Describe the conflict that Siddhartha has with the Samanas. Is this conflict similar/different/ to the conflict he has with his father? Why is this important?

Answer 1

Siddhartha initially leaves his home – and, thus, his father – because he is dissatisfied with what the wisdom of his village can offer his psyche. His father, a Brahmin, has yet to achieve enlightenment. This is the case for many of the elders from his village. Siddhartha believes that he has absorbed all his father’s knowledge but many of his questions about the nature of existence and the self are unanswered. He seeks to know more and reach enlightenment.

When he meets the Samanas, he chooses to follow their lifestyle of “asceticism,” which means depriving himself of all worldly pleasures and physical comfort in order to find enlightenment. Although Siddhartha is successful in eliminating his desires through self-denial, he remains dissatisfied; once again, even the oldest of the Samanas have not achieved enlightenment.

In both cases, Siddhartha observes that even the highest ranked Samanas and Brahmins fail to achieve enlightenment. He feels unfulfilled by their practices and believes that they are unsuccessful at attaining higher truth. Therefore, the conflict he has with the Samanas absolutely parallels the conflict he has with his father, as neither are able to satiate his longing for answers about the meaning of life and how to obtain true spiritual enlightenment.