About the book
Set in ancient India in the time of the Buddha, Hermann Hesse's 1922 novel follows Siddhartha, the handsome son of a Brahmin, who leaves home in search of spiritual illumination. With his best friend Govinda he becomes a Samana, a wandering ascetic who fasts, gives up his possessions and meditates. Hesse wrote the short, lyrical work in German after traveling to India in the 1910s; it was his ninth novel. The hero's name joins two Sanskrit words and means roughly one who has found meaning. New Directions published it in the United States in 1951, and it became influential during the 1960s.
James Clear included it in his list of the 10 books with the most page-for-page wisdom. WalktheChat co-founder Thomas Graziani said it most likely had the biggest impact on him of any book.
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This book has 5 recommendations
Ola Olusoga (Co-founder/Populum)
Siddharta by Hermann Hesse gave me a different viewpoint of life, and that point is life has chapters, we grow and evolve but our “souls” are still (timeless) like the river.
Recommended by Mehdi Kajbaf (Co-Founder/Matboard and More)
Source: Mehdi Kajbaf, Co-Founder of Matboard, Discusses Favorite Books and Human Nature
Thomas Graziani (Co-founder/WalktheChat)
Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse most likely had the biggest impact of me. It is the story of a young priest who goes into the world in order to find wisdom. He becomes a beggar, a merchant, a father, a student of the Buddha. Several times, he leaves his current situation in order to keep growing and to get closer to the truth.
Julian Samarjiev (Founder/DULO)
That's the book that comes to mind, not so much for the story, but the timing of it. It's probably the only book I've read twice, but it came at a time when I was living in Japan and it created a context that leveled up my mindset spiritually. I think and hope that I carry those changes and behaviors that came with it to present day.
James Clear (Author)
On James Clear’s The 10 Books with the Most Page-For-Page Wisdom - James Clear
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Ola Olusoga, Mehdi Kajbaf, Thomas Graziani, Julian Samarjiev, James Clear
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Often recommended alongside
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari (3 shared recommenders)
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (2 shared recommenders)
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- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini (2 shared recommenders)
- Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman (2 shared recommenders)
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (2 shared recommenders)
Appears in collections
Sources
- Interview with Ola Olusoga: How Books Have Guided His Path To Self-Discovery
- Mehdi Kajbaf, Co-Founder of Matboard, Discusses Favorite Books and Human Nature
- Thomas Graziani, Co-founder of WalktheChat: `In work and love, I find reading brings similar benefits`
- Julian Samarjiev, Founder of DULO, on How Reading Turns Mindsets into Actions
- The 10 Books with the Most Page-For-Page Wisdom - James Clear