Vocab 1
Samsara
the cycle of perpetual (constant and repetitive) existences from birth to death to rebirth in eternal (everlasting) repetition.
Fervor
intense and passionate feeling
How did the chapter end?
Kamala finds out Siddhartha has left and freed her rare songbird from its cage. Kamala has also found out she is pregnant with Siddhartha’s child.
Who has become completely compelled and enchanted in the materialistic, and worldly aspects of life, and slowly starts to become what they dreaded once before?
Siddhartha
What does Siddhartha’s current appearance look like? How old is he?
He aged quite a bit, now having gray streaks in his black hair. Siddhartha is currently in his forties.
Exalt
think or speak very highly of someone or something
Tepid
lukewarm
What bad habit did Siddhartha take after from the Child-People?
Gambling/throwing dice.
Govinda
Siddhartha's old friend who has sought refuge and enlightenment under Gotama Buddha.
When Siddhartha parted ways with the child-people without any warning, or hint of where he was going, who spent the most time looking for him? What did he think happened to Siddhartha?
Kamaswami. He believed he had fallen into the hands of highway-men.
Fountainhead
an original source of something
Insipid
weak
What happened in Siddhartha’s dream about Kamala?
Kamala’s caged songbird did not sing its usual morning song, which got Siddhartha’s attention. He found the bird dead in it’s cage so he took the bird and threw it away. Once he threw it away, he felt that he had just thrown away something very important to him
Gotama
"The Sublime One" or Buddha. Religious figure who helps many reach enlightenment under his doctrine.
Explain what Siddhartha’s life is like at the chapter
Siddhartha’s like now is more like the common folk, as he has taken in many of their lifestyle choices. He obtains more wealth, and wears nicer clothes, and owns nicer things. Siddhartha spends his time in his nice house with servants and dancing girls, he plays dice to obtain, or in some cases lose money, and he spends time working with kamaswami, his business partner.
Couvetousness
yearning to possess something, usually something belonging to another
Squander
waste in a foolish manner
Why did Siddhartha envy the other child-people?
Because they had something he did not. They had an importance to attach to their life, passion, joys, and fears.
Kamala
Siddhartha’s short-term lover who understands Siddhartha more than he understands himself. She is a courtesan, and is loved by many.
What does the kamala freeing her caged bird symbolize?
It symbolizes Siddhartha finally freeing himself from the life of the Child-People, and Kamala not stopping him. Kamala knew he was still a Samana at heart, and would wander off soon and start a new journey.
Declivity
a downward slope
Lofty
of a noble or elevated nature
Why is Siddhartha’s life comparable to a potter’s wheel?
A potter’s wheel once in motion, slowly slackens, and comes to rest, thus in Sidhartha’s wheel of asceticism, thought, and discernment is slowly coming to a stop too. His past life and ways are slowly becoming scarcer as he takes on the behaviors of the Child-People.
Kamaswami
A very wealthy merchant who takes Siddhartha in as his assistant in business.
Samsara has 3 roots. What are they?
Hatred, desire, and delusion.