WadeScrapbook4


 * Wade's Scrapbook **




 * With the Samanas **

In order to gain an understanding and appreciation of the experiences of the samanas, Indian ascetics which are featured in the novel Siddhartha, we gave up something for a week. I chose refrain from Battlefield 3, an Xbox shooter game. This was initially difficult, and gave me an appreciation for my ownership of the game.
 * The Assignment **

Not that this assignment was something I dreaded, I didn't look forward to going six days without Battlefield. The first two days of self deprivation were challenging, but not to an extreme. Battlefield had been part of my routine; it came immediately after homework, and sometimes before. However, I had already experienced times when I didn't have the time to play it, such as when my family and I went out to dinner, or when homework became more than just an inconvenience and consumed my evening. The first days were monotonous and dull, and I found myself pacing around in an effort to lift the ban upon the game that I had imposed upon myself.
 * Beginning of the Week **

** Middle of the Week ** I was cranky on the third day of the assignment, as this was the longest I had gone without Battlefield for a long time. Homework, although the progress of which was left largely unhindered by my usual gaming routine, was a constant source of stress, and I began to see Battlefield as a stress reliever. I felt much like my soul "...had died, it had rotted, it had fallen into dust..." (8). I found myself just picking through the fridge out of sheer boredom. I began to wonder if this was actually accomplishing anything, like Siddhartha, when he asked, "Have we made any progress? Have we reached any goals?" (9). The fourth day wasn't nearly as bad. I revisited Minecraft as my go-to entertainment, so the stress went away almost instantly, however I was awake later into the night with homework.

During the end of the week, the days passed with less boredom and frustration. I felt happier, and more productive on top of that, despite the fact that it was easier to procrastinate with the reintroduction of video games. This whole experience has taught me more about myself, namely how I act under stress; it revealed to me that videogames provide "only a brief numbing" (9) of the underlying problem, and procrastination was just as bad with or without videogames to numb the stress of it. From this, I resolve to procrastinate less. This resolution will likely be forgotten within the week.
 * End of the Week **


 * Awakening **

Three individual quotes stuck out to me in terms of what Siddhartha's awakening looked like. These quotes expressed themselves to me more vividly than all the rest, and I feel they best describe the event in the greatest detail. First, the grove: "When Siddhartha left the grove where Buddha, the perfected one, stayed behind, and where Govinda stayed behind, he felt in this grove his past life also stayed behind and separated from him." (20). Siddhartha's departure from the grove left him feeling anew, as if he had left part of himself in the grove to stay behind. The new sensation came with a new sense of discovery and thought. Siddhartha "pondered deeply, like diving into deep water; he let himself down to the bottom of the sensation, down to the place where the causes lie." (20). Siddhartha's thinking led him to knew conclusions as to how he would find himself, and what path he should take; the answers, he found, became "entities and start to emit like rays of light what is inside of them." (20). I drew this picture based upon these most impressive phrases in the description of Siddhartha's awakening, where he is described as having left a part of himself in the grove, diving deep into the water, and finding the answers there, which create their own vibrant light. The colors are nothing abstract; Siddhartha is seen diving into a deep lake, which holds a glowing item at the bottom. Siddhartha's 'past selves' are seen at the edge of the grove, and just before he jumps into the lake.
 * The Quotes **


 * The Image **


 * Kamala **


 * Name:** Kamala


 * Location:** The Grove, in the town by the river


 * Eyes:** Brown


 * Hair:** Brown streaked with caramel


 * About Me:** I am a beautiful and rich young woman seeking love from a man. Only the most handsome and rich men will do. I live in a beautiful house with "a grove enclosed by a hedge." (28). The house is adorned with all sorts of trinkets and toys, so that any conceivable pleasure may be satisfied. I live my life in the greatest of happiness; I enjoy my work and my play. My life is comparable to that of a noble, in its pleasure and wealth.


 * Profession and Hobbies:** Love is my profession, as well as my hobby; I sell love to men from all over India, but only those who can afford my prices. "Many young men visit me, and there are Brahman's sons among them, too, but they come in fine clothes, they come in elegant shoes, they have perfumed air and money in their purses." (30) I also love my bird, who cost very much and is very close to my heart. Should harm come to him, I may become ill with grief. Many of the men who I cater to have complemented my bird, as well as my possessions, as well as me.


 * Looking For:** A very rich man; "For you need a lot of money if you wish to be Kamala's friend." (32). Only men with the greatest of wealth and the most lovely of riches can satisfy my desires. I am in love with money, and that is where my heart is. I wish for my man to be courageous, bold, and loving, and to wish to satisfy my every desire. Of course, wealth is the key to satisfying my desires; love and wealth.


