Siddhartha (Deluxe Hardbound Edition)

My name is Firecat Hat. As a writer, I love to read great writer’s works. And this book is definitely one I enjoyed. ‘Siddhartha’ is a deeply eastern philosophical story written by a westerner with a keen perception, and almost uncanny awareness, of not only eastern thinking, but depth of life itself. Sometimes the insights he has really impress me. He is aware of abstract concepts of life that few people in our modern world ever talk about. ‘Siddhartha’ is a remarkably insightful book by a remarkably insightful writer. The lessons about life that this book has to offer are deep – lessons one would be very lucky to hear from some aged and helpful older person, good enough to share with us. The man is a guru. The tragedy of the story, I believe, centers around Govinda, around that character’s separation from Siddhartha. Whether the separation from him is actually necessary for the two of them to advance on their roads through life is, I think, a subject for interesting debate. But Hesse shows that they separate, and indeed that it is necessary for the blossoming of their characters. One can’t help but feel sorry for Govinda. And I noticed something in this book worth remarking. While Hesse is brilliant philosophically, he does not bleed the emotional parts of the story to their maximum effect. That is, he never gets the reader to ‘feel’ the story on an emotional level. (He never made me cry). But, I must say that this also makes us feel the story’s emotion even better. Sometimes by not emphasizing the emotional tones, the reader is made to feel them – underlying as they are – even stronger. Overall, this is a philosophy book almost unparalleled as such in the novel world. It shows us the journey of life, with masterful language that is very reader-friendly, cover to cover. It has the potential to be, in fact, life changing. And it stands with the classics, tall and deep. It stands like the Sequoia trees: tall for all to see, living on and on – timeless. And one last point worth remarking. The book’s main point is something profound, and that I agree with. Happiness can not be pointed out precisely to one by anyone else. ‘Each entered the forest adventurous at a point that he himself had chosen, where it was darkest, and there was no way or path.’ F I R E C A T H A T May 18, 2011

Yes, the Kindle edition has some typos and translation issues, but these are the sorts of issues that are par for the course reading translated texts, you can certainly get the overall gist of the story. It's an acceptable edition. Siddhartha is beautifully written, and worth reading. It's essentially a collection of essays, each trying to explain and illustrate concepts of Buddhist thought. The first story stands alone, and is as close to perfectas literature gets. The short version of the story is that a young boy named Siddhartha is trying to learn to lead a more perfect life, and after many trials and tribulations he comes to meet a mystic by the name of Gautama. For anyone who doesn't know, Siddhartha Gautama is the full name of the Buddha. This story serves as a biography for how the young Siddhartha came to be the Buddha, while at the same time serving as a metaphor for how people of the time- or indeed you as the reader- can come to understand the Buddha and his teachings. From that description alone you should be able to see all the layers in this book, it's wonderful. The book does everything right. It's a good story on its own, but it's also written in the style of Buddhist literature. There is a lot of repetition, as were present in the Buddha's own words, without getting annoying. There is adventure, metaphor, allusion, and biography. It's food for thought. Anyone worried about this sounding overly religious or hokey need not worry- the stories here are just as powerful if you read them in a perfectly secular way where the Buddha was just a wise man and not any kind of deity. As someone who's advanced in Buddhist/Zen thought myself, the message of the opening chapter is absolutely perfect. This continues through the book. If you want a play-by-play for exactly what "Englightenment" is supposed to be, how to attain it and how to live with it, the first story is one of the best examples I've ever read. I'd almost go so far as to say that you can't read the first chapter without "getting it"- it's just too perfect of a description of what Enlightenment is- but human beings have an amazing ability to miss the point. So this book is great prose in and of itself, read as pure fiction it's lovely. As a biography of the Buddha and his travels, it's light on detail but rich in imagery. As a how-to manual for meditation and better living, it's similarly amazing. An all-around class act, I wish this text- in a better translation- would be mandatory reading for anyone who wants to consider themselves "learn-ed".

The book is amazing, but the Kindle version is meh. There are typos and page numbers are useless. THe story itself is great though!

