The Recurring Motif of the River

“One can learn much from a river.” (pg. 49)

                This quote illustrates the recurring motif of the river. This is the first time that Siddhartha comes into contact with the river and the ferryman. The ferrymen tells Siddhartha that even though Siddhartha does not have gifts or possessions to give to the ferryman, he will in turn pay him back because everything comes back to the river, including Siddhartha. This relates to the entire novel because it is an example of foreshadowing. The author is using the character of the ferryman to foreshadow Siddhartha returning to this very same river later in his life. This quote does raise questions about Siddhartha’s future and why he will return to the river and how it will affect him.

“That was the deed he longed to commit, to destroy the form he hated.” (pgs. 88 and 89)

                This quote is showing the hatred that Siddhartha has of himself and how he wants to commit suicide. This occurs at the river that he once crossed with the ferryman when he was a child. It is significant because Siddhartha wants to take his own life at the place where his life was just beginning. This relates to the novel as a whole because after all the things that have happened to Siddhartha in his life, he feels he has failed. This quote does raise questions about Siddhartha’s happiness and his overall well-being, both physically, mentally and emotionally.

“I stand once more beneath the sun, as I once stood as a small child.” (pg. 95)

                This quote is illustrating the fact that Siddhartha has returned to the same river or the recurring river that he visited as a child. The river is an important recurring motif because it has occurred when Siddhartha was young and inquisitive, and now when he is older and knowledgeable. This relates to the text because Siddhartha is remembering and relating to his time as a child when he visited the river with the ferryman. The author chose to utilize the motif in this way because it signifies the importance of the river that he has been there two important times in his life. Yes it does raise questions about who Siddhartha was and who he has become.

Siddhartha's Motif of Knowledge

In the book there are many recurring images and or symbols, otherwise known s motifs. Things such as knowledge, games, and even things like birds. I choose to focus on the motif of Knowledge. There are more than three recurrences of knowledge but i will focus on three of them. The first one is,"There was happiness in his fathers heart because of his son who was intelligent and thirsty for knowledge; he saw growing up to be a great learned man"(4) This motif of Knowledge meant different things than all of the other recurrences. This motif described Siddhartha's life at face value and not what he felt, this was just the surface of his life in total. However i think the author used this motif to put an emphasis on the next appearance of knowledge on page,(5)"Brahmins have already passed on to him the bulk of their best wisdom, that hey had already poured the sum of their total knowledge into his waiting vessel". This time the author used this motif to illustrate how siddhartha really felt not the inside of himself as a whole. he was dissatisfied with his life which lead him to his journey later on tin the book. This explores a theme of expectations and satisfaction. One of the last appearances of knowledge is," I felt Knowledge and unity of the world circulate in me like my own blood"(96) This last motif of knowledge describes the earnings of siddhartha and he is able to see his progress towards enlightenment. The author choose to utilize this motif at this instant because the motif would bring a separation between siddhartha and govinda. The motif is the reason why the two split and the two met each other for the first time in a long time. This motif shows all of siddhartha's journeys and all of his experiences and what he feels from these. This allows for me to better understand what siddhartha is after, he is after knowledge and he has a drive for more and enough to separate himself from the world.

