Cycle Themes

[animeblood]

How is cycle demonstrated in this book? I know life reincarnation is one and becoming innonce and child-like again.

[Matt108]

I think one of the biggest examples of the Cycle theme is his son. The son offers Siddhartha the exact same experience in which he had given his dad years earlier. The book starts out with Siddhartha asking, and leaving his father to find his own path to enlightenment. Essentially this is exactly what Siddhartha's son does. He leaves his father for a different life. Another example of this cycle theme of portrayed at the end of the book when Govinda crosses the river with Siddhartha as his ferryman. This is showing that Govinda is doing the exact same thing in which Siddhartha had done years earlier. He is traveling across the same river to find his own path after attempting to follow the Illustrious One. Govinda has just spent more time in the particular space than Siddhartha had. Lastly, a third example of the cycle theme is Siddhartha's life. He starts out living as a Samana with no possessions. Then he lives in the town and becomes a wealthy merchant spending much of his time gambling and loaning his money. Then he realizes what he has become and returns to the river in which he had crossed as a Samana hoping to find his enlightenment. He eventually finds it through the river and stays there. He lives as a ferryman with few possessions.