman, eventually he becomes a conoisseur of fine food and wine, and a heavy gambler to boot. He loses himself in this life and eventually realizes how unhappy he is. His religious training, of course, always told him that these things were worthless, and he finds that these comforts do not, in fact, make him happy. I figured the students would find this far harder to relate to than I did, but as so often I am, I was wrong. By and large, they seemed to like this section as well as--or better than--the first. Maybe it was all the sex (not that it was even remotely graphic), even though they didn't actually know what a courtesan is. Many of them come from wealthy backgrounds, so maybe they have first-hand experience (sort of) in the ways that wealth isn't really satisfying. Or maybe they've just heard that over and over in our culture, that money doesn't buy happiness. Anyway, they seemed to like it well enough.

The third section was almost certainly a harder sell. It was hard for me to sell myself on it! But Siddhartha leaves his life of luxury, nearly commits suicide over his unhappiness, and ends up becoming a simple (or not-so-simple) ferryman on a river. This section is far more full of more-or-less eastern (a touch of curry: it's eastern-flavored, with strong hints of Nietzsche as well) thought and spirituality. It's tougher to really understand or get into, though the essence isn't that hard: you have to experience things for yourself, and real wisdom can be the result of this experience, but it's not really possible to communicate that wisdom. That's your Reader's Digest condesnsed version, which I shouldn't even give because it's necessarily a distortion. Read the book if you want to know it. Anyway, to round out my discussion of class discussion, I think the momentum from the earlier parts of the book carried us through, as they seemed to like the book as a whole and liked even the more dense third section as well.(less)

66 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2008 Michelle rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: disappointments, classics

Whatever. Blah blah blah Samana. Blah blah blah Kamala. Blah blah blah Samsara. Blah blah blah River. Blah blah blah Om.

100 likes · like · see review

Jul 02, 2009 Matthieu rated it 2 of 5 stars

Eh.

21 likes · like · see review

May 20, 2008 Idle Hippo rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classic

Ehm.. "terintimidasi" dan "terprovokasi" oleh seorang Amang yang telah menyelesaikan buku ini (sori, sempet dilibas dulu ama Harry Potter 7, hehe). Awalnya hanya "mark as to read" saja karena sempat melihat bukunya di toko dan berharap mungkin suatu saat akan membacanya. Akan tetapi seorang Amang juga pada hari yang sama melakukan "mark as to read" pada buku ini, akhirnya berunding, tawar menawar (emangnya dagang) dan sepakat untuk membacanya bersama (balik lagi deh ke toko beli bukunya :D)

Awaln...more Ehm.. "terintimidasi" dan "terprovokasi" oleh seorang Amang yang telah menyelesaikan buku ini (sori, sempet dilibas dulu ama Harry Potter 7, hehe). Awalnya hanya "mark as to read" saja karena sempat melihat bukunya di toko dan berharap mungkin suatu saat akan membacanya. Akan tetapi seorang Amang juga pada hari yang sama melakukan "mark as to read" pada buku ini, akhirnya berunding, tawar menawar (emangnya dagang) dan sepakat untuk membacanya bersama (balik lagi deh ke toko beli bukunya :D)

Awalnya saya mengira buku ini bercerita tentang Sang Buddha, well, I was wrong! Buku ini menceritakan tentang seorang brahmana tampan bernama Siddhartha yang kebetulan hidup satu zaman dengan Gotama, Sang Buddha. Siddhartha mengecewakan ayahnya ketika ia berkeras ingin menjelajahi dan mencari kebijaksanaan baru dan makna hidup yang hakiki. Bersama Govinda sahabatnya Siddharta pun memulai perjalanan panjangnya.
Jujur saja, saya sedikit "meremehkan" buku ini, mungkin dikarenakan saya jarang sekali membaca buku dengan tema self-discovery dan menganggap buku ini bisa dilahap dengan cepat. Saya langsung kena batunya dan mendapat kesulitan untuk memahami apa yang hendak disampaikan Hesse melalui Siddhartha kepada saya , ditambah awalnya saya sedikit "terganggu" dengan arogansi seorang Siddhartha ini.