Siddhartha's Bird Motif

One of the motifs in the novel Siddhartha is Kamala's song bird. The bird first shows up in a dream that Siddhartha had about losing himself in the chapter Samsara. This is shown by the quote "Kamala kept asmall rare songbird in a small golden cage. It was about this bird he dreamt. This bird, which usually sang in the morning, became mute, and as this surprised him, he went up to the cage and looked inside. The little bird was dead... and then he threw it away on the road, and at the same moment he was horrified and his heart ached as if he had thrown away... all that was good and of value in himself" (on page 82). This quote was the first time this motif showed up and when we first learned of the birds meaning of representing Siddhartha's spirit, and all that was good in Siddhartha. This is expanded in the quote "When she heard news of Siddhartha's dissapearance, she went to the window where she kept a rare songbird in a golden cage. She opened the door of the cage, took the bird out and let it fly away" (page 85). This expands on the previous quotes meaning showing that the bird is a representation of Siddhartha's spirit. That as Siddhartha decides to free himself, and then Kamala releases the bird shows how Siddhartha had freed his spirit and soul just as a bird uncaged. Lastly the quote "He thought of the change in him, listened to the bird sing happily. If the bird within him had died, would he have perished? No something else in him had died," (page 98). This shows that the bird is more than just a representation of Siddhartha, of his spirit and life force. This shows that the bird was actually part of Siddhartha and was Siddhartha's self and inner voice. This quote is one of many where the bird guides him, or he listens to the bird which is what continues progress within the novel. This is  important as the motif shows a lot about Siddhartha's spirituality, how it has changed, and where it will go next. This shows how Siddhartha's spirituality has now changed to be not indulgent, or repressive, or arrogant but rather sweet and harmonic (like a birds song) which is explained more within the chapter By The River. But the bird, the idea of him listening and learning shows what is to come next, how Siddhartha must now learn how to listen and become in tune with the world to achieve enlightenment. This also makes understanding Siddhartha's inner voice a lot more understandable and interesting and makes Siddhartha's relation with his inner voice seem a lot less like him talking to himself. That is one of the motifs in Siddhartha so far.

The River of Enlightenment

Motif, the recurring image, symbol, or idea in a work of literature. Siddhartha by Herman Hesse is filled with numerous motifs, one of the largest motifs within the text of Siddhartha is the river. Siddhartha, on the way to the town met a ferryman who spoke of the river, "... it is a very beautiful river. I love it above everything... I have always learned something from it. One can learn much from a river," (Hesse 49). In this scene, Siddhartha first encounters the ferryman and the river and the ferryman describes his adoration for the river, as it has brought him inner peace. Later in the novel, Siddhartha wanders from the city, ridden with sorrow and despair and comes across the river. "Siddhartha reached the long river in the wood... He stopped at this river and stood hesitantly on the bank. Why should he go any further?" (Hesse 88). Siddhartha contemplates suicide but the river touches his spirit and he hears Om. Siddhartha stays by the river with the ferryman, "How he loved this river, how it enchanted him, how grateful he was to it," (Hesse 101). The river teaches Siddhartha a number of things and through it he reaches enlightenment. The river makes a constant reappearance throughout the text as it symbolizes the stages in which Siddhartha goes through to reach enlightenment.

Salvation, Salvation, Salvation

Siddartha is a complex novel with many recurring motifs. It has a large number of ideas or symbols that repeat throughout the course of the novel. One recurring symbol is the idea of salvation, and that it can be reached by a path of true knowledge. On page 200, Hesse writes,"Now he saw it and saw that the secret voice had been right, that no teacher would ever have been able to bring about his salvation." This quote is in reference to Siddartha's relentless pursuit of knowledge that will lead him to salvation. This motif is occurring and changing his future course of events. On page 25, Hesse writes, "When you'll have found blissfulness in the forest, then come back and teach me to be blissful." His father tells Siddartha that he should go into the Samanas care and find true knowledge. Then, he says he should come back and teach him. This is the beginning of Siddartha's long search for knowledge and salvation. "I, Siddhartha, find only a short numbing of the senses in my exercises and meditations and that I am just as far removed from wisdom, from salvation, as a child in the mother's womb" (Hesse 37). This is when Siddartha realizes that he is not reaching salvation through the path of the Samanas, and he wants to move on. This shapes his future and the course of events in the novel, making salvation a central topic throughout the story.

