Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha Hermann Hesse

Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read

What is the purpose of life? Is religion the answer? How, in a world beset with misery and conflict, can we help to find inner peace?

Siddhartha helped inspire the legions of counter-cultural "hippies" and other refuseniks who challenged the Western capitalist order in the 1960s and 1970s. Brought to you here in a new translation by William Aaltonen, Siddhatha is as relevant now as it was on publication.

The tale follows a wealthy son of a Brahmin, Siddhatha, as he explores the extremes of human existence: first through religion, then via harsh self-denial, then by plunging headlong into the hedonism of sensual love, wealth, gambling, and power. At the very last, he finds a way to temper the pain of human existence, to transcend the self, and reach spiritual resolution.

Herman Hesse's profound and absorbing novella will help you find serenity and spiritual meaning in a difficult world.