Re:싣다르타 - 헤르만 헷세

[ji-in]

 

Plot Overview

Siddhartha, the handsome and respected son of a Brahmin, lives with his father in ancient India. Everyone in the village expects Siddhartha to be a successful Brahmin like his father. Siddhartha enjoys a near-idyllic existence with his best friend, Govinda, but he is secretly dissatisfied. He performs all the rituals of religion, and he does what religion says should bring him happiness and peace. Nonetheless, he feels something is missing. His father and the other elders have still not achieved enlightenment, and he feels that staying with them will not settle the questions he has about the nature of his existence. Siddhartha believes his father has already passed on all the wisdom their community has to offer, but he longs for something more.

One day, a group of wandering ascetics called Samanas passes through town. They are starved and almost naked and have come to beg for food. They believe enlightenment can be reached through asceticism, a rejection of the body and physical desire. The path the Samanas preach is quite different from the one Siddhartha has been taught, and he believes it may provide some of the answers he is looking for. He decides to follow this new path. Siddhartha’s father does not want him to join the Samanas, but he cannot dissuade Siddhartha. Govinda also wants to find a path to enlightenment, and he joins Siddhartha in this new life.

Siddhartha adjusts quickly to the ways of the Samanas because of the patience and discipline he learned in the Brahmin tradition. He learns how to free himself from the traditional trappings of life, and so loses his desire for property, clothing, sexuality, and all sustenance except that required to live. His goal is to find enlightenment by eliminating his Self, and he successfully renounces the pleasures of the world.

Sunburned and half-starved, Siddhartha soon ceases to resemble the boy he used to be. Govinda is quick to praise the Samanas and notes the considerable moral and spiritual improvements they both have achieved since joining. Siddhartha, however, is still dissatisfied. The path of self-denial does not provide a permanent solution for him. He points out that the oldest Samanas have lived the life for many years but have yet to attain true spiritual enlightenment. The Samanas have been as unsuccessful as the Brahmins Siddhartha and Govinda left behind. At this time, Siddhartha and the other Samanas begin to hear about a new holy man named Gotama the Buddha who has attained the total spiritual enlightenment called Nirvana. Govinda convinces Siddhartha they both should leave the Samanas and seek out Gotama. Siddhartha and Govinda inform the leader of the Samanas of their decision to leave. The leader is clearly displeased, but Siddhartha silences him with an almost magical, hypnotizing gaze.

Siddhartha and Govinda find Gotama’s camp of followers and are taken in. Siddhartha is initially pleased with Gotama, and he and Govinda are instructed in the Eightfold Path, the four main points, and other aspects of Buddhism. However, while Govinda is convinced to join Gotama and his followers, Siddhartha still has doubts. He has noticed a contradiction in Gotama’s teachings: Siddhartha questions how one can embrace the unity of all things, as the Buddha asks, if they are also being told to overcome the physical world. Siddhartha realizes Buddhism will not give him the answers he needs. Sadly, he leaves Govinda behind and begins a search for the meaning of life, the achievement of which he feels will not be dependent on religious instruction.

Siddhartha decides to embark on a life free from meditation and the spiritual quests he has been pursuing, and to instead learn from the pleasures of the body and the material world. In his new wanderings, Siddhartha meets a friendly ferryman, fully content with his simple life. Siddhartha crosses the ferryman’s river and comes to a city. Here, a beautiful courtesan named Kamala entrances him. He knows she would be the best one to teach him about the world of love, but Kamala will not have him unless he proves he can fit into the material world. She convinces him to take up the path of the merchant. With her help, Siddhartha soon finds employment with a merchant named Kamaswami and begins to learn the trade. While Siddhartha learns the wisdom of the business world and begins to master the skills Kamaswami teaches him, Kamala becomes his lover and teaches him what she knows about love.

Years pass, and Siddhartha’s business acumen increases. Soon, he is a rich man and enjoys the benefits of an affluent life. He gambles, drinks, and dances, and anything that can be bought in the material world is his for the taking. Siddhartha is detached from this life, however, and he can never see it as more than a game. He doesn’t care if he wins or loses this game because it doesn’t touch his spirit in any lasting way. The more he obtains in the material world, the less it satisfies him, and he is soon caught in a cycle of unhappiness that he tries to escape by engaging in even more gambling, drinking, and sex. When he is at his most disillusioned, he dreams that Kamala’s rare songbird is dead in its cage. He understands that the material world is slowly killing him without providing him with the enlightenment for which he has been searching. One night, he resolves to leave it all behind and departs without notifying either Kamala or Kamaswami.