Elightments path

A motif in Siddartha is enlightment; which is his eternal quest in life. Siddartha wants to find enlightment similar to how the Buddha did, althought he want to find it on his on in his own quest. The motif of enlightment is regarded as totally happiness and having no worries. Something "that can not be demonstarted and proved: that is your doctorine of rising above the world, of salvation." (Pg. 32) Siddartha said this to Gottama telling him his own belief of enlightment. "Not for one moment did I doubt that you were the Buddha, that you have reached the highest goal..you ha learned nothing through teachings, so I think that nobody finds salvation through teachings." This quote is siddartha telling the Buddha that even though he believes the Buddha has found "enlightment" (Pg. 33) he believes that he won't find it by listening to his teachings. He want to go out on his own quest and find it himself. "I was seeking Brahman, atman, I wished to destroy myself, to get away from myself, in order to find in the unknown innermost, the nucleus of all things..." (Pg. 38) This quote is that that he is searching for enlightment by trying to get away from himself through self denial. These quotes show how siddartha is searching for enlightment and how he plans on reaching it.

The River

“One can learn much from a river,”(Hesse 49). In the book Siddhartha, a recurring image or motif is the river that Siddhartha visits. Siddhartha first encounter with the river and noble ferryman  is while he is on his way to the city where Kamala resides, “..it is a very beautiful river. I love it above everything... I have always learned something from it,”(Hesse 49).  This is only the beginning of his encounters with the river, and how it represents Siddhartha’s journey of carefreeness and unity with one self. Siddhartha’s second encounter with the river after he departs from the rich life he had with Kamala and Kamaswami. “Siddhartha reached the long river in the wood, the same river across which a ferryman had once taken him when he was still a young man and had come from Gotama’s town. He stopped at this river and stood hesitantly on the bank,”(Hesse 88). This is the moment when Siddhartha has to choose if he wants to go on in life, or just fall into the river and let all worries go by committing suicide at that very moment.Looking back at his journey, he has not yet reached enlightenment, but as he looks at the river, it shows him the eternity of all things and the universe and he falls into a deep sleep. Siddhartha sleeps for many hours, and when he awakes, he realizes he has attained enlightenment, all by listening and learning from the river to let things go. Siddhartha makes the decision to stay by the river, with the ferryman, named Vasudeva, and serve as an assistant and bring others across the river. “Love this river, stay by it, learn from it,”(Hesse 101), is exactly what Siddhartha was going to do because, “..whoever understood this river and its secrets, would understand much more, many secrets, all secrets,”(Hesse 102). The river is not what bestows enlightenment on someone, but rather helps to direct the thoughts of any individual who is willing to listen, which is what Siddhartha does when he repeatedly returns to the river for words of advice.

Polarities: A Motif in Siddhartha

Siddhartha goes through many different stages in his path to enlightenment. His main struggle is finding the right way; he is always on polar opposites of the spectrum. Sometimes, he deprives himself to an extreme, or else he lives in luxury which is unfit for disconnecting from the Self and material world. When Siddhartha is with the Samanas, he realizes that "amongst all of the Samanas, probably not even one will attain Nirvana" (Hesse 18). The Samanas trick themselves and their bodies by extreme fasting and depravation, and believe they are on the path to enlightenment, when in reality they will not achieve this. In his journey with the Samanas, Siddhartha experience one end of the spectrum. But after his visit to Gotama, he realizes that Gotama “has given to [him] Siddhartha, [him] self” (Hesse 36). This is his turning point. Siddhartha realizes that he has not been living, but rather continuing a life of extreme hardship of which is unnecessary, because he is his own teacher. Thus, he continues to a village and awakens his senses, tastes “riches, passion, and power” (Hesse 75). However, he soon realizes he has once again gone too far to the other extreme. He has become lost in the material world; and with each of these representations, one can see the presence of polarities as a motif in Siddhartha.    