Buku ini mulai menarik ketika seorang Siddhartha berpisah dengan Govinda yang memutuskan untuk mengikuti ajaran sang Budhha sementara Siddhartha memutuskan untuk mencari kebenaran dan pencerahan dengan berguru kepada seorang pelacur cantik, Kamala dan juga berguru kepada seorang saudagar Kamaswami hingga berguru kepada Vasudewa, seorang penarik sampan yang sederhana.

Sesuatu yang bisa saya tarik sebagai pelajaran dari perjalanan seorang Siddhartha adalah tentang sebuah kata yaitu kata "kebijaksanaan". Seseorang mungkin bisa saja mempelajari suatu ilmu apapun dari siapapun; tapi tidak untuk suatu yang bernama kebijaksanaan. Pengetahuan dapat diungkapkan, tapi tidak untuk kebijaksanaan. Kebijaksanaan seseorang akan terbentuk (mestinya) seiring dengan perjalanan/pengalaman hidup dan waktu seseorang. Kebijaksanaan adalah sesuatu hal yang harus diselami dan dialami sendiri, either you learn it the easy way or (usually) the hard way.

"No, I am telling you what I have discovered. Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it."

Dan mengenai makna pencarian itu sendiri, inilah yang dikatakan Siddhartha kepada Govinda.

"When someone is seeking," said Siddhartha, "it happens quite easily that he only sees the thing that he is seeking; that he is unable to find anything, unable to absorb anything, because he is only thinking of the thing he is seeking, because he has a goal, because he is obsessed with his goal. Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal. You, O worthy one, are perhaps indeed a seeker, for in striving towards your goal, you do not see many things that are under your nose."

(less)

13 likes · like · see review

Dec 31, 2011 Tanu rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Tanu by: stephen's review

Shelves: really-good, the-eternal-quest, excellent-prose, overrated, classic

When I picked up Siddhartha, I was expecting something totally different. Buddha’s life being not on the list of things I am completely unaware of (the list including sports, business, computer etc), I expected to hear stories which my grandmother told me since I was a toddler. Since Siddhartha is the former name of Gautama Buddha, I thought this was his biography. Hence, I was greatly surprised and confused, especially in parts about Kamala. I know, it makes sense that my grandmother wouldn’t m...more When I picked up Siddhartha, I was expecting something totally different. Buddha’s life being not on the list of things I am completely unaware of (the list including sports, business, computer etc), I expected to hear stories which my grandmother told me since I was a toddler. Since Siddhartha is the former name of Gautama Buddha, I thought this was his biography. Hence, I was greatly surprised and confused, especially in parts about Kamala. I know, it makes sense that my grandmother wouldn’t mention parts about Buddha pursuing his carnal needs to a 6 year old, still I was greatly puzzled. I must confess, that I wasn’t able to grasp that this novel deals with the spiritual journey of an Indian man named Siddhartha during the time of the Buddha, till the very end of this novel.

The novel traces Siddhartha’s journey for enlightenment. The young Brahmin, full of promise, loved by all, leaves everything he has to seek more. He is greatly dissatisfied and travels to live with Samanas, practicing a life of asceticism for several years. He meets the Enlightened One, Gautama Buddha (the real deal!), and goes further to experience life in the city. He experiences things he has deprived himself of in his years as a Samana, learns the art of love from the great courtesan Kamala, and makes money as a merchant. The young lad, who said that the only talents he had, was that of fasting, waiting and thinking, looses all these to indulge in the greatest pleasures of life. Amidst it all Siddhartha’s thirst for knowledge is far from quenched.

He looses it all to be born again beside the river, learning from it, listening to it. He grows to realize the value of all those gifts of nature, which he had earlier dismissed as maya (an illusion), experiences peace which he has never felt before and finally achieves what he wanted all along, enlightenment.

The prose is absolutely amazing! This book also contains some very memorable and meaningful quotes like:

“When someone is seeking,” said Siddhartha, “It happens quite easily that he only sees the thing that he is seeking; that he is unable to find anything, unable to absorb anything, because he is only thinking of the thing he is seeking, because he has a goal, because he is obsessed with his goal. Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal. You, O worthy one, are perhaps indeed a seeker, for in striving towards your goal, you do not see many things that are under your nose.”