Sick at heart, Siddhartha wanders until he finds a river. He considers drowning himself, but he instead falls asleep on the riverbank. While he is sleeping, Govinda, who is now a Buddhist monk, passes by. Not recognizing Siddhartha, he watches over the sleeping man to protect him from snakes. Siddhartha immediately recognizes Govinda when he wakes up, but Govinda notes that Siddhartha has changed significantly from his days with the Samanas and now appears to be a rich man. Siddhartha responds that he is currently neither a Samana nor a rich man. Siddhartha wishes to become someone new. Govinda soon leaves to continue on his journey, and Siddhartha sits by the river and considers where his life has taken him.

Siddhartha seeks out the same content ferryman he met years before. The ferryman, who introduces himself as Vasudeva, radiates an inner peace that Siddhartha wishes to attain. Vasudeva says he himself has attained this sense of peace through many years of studying the river. Siddhartha expresses a desire to likewise learn from the river, and Vasudeva agrees to let Siddhartha live and work beside him. Siddhartha studies the river and begins to take from it a spiritual enlightenment unlike any he has ever known. While sitting by the river, he contemplates the unity of all life, and in the river’s voice he hears the wordOm

One day Kamala the courtesan approaches the ferry along with her son on a pilgrimage to visit Gotama, who is said to be dying. Before they can cross, a snake bites Kamala. Siddhartha and Vasudeva tend to Kamala, but the bite kills her. Before she dies, she tells Siddhartha that he is the father of her eleven-year-old son. Siddhartha does his best to console and provide for his son, but the boy is spoiled and cynical. Siddhartha’s son dislikes life with the two ferrymen and wishes to return to his familiar city and wealth. Vasudeva believes Siddhartha’s son should be allowed to leave if he wants to, but Siddhartha is not ready to let him go. One morning, Siddhartha awakens to find his son has run away and stolen all of his and Vasudeva’s money. Siddhartha chases after the boy, but as he reaches the city he realizes the chase is futile. Vasudeva follows Siddhartha and brings him back to their home by the river, instructing him to soothe the pain of losing his son by listening to the river.

Siddhartha studies the river for many years, and Vasudeva teaches Siddhartha how to learn the many secrets the river has to tell. In contemplating the river, Siddhartha has a revelation: Just as the water of the river flows into the ocean and is returned by rain, all forms of life are interconnected in a cycle without beginning or end. Birth and death are all part of a timeless unity. Life and death, joy and sorrow, good and evil are all parts of the whole and are necessary to understand the meaning of life. By the time Siddhartha has learned all the river’s lessons, Vasudeva announces that he is through with his life at the river. He retires into the forest, leaving Siddhartha to be the ferryman.

The novel ends with Govinda returning to the river to seek enlightenment by meeting with a wise man who lives there. When Govinda arrives, he does not recognize that the wise man is Siddhartha himself. Govinda is still a follower of Gotama but has yet to attain the kind of enlightenment that Siddhartha now radiates, and he asks Siddhartha to teach him what he knows. Siddhartha explains that neither he nor anyone can teach the wisdom to Govinda, because verbal explanations are limited and can never communicate the entirety of enlightenment. Instead, he asks Govinda to kiss him on the forehead, and when Govinda does, the vision of unity that Siddhartha has experienced is communicated instantly to Govinda. Govinda and Siddhartha have both finally achieved the enlightenment they set out to find in the days of their youth.

Quiz

1. Siddhartha’s father is a Brahmin, which means he is a what?

(A) Policeman

(B) Religious leader

(C) Soldier

(D) Politician

2. What is the name of Siddhartha’s best friend?

(A) Gotama

(B) Govinda

(C) Kamala

(D) Kamaswami

3. When Siddhartha joins the Samanas, what pleasant surprise does he find?

(A) That he has a brother

(B) That his own father was once a Samana

(C) That Govinda has also joined the Samanas

(D) That the Samanas have chosen to make Siddhartha their leader

4. In the course of his confrontational departure from the Samanas, how does Siddhartha silence their leader?

(A) By gazing at him hypnotically

(B) By wrestling with him and winning

(C) By criticizing the dress of the Samanas

(D) By threatening to tell Gotama about them

5. What does Govinda do when Siddhartha leaves the Samanas?

(A) Remains with the Samanas

(B) Returns to their home village

(C) Wanders to a river

(D) Accompanies Siddhartha

6. After learning the main tenets of Gotama’s Eightfold Path, what does Siddhartha do?

(A) Questions Gotama privately about the specifics of his spiritual recommendations

