More Than Meets the Eye

1. More Than Meets the Eye Feraco Search for Human Potential 13 September 2010

2. Who is Siddhartha? • Truly, not a single thing in all the world has so occupied my thoughts as this Self of mine, this riddle: that I am alive and that I am One, am different and separate from all others, that I am Siddhartha! And there is not a thing in the world about which I know less than about myself!...I’ll be my own teacher, my own pupil. I’ll study myself – learn the secret that is Siddhartha. (31)

3. What’s in a Name? • What factors go into choosing a character’s name? • Sometimes, a personal connection determines the choice – Ellie in “Up,” for example • Symbolism and thematic concerns can also play a part, with the name’s sound/definition either reflecting that character’s arc or personality or underscoring the author’s main message(s) • Take the main character in Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, a man whose personality swings wildly between extremes (to the point that he seems like two different men in the same body) • His name, Raskolnikov, is based on the Russian word for “divided” • Mean Girls actually has a wonderful example of this: everyone mispronounces Cady as “Catty,” then shrugs her off when she tries to correct them • This is appropriate for a girl with some serious identity issues (no one knows who she really is), and when she begins changing into someone who’s…well, catty…the name fits even more effectively

4. “Sidd” “artha” • We’ll start by looking at the literal meaning of “Siddhartha” • If we’re lucky, it’ll give us some indication of its symbolic importance • A quick Wikipedia check (always a wonderful and reliable source of academic knowledge) reveals the meanings of “Sidd” and “artha” in Sanskrit: • A compound of “Sidd” can mean “fulfilled” or “accomplished” • A compound of “artha” can mean “aim” or “wealth” • Smack ‘em together, and you have, um, “wealth of the fulfilled aim” • Unscramble it, and you’ll see that…

5. He Who is Victorious • In other words, those who search correctly and patiently (hence “aim”) will eventually find the object (hence “fulfilled” and “wealth”) of that search – whatever it may be • This automatically begs the question: What’s at the end of this search? • It also indicates that Siddhartha will eventually find what he’s looking for • Some more digging reveals that the traditional stated meaning of “Siddhartha” has been modified a bit from our literal mash-up • It’s now “he who has achieved his aims,” or “he who is victorious.”

6. Namesakes • If, as “Freakonomics” jokingly suggests, naming has some sort of impact on our destiny – or if we follow the Crime and Punishment approach – Siddhartha’s name seems to foreshadow a fortunate future • Is the reason for the name as simple as that? • The historical Siddhartha Gautama founded Buddhism - and the “Gotama” in the story is the Buddha himself • Yet “Siddhartha,” not “Gotama,” is the main character of Hesse’s text – they aren’t the same person

7. Rhetorical Questions • Our main character has an incomplete identifier – a first name without a last • Why bother giving your character half a name? • Heck, why bother naming your character “Siddhartha” if he’s not the Buddha? • Let’s be honest – at the end of the day, which guy is going to be leading the more impressive life? • Shouldn’t we be reading about that guy? • Why focus on the nobody?

8. Gautama/Gotama • In order to understand why “Siddhartha” and “Gotama” are separated in the book, it’s important to understand first who the Buddha was, and why he was important • Firstly, Gautama/Gotama is a human being, not a superhuman, deity, or immortal • The Buddha is not perceived as a god, particularly not in a way analogous to Christian worship of God and Christ • Rather, Gotama is simply someone who finds what he set out to look for – a greater spiritual truth

9. The Great Emptiness • The idea that an individual could find true peace over the course of a normal lifespan is incredibly inspirational to many • Represents spiritual fulfillment, which people can search for over the course of a lifetime – and never find • Just look at Mother Teresa • Jesus has a very special love for you. As for me, the silence and the emptiness is so great that I look and do not see, listen and do not hear.

