1.  Siddhartha was seeking spiritual fulfillment. At the time, Siddhartha was considering living the lifestyle of Samanas, which his fater was highly opposed too.  Siddhartha did not leave out of dislike for his father.  His father was a religious leader.  His father would have probably kicked him out eventually even if he did not leave.  His father as a religious leader would be ashamed that his own son was switching to another lifestyle.  Siddhartha felt conviction when he was breaking the news of his departure to his father.

2. One reason why Herman Hesse would be interested in Eastern philosophy and religion is because they offered oa way of life.  They were guidlines that many people followed in their every day life.  At the time, Hesse was very rebellious.  Hedid not believe in rules or guidelines for living.  As a writter, he probably deemed it necessary to know what he is condeming.   


4.   In religion, rivers are very symbolic.   In Siddhartha, the images of the river represent knowledge and wisdom. Normally, the river represents peace, serenity and the presence of a holy spirit.  This is true for christianity and islam.   But two which seem to be the most important and powerful are the closely related idea that time is not real and The Oneness of All Experience; and that knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom.

 When Siddhartha is sitting by the river, he is asked by Vasudeva what he has learned from the river, and Siddhartha tells him that he has learned that time is not real. He also explains to Govinda how the rock is not just a rock now and maybe something else later.  That means for that very point in time, the rock could not be two different things.  He then asked Govinda to kiss him on the forehead.  That was  a gesture which I did not really understand.  However, from these two parts of the book we can see that Siddhartha turned to the river for enlightenment and to increase his knowledge.  


8.

Vasudeva, is the one that helped Siddhartha find what he was looking for.  When Siddhartha met Vasudeva after leaving his family, he felt an energy that embodied wisdom and enlightment.  Vasudeva was very knowlegable.  He was not arrogant at all about his wisdom or the knowlege he possed. He was the one that showed Siddhartha how much wisdom the river had to offer.  At one point Siddhartha was convinced that he will never be able to reach enlightment, Vasudeva was able to convince him not commit suicide.  Vasudeva always told Siddhartha to consult the river for wisdom.    In this book, I would say   Vasudev was like a gaurdian angel for Siddhartha.

10.  Siddhartha has a lot of respect for Buddha.  Buddha taught a system for attaining enlightenment. His disciples then teach others to follow this system. However Siddhartha chose to find enlightment on his own using his personal experiences.  He applies what he learns from the river and heeds to the words of Vasudeva.