(B) Acknowledges Gotama’s beliefs as making up the one true faith

(C) Insists to Govinda that they leave immediately

(D) Attempts to return to the Samanas, but fails to locate their whereabouts

7. Why does Gotama seem to believe he is qualified to be a spiritual leader?

(A) He has read every spiritual text in existence

(B) He was once the leader of the Samanas

(C) He has many followers

(D) He has attained Nirvana

8. When Siddhartha decides to leave Gotama’s camp, what does Govinda do?

(A) Accompanies Siddhartha

(B) Stays with Gotama

(C) Appears unexpectedly, but doesn’t recognize Siddhartha

(D) Returns to the Samanas

9. How does the ferryman first seem to Siddhartha?

(A) Bitter and lost

(B) Cringing and self-serving

(C) Contented and smiling

(D) Dazed and confused

10. On his approach to the city, Siddhartha is almost overcome by desire for what?

(A) A woman

(B) Kamaswami

(C) A home-cooked meal

(D) Alcoholic beverages

11. Soon after Kamala meets Siddhartha, what does she agree to trade a kiss for?

(A) A well-recited poem

(B) A well-sung song

(C) An amusing acrobatic trick

(D) A beautiful painting

12. Why does Kamala introduce Siddhartha to Kamaswami?

(A) So Siddhartha will have a friend in the city

(B) So Siddhartha can learn the ways of a merchant

(C) Kamaswami is the city’s greatest spiritual leader

(D) So Siddhartha may fight a duel with him for the hand of Kamala

13. Siddhartha has a dream about Kamala’s pet bird. In Siddhartha’s dream, what is different about Kamala’s bird?

(A) It has the head of a fish

(B) It is a different color

(C) It speaks in the voice of Govinda

(D) It is dead

14. Soon after his dream about Kamala’s bird, Siddhartha retires to a pleasure garden. What does he do here?

(A) Encounters Govinda, who fails to recognize him

(B) Encounters Kamala and follows her into the woods

(C) Engages in sexual intercourse with Kamala

(D) Resolves to leave the city

15. During Siddhartha’s second encounter with the river, what does he do when he sees his own reflection in the water?

(A) Asks it to teach him the nature of Nirvana

(B) Spits at it

(C) Flashes a big smile

(D) Fails to recognize himself

16. After Siddhartha falls asleep on the riverbank during his second encounter with the river, who does he awake to find?

(A) Govinda, who fails to recognize him

(B) Gotama, who fails to recognize him

(C) Kamala, who Siddhartha fails to recognize

(D) Kamaswami

17. When Siddhartha convinces the ferryman Vasudeva to teach him how to listen to the river, how does Vasudeva propose to train him?

(A) Siddhartha will meet with Vasudeva once a day

(B) Siddhartha will learn to swim in the river

(C) Siddhartha will replace Vasudeva as the ferryman for one year, and Vasudeva will return periodically to check his progress

(D) Siddhartha will live and work alongside Vasudeva

18. Early in his time spent learning from Vasudeva, what news does Siddhartha hear from a group of Buddhists?

(A) The Samanas have declared war on Gotama’s followers

(B) The Samanas have disbanded

(C) Gotama is dying

(D) Gotama has attained a new and deeper level of Nirvana

19. What causes Kamala’s death?

(A) A disease

(B) An accident

(C) A snakebite

(D) A natural disaster

20. When Siddhartha learns he has a son, what does he propose?

(A) The son should follow Gotama

(B) The son should live with Govinda

(C) The son should live with Siddhartha at the river

(D) The son should live in the city with Kamaswami

21. When Siddhartha’s son steals Siddhartha’s money, what does Siddhartha do?

(A) Follows him to the outskirts of the city, where the trail ends

(B) Spreads the word from town to town that his son is a shameful thief

(C) Declares to Vasudeva that his son is no longer a relation

(D) Takes him to the Samanas’ camp, where he is forced to become an ascetic

22. Through what activity does Siddhartha achieve true Nirvana?

(A) Following the precepts of Gotama

(B) Listening to the teachings of the river

(C) Successfully recognizing Govinda

(D) Reluctantly welcoming his estranged son back into his life

23. After Siddhartha shows the signs of having attained Nirvana, what does Vasudeva do?

(A) Urges Siddhartha to teach his own son

(B) Sings and dances in celebration

(C) Leaves for the city, presumably to start a new life

(D) Leaves to die in the forest

24. When Siddhartha meets Govinda for the final time, what initially happens?

(A) Siddhartha fails to recognize Govinda

(B) Govinda fails to recognize Siddhartha

(C) Govinda reveals that he has recently attained Nirvana

(D) Govinda reveals that he has abandoned his quest for enlightenment

25. At the end of the novel, how does Siddhartha share his experience of Nirvana with his old friend Govinda?

(A) He has Govinda kiss his forehead

(B) He makes Govinda wash his feet

(C) He coaches Govinda to listen to the teachings of the river

(D) He goes into the woods and leaves Govinda to be the next ferryman

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/siddhartha/

[elbosque]

very very good job!!!

[nemes]

출력해서 풀어볼께요.

[annaaa]

오랜만에 들린 이곳~~언제나 열심이신 분들되오면 자극이 되지만..시간에 쫓기어 못오는것이 너무 아쉽습니다. 가끔 시간날때 오더라도 받아주실거죠? 지인님의 열정에 감사드립니다. 이걸 퍼가는데...해답은 어디있나요? 다들 보고싶어요~~~