Lots to learn from this novel. Although, I imagine that the experience would be different for different people. It may be life changing for some and just silly for others. Still, anyone who has ever been dissatisfied with life and not content with all the knowledge lectures and teachers were ever able to convey will empathize with Siddhartha’s quest.

Rating:4 stars
(less)

28 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2008 Sheila rated it 5 of 5 stars

When I edited my high school newspaper, we produced a popular feature called “Phot-O-pinion” where we asked a question about a (sometimes) pressing topic, quoted the student or teacher and snapped their pic. For one issue, at the suggestion of my journalism teacher Mrs. Kelley, I asked teachers to name a book that changed their lives. I can’t remember all the responses, but without hesitation, one teacher told me, “Siddhartha, because it showed me a completely different perspective on life.”

A fe...more When I edited my high school newspaper, we produced a popular feature called “Phot-O-pinion” where we asked a question about a (sometimes) pressing topic, quoted the student or teacher and snapped their pic. For one issue, at the suggestion of my journalism teacher Mrs. Kelley, I asked teachers to name a book that changed their lives. I can’t remember all the responses, but without hesitation, one teacher told me, “Siddhartha, because it showed me a completely different perspective on life.”

A few months later, one of my favorite teachers of all time, Anita Dellaria, passed out a few books for everyone on the last day of English class. “You should read these books at least once in your life,” she said. She passed out Confessions of An English Opium-Eater by Thomas DeQuincey, The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass, Civil War Poetry and Prose by Walt Whitman, Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche and Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.

I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t read all of them just yet, but I finally got around to picking up Siddhartha and, well, it ended up changing my life. I think if I read this after my high school graduation I would have stopped after a certain page. I think if I read this on some breaks from college I would have tired of some of its overwrought philosophical pretenses. But for various reasons, now was the right time for me to read it. I don’t want to go into detail why it changed my life because the beauty of the book is that you can take what you want from it. I wouldn’t have learned anything from the book if I tell you exactly why it changed my life. I won’t be giving up every single material possession I own after reading this book, but I will be thinking differently about what really matters in life and how to deal with (and ultimately transcend/learn from) disappointment, rejection, and anything else that makes life suck sometimes.

A quote from one of my favorite passages:

“At times he heard within him a soft, gentle voice, which reminded him quietly, complained quietly, so that he could hardly hear it. Then he suddenly saw clearly that he was leading a strange life, that he was doing many things that were only a game, that he was quite cheerful and sometimes experienced pleasure, but that real life was flowing past him and did not touch him.”

(less)

42 likes · like · see review

Feb 08, 2011 Dan Schwent rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, oldies

Siddhartha rejects his life as a Brahman's son and goes out into the world in a quest for enlightenment, to live as an ascetic. After meeting Buddha, Siddhartha rejects the ascetic life for a more material one, the life of a merchant, learning the ways of love from a courtesan, and in time leaves that life behind as well. Will Siddhartha ever find what he is looking for?

Normally, a Nobel prize winning book wouldn't get a second look from me. I'm more into people getting pistol whipped and big mo...more

28 likes · like · see review

Mar 11, 2008 Jana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, spirituality

Frank and I were having a conversation the other night in which we were discussing one of our usual topics: religion / spirituality... though I guess the other favorites (art, film, food, books, money woes, professional woes, traffic rants, geography, bad weather, family woes, music, soccer, our friends and our beloved cats) were probably discussed as well... But we were both expressing our mistrust of inexperience, and how we'd never want to take "wisdom" from someone who hadn't lived a bit. Sp...more Frank and I were having a conversation the other night in which we were discussing one of our usual topics: religion / spirituality... though I guess the other favorites (art, film, food, books, money woes, professional woes, traffic rants, geography, bad weather, family woes, music, soccer, our friends and our beloved cats) were probably discussed as well... But we were both expressing our mistrust of inexperience, and how we'd never want to take "wisdom" from someone who hadn't lived a bit. Specifically, Frank was talking about years of Catholic schooling as a contrast to the gay-friendly Episcopal community we've been spending more time with of late. Anyway, he said, "As long as you have a clergy that doesn't have sex, they'll give you narratives of sexual repression."

