Siddhartha (Deluxe Hardbound Edition)

"But what a path has this been! I had to pass through so much stupidity, through so much vice, through so many errors, through so much disgust and disappointments and woe, just to become a child again and to be able to start over." The book is filled with beautiful quotes, which often made me stop and think about; happiness, sadness, life, death, and they're a reminder that we're all on our own individual journeys, striving for the same thing, fulfilment. The story follows Siddhartha's (Buddha's) journey to finding enlightenment. Hesse's beautiful prose, follows Siddhartha through the trials and errors he comes up against during his journey of self-discovery. I particularly liked how this was done naturally through story telling, rather than each stage of his journey being explicitly stated through chapter titles. The only thing that I didn't totally love about the book, was that it became quite sexual in parts, which I wasn't expecting and found to be quite random. I'm no prude, but I personally don't think it added much to the overall story, and didn't need to be such a big part of his journey. Overall, however, I really enjoyed the book and Hesse's evocative writing style, as it makes you reflect on your own life. The book is also obviously written through a Western lens, given that Hesse was German-Swiss, however, it still makes for an impactful read. "...all sin already carries the divine forgiveness in itself, all small children already have the old person in themselves, all infants already have death, all dying people the eternal life." Would highly recommend this Penguin India edition as the cover art is beautiful and it's a good quality paperback (9780143456872).

Nice but not for bignner readers.

I have given this book to many friends Inspiring I think it’s the best book Hesse wrote It changed the way I see Buddhism and helped me on my journey

`Siddhartha' is one of those books that is both simple to read and yet powerful and profound at the same time. Following a young Brahmin's son as he tries to find his spiritual path in life, this book manages to weave a tale that is both captivating and enlightening. This book is so good I could read the first 30 pages alone and put the book down a happy man, the remainder is purely icing on the cake! Hesse manages to write in a deceptively simple style that belies the depth to the message he shows us and the skill behind his writing. He won the nobel prize for good reason. This may be a short book, but it is one that will stay with you long after you have read it and will bring you back to rediscover it's delights at regular intervals. Beautiful prose, beautiful message and highly recommended indeed. Feel free to check out my blog which can be found on my profile page.

Having read this myself several times - I purchased this for a friend. A must read if you have any interest in self-enlightenment. Beautiful and powerful story.

It shows us that we are all at different places in our spiritual journey. It also shows that some of us have different places where we are comfortable and none of this is wrong.

This is a simply stunning and beautiful book. The story is that of Siddarthar, a Brahimn's [near holy person] son who as he approaches the age of adulthood, decides to start a journey. It's a small book and yet it is a story that is simply told and spiritually uplifting. Sometimes you can read books and they have impact for different reasons. Siddartha is a book that stays with you for quite a while because it teaches you a lot in a very short period of time. It amazes me that a story from Herman Hesse, has such talent and beauty as I've only heard of his name before mentioned in a vague but knowledgeable manner. This is well worth reading as it would seem to be one of the most important books ever written. Many thanks Mr. Hesse. xx

A heartwrenching and powerful tale of human experience that spans a man's life searching for enlightenment. He follows his heart and follows no idols or teacher, gives way to his yearning for firsthand knowledge without dogmatic scripture or religious guidance. He simply views nature, his pain and the utterances of his heart to discern the totality of existence. Like with all journeys, he ends up where he started, having learned so much and yet not much more than the simplicity of life itself as of being eternal, connected, whole and free from judgement. His joy and calmness is not through knowledge but through experience ie wisdom. This story is about living a full life, running the full gamet of human temptations and impositions, eschewing remote piety in favour of getting your hands dirty. It's also about taking your own path in life and living your story, synthesising your lessons, from your own firsthand sources. Anyway, I'll be pondering this book for a long time to come. Thank you Naval Ravikant. To anyone reading, check out his podcasts all over the internet.

I haven't read the novel itself yet, but the quality of the edition is poor. It looks and feels like a photo-stat copy of an original Bantam, not an authentic printing. Cover image and text just slightly out of focus and low resolution, cheap plastic covering peeling, and interior pages and printing is cheap. But it is cheap... it just depends what you are looking for

The book is perfect for people interested in philosophy. Also anyone on a road of self-discovery and looking of answers to the questions of life and love and inner peace should read. The narrative is slowly paced and very colorful.