Mature Vs. Imature

    Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse possess a motif of the idea that, people are children. Throughout the book Siddhartha constantly describes the average people he meets as immature and ignorant. Siddhartha first makes this metaphor after meeting the ferryman. “ All are grateful, although they themselves deserve thanks. All are subservient, all wish to obey and to think little. people are children.”(49) In this scene, Siddharth is pleased of the kindness of the ferryman and it reminds him of Govinda. In return of the ride, the protagonist gives friendship to the ferryman. This scene is a reference to how everybody wants to be Siddhartha’s friend. In this case people are like children because children who meet are almost instantaneous best friends. They are ignorant without a care in the world. and just go with the flow, much like the people Siddhartha encounters. The second time Siddhartha makes this analogy when he has become disgusted with what he has become,” This wish, this childish wish had grown so strong within him: to find peace by destroying his body.” (89). Siddhartha acknowledges the fact that it wasn’t himself to act this way, drunk, and obsessed with money. This is childish because maturity comes out of realizing what is truly important. Not money, nor power is important and Siddhartha fell down this path. “I changed from a man into a child”(96) Here, Siddhartha is again questioning himself. He has lost the power to think, to wait, to fast.  These were the signs of his maturity and now he has become and average person but with absolutely nothing to give, but the clothes off his back. This motif reveals a theme that with maturity come the realization that more is not better in the tangible world.

Siddhartha’s Many Motifs

        There are many motifs that occur in Siddhartha, but none other motifs are as important as the motifs of the ferryman and the river, the bird in the golden cage, and the reoccurrence of Om. On page 88, it states, “A chilly emptiness in the water reflected the terrible emptiness in his soul.” This represents cleansing of the soul from the river and how it represents the creation of a new p.  son (not literally but more spiritually). This was placed in here because during this scene in the book, Siddhartha is overcoming a realization of what he has become and how he would like to return to his former self which is why the river is there; to represent a recreation of the old Siddhartha. Another reoccurring motif is the bird in the golden cage. “This bird which usually sang in the morning became mute, and as this surprised him, he went up to the cage and looked inside. The little bird was dead…” page 82. This motif represents change not only in the environment, but also in Siddhartha’s character which he soon realizes which occurred in the above motif. The last major motif is Om. ”Softly he said the word Om to himself, over which he had fallen asleep and it seemed to him as if his whole sleep had been a long deep pronouncing of Om, thinking of Om, an emersion and penetration into Om, into the nameless into the divine.” page 90. This motif represents a goal for Siddhartha which is what keeps him going, because he wishes to achieve Om which is also what got him out of his slump when he was feeling nauseous when he recognized the changes he had faced.

Spiritual Guidance

There are many different kinds of Motifs represented in the book Siddhartha, but the most prominent one I see is the motif of spiritual guidance. This idea of guidance is mentioned many times during the novel because the protagonist Siddhartha is struggling with finding spiritual guidance throughout the story, especially at the beginning.  At the beginning Siddhartha is a simple Brahmin who worshiped his gods and obeyed his father, but he was not happy or content with the life he was living. In the first chapter Siddhartha starts questioning his happiness and his religion, “The sacrifices and the supplication of the gods were excellent- but were they everything? Did the sacrifices give happiness?” (Hesse, 6) He starts to wonder if worshiping the gods is important.. This is significant to the story because it pushes Siddhartha to begin his journey of spiritual enlightenment with his friend Govinda. The second place I see the idea of spiritual guidance is when Govinda and Siddhartha visit the Jetavana grove to hear the Illustrious One, Gotama, talk about his ways of worship and guidance. Siddhartha is not impressed with his teachings. He explains to Gotama that a person cannot reach enlightenment through verbal teachings, that a person must find it by themselves without external guidance. He tells Gotama, “You have learned nothing through teachings, and so I think, O Illustrious One, that nobody finds salvation through teachings.” (Hesse, 34) Finally, another example of this motif of spiritual guidance is towards the middle of the story. At the beginning of his solo adventure he finds out why he has been struggling with guidance, because of his loneliness he is finally able to listen inside of him. The spiritual guidance within him is able to come out and he doesn’t have to listen to anyone else but himself. “I will no longer study Yoga-Veda, Atharva-Veda, or asceticism, or any other teachings. I will learn from myself, be my own pupil; I will learn from myself the secret of Siddhartha.” (Hesse, 39) As you can see there are many different places the motif of spiritual guidance comes up in the story of Siddhartha, and the struggle is brings the protagonist.