I guess what he said is an obvious point, but it really resonated with where I am right now in my thinking and belief and also with the rereading of this book, Siddhartha. I'm pretty much a novelty seeker by nature so I don't tend to run away from experience... but more toward it. And I've often had a difficult time respecting those who shut down from experience only to tell others how to live (when they themselves are not open to life and bodies, the particular beauty or ugliness of a place or person or food... and all that other messy stuff of existence). When it comes down to it, I believe that wisdom and even holiness come through experience and not detachment, which is what I glean from this book as well. I like the below quote very much; it comes near the end of the book.

When the illustrious Buddha taught about the world, he had to divide it into Samsara and Nirvana, into illusion and truth, into suffering and salvation. One cannot do otherwise, there is no other method for those who teach. But the world itself, being in and around us, is never one-sided. Never is a man or a deed wholly Samsara or wholly Nirvana; never is a man wholly a saint or a sinner. This only seems so because we suffer the illusion that time is something real. Time is not real… And if time is not real, then the dividing line that seems to lie between this world and eternity, between suffering and bliss, between good and evil, is also an illusion.

Also, I'm changing my rating of this book from 4 stars to 5 as I was quite young the first time I read it (18 years ago).
(less)

15 likes · like · see review

Mar 17, 2013 Parisa rated it 5 of 5 stars

عشق را می توان گدایی کرد،به درهم خرید،یا همچون ارمغانی پذیرفت یا در کوچه پیدا کرد.اما ربودن آن ممکن نیست.
.
.
هر کسی میتواند افسون کند و به هدف خویش برسد به شرط آنکه بتواند فکر کند و شکیبا باشد و گرسنگی را تحمل کند
.
.
چشیدن لذت بی چشاندن آن ممکن نیست و هر حرکت و هر نوازش و هر تماس و هر نگاه و هر یک از کنج و کنار تن رازی خاص خود را دارد که گشودن آن گشاینده ی هوشیار را شیرین کام میکند
.
.
هر باری که تا پایان راه برده نشده و هر رنجی که برای استغفار تا آخر کشیده نشده باشد باز بر دوشت فرود خواهد آمد و تکرار...more

6 likes · like · see review

Jul 07, 2012 Thaer Dieb rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, spiritualism

