Siddhartha

Four characters in Siddhartha achieve enlightenment. Each uses a different path to achieve the same goal. Throughout the book, Siddhartha wonders whether one must come to enlightenment on one’s own by taking the journey through life. However, by the end of the book, Siddhartha realizes that there are many different paths one can take to Nirvana.
Gotama, or the Buddha, became enlightened by taking his own solitary journey through life. He did not use the methods or teachings of anyone but himself. This path seems lonely and difficult, but to Siddhartha, this path also seems like the most commendable. Gotama says in the book that although he found enlightenment on his own, he believes he can use what he learned to teach others the path to enlightenment. This would suggest that once he was enlightened, Gotama became selfless enough to devote his life to teaching others.
Vasudeva had a similar selflessness about him. Vasudeva spent his life ferrying people across the river he lived next to. Though it seems monotonous and sheltered, spending time near the river and learning the natural way of things is actually what helped Vasudeva achieve enlightenment. Every time a person crosses the river, it seems to symbolize a change in the direction of their lives, which would suggest that the river is the natural way of life. By listening to the river, and trying to understand the natural way of things, Vasudeva became at peace with his surroundings and also became selfless by continually helping people move through their own journey of life.
Govinda, Siddhartha’s good friend, seemed hesitant about striking out on his own journey. Govinda wanted someone to teach him what he needed to know. Govinda listened to Gotama and followed his teachings. Though he uses the knowledge that others give him, Govinda seems to be the character that is the most genuine and caring. Though Siddhartha leaves him, each time they meet again Govinda is eternally compassionate to his old friend. Maybe Govinda really does need the teachings of others to achieve enlightenment. Or maybe Govinda’s kind heart would have led him to his own path in the end. Govinda’s story helps to solidify the fact that there is not just one path to enlightenment.
Siddhartha chose the path of heaviest resistance. Not only did he travel his path mostly alone, but Siddhartha also went down so many different roads that he thought would lead him to enlightenment. He tried giving up all his worldly possessions, he tried loving a woman with all his heart, he tried learning from his own intellect, but in the end Siddhartha’s path to enlightenment was to understand, accept, and release his own pain. Siddhartha had to understand the fruitlessness of his journey, and the pain of losing the woman he loved and the son he cared for. Siddhartha had to understand that pain was inevitable, and that accepting that fact brings you closer to understanding the natural way of the world and thus, being at peace.
Though no character takes the same path to enlightenment, that is what makes the story great. Siddhartha believes that each person must journey alone. His realization at the end of the story that each man has a different path to enlightenment and the none is wrong is part of his own enlightenment. Each enlightened man in the story attains peace and compassion, and though the ends are similar, each path had to be different because each man was different.