 * Samsara **

1. Wake up 2. Eat an improvised breakfast 3. Get driven to school with small children 4. Learn with small children 5. Eat (a glorious*) lunch 6. Learn with small children 7. Return home with small children 8. Do homework 9. Eat a glorious dinner 10. Play videogames 11. Sleep
 * My Daily Routine **

//*Only on burrito day//

"Like a veil, like a thin mist, weariness descended upon Siddhartha, slowly, every day a little denser, every month a little more opaque, every year a little heavier." (42).
 * The Quote **


 * The Comic **

On a typical weekday, I'm awoken by either my mother or a blaring alarm clock, after which I shower and dress for school. I usually eat cereal or leftover pancakes, though sometimes scrambled eggs and sausage. Seeing as I live in Crozet, which is quite out of the way of the bus routes, I am picked up by one of my neighbors' parents, along with the rest of Crozet's Albemarle students. When I arrive at school, I usually wait at the MESA wing of the school until the bell rings for first period, at which point I head directly there. Second period is often interrupted by lunch, and less often left uninterrupted by the longer lunches. Thursday, being burrito day, is my favorite of all the days of the week. Third and fourth period often pass fairly quickly; on red days, percussion ensemble is the highlight of the day. When school ends, I am carpooled home with my fellow Crozetians. Most commonly there is work to be done, and I usually get it done after dinner. Free time is spent watching TV or playing videogames. Near the end of the day, I go to bed, knowing full well that this wonderful cycle will be repeated in the morning.


 * By the River **

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9few40vekpw&list=PLAAC05D7C64C61568&index=1&feature=plpp_video

"I will walk alone by the black muddy river, And listen to the ripples as they moan, I will walk alone by the black muddy river, And sing me a song of my own."
 * Lyrics:**


 * Quote:** **"**Siddhartha wandered through the forest, already far from the town; he knew only this: that he could not return, that the life he had now been leading was over and done with, and that he had tasted and drained it to its surfeiting point." (46)


 * Analysis:** I usually don't like such a slow song as this, but this song has a powerful connection to rivers. It establishes a connection between rivers and independence; as the song goes, "I will walk alone by the black muddy river, and sing me a song of my own." Siddhartha began that path when he separated himself from his father and became a samana; then again, when he separated himself from the samanas and became an child-person; then again, when he separated himself from the child-people and became a ferryman. All of these times, when he reached the peak of the cycle in which he embarked on a different path, he had used the previous path to its fullest. He had set out to "listen to the ripples as they moan," and he had done just that.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEPCh3SaZo4&list=PLAAC05D7C64C61568&index=14&feature=plpp_video

"The ocean is the river's goal, a need to leave the water knows We're closer now than light years to go."
 * Lyrics:**


 * Quote:** "'Things are going downhill for me!' He said to himself, laughing the while; and, as he said this, his glance fell on the river, and he saw the river going downward, too, moving constantly downstream, but singing merrily as it went." (51)


 * Analysis:** It was at this point in the story that Siddhartha began on the last path of his journey to enlightenment. He realized that the river, despite its constant downward path, was content and even merry in its journey. "Find the River" has a very powerful line: "The ocean is the river's goal, a need to leave the water knows". The river, which led Siddhartha to enlightenment, is hinted at as knowing about the path it is taking beforehand in this song: "...a need to leave the water knows." Siddhartha discovers here that perhaps downwards was the path required to reach enlightenment; this is appropriate, because Siddhartha, following his time in //Samsara,// lost many of his accumulated abilities, such as fasting and concentrating. The river led Siddhartha away from his original plans, away from being a samana and a child-person, toward the middle ground, downhill towards enlightenment.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yQ5V5Fb18k&list=PLAAC05D7C64C61568&index=17&feature=plpp_video

"I wanna see, and I wanna hear To understand your fears, But we're north and south of the river
 * Lyrics:**

I've been doing it wrong all of my life This holy town has turned me over A young man running from what he didn't understand While the wind from the Loch just get colder, colder."


 * Quote:** "He looked down and discovered that he was totally imbued with the desire to let himself go and sink in that water. He saw a frightful void reflected in that water, corresponding to the terrible void in his soul. Yes, he had reached the end." (47)


 * Analysis:** Siddhartha, after his time in //Samsara,// had grown a void in his soul, where he lost all morality and sense of direction in his journey to self-discovery. He had no idea where he was relative to where he needed to be: the river, which led him to enlightenment. As far as Siddhartha knew, has was "north and south of the river." Other verses of "North and South of the River" have equally impactful meanings and correlations to Siddhartha's journey. The town by the river that Siddhartha was in during his time with Kamala and the child-people turned him upside down; though the city was far from holy, the song's verse maintains its impact and parallel with the story. When Siddhartha reached the river, he was running from the town; when he arrived, he nearing the end of his journey: "Yes, he had reached the end."


 * Om **

Follow the link below to the slideshow/presentation/diagram. Full screen view is recommended.

http://prezi.com/vcij94z4mghe/om/