رواية رائعة تاخذك في رحلة روحية عبر مراحل متعددة من التجارب والاتجاهات هدفت في مجملها للبحث عن أصل الوجود
انتقل فيها سدهارتا (البالغ لهدفه وهو بطل الرواية من )
البرهمية وهي التعبد لبراهما اله الهندوس
الى السامانا وهي التنسك في الغابات تدريبا لنفسه على تجاوز عالم الشهوات الى العالم الروحي
لم يشعر بالوصول الى السلام والسعادة بل شعر بانه يحطم ذاته بحثا عن نواة الاشياء جميعا
فانطلق الى الدنيا وغب من ملذاتها ولكنه ندم فيما بعد ووجد انه جعل من نفسه دنيئا حقيرا محتقرا لنفسه
الى ان التقى بملاح بسيط يعيش في...more رواية رائعة تاخذك في رحلة روحية عبر مراحل متعددة من التجارب والاتجاهات هدفت في مجملها للبحث عن أصل الوجود
انتقل فيها سدهارتا (البالغ لهدفه وهو بطل الرواية من )
البرهمية وهي التعبد لبراهما اله الهندوس
الى السامانا وهي التنسك في الغابات تدريبا لنفسه على تجاوز عالم الشهوات الى العالم الروحي
لم يشعر بالوصول الى السلام والسعادة بل شعر بانه يحطم ذاته بحثا عن نواة الاشياء جميعا
فانطلق الى الدنيا وغب من ملذاتها ولكنه ندم فيما بعد ووجد انه جعل من نفسه دنيئا حقيرا محتقرا لنفسه
الى ان التقى بملاح بسيط يعيش في كوخ ويتعلم لا عن طريق المعلمين ولكن فقط باصغائه الى النهر فجالسه وتعلم منه ومن النهر الكثير
ووصل في النهاية ان الحب اعظم ما في الوجود اي انه انطلق من حب الحكمة الى حكمة الحب
هذا ملخص الرواية
اما تحليلي لها فقد يطول لاني اشعر اني سلكت جزءا من هذه الرحلة بنفسي وان لم اتنسك في الغابات
وفي عجالة استطيع ان اقول بعض النقاط لان المسالة اكبر من ان تحلل بعمق في بضعة سطور
أولا ان البطل انطلق في بحثه عن نواة الوجود او السعادة او الذات ليس باتباعه لملعم ما او طريق خطه غيره قبله ولكن بناء على تجربته الشخصية وانا ارى انه مهما تكون هناك من طرق فحقيقة لا يمكن ان نبلغ ذواتنا الا اذا انطلقنا من تجربة ذاتية
ثانيا ليس في الدنيا اشباع لرغباتنا ابدا بل على العكس في الانغماس بملذاتها دناءة في النفس وشعور باحتقار الذات وعدم سعادة وهذا وجده البطل بعد انغماسه بملذات الدنيا وان كان قد تعلم منها درسا
ثالثا النتيجة التي وصل اليها بطل الرواية وهي ان الحب اعظم مافي الوجود وانا اعتقد ان الحب من اهم ما في الوجود ولكن كيف نصير الى ان نحب كل الوجود ؟ اعتقد ان ذلك يكون عندما تحب خالق الوجود لانك تراه في كل الوجود تراه في الشجر والمطر والحجر والبشر
هذا في عجالة والحق انه مازال لدي كثير من الافكار بحاجة الى نقاش
باختصار هذه رواية رائعةة وترجمتها موفقة جدا
اتمنى لكم قراءة ممتعة(less)

6 likes · like · see review

Feb 29, 2012 Lithium rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: book-club-of-win, classics, fiction, philosophy

Siddartha is an allegory; a story wrapped around the ultimate premise 'Happiness for Dummies'. Okay, maybe not so simplistic, but it deals with the attainment and nature of happiness nonetheless.

Premise

Like its eponymous protagonist, the novel breaks down in several milestones or turning points that signal the development of the story and the growth of the character, marking the changes that have been wrought at each stage by happenstance or when the central character experiences, what they gene...more

17 likes · like · see review

Sep 16, 2011 Mohammed rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, general-fiction, favorite-books, library-books

I knew nothing about this author and the book when i read this. It was refreshing i could let his words decide how i picture him, his works.

It was a novel that worked on many levels for me, storytelling technique wise it was simple but very effective. Prose wise it was written like it was beautiful old colorful poetry, it sang to me. I was moved by the insightful ideas,thoughts in the novel. I cant believe how powerful, important things he said with only 123 pages. Its easily the best book i hav...more

10 likes · like · see review

Aug 14, 2012 Chance Maree rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: spiritual

I rated this novel for content in lieu of story or writing construction.This clemency is due to having read Siddhartha twice, during different stages of life, and the great appreciation I found for its description of a spiritual path.

During this read, a different perspective--I saw where I had been on the spiritual map, during the first read. This experience was similar to having a friend of mine tell me of their recent visit to Venice, and I remember when I was in Venice--the city similar yet...more

6 likes · like · see review

Jan 05, 2012 Almeta rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: packing-heat, b4idie, home-alone, boxall1001, my-best

Something intrinsically wrong about reviewing a book of enlightenment. Even Siddhartha himself will tell you that words will take you away from illumination.

Yet here I am.

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse lead me on a path through classic modes employed by the philosophical few who are on the quest for Nirvana. He presents the journey through the experience of one man who is “trying them all”, before he achieves his goal.

Hermann Hesse makes it easy to see that each choice of various paths is flawed. T...more

4 likes · like · see review

Sep 02, 2010 Gorfo rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classic

This is the kind of book that people say they like because they're too afraid to admit they don't understand its spiritual mumbo jumbo. First off I thought this book was going to be about the Buddha not some random sinful man who coincidentally shares the same name!