10. Mother Teresa • Lord, my God, who am I that You should forsake me? The Child of your Love — and now become as the most hated one — the one — You have thrown away as unwanted — unloved. I call, I cling, I want — and there is no One to answer — no One on Whom I can cling — no, No One. — Alone ... Where is my Faith — even deep down right in there is nothing, but emptiness & darkness — My God — how painful is this unknown pain — I have no Faith — I dare not utter the words & thoughts that crowd in my heart — & make me suffer untold agony. • So many unanswered questions live within me afraid to uncover them — because of the blasphemy — If there be God — please forgive me — When I try to raise my thoughts to Heaven — there is such convicting emptiness that those very thoughts return like sharp knives & hurt my very soul. — I am told God loves me — and yet the reality of darkness & coldness & emptiness is so great that nothing touches my soul. Did I make a mistake in surrendering blindly to the Call of the Sacred Heart?

11. Gotama = Complete • “Gotama” has already achieved what Siddhartha seeks – obtained the knowledge and sense of peace that Siddhartha craves • Yet Siddhartha rejects the opportunity to learn from him • He must discover what he seeks himself in order for it to have personal meaning for him • In many ways, Siddhartha represents a fundamental contradiction • He knows everything (in the village), yet he knows nothing • His is a spirit in crisis • Siddhartha has no last name – lacks the “Gautama” that history has attached to him – because he is an unfinished product • The implication, then, is that he will someday walk Gautama’s path – but that the day is far away

12. Now That That’s Established • We’ve covered two important factors in Hesse’s choice for his main character’s name • The meaning of the word’s components • The importance of the “incompleteness” • Yet there is another reason for the name: a parallel that Hesse recognized as he wrote • In order to understand that parallel, we need to quickly cover some Buddhist fundamentals • We’ll start with the Three Universal Truths: anicca (impermanence), anatta (impersonality, non-self), and dukkha (suffering)

13. Permanence vs. Impermanence • Anicca seems fairly self-explanatory: everything changes • However, the idea of essential transience doesn’t necessitate throwing out the idea of permanence • It helps to think of the river • The river will flow more slowly in wide, flat areas, and will flow faster over rapids or downhill • It gains speed depending on the season and rainfall • In short, it exists in a state of permanent development and change, reacting to conditions outside of its control – always there, and yet always different

14. Sins of the Father • Gotama’s life also proves helpful • At birth, Siddhartha Gautama was predicted to realize one of two destinies: he would either become a great king or a spiritual leader • His father, a king himself, was determined to prevent Siddhartha from becoming a religious leader, and shielded him from human suffering • At the age of twenty-nine, Siddhartha finally went out into the world, and caught his first glimpses of decline, sickness, and death • This resulted in a profound change in his philosophy

15. …and There’s the Parallel • Siddhartha walks the same path of the Buddha – the path to realization, to awareness of a larger world • By discovering pain outside of his sheltered world – just as Gotama did – Siddhartha will grow more aware of interconnectedness, of the essential unity of existence • This is one of the book’s fundamental ideas: everything changes, everything repeats, everything is connected • Clearly, the name wasn’t simply meant to foreshadow Siddhartha’s fate; it was also meant to recall his spiritual predecessor

16. That First Founding Question • Anatta is a slightly more abstract concept • Just remember that change is constant • Because change is constant, we are therefore subjected to constant change • As a result, we must always change and react • This eliminates the need for a “core” self • Are we who we are, or what we do?

17. Look Back at the River • The river always exists, but does it always contain the same water? • You can never point to the river and say, “That, there, is the river” – because tomorrow, nothing you pointed out will remain • All that remains is the bank of the river – the shell surrounding that which changes, the body that responds to your name, etc.

18. A Mime Slaps His Face • Dukkha refers to all suffering, major or minor • Suffering is constant in life because it arises from our desire for the non-constant • We desire transient/impermanent things, and wish they could last forever • Others miss something indefinable • “If we suffer never/We won’t know if we are feeling good.” The Promise Ring, “Suffer Never”

19. The Four Noble Truths • The Noble Truths provide additional perspective on dukkha • 1) Suffering exists • 2) Suffering has a source – a cause for the effect • Caused by human desire • 3) Suffering can be eliminated if we overcome our desires • Remember the ascetics? • 4)You can eliminate desire by following the Noble Eightfold Path • …but that lesson will need to wait for another day.