Recurring Images in Siddartha

In the novel Siddartha, multiple motifs occur. One of the main motif's in the novel includes the needing to be satisfied. Siddartha is a smart and handsome young man but no matter what he does, he is not satisfied with his amount of knowledge. He wants to gain enough knowledge to be enlightened, and satisfied with his life. At one point in his Brahmin life, he questions the teachings of the Brahmin: "He lived a good life, his words were wise; fine and noble thoughts dwelt in his head - but even he, who knew so much, did he live in bliss, was he at peace (Hesse 7)?" Another example of this motif being used in the novel is where Siddartha takes action for his thirst of knowledge, and chooses to become an ascetic, to learn from the Samanas. "' Tommorrow morning, friend, Siddartha is going to join the Samanas. He is going to become a Samana' (Hesse 9)." In the novel, it described Siddartha's leaving home to become an ascetic as something Siddartha was doing to satisfy his own desires.He became a Samana to satisfy his thirst for knowledge. "How many long years had he spent spent without any lofty goal, without any thirst,without any exaltation,content with small pleasures and yet never really satisfied (Hesse 83)!" This quote describes how Siddaratha had wasted so much of his life and had realized that his satisfaction had not been fulfilled. That his why he left his life of riches once again, to try and be satisfied.

Flowing Knowledge

In "Siddhartha" the river is a recurring motif that represents knowledge. The first time that Siddhartha went to the river he was a young Samana and had talked to the Buddha about life. He had just been awakened but was unsure where he should go next. The ferryman had told Siddhartha "One can learn much from the river"(49) and then told him "I have learned that from the river too; everything comes back. You, too, Samana will come back."(49) Siddhartha at this time realised he would learn much from the river and the first thing was that he will come back around. Siddhartha did come back around to the river just as the ferryman had said. The second time he came to the river he had just realised he turned into something that he did not like and was contemplating suicide when the river caused him to have an epiphany and change his mind."At that moment when the sound of Om reached Siddhartha's ears, his slumbering soul suddenly awakened and he recognized the folly of his actions." (89) In this moment the river helped save Siddhartha's life and he learned that he needs to be more open to listening and he needs to move forward with his life in a new state of mind. Then he moves forward and meets the ferryman again. Siddharhta asks, "Has it (the river) not the voice of a king, of a warrior, of a bull,of a night bird, of a pregnant women and a sighing man, and a thousand other voices?" (107) and the ferryman replies " The voices of all living creatures are in its voice." (108) This conversation proves that river has vast knowledge to share with all those who will stop and listen because it has so many perspectives.

The River Motif in Siddhartha

“One can learn a lot from a river” (Heese, pg 40). The river is a very important motif in the novel because it helps Siddhartha to realize what he really wants to do with his life. Siddhartha learned a lot from the river. Every time that Siddhartha visited the river he recognized something new about himself. The first time that he came to the river he didn’t know what he wanted to do since he left the Samana’s. But then after seeing the river and talking with the ferryman, he realized the happiness nice people can bring him. These made him want to go and visit the big city. This quote does raise questions about the confidence of Siddhartha because he is never sure what he wants to do. He is always questioning himself. “He recognized himself in the midst of his misery and delusion” (Heese, pg 70). This is a quote from when Siddhartha tried to commit suicide in the river. At first he thought that his choices in the city gave him nothing to live for. But then when he was down in the river he realized that he still had the inner mind of a Samana. And that is why later he repeatedly said the word “OM” in his head. The river helps the reader to fully understand and connect with what Siddhartha does and says and that is why the author tried to use this motif. This part of the book again raises questions about what Siddhartha is going to do next and how long he will do it. Even though the river does help the reader to understand what is going on, it will still leave them wondering what is to come. “Farewell Govinda” (Heese, pg 72). This is a very important part of the book because it is the first time Govinda and Siddhartha meet since they decided to go and learn in different ways. It is very suiting that they meet by the river because of the meaning the river has. They were both off learning many things for a very long time but since they saw each other, it makes them remember all that they had going for them before they split up. So not only does the river motif affect Siddhartha, but it also affects people like Govinda.

