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lisanussd's review against another edition
This was a pick from PBS reads, but it was a little esoteric for me.
ellies_92's review against another edition
4.5
4,5 stars.
I loved the simplicity of this book, everything was so clear and easy to understand, yet not basic at all.
I loved the evolution of Siddharta, how in order to become holy he had to sin and suffer. And behold his sins weren’t “oh I sinned once, now I must stop”, no! He lived in lust, greed, etc. and sinned for 20 years.
I also liked the simple truths of this book: we can be warned towards evil things, but we will end up trying them nonetheless because it is our nature.
And of course, there is “redemption” for everyone, that all we need to know is already inside us.
I loved how the book opened and closed with Govinda by his side, it gave me the impression of it being a cycle that ended with Siddharta becoming holy.
My previous knowledge of the meaning of samsara, maya, atman and other such terms helped me understand the book first try. Nonetheless, I believe that someone unfamiliar with such terms would have difficulty understanding and it may oppose an issue since they are not explained at all.
I loved the simplicity of this book, everything was so clear and easy to understand, yet not basic at all.
I loved the evolution of Siddharta, how in order to become holy he had to sin and suffer. And behold his sins weren’t “oh I sinned once, now I must stop”, no! He lived in lust, greed, etc. and sinned for 20 years.
I also liked the simple truths of this book: we can be warned towards evil things, but we will end up trying them nonetheless because it is our nature.
And of course, there is “redemption” for everyone, that all we need to know is already inside us.
I loved how the book opened and closed with Govinda by his side, it gave me the impression of it being a cycle that ended with Siddharta becoming holy.
My previous knowledge of the meaning of samsara, maya, atman and other such terms helped me understand the book first try. Nonetheless, I believe that someone unfamiliar with such terms would have difficulty understanding and it may oppose an issue since they are not explained at all.
matzy's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
angelsrgorgeous's review against another edition
4.0
While the beautiful prose was outstanding and the book did present quite a bit of truth, I feel the truth was undoubtedly interspersed with logical inconsistencies.
One of the things that I did appreciate was the intermittent surfacing of comments on Siddhartha's pride. His constant moral superiority over finding a better path to tread than all others quickly became amusing considering the widely varied paths he followed. I appreciate that it seems Hesse was making a subtle point by commenting on the existence and changing nature of personal "truth".
I feel the most interesting logical inconsistency was Siddhartha's feelings concerning words and thoughts. He stated that these things had no value, and instead chose to place value solely on pure actions. While this sounds entirely logical when stated in this manner, the way Siddhartha expanded this idea in the book seemed quite inconsistent considering the path of his personal life. While I understand that we shouldn't discount all of someone's teachings simply because their lives are not consistent with them in every possible way (every life contains hypocrisy in some form), it did seem that his life was significantly far from the mark of his most important personal truth. His life clearly demonstrated that he placed significant value on thoughts (especially) and I had a difficult time reconciling this with his teachings. It seems to me that thoughts are a form of personal action and this idea was quite distracting during the final chapter when Siddhartha was teaching his old friend Govinda (an action that clearly employed the use of...words?).
I did love the path the book followed as I felt it could be compared in some limited way to almost anyone's personal life. While everyone may not pass through every stage (the ideological purity of youth, the sensation seeking of later youth and young adulthood, the subsequent straying from ideals adopted earlier, the increasing search for personal peace during middle adulthood, the longing to remove the painful side of living from children's experiences, etc), neither does every person pass through these in the same order, but the progression of Siddhartha's life did ring true as it corresponds closely to the various life stages covered in human development classes.
Overall, a peaceful and beautifully written book. A wonderful read to confront and further explore your spiritual side.
One of the things that I did appreciate was the intermittent surfacing of comments on Siddhartha's pride. His constant moral superiority over finding a better path to tread than all others quickly became amusing considering the widely varied paths he followed. I appreciate that it seems Hesse was making a subtle point by commenting on the existence and changing nature of personal "truth".
I feel the most interesting logical inconsistency was Siddhartha's feelings concerning words and thoughts. He stated that these things had no value, and instead chose to place value solely on pure actions. While this sounds entirely logical when stated in this manner, the way Siddhartha expanded this idea in the book seemed quite inconsistent considering the path of his personal life. While I understand that we shouldn't discount all of someone's teachings simply because their lives are not consistent with them in every possible way (every life contains hypocrisy in some form), it did seem that his life was significantly far from the mark of his most important personal truth. His life clearly demonstrated that he placed significant value on thoughts (especially) and I had a difficult time reconciling this with his teachings. It seems to me that thoughts are a form of personal action and this idea was quite distracting during the final chapter when Siddhartha was teaching his old friend Govinda (an action that clearly employed the use of...words?).
I did love the path the book followed as I felt it could be compared in some limited way to almost anyone's personal life. While everyone may not pass through every stage (the ideological purity of youth, the sensation seeking of later youth and young adulthood, the subsequent straying from ideals adopted earlier, the increasing search for personal peace during middle adulthood, the longing to remove the painful side of living from children's experiences, etc), neither does every person pass through these in the same order, but the progression of Siddhartha's life did ring true as it corresponds closely to the various life stages covered in human development classes.
Overall, a peaceful and beautifully written book. A wonderful read to confront and further explore your spiritual side.
landinojones's review
emotional
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jamesadams0's review against another edition
Read at the start of lockdown - very readable
wonderveto's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
megsk22's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lawrencelankamp's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25