Siddhartha Reading Blog Part 3

What purpose does the bed that Kamala and Vasudeva's wife died have?
What differences are there between Kamala and Siddhartha? How do these differences reconcile or repel?
What is the purpose of the golden bird, and why did it seem interested in bringing Siddhartha back on track?
What role does Govina play in Siddhartha's journey to nirvana? Is he a positive, negative or neutral influence?
What will the secret knowledge which Siddhartha will learn at the river do to Siddhartha?
What does Siddhartha mean when he says that samsara is a game which "can only be played once, twice, or at most ten times"?
What is the role of suicide in Buddhism, and how would Siddhartha's suicidal thoughts be reflected on his doctrine? Would he still stand by these thoughts later on?
What does it really mean when Govinda doesn't cry for Siddhartha?
 How has Siddhartha's self dissapeared and is it even true?
 

Siddhartha Reading Blog Section 2

I connected the passage in which Siddhartha says "I can think, I can wait, I can fast" to the book The Savage Detectives. The reason is because his quest for knowledge reminds me of the way in which the poets starved and wrote and promulgated revolution. Their quests are quite similar, because Juan García Madero, who also lived a privileged life, left it to walk with the proletarian poets in Mexico in the 70s. 

I also connect the relationship with Kamaswami and Siddhartha with the generic kid-hating adult which has to take care of a kid but in the end the adult learns more from the kid than the kid with the adult, for example Martian Child. This movie model isn't exactly my favorite, and I admit to critique it, however I can still appreciate it in terms of trying to show the spirit of Siddhartha in terms of the people which surround him.

Reading Blog Section One

  Here are some of the questions I asked myself while reading:


          • How did the relationship between Govinda and Siddhartha emerge? Are they more than friends? How will they overcome the obstacles within the story together? Will they continue together?

          • Why does Siddhartha decide to go beyond his usual practices and search for the enlightenment in such a radical way? Is there a specific reason for this?

• Why is Govinda so attached to Siddhartha? Is he in love with him beyond a platonic relationship?
• Why was Gautama Buddha not enough for Siddhartha's thirst for knowledge?
• Why wasn't he satisfied with the Samanas?
• Does Siddhartha have special powers, and if so, how did he use them with the Samanas?
• Are Siddhartha's feelings towards Govina reciprocal? If not, how will Govinda react to this?
• Where does Siddhartha's quest for knowledge come from?  Why is he so persistent on being enlightened?