BroganESB

Brogan's Scrapbook This is the place where I will write about the journey I follow to self-realization. My goal is to gain wisdom and takes steps towards enlightening myself. I will be following the journey of Siddhartha, the title character of Herman Hesse's //Siddhartha//, as a model for my own journey. The steps I have taken follow.

=With The Samanas =

The Assignment
To get a feeling for how the Samanas, Indian ascetics that are found in the novel //Siddhartha//, try to reach enlightenment, we gave up something we enjoy for a week. I chose to give up xbox, because it's technically not something I **need**. Technically

=Getting Started = During the first few days of not playing xbox was honestly a real struggle. I figured that I could come up with things to do rather than playing xbox, but it ended up me becoming very bored just chilling on my couch watching television for two or three days. Before I gave up xbox it was a normal part of my daily routine, get home do homework, then play xbox. Removing the xbox made the first few days extremely boring, I never relized how much of ,my time is consumed by xbox and all I wanted to do was play xbox. In Siddhartha it says, "He traveled along the path of self-denial through pain, through voluntary suffering and conquering of pain through hunger, thrist and fatigue" (Hesse 15) I too was in self-denial that i could not go an entire week with out my xbox, I was not used to all the time I now had and I did not know what to do with this time.

=Mid-Week = = = ====As my horrific week continued, I began to think that this was unhealthy for me to go on with the experiment, my body felt weak and unsatisfied with the choice of no xbox. I was so miserable that I nearly stormed upstairs and turned on GTA V, but I realized that it would not do me any good playing more xbox. It took me five days of non-stop craving of my xbox to relize that I don't need this. " Siddhartha was going his own way; his destiny was beginning to unfold itself, and with his destiny, his own." (Hesse 9) I feel like I am starting my own destiny with the temptation of my xbox.====

=End of week = It has almost been a full week sense I have played my xbox, I no longer feel the urge to play hours of video games. I like this feeling of that my life can have more potential then pressing buttons. In Siddhartha the Buddha says, "You have listened well to the teachings. Join us then walk in bliss; put an end to suffering." (Hesse 29) I feel like just recently I have listened to other ra ther than going upstairs and it has not ended my suffering, it has eased it.
 * Analysis **: I incorporated "Trees" and a "River" and "mountains" because it is how I imagined the picture Siddhartha described in the book. I imagined him walking out of a forest or some cover coming into view of these "mountains" while seeing the "trees" and the "river". I also tried to include a bit of wind factor to dramatize the scene. The setting impacts the story because Siddhartha is inspired by what he sees on his travels. Hesse chooses to use the colours blue, green, yellow to represent the stages of Siddhartha life all at once coming together.

=KAMALA =  Name: KAMALA Location: Grove of Kamala Eyes:Brown (51) Hair: Dark Brown (51) About me: My name is Kamala, some features about me are that I am very beautiful, told to me by countless men, "Beneath heaped-up black hair he saw a bright, very sweet, very clever, face, a bright red mouth like a freshly cut fig, artful eyebrows painted in a high arch..."(51). Hobbies: I am proud and loud courtesan. Men have complimented me on my ability to "ascending the tree"(50)

Comic:  Analysis: My daily routine is that I awake from slumber around 7:10 and argue with my brother of who gets to sleep in the longest. I always end up taking the first shower, after that I dress for school and pack my lunch. Then before leaving for school i brush my teeth and tend to other needs like putting our dogs outside. After a long day at school I, once I get home, play outside either fishing, playing basketball, or playing with my brothers. Once I have tired my-self, I tend to watch TV or play video games. Then after dinner I do my homework then asend into a deep slumber, and like Sidhartha, " His sleep had strengthened him, " (pg.94) I get enough energy to do my day over again.

Songs

media type="custom" key="24685114" Lyrics: In the middle of the night I go walking in my sleep From the mountains of faith To a river so deep I must be looking for something Something sacred I lost But the river is wide And it's too hard to cross

Quote: "One can do much from a river," (pg.49) Analysis I had heard this song before when I was a little boy, I never really listened to the lyrics more just enjoyed the song, but as I read the lyrics it reminded me more and more of Siddharth's