Siddhartha is a patronizing, stuck-up, heartless young brahmin who believes that he's pretty much superior to everyone else around him, despite that fact that his only skills are the ability to "think, pray, and fast" which let's face...more This is the kind of book that people say they like because they're too afraid to admit they don't understand its spiritual mumbo jumbo. First off I thought this book was going to be about the Buddha not some random sinful man who coincidentally shares the same name!

Siddhartha is a patronizing, stuck-up, heartless young brahmin who believes that he's pretty much superior to everyone else around him, despite that fact that his only skills are the ability to "think, pray, and fast" which let's face it is pretty useless in the real world, unless you have other skills to back it up! At one point Siddhartha says and I quote "He saw the people in a childish or animal-like way, which he both loved and despised." Seriously? Despite being so high and mighty himself, Siddhartha falls into the traps of "mere" human existence, going regularly to a famed courtesan, gambling, drinking and growing complacent. Then as if the story isn't NAUSEATING enough he suddenly gets this idea in his head that he's "full of death" at the age of forty! Others would simply call this a mid-life crisis but Siddhartha goes all crazy and suicidal.

I suppose there was a little bit of good in this book. The actual writing was beautiful and the plot wasn't lacking. Hmmm what else can I highlight as good? It wasn't too long. That's it for good.

Of course people mess up in life, nobody's perfect, but I've never seen somebody throw away their chances as often as this ungrateful Siddhartha! Everything just drops unto his shiny golden plate and yet he refuses to take it, he refuses to work for anything, he refuses to pray, he even refuses to love! He spends half the book begging for his food and the other half not giving back.

And then suddenly Siddhartha gets up and moves again! He is constantly running from his different selves. And he becomes this happy little ferryman and finds peace in nature and blah blah blah. And this continues for an annoying length of time. He meets himself at a younger age and finally realizes what a complete neanderthal he was and is content to waste away next to his precious river, which by the way speaks to him. Perhaps a sign of his deteriorating mind?

I think the problem that is Siddharta originated at birth and slowly grew out of control. In one section of the book Siddhartha says this about himself: "All whom I meet on the way are like Govinda (his friend). All are grateful, although they themselves deserve thanks, All are subservient, all wish to be my friend, to obey and think little. People are children." He has always been the best, the brightest, the richest, and the most handsome. Thus his ego has had time to fester and grow until by the time he's a young man it's completely out of proportion!

I don't know what this story was supposed to convey but I'm guessing the moral was "love". All I got was a serious sense of depression and the thought that there's pretty much no reason to live, hope, or dream. No thanks Herman Hesse, but if everyone lived the way Siddhartha did the world sure would be a boring place. Nobody would make any effort to do anything or make anything. It would be hopeless.(less)