I read this book and saw the movie many years ago as a teenager. It had a profound impact on me then. Now, as I enter my golden years, I picked it up again to see whether it had the same pull as before. The pull was greater this time. Hesse, perhaps out of respect, and wanting to create fictional protagonists out of religious leaders, creates the fictional character of Siddhartha, one who has the same name as the Buddha. He lives during the time of the Buddha. Siddhartha’s life follows a similar path of the Buddha: born into privilege, rejecting comfort and taking up the ascetic life at a young age, discovering its limitations and taking the middle path to enlightenment, and ending his days as a great teacher and spiritual leader. In fact, the fictional Siddhartha meets the older Buddha and tells him that living by others’ teachings, something he had done as a Brahman and later as a Samana, is insubstantial; Siddhartha wants to experience enlightenment, just as the Buddha has done. The Buddha smiles, as if to say, “The road ahead is long and tortuous.” Siddhartha, therefore, leaves the life of an ascetic Samana where his only skills are of waiting, fasting and thinking, to lead the sensual life. He takes up with the courtesan Kamala, becomes a successful businessman, and accumulates wealth. He gives into lust, and gambling, but finds both to be masks that hide his continued dissatisfaction. “I was afraid of myself, I was fleeing from myself! I searched Atman (soul), I searched Brahman, I was willing to dissect my self and peel off all its layers, to find the core of all peels in its unknown interior, the Atman, life, the divine part, the ultimate part. But I have lost myself in the process.” He finally leaves the worldly life too, heading for the river, a place where enlightenment will finally come, but only after learning the pain of love. The river is a metaphor for the circular nature of life and the confluence of all desires and sufferings: flowing, evaporating, condensing and flowing once more. Everything and everyone that goes upstream, finally returns downstream, and the water flows everywhere simultaneously, making the past and the future irrelevant, making only the present matter. There are some beautiful words of wisdom in this book, although Siddhartha claims that wisdom is intrinsic to the individual and cannot be transferred, as he had once complained to the Buddha. 1) Everyone can perform magic; everyone can reach his goals, if he is able to think, to wait, and to fast. 2) Writing is good, thinking is better. Intelligence is good, but patience is better. 3) “There was nothing that the wise one or thinker possessed that put him above the rest of them except for one single, small, tiny thing: the awareness and conscious thought of the unity of all life.” 4) “I therefore see whatever exists as good. Death is like life to me, sin is like holiness, wisdom is like foolishness; everything has to be just as it is, and everything requires only my consent, willingness, and loving agreement to become good to me and work for my benefit, unable to ever harm me.” 5) “When someone is searching, then it can easily happen that the only thing his eyes see is that for which he is searching. He is then unable to find anything or let any thought enter his mind because he always thinks of nothing but the object of his search. He is obsessed by a goal; searching means having a goal. But finding means: being free, open, and having no goal.” The story is told in the form of a parable, full of wisdom and philosophy, low on the other elements of novelistic importance. Hesse was supposed to have had a less than fulfilling visit to India before he wrote this novel. But I suppose the insights in this book did not only come from that visit but from a continuous preoccupation on the purpose of life and the search for meaning. I highly recommend this read.

Absolut geniales und sehr poetisches Buch über den Gründer des Buddhismus Siddharta Gautama

Spedizione: è stata perfetta. Nonostante l’edizione e’ in copertina flessibile da pochi soldi, il libro è arrivato nel giro di due giorni e in condizioni perfette. L’edizione è di formato piccolo, in modo da poterlo portare con se in viaggio. Il libro: chi sceglie questo libro è o un fan di Hesse o sta percorrendo una ricerca spirituale. E in entrambi i casi è un libro che vale la lettura. Anzi, più letture. Credo che la maggior parte dei lettori non riescano a cogliere le sfumature più profonde del pensiero orientale (ciò che Hesse è riuscito a fare in modo incredibile).