I really love this book so much. The only true way for me to review Siddhartha is to write about how this beautiful book leaves me feeling. Here's what I have gleaned. When we look deeply into something, we are no longer really looking, we are experiencing. It is the experiencing that is us, not us experiencing. We are simply bearers of light bearing the light of awareness. Looking through the veil, through the thin mist of mind, we gaze upon the unseen. In that moment of blissful gaze, there lies eternity. All appearances have their source in pure awareness. At the moment of our birth, we have no mind, no concept of self. Yet we are already complete, before thought or word. We are entirely without possession. Yet everything is in us. Being without the all, we contain the all, the whole universe in us. Just as the cup is the container for water, so life flows from us and is us. Life is, in all its entirety and splendor, occupying our emptiness, filling our cup, our holy grail, and evermore filling. When mind is formed through conditioning of other minds, everyone takes and everyone gives and such is life. It is a game, but the content on which we play this game does not enter our heart because we are already the openness upon which we pretend to be. Look right now, more deeply at the world...and there you will see everything but your face. There is space where your face is. We are looking out from a clear, boundless openness, and it is because of no-face that we pretend there is one, and we create a mask to wear, and we call this mask our being, being a person (and person of course, means persona, a mask). And so we are constantly seeking our true self wearing a mask, not knowing we are already what we are seeking! When we remove the mask, when we stop the game, we see clearly again. Light fills the void. We are the river of life. We see everything stays the same, yet constantly everything is changing and renewing. Everything is flowing...as an aspect of everything else; A tree, a bird, a stone, a cloud... all flowing...all life simply experiencing itself. Enlightenment is simply the art of being. The art of pure awareness. The art of love. There is no I. No face. Only openness, where everything and nothing are one. The cup and the water, though not together, they are one. And in this openness, we are open to all life. The boundless all. The clear state of being awake. The invisible source of being. Inside you and me, there is peace and refuge. The nameless. The faceless. The perfected. It is our home we never left. Robin Craig Clark peliguin.com

Can’t recommend more of this book. It took you on a journey to experience truth, love and peace in a very relatable way.

Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha is an absolutely amazing and engrossing tale of one man’s journey to find that all-elusive idea of enlightenment. The book’s title may suggest that it is simply a story that would have value only for people of the Buddhist persuasion, but this simply is not true. The work is well written and thought out, and it does a terrific job of showing us as human beings that often times what we are looking for is with us all along. Hesse’s book follows a young man named Siddhartha on his journey to find the true meaning of life and peace. The young man leaves his family of Brahman priests believing that they have spiritually achieved all that they ever will, and embarks with his friend Govinda down the path of a contemplative and restrictive existence. The young man soon realizes that these religious men (Samanas) also are lacking, to Siddhartha, what the path to true enlightenment really is. He continues on his journey coming by entering the company of the real Buddha—Gatama, but soon comes into contradictions with the Buddha’s teaching of removing oneself from the world. This leaves the man frustrated and lost, and eschews him down another path that is quite opposite of the one he originally intended to take. Siddhartha has now become rather restless with his pursuit of happiness, so he soon discards it for one of sexuality, greed and total reliance on the flesh. He falls in love with Kamala—a beautiful courtesan woman—and embraces the life of a merchant that furthers his greed and lustful desires. Siddhartha and Kamala conceive a son soon after their affair, but after a dream leaves Siddhartha puzzled, he becomes bored and sickened by his lust and greed, and decides to move on to find his enlightened path. With total despair encompassing his heart and soul, Siddhartha comes to a river where he soon hears a unique sound that will change his life forever. This sound signals the true beginning of his new and fulfilled life--the beginning of earthly suffering, human rejection and inner peace, and, finally, ultimate wisdom and enlightenment. The book is a harrowing tale of man’s lust for greed, power, sex and material gain; however, its ultimate purpose is to show that often times what we are looking for is in the simplest places imaginable. Hesse’s work craftily explains (through Buddhist and Hindu philosophies) that life is an all-encompassing journey that will eventually show all mankind what it is looking for. We suffer and struggle mightily through banal everyday tasks, but perhaps this daily grind of being in a symbiotic relationship with other life is what inner peace really is.

SPOILERS Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is a story about a man, Siddhartha, living in the time of the Buddha, searching for enlightenment. Siddhartha begins the book by leaving his family in search of a more meaningful life, with his childhood friend, Govinda. The reader follows him as he spends several years as a Samana, one who practices asceticism. Once Siddhartha realizes that he has been taught everything the Samanas have taught him, he leaves the life of chastity and rejoins the modern world. He falls in love, but eventually leaves the woman and goes to live along the river and reach enlightenment. At the end of the story, the reader can find Govinda and Siddhartha reunited, with Siddhartha finally content with his life. This book was definitely not the most interesting to read, however it did illustrate a beautiful message about finding your true self. It is a very good story for when someone wants to reflect on their lifelong journey so far, but is very dull. Although the story thoroughly describes each event/object/ person, it is done in a very mature tone. This tone is very hard to understand to the youth, therefore making it more dull and boring. It also addresses some controversial topics, such as asceticism. Asceticism in ¨severe self-discipline and avoidance of all forms of indulgence¨. This constitutes extreme fasting, celibacy, and wearing minimal clothing. Hesse suggests that Siddhartha does not eat for 28 days, something very dangerous to do, and something that should not be encouraged. Because Siddhartha joins the Samanas in attempt to reach Nirvana, the reader can understand Siddhartha believes that extreme asceticism and enlightenment are connected. The youth today should not be taught that not eating/not wearing enough clothes leads to happiness, as there is enough pressure for people to be happy at all times already. This book also contains sexual content. On his journey, Siddhartha meets Kamala and they engage in many sexual affairs. This may suggest that sexual acts=happiness, and that is not always the case. This topic is focused on heavily for several pages of the book, and may be uncomfortable to teenagers, and even young adults. I would not suggest this book for people who are unable to understand complex texts, as the book is hard to understand at times. Overall, this book is well written and good for teaching about finding yourself, but not necessarily the most interesting/enjoyable.

I'm still in the process of reading this incredibly inspiring book. I've had books that I love and "can't put down" but this is not one of them. No, this is a book I MUST put down and THINK. I revisit the words & lessons Siddhartha learns along his path and they so easily apply to present day life, to my own life. On the surface I could describe the book merely as one man's journey to "enlightenment". But that seems so vague and undervaluing of what this book truly is. It is a reflection of self, of life and its ups and down, it's quirks. Each chapter, or even at times, each phrase has become a point of discussion between me and my husband. We are both introverted intuitives and love to pontificate on the depth of knowledge Hermann Hesse lends this Siddhartha character. So often we read and discuss psychology books or self-help books to really delve into the analysis of life and how to not just deal with but to accept suffering. This book stands alone in its unique understanding and concise verbiage of the path of wisdom that eludes so many of us. It is a true gem in the library of analytical knowledge and discovery of self. A book you could read annually and still never tire of the ever evolving messages and discoveries of self-actualization. The prose style does take some getting used to with lots of run on sentences and comma splices such such as this example: "Under black hair, which made to tower high on her head, he saw a very fair, very delicate, very smart face, a brightly red mouth, like a freshly cracked fig, eyebrows which were well tended and painted in a high arch, smart and watchful dark eyes, a clear, tall neck rising from a green and golden garment, resting fair hands, long and thin, with wide golden bracelets over the wrists." But overall an incredible read for anyone seeking higher thought. ____________Update____________ Upon finishing this book, I was so inspired and still wanting more, I looked up study guides and questions to help me delve deeper. Also learned that it has been made into a movie, twice. Looking forward to watching it & hoping it lives up to the ridiculous expectations I have now :)

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend anyone thinking of reading it to read it. I came across books a person recommended this was one the books I’m glad I read it.

Excelente produto e entrega

After reading a few pages, you will get used to the style of the author. It seemed to me that his words contain a structure a language that is very pleasant to read. It is as if I am watching a river flowing in front of me. With recurrence, with hierarchical patterns, the patterns emerge and dissolve in the never-ending flow. You will experience a good feeling after every time you finish reading a page, there will be so much peace in your heart. There will be no rushing to finish it, no expectations, and no big twists in the story. But you will just listen to the story, like a child listening to a bedtime story. Good luck!

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.

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).