Enlightment

A motif is a recurring image, symbol, or idea in a work of literature. A motif in Siddhartha is enlightment. Elightment is constant happiness. Siddhartha is not satisfied when he left home.“You will go into the forest, and become a samana (12).” Siddhartha’s father said this to him when he asked if he could leave home a become a samana to find enlighment. Also he will try to find enlightment when he decides not to go with the Buddhas and leaves Govinda. “You have heard my blessing, Govinda, I repeat it. May you follow this path to the end. May you find salvation(30)!” Siddhartha leaves because he believes that he won’t find enlighment if he follows the Buddhas. "He rose, said farwell to the mango shower and the pleasure garden... He smiled wearily, shook his head and said goodbye to these things(84)." Siddhartha once again left because he is not satisified and knows he will not find enlightment. Enlightment is a motif in Siddhartha because Siddhartha is trying to find enlightment and is not getting it.

 

-Mark Guiterrez

The River in Siddhartha

A major motif that occurs in Herman Hesse's Siddhartha is the reoccurance of the river. several times within the text the river occurs, in both symbolic and literal occurance. At the beggining of the first chapter of part two of the book, the river first makes it's main appearance. "When Siddhartha awoke, the pale river shimmered past the door of the hut, and in the forest the cry of an owl rang out, deep and clear" (Pg.48). The first thing he visits after his parting from Govinda is a river, where he meets a kind ferryman. His crossing the river was like a metaphor for his crossing the "boundary" from his life of spirituality to his new life of material. It symbolizes a transfer of himself from a knowing "adult" in his eyes to a normal person, or a "child" in his eyes. The river then appears again when he realizes his material life is not providing him adaquete happiness and that he is not coming close to achiving true knowledge. He wanders to the river, and there he  "reached the long river in the wood, the same river across which a ferryman had once taken him when he was still a young man..." (Pg. 88). It is at this river, before which he wishes for seperation from his material life, that he falls into a deep sleep muttering the word Om. His sleep is like a purgery of his senses and material life, and returning him to a life of potential spirituality. It seemed to him as if he had become a different person completely, and had now returned to the correct path, as if a child, learning spirituality anew. after his great revelation, he decides "I will remain by this river... A friendly ferryman took me across... my path once led from his hut to a new life which is now old and dead. May my present path, my new life, start from there." (Pg 101). Siddharthat sees that his life is beginning new, and just as it did so long ago for him at that river, he would like annother rebirth to occur at the river metaphoricly.

A recurrence in Siddhartha

Siddhartha, the book, implements many different motifs such as pilgrimage, the self, and deserting loved ones. The one that specifically is identified throughout the whole book is deserting loved ones. One such example of this motif is near the beginning of the text when Siddhartha leaves his father to start his experience as a Samara. "The Brahmin saw that Siddhartha's knees trembled slightly , but there was no trembling in Siddhartha's face; his eyes looked far away. Then the father realized that Siddhartha could no longer live with him at home-that he had already left him." This explains that Siddhartha is leaving his much loved father.  This recurring symbol is also present in the chapter "Gotama" when Siddhartha leaves his best friend Govinda to continue on his journey. Siddhartha says "You have heard my blessing, Govinda. I repeat it. May you travel this path to the end. May you find salvation!" Siddhartha is saying goodbye to Govinda and saying that their paths separate here. This relates to the motif of deserting loved ones because he is leaving a friend that he has cared for since they were children. Finally, at the end of the chapter "Samsara," Siddhartha leaves the town that he had made his permanent home for many years. "When she heard the first news of Siddhartha's disappearance, she went to the window where she kept a are songbird in a golden cage." This goes back to the motif because it says that he left Kamala, the women he loves so much.

