Sublime and the quest for Self-actualization in Herman Hesse's Siddhartha

Mr Gopal Chanana, Dr Shriya Goyal

doi:10.17762/pae.v58i2.3363

Abstract

Herman Hesse’s seminal text, Siddhartha is the story about the journey of a man on his path to Self-Actualization. The story deals with the life of the protagonist, Siddhartha, who along with his friend, Govinda embarks on a journey for the search of the authentic Self. Each of them follows a distinct path, leading to vastly different experiences. Siddhartha focuses on the events that happen with the character of Siddhartha and the ways in which they influence and alter him. The book in itself takes the form of a quest and it is only in the end when Siddhartha meets Govinda that he hints at the knowledge that he has acquired. This, however, is not the entirety of his understanding but only a segment of his discovery.The objective of this paper is to underline Siddhartha’s journey of Self-Actualization and to emphasize on his reflections. The paper will try to prove how the journey of Self-actualization in the text is both an ontological and epistemological question. It also tries to describe that sublime moment of understanding which fulfils Siddhartha’s quest of Self-actualization.

Highlights

The term ‘Self-actualization’ has been the epicenter of theological discourse since the beginning of time
In order to discover his real ‘I’, he has to shut his eyes to the outside world and analyse his life as an objective observer
The text Siddhartha is replete with instances that are aimed to hint at the path that Siddhartha undertook in order to understand his ‘I’

Summary

Introduction

The term ‘Self-actualization’ has been the epicenter of theological discourse since the beginning of time. This reverse methodology of comprehending life as it has been lived, enables him to bring into question the epistemological understanding of the real Self or the ‘I’. This bafflement is put across in the text in terms of disgust with the material world, which pushes him to the brink of relinquishing it in order to take up the path as propounded by the Samanas.

Objectives

Results

Conclusion