Kelly Rogers

Miss Akers

Honors English 9

11 December 2017

Reincarnation in Siddhartha

Reincarnation, “a theory that one spirit (life or soul) passes from one material body to

another through repeated births and deaths” (Palmer), in Hinduism and Buddhism is a major

concept in achieving Nirvana. In the novel, Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse, reincarnation is a

recurring theme in Siddhartha, the main character’s life. The University of Louisiana describes

Nirvana as, “When we have achieved purity and perfection of mind and action, we have

achieved Nirvana” (The Hindu and Buddhist Concept of Reincarnation), or in other words total

enlightenment. Siddhartha goes through many stages of reincarnation in order to reach Nirvana

In Siddhartha’s first stage of reincarnation, he learns he must find himself to achieve

Nirvana. Siddhartha, living as a samana, leaves his old life and says, “I want to learn from

myself, want to be my student, want to get to know myself, the secret of Siddhartha” (36).

Siddhartha is explaining that he no longer can learn from a teacher, and cannot use Hindu or

Buddhist methods to reach Nirvana. Siddhartha must find his own path and discover his true self

in order to be happy. Siddhartha also realizes he's had an awakening: “He looked around as if he

was seeing the world for the first time” (36). This awakening is important for Siddhartha because

it shows he has left his old life behind him in order to seek his true self and happiness.

Siddhartha’s first reincarnation guides him to Nirvana because he realizes he cannot be

enlightened without truly knowing himself

 Siddhartha goes through a life of struggling that guides him to enlightenment. While in a

city, Siddhartha meets a young prostitute, Kamala, and receives a job as a merchant. Siddhartha,

after many months in the city, begins to feel change in himself: “Siddhartha’s new life...had

grown old, lost color and splendour as the years passes by, was gathering wrinkles and stains,

hidden at the bottom, already showing ugliness it's here and there, disappointment and disgust

were waiting” (72). By filling himself with money, greed and selfishness, Siddhartha makes his

new life dull and empty. This causes suffering for Siddhartha, and distracts him from achieving

Nirvana. Siddhartha reflects on his struggling times: “I had to spend many years losing my spirit,

to unlearn think again, to forget oneness” (86). Siddhartha realizes in his suffering who he

doesn’t want to be so he changes to become the person he longs to be. In his second life,

although he suffers, Siddhartha learns from his hardships to receive Nirvana

In Siddhartha’s third reincarnation stage, he has to learn the ways of the river to find

Nirvana. Siddhartha listens to the river: “He was taught by the river. Incessantly, he learned from

it. Most of all, he learned from it to listen, to pay close attention with a quiet heart, with a

waiting, opened soul, without passion, without a wish, without judgement, without an option”

(96). The river has become Siddhartha’s teacher and he learns it holds the secret of life. The

secret allows Siddhartha to find his inner atman and ultimately reach Nirvana. Siddhartha shares

the secret of the river with his childhood friend Govinda by saying: “Yet none of them died, each

one only transformed, was always reborn, received evermore a new face” (135). Siddhartha

realizes that, just like the river, there is no future or past, but only the present. This is significant

because Siddhartha realizes that each stage of reincarnation makes him whom he currently is,

and he is connected to each of his lifes. In his third life, Siddhartha finds himself achieving

Nirvana because the river taught him everything is connected.

 In conclusion, Siddhartha reaches Nirvana by going through three stages of reincarnation.

The first stage taught him the importance of knowing himself by leaving his old life behind and

branching off from traditional Hindu and Buddhist ways. Siddhartha’s second life, full of greedy

distraction, leads him to suffering. This struggling reveals to him what he really wants in life.

Finally, in Siddhartha’s third stage, he discovers the secret of life through the river; all life, past,

present or future, is connected and in unison. The river is one and so is Siddhartha.

Works Cited

Hesse, Hermann. Siddhartha. Project Gutenberg. 2004,

http://philosophy.lander.edu/oriental/siddhartha.pdf, Accessed 5 Dec. 2017.

“The Hindu and Buddhist Concept of Reincarnation.” University of Louisiana,

http://www.ucs.louisiana.edu/~ras2777/spirituality/reincarnation.htm. Accessed 30

Nov. 2017.

Palmer, Spencer J. “Reincarnation.” BYU. 27, May 2011,

http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Reincarnation. Accessed 5 Dec. 2017.