9 likes · like · see review

Jan 16, 2008 Lauren rated it 4 of 5 stars

Siddhartha’s choices lead him on a journey into the inner psyche. Siddhartha is open to any experiences that will give him added insight into himself. His approach to achieving enlightenment varies from one extreme to another, from total self-deprivation to complete submission of will to carnal desires. While his approach to attaining enlightenment varies throughout the different stages of his life, one thing remains constant: Siddhartha’s determination to attain self-actualization. Siddhartha c...more Siddhartha’s choices lead him on a journey into the inner psyche. Siddhartha is open to any experiences that will give him added insight into himself. His approach to achieving enlightenment varies from one extreme to another, from total self-deprivation to complete submission of will to carnal desires. While his approach to attaining enlightenment varies throughout the different stages of his life, one thing remains constant: Siddhartha’s determination to attain self-actualization. Siddhartha compares his determination to a stone dropped in the water, “It is the same when Siddhartha has an aim, a goal. Siddhartha does nothing; he waits, he thinks, he fasts, but he goes through the affairs of the world like the stone through the water, without doing anything, without bestirring himself; he is drawn and lets himself fall. He is drawn by his goal, for he does not allow anything to enter his mind which opposes his goal.” This is the epitome of Siddhartha’s disposition. His search for meaning is not impeded by any distraction. And while Siddhartha’s course of action varies at different stages of his process, his choices are not influenced by anything with which will detour him from his ultimate object. This is what sets Siddhartha apart from the rest. In his search, he attributes success to this undeviating course of action: “Most people, Kamala, are like a falling leaf that drifts and turns in the air, flutters, and falls to the ground. But a few others are like stars, which travel one defined path: no wind reaches them, they have within themselves their guide and path.” Siddhartha’s determination is depicted in every aspect of this novel. Whether it is the conviction he shows to his father in acquiring permission to join the Samanas, the boldness he demonstrates to Gotama, or the resolve he has with Kamala in obtaining worldly experiences, Siddhartha exemplifies the resoluteness necessary to search deep within the self. Yet in the end, Siddhartha discovers that it is not this disciplined seeking that will bring him enlightenment, but rather letting go of all previous learning and preconceptions. Knowledge had withheld wisdom. In the end he learns wisdom is only found within. “Wisdom is not communicable. The wisdom which a wise man tries to communicate always sounds foolish… knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.”
Siddhartha passes through many stages in his life, beginning with the learned Brahmin, the ascetic Samana, the greedy merchant, and finally the enlightened Ferryman. Was it possible for Siddhartha to reach enlightenment without passing through these many stages? I do not believe so. What enabled Siddhartha to achieve enlightenment was the fact that he never allowed himself to be conquered. His quest for self-knowledge was accomplished because he built upon the wisdom of previous choices. However difficult the next step may have seemed, Siddhartha was immovable in his search. Siddhartha offers insight into the most innate longings to the improvement of oneself.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It has given me greater understanding into my own personal longings of self-contemplation. I related to each of the characters, both their flaws and their strengths. Govinda exemplifies in myself my natural tendency to seek wisdom through the study of other’s experiences and the knowledge they gained. The young Siddhartha represents in me the desire to know at the expense of living and loving. The merchant represents my impatience in having what I want now. And while some of the precepts of this book are in conflict with my own personal beliefs, I believe that basic principles taught through the experiences of Siddhartha will forever alter my perception of both myself and my surroundings.
(less)

14 likes · like · see review

May 06, 2007 Andrew rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Spiritual Seekers, Fans of Hard Core Depression

"Siddartha," as I recall it, was a difficult book to get through. In ninth grade, everything is difficult to get through. It's like walking around in a world where the air is made of jello. So much effort, and not enough grapes and peaches and other fruit cocktail misfits floating around to sustain you.

Hesse seeks to convince you that this is essentially the nature of life, and he does it pretty well. The book is fundamentally boring and slow, just like life, and it seems so small and not very...more

9 likes · like · see review

Oct 03, 2008 MeaganS Swingle Fiallos rated it 4 of 5 stars

I think I had to read this in high school and was bored by it, but I gave it another shot, and I really liked it a lot more this time. I think I "get it" more now, 15 years after I read it the first time.

I am drawn to one of the central themes - that everyone's path to enlightenment is different. I am a Christian and that is my chosen path to bring me closer to God and salvation, but I have great respect for other religions, and I can't bring myself to believe that they are "wrong" and I am "ri...more

13 likes · like · see review

Nov 15, 2012 Michael William West rated it 2 of 5 stars

Glah, why didn't I learn my lesson from Steppenwolf? What a lot of catsick this is. Sid Arthur indeed. It's not even possible to blame it all on the New Age refraction of it - WB Yeats and Aleister Crowley were making use of Buddhism and so on at this time. Before, even. And they found more interesting things to do with it (Crowley dumped it pretty quickly) than this kind of, how to explain it? We've all had those conversations with people who love this book and who have that carefully developed...more

5 likes · like · see review

Aug 04, 2011 Angus rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed-and-blogged, nobel-laureates

Original post at Book Rhapsody.

***

Intro

I was confused then. I was scouring the classics section of a book store. I didn’t know which book to buy. So many books, so little cash. So I texted my old flame. Which do you think is better, this one or Siddhartha. He went for Siddhartha.

