What do you get when you cross a novel with a spiritual guide to life? Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha. The book is the life story of a man who has one lofty goal: to become enlightened. He was born the son of a Brahmin, a member of the highest social class. Yet he was unhappy with the teachings of the Brahmins, so instead of remaining one of them and becoming a priest, he became a …showed first 75 words of 651 total…

…showed last 75 words of 651 total…his face the serenity of knowledge, of one who is in harmony with the stream of events, with the stream of life, full of sympathy and compassion, surrendering himself to the stream, belonging to the unity of all things.” He realized that enlightenment was simply understanding that everything and everyone is perfect, and accepting that fact. As an old Zen master once said, “Before enlightenment, chopping wood, carrying water. After enlightenment, chopping wood, carrying water.”