the sense of importance with which they lived their lives, the depth of their pleasure and sorrows, the anxious but sweet happiness of their continual power to love. These people were always in love with themselves, with their children."(62). Siddhartha wanted to understand the pleasures of the body and of the material world like the common people do. Siddhartha uses many different ways to search for what he is seeking while on his journey. When living with the Samanas, Siddhartha wants to renounce the pleasures of the world. Instructed by the eldest of the Samanas, .
Siddhartha practiced self-denial and meditation, "And Siddhartha's soul returned, died, decayed, and turned into dust, experienced the troubled course of the life cