1. Feraco Search for Human Potential 20 October 2011
Better Wise Up…
Feraco
Search for Human Potential
20 October 2011

2. Characters Siddhartha Govinda Gotama Vasudeva
The main character in the story
What’s his name? How does he grow? Where does he go? Who does he meet?
Govinda
Siddhartha’s childhood companion
The shadow of greater men
What goes around…
Gotama
An individual who has achieved nirvana
Starts as a prince, escapes the shelter, sees suffering, hits the ascetic/excess/bodhisattva phases, and reaches nirvana
Vasudeva
The ferryman who plays a bigger role near the end
Another bodhisattva
All walks of life…

3. Characters Kamaswami Kamala The Brahmin Siddhartha’s Son
A merchant who teaches Siddhartha the principles of business
Uses intellect and desire as both weapon and fuel
Trapped by his fears
Kamala
The courtesan Siddhartha meets after leaving the Samanas
Has the power to grow
Nobler than her first impression indicates
The Brahmin
Siddhartha’s father
Never defied…well, just once
Siddhartha’s Son
The boy Siddhartha conceives with Kamala and attempts to raise
Carries a piece of his father
Spin the cycle

4. Concepts The Three Universal Truths The Four Noble Truths
Anicca (everything changes), anatta (non-self, impermanence), and dukkha (suffering).
The Four Noble Truths
Suffering exists in the world
Suffering is caused by human desire
Suffering can be eliminated by eliminating desire
Eliminate desire by following the Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path
Right View: Understand the Four Noble Truths
Right Aspiration: Care about all living things
Right Speech: Speak truthfully, kindly, respectfully, and properly
Right Bodily Action: Follow the Moral Precepts
Right Livelihood: Your work shouldn’t harm anything that lives
Right Endeavor/Effort: Concentrate on meditation; control unnecessary negative thoughts
Right Mindfulness: Give full attention to whatever you are doing as you are doing it, and give your best effort at all times
Right Concentration: The mental discipline necessary for reaching enlightenment.
The Samsara Cycle
Birth, Life/Suffering, Death, Rebirth
(On each cycle after this one, the steps would be Rebirth, Life, Suffering, Death)

5. Concepts Karma Maya / Satyam Om Nirvana Bodhisattva
Actions have consequences
Your life’s course is determined by the positive/negative choices you make
Your karma is cumulative, and keeps accumulating until you reach nirvana
Maya / Satyam
Maya represents our sensory interpretation of reality
Satyam represents true reality – a truth our senses aren’t capable of fully processing
Think of the veil and what lies behind it Om
Represents the unity of all things
Nirvana
The highest state of human existence
A condition consisting of ultimate wisdom and peace that one reaches after defeating desire
Bodhisattva
An individual who attains enlightenment, thereby freeing him/herself from karma and desire, but who chooses to stay in order to help others who search for peace

6. Symbols Water / The River The Oar Snakeskin
The river symbolizes the unity of all things – life, connection, etc.
As Vasudeva says in “Kamala,” the river taught him that “everything comes back”
Siddhartha’s lens, Vasudeva’s teacher
The Oar
Ability to navigate life’s challenges and changes
Snakeskin
Siddhartha thinks of one in “Awakening,” recalling his own recent “shedding” of the Samana “shell”
Birds (especially the songbird)
The songbird represents Siddhartha’s soul – more specifically, the best part of it, the qualities that set him apart from all the others and earned him respect and love in his hometown (his focus and drive to become something better)
Songbird dead in a cage = Heart dead in a ribcage
Golden = Special
Gold = Currency/Desire
Gold Cage = World of Desire
Birds in General = Possibility of Enlightenment/Elevation

7. Concepts Forests / Trees / Town / Hut The Gaze The Kiss
Each geographical location has its own significance
The town represents human desire and transitory, everyday concerns
The forest represents untouched nature and our own spiritual purity
The hut lies on the edge between both, close to the river (Siddhartha’s “rehab house”)
The Gaze
Judging potential
Judging equals
Judging wisdom
Bright eyes indicate knowledge; dim ones or gazes that fall before him indicate inferiority.
The Kiss
Kamala’s imperfect gift
Desire and pleasure without love
Siddhartha, Govinda, and Om

8. Themes Love Unity Generational Division Peace Suffering
Romantic (Kamala)
Familial (Brahmin/Son)
Respect (Vasudeva)
Platonic (Govinda)
Unity
Everything is united (Om)
Karma reinforces these bonds
Reality exists at a single unified point in time
Generational Division
The old cannot grow; the young remain dynamic
Peace
Free from desire and need
The bulls-eye of the Nirvana target
Suffering
Maya
Human Weakness
Siddhartha’s Damage (Kamala, Govinda, Kamaswami, the Brahmin, and the Son)

9. Themes Searching Enlightenment / Knowledge Cycles Identity
Different targets (Brahmin, Siddhartha, Govinda, Kamala, Kamaswami), no target (Gotama, Vasudeva, Son)
Enlightenment / Knowledge
Possibly our greatest aim – definitely Siddhartha’s
Possible to attain
Cycles
Siddhartha’s life moves in cycles
People move in and out of it
Cause and consequence
Samsara cycle
Paying off old debts (Kamala, Vasudeva, Govinda, Brahmin)
Identity
The “self” torments Siddhartha
Samanas kill it
Clothing vs. Qualities…Substance vs. Superficial
Many mistakes stem from a lack of self-knowledge
Enlightenment = stable, flawless persona

10. Themes Poverty / Wealth Transformation / Transience Teaching Excess
Spiritual and monetary destitution/excess
Poor as a ferryman; different kind of poverty as a Samana
Earning money kills spiritual exploration
Spiritual wealth exists in inverse proportions to monetary wealth
(Notice that Siddhartha reaches enlightenment after his son steals his money!)
Ferrymen have nothing, while the Son has everything
Transformation / Transience
Different Shells
Vasudeva’s literal “enlightenment”
The lines in Kamala’s face
Death, age, loss, youth, triumph, etc.
Teaching
Siddhartha disdains them, but there’s no nirvana without them!
Knowledge, not wisdom
Excess
See the “Samsara” chapter
Samanas suffer from excess in the other direction (deprivation)
Don’t binge and purge on anything
Kamaswami = Pursuit of excess
See the Son and the ferrymen

11. Themes Control Compromise Compassion Cruelty
Siddhartha’s the control freak
Thinking, waiting, fasting
Losing all control
Compromise
Uncompromising personalities
Slavish devotion to teachings
Compromise indicates connection
Compassion
Gotama and Vasudeva: Listen!
Siddhartha sets himself apart
Cruelty
Siddhartha was cruel…was he malicious?
The Son vs. the Father (x 2)
Dying alone

12. Themes Consequences Social Status Relationships Consequence = karma
Parental legacies
Bad choices
Social Status
Flipping the coin
Shifting with shells
Different characters value it differently
Relationships
Vasudeva
Kamala
Govinda
Kamaswami
The Brahmin
Gotama
The Son

13. Themes Independence No teachers, no doctrine Shells and departures
Setting himself apart
Independence vs. unity
Sleeping / Awakening (Rebirth)
Sleeping through shells
Defiance
Generational division
Defying natural order/universal truths
Superficiality
Maya and desire
The courtesan and the merchant
Depthless desires
Superficiality and samsara