| A | B |
|---|
| Siddhartha | means "he who acheived his goal" |
| Govinda | Siddhartha's "shadow" |
| Samanas | three impoverished, emaciated ascetics that practice extreme self-denial |
| Gotama Buddha | the "Illustrious one" |
| Buddha | means "to know" |
| Sakyamuni | name given to the Buddha |
| OM | sacred syllable of the Hindu yoga breathing exercise |
| Brahman | a memebr of the highest Hindu caste, originally composed of priests |
| Herman Hesse | author of the novel |
| 1877 | birth date of Hesse |
| Germany | Hesse's birthplace |
| three years | it took Hesse this long to complete the novel |
| Nirvana | a state of absolute blessedness |
| Samsara | identified with spiritual death & despair |
| alms | money or goods given to the poor in charity |
| ascetics | one who practices rigid self-denial |
| Siddhartha's father | this character said, "If you find bliss in the forest, come back and teach it to me." |
| Siddhartha | Said, "Tomorrow at daybreak I will begin the life of the Samanas. Let us not discuss it again." |
| loincloth | a strip of cloth worn around the waste |
| soul | the immaterial essence of an individual life |
| ablution | a washing or cleansing of the body for religious purposes |
| meditation | the act of reflection or comtemplation |
| insatiable | incapable of being satisfied |
| inevitable | incapable of being avoided |
| heron | a skinny white bird with long legs and bill |
| India | setting of the novel |