Dreams of Knowledge

               A motif that occurs throughout Siddhartha is Siddhartha having dreams that relate to Kamala which lead him to the next event that happens in his life. The vivid dreams he has, makes the reader question whether he has achieved Nirvana because of him knowing ahead of life through sleep. “He dreamt that Govinda stood before him, in the yellow robe of the ascetic. Govinda looked sad and asked him, ‘Why did you leave me?’ Thereupon he embraced Govinda, out his arm round him, and as he drew him to his breast and kissed him, he was Govinda no longer, but a woman” (Hesse 48.) This dream is telling the next step of Siddhartha’s life. After he leaves his friend of youth, Govinda, meets Kamala, a woman who becomes his new closest friend. “Then a dream once reminded him. He has been with Kamala in the evening, in her lovely pleasure garden. They sat under a tree talking. Kamala was speaking seriously, and grief and weariness were concealed behind her words. She asked him to tell her about Gotama,” (Hesse 80.) During this dream, Siddhartha was telling Kamala about Gotama and she seemed interested to one day become a follower of him. This is what Siddhartha does again by leaving the riches and wealth he had to become happy again. “During that time he had a dream. Kamala kept a small rare songbird in small golden cage. It was about this bird that he dreamt. This bird, which usually sand in the morning, became mute, and as this surprised him, he went up to the cage and looked inside. The bird was dead and lay stiff on the floor. He took it out, held it a moment in his hand and then threw it away on the road, and at the same moment he was horrified and his heart ached as if he had thrown away with this dead bird all that was good and of value in himself.” (Hesse 82) When Siddhartha leaves his wealth, Kamala sets the bird free and it dies. This motif symbolizes Siddhartha’s knowledge from what he has previously learned, and what he will soon learn.

A Knowledgable Motif

Multiple motifs occur throughout the novel Siddhartha. One major motif that comes up is a thirst for knowledge. The first example of this motif occurs just 5 pages into the first chapter, and comes up again and again for the rest of the novel. On page 5, Siddhartha feels that,"his worthy father and his other teachers, the wise Brahmin's, had already passed on to him the bulk and best of his wisdom" (Hesse 5). Siddhartha has remained with the Brahmin's for a time, but he feels he has exhausted all of their knowledge. So, he goes off with the Samanas to continue his thirst for knowledge, a major motif. Another example of the thirst for kinowledge is when Siddhartha states to Govinda, "Soon, Govinda, your friemd will leave the path of the Samanas along which he has travelled with you for so long. I suffer thirst, Govinda, and on this long Samana path my thirst has not grown less" (Hesse 18). He goes on to talk about how his thirst is not for something material, it is his thirst for knowledge, proving this motif to be correct. One last example of the motif is when he first meets Kamala. he tells Kamala that he wants to learn the art of love from her. He doesn't just want to love her, he wants to learn from it. This proves that the thirst for knowledge is a major motif in Siddhartha.

Siddhartha's Enlightenment

Siddhartha shows, in many cases, a recurring idea of spiritual enlightenment. As Siddhartha is a Buddhist character, this is the objective of all Buddhist followers, to let go of all personal possessions in order to achieve enlightenment. As such, Siddhartha's only abilities are to "think, wait, and fast". He has given up all of his worldly possessions, and all of his friends and family, to travel, to be a nomad. After briefly straying from his path of enlightenment, Siddhartha again leaves everything behind, and begins to again live in seclusion. He only begins to observe the life of the "normal people", but does not participate in the day-to-day activities that take place before him. Even during his time in the town, Siddhartha gambled his property without a care of whether or not he lost; "He won thousands, lost thousands, lost jewels, lost a country home, won again, lost again". Although Siddhartha hasn't completely rid himself of worldly possessions, he attempts to throughout the story.

