Author : Hermann Hesse

I stopped reading self-help books few years ago. But I took this book because it was highly recommended by Naval Ravikant who is a great Thinker.

Honestly, this is a deep book. It will take its own time and will reveal itself to its reader when the time is right and when a person is ready for it. It will make you reflect on your understanding of spirituality and the way you interpret the world around you.

The story is short and simple. It’s a story of a boy called Siddhartha whose trying to find his inner self and understanding the true meaning of life as living through various parts of his life.

The whole novel revolves around desire, possessions, and lust. One can only find the true meaning of life when it goes through all these things. Instead of hating it, love it and enjoy it as a part of life.

A specific conversation that stood out for me was when Siddhartha who led the life of a destitute and a Brahman meets a merchant for work. The merchant doesn’t think Siddhartha can assist him in his business. So he asks Siddhartha what service he can offer him. Siddhartha tells him “I can think. I can wait. I can fast.” The merchant asks him, “That’s everything?” Siddhartha replies “I believe, that’s everything!” Siddhartha goes on to connect his abilities of thinking, waiting, and fasting to his ability to serve the merchant.

Siddhartha is a kind of book which will give you different meanings every time you re-read it.

Get it on amazon

Goodreads

Highlighted Quotes

1. Writing is good, thinking is better. Being smart is good, being patient is better.
2. Love can be obtained by begging, buying, receiving it as a gift, finding it in the street, but it cannot be stolen.
3. Everyone can perform magic, everyone can reach his goals, if he is, able to think, if he is able to wait, if he is able to fast.
4. Those people are rare who know how to listen.
5. “Soft” is stronger than “hard”, water is stronger than rocks, love stronger than force.
6. Wisdom cannot be passed on. Wisdom which a wise man tries to pass on to someone always sounds like foolishness.
7. Not in his speech, not in his thoughts, I see his greatness, only in his actions, in his life.

Thank you for taking the time to read my short book summary.

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