I was half-wishing for him to choose the other one, which I cannot recall. It must have been a more commercial or more popular classic. So I bought Siddhartha half-heartedly. You see, I still have a weak will over random...more

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 08, 2011 Jeremy added it

Shelves: german-literature

I'm kind of embarrassed to admit it, but I've never read anything by Hesse before. I usually don't go in for spiritual parable-ish stuff, but this is really wonderful. His writing has this lyrical, fresh-eyed quality to it that very few people writing in German can pull off. You don't exactly have to dig deep to figure out what he's talking about, but I found his direct approach rather refreshing. And it's always nice to be reminded that so much of who we are and what we think takes place entire...more

5 likes · like · see review

Apr 22, 2009 Matthew rated it 1 of 5 stars

The most epically boring book I've ever read. I had successfully blocked this from my memory, but a recent poll on Goodreads about your least favorite required read in high school opened the floodgates and brought the pain back.

13 likes · like · see review

Nov 30, 2008 Ara rated it 5 of 5 stars

This little book is as potent as a teaspoon of jabanero sauce on my Thai noodles, and Hermann, being a Germann, makes it just as efficient. An epic journey on a string of DNA winding through life, coiled and compressed into this small package for the busy intellectual. Despite having the brevity of a political soundbite, this novel will overwhelm you like a China Buffet, offering you everything from spartan sticky rice to brimming eggrolls to rich soft serve ice cream. And it requires several da...more

9 likes · like · see review

Jan 09, 2013 Felisberto Barros rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, favorites

Este é um livro muito particular devido ao seu carácter muito humanista e existencial. Não posso dizer, de maneira nenhuma, que dê para todos os gostos literários. Posso, no entanto, dizer que este livro transporta em si uma mensagem que deverá ser universal, neste e em qualquer outro mundo de relação social: O Amor. É isso que Hermann Hesse transmite ao mundo com Siddhartha, o mais simples sentimento humano de sentir e ser amor.

É uma leitura embelezante para os olhos do leitor. Este vai-se env...more

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 05, 2010 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Siddhartha, son of a Brahman, is on a quest to find the meaning of life. We follow him as he struggles on through his journey, through many different life experiences. He is on a spiritual journey to find out for himself who he really is. Along the way he meets rich people, poor people, holy people, and becomes part of their world for a short time. Through his many encounters, he learns much more about himself and the world, but for a long time he is still not satisfied and still feels a deep ne...more

9 likes · like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Spirituality	53	464	Apr 01, 2013 12:22am
Dover thrift edition	1	38	Jun 04, 2012 12:33pm
/lit/ Revival of ...: * Week 003: Siddhartha	18	77	May 13, 2012 06:45am

combine
Other Editions (466)

More editions...

Genres

Classics

2,138 users

Philosophy

930 users

Literature

461 users

Religion

437 users

Spirituality

367 users

Religion > Buddhism

259 users

European Literature > German Literature

223 users

Academic > School

198 users

Novels

198 users

Historical Fiction

195 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

The Dhammapada
by Anonymous
Be Here Now
by Ram Dass
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind
by Shunryu Suzuki
The Upanishads
by Anonymous
The Way of Zen
by Alan Wilson Watts

About Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. In 1946, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature. His best known works include Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and The Glass Bead Game (also known as Magister Ludi) which explore an individual's search for spirituality outside society.

Hesse was born in the Black Forest town of Calw to a Christian missionary family. Both of his parents served...more

More about Hermann Hesse...

Books by Hermann Hesse

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Siddhartha

24 trivia questions
3 quizzes

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from Siddhartha

“That is where my dearest and brightest dreams have ranged — to hear for the duration of a heartbeat the universe and the totality of life in its mysterious, innate harmony.” — 670 people liked it

“Wisdom cannot be imparted. Wisdom that a wise man attempts to impart always sounds like foolishness to someone else ... Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.” — 357 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Siddhartha
avg rating	preview: Siddhartha Goodreads rating: 3.91 (177846 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52036.Siddhartha?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320519981l/52036.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52036.Siddhartha?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse[/url]

Siddhartha

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website