The Self

"One must find the source within one's own Self, one must possess it. Everything else was seeking- a detour, error." (pg 7)

To discover the Self is what is the key to true happiness, according to Siddhartha.
In the beginning of this novel, Siddhartha started out as a Brahmin's son who was educated and compelled to learn new things each day. He lived with his father, who had high expectations of Siddhartha for the future. However, Siddhartha felt incomplete in this life, for his cup was not yet filled with innermost knowledge just yet; he had not yet achieved true happiness. In this, he became a Samana along with his friend, Govinda.Together, they lived in the forest and attained the skills to think, fast, and wait. For many years, they both followed the teachings of the eldest Samana in hopes that this is the life they can find satisfaction and the true meaning of life in. One day, his friend Govinda told Siddhartha of the rumors of Gotama's wise teachings. Govinda was very interested in hearing these teachings of the great Gotama (Buddha), but Siddhartha was not entirely convinced of Gotama's wisdom. When they met the Buddha, however, Siddhartha immediately recognized his peaceful, satisfied, and wise stature compared to the other monks. Govinda was convinced to pledge his allegiance as a follower of the Buddha, yet Siddhartha did not because the Buddha's teachings made him realize that following the teachings of others would hold him back from discovering himself as Siddhartha. With this decision, he became conscious of his surroundings: the world around him, in which he finally found beauty in. He travelled to a town where ordinary people had lived and became one of them. There, he met a beautiful prostitute named Kamala, where they both fell in love. Kamala recommended Siddhartha to Kamaswami, the richest merchant in the town, who she believed would contribute to Kamaswami success in the business. It turns out that Siddhartha's skills to think, fast, and wait & read and write became useful to the business and Siddhartha got a promotion in that sense. Years passed and Siddhartha was becoming one of the richest merchants living in town; he became greedy, anxious, selfish, and more like an ordinary person. With this feeling of regret in this life, he left everything he had there, including Kamala, who was pregnant. Siddhartha was so ashamed and so overwhelmed by these sins he had committed, attempting to drown himself in the river. But then he realized that maybe he came to that town and became a prosperous man to be motivated to find the Self. He started his new life as a ferryman with Vasudeva, the ferryman by the river. This life was very peaceful and happy and he learned much from the river and Vasudeva as well. One day, fleets of monks came to the ferrymen to cross the river and see the Buddha before his passing. Kamala and her son had also decided to come to the Buddha and seek peace, happiness, and wisdom in the last of his presence. On their way to the ferry, Kamala was bitten by a poisonous snake. Vasudeva saw Kamala and her son and took them in. Siddhartha was surprised to find his love and her son here at last with him. He saw the son and realized that he was his son too. Kamala died there, but was happy and at peace because she was with her one and only love, Siddhartha.
In this novel, the Self is a very important motif which motivates Siddhartha to find the true meaning of his life.

Motif in Siddhartha

                        A motif in Siddhartha would be the bird in the cage. On page 82, Hermann Hesse uses the bird motif to describe Siddhartha's new behavior. "Kamala kept a small rare songbird in a small golden cage. ...The little bird was dead and lay stiff on the floor. He took it out, held it a moment in his hand and then threw it away on the road, and at the same moment he was horrified and his heart ached as if he has thrown away with this dead bird all that was good and of value in himself, (Hesse,82)." The motif of the bird shown here suggests that the bird is how his life changed. He changed from a caring individual, to a man who doesn't care about other life. Another example of this motif is, "she opened the door of the cage, took the bird out and let it fly away. For a long time she looked after disappearing bird, (Hesse, 85)." The bird symbolizes Siddhartha and Kamala's relationship. She kept him with her, and as soon as Siddhartha left, she let the bird go meaning she let Siddhartha go and watched him disappear. This motif shows up again when he is talking about how his journey can be shown as a bird. "He thought long of the change in him, listened to the bird singing happily. If this bird within him had died, would he have perished? (Hesse,99)." This suggests the bird in the inner Self of Siddhartha. It is being compared to Atman. The motif is the bird further explores the topic of inner self and characterization of Siddhartha leading a potential theme.