thank you

[Sahil Parikh]

hey friends .. can u please send me some of your personal responses about Siddartha . i will be waiting ..

[Timur]

Hey Sahil,If you are searching for the meaning of life then this is one book you should definitely read.It affects different people differently. If you are a thinker you might wish you never read this book, for it will keep you pondering about life for a long time. But if you are a simple person you will only see the good story, be a bit puzzled at the ending, but soon forget it and get on with the rest of your life.
Good luck

[KidTruth]

When reading Siddhartha, if you haven't had a lot of experience with existentialism it's important to have some background on the book so that you don't go overboard. For younger readers (highschool age) this book can be very influential - like the first time someone reads Ayn Rand and turns into a complete jerkoff for a couple of months.

Herman Hesse actually went to India to study the subject matter, but when he got there he realized that the reality of India wasn't conducive to how he imagined it should be - in fact, he found the poverty and despair there at the time to be very disheartening. How could a place governed by the philosophy he was enthralled by (and writing about) be in such disarray? It seemed to disprove the point he was trying to make with the book entirely.

So he left India, went back to Germany, and forgot all about the reality of the situation. Siddhartha is partially a thought experiment - Siddhartha and Buddha are the same person in the actual texts, etc. Much of the book is completely fictionalized and imagined by Herman Hesse, so while it seems very powerful, keep in mind that Hesse dreamed the entire thing up as a thought experiment and didn't personally subscribe to the ideas himself.

I don't know if that should mold how you think about the book - this is entirely up to you, and there is no one way to read a book. This is one text where having some historical and genetic information can definitely cast it in a different light, however.

It has been a while since I've been in college taking English courses (my major) so I may have muddled up some of the details. I recommend - as always - that you cross check my info with some of your own resources.

Hope that helps.

[slaje]

this book is a weasel, it got me thinking.

[doctoraya]

what a book, truly a great escape for a few hours.
if you liked "the alchemist" you'll like this, althought I think I might have preferred the alchemist.

althought undoubtedly a great piece of literature, there was something very cold about this book which I found unsettling.. In someone else's thread - "does siddhartha really love anyone?" i posted my thoughts on this.

[johann cruyff]

It's a wonderful book.However,comparing it to The Alchemist,and saying that the latter is better...I don't quite agree,but I guess we're all entitled to our opinion.

Anyway,Hesse is one of my favourite writers,and Siddhartha was the third book of his that I read,after Demian and Steppenwolf.Not his best work,in my opinion,but still one of the most intriguing books about spirituality and searching oneself in general.It deeply moved me.

[Erichtho]

I read Siddharta some years ago together with a couple of other stories by Hesse. Before that I had already read a good deal of Hesse, and thus Siddharta hasn't sticked out so much - I have other favourites (from the novels: Narziß und Goldmund and Das Glasperlenspiel).

I believe it to be a great reading during the early juvenile years (as is most of Hesse's works in my eyes), and would recommend it to anyone during that age. This is not to devalue it, but I think there are certain authors and works for different periods of one's life, Hesse (or at least a great part of his opus) being one of the earlier. Still, a good story.

[johann cruyff]

Originally Posted by Erichtho

I read Siddharta
I believe it to be a great reading during the early juvenile years (as is most of Hesse's works in my eyes), and would recommend it to anyone during that age. This is not to devalue it, but I think there are certain authors and works for different periods of one's life, Hesse (or at least a great part of his opus) being one of the earlier. Still, a good story.

I agree completely,at least about Siddhartha and Demian.However,one might argue that such literature is actually the most important one,because it is aimed at a crucial moment of a person's life - the search for oneself that begins in,as you say,juvenile years.You know,I actually believe Siddhartha has helped a lot of people find their way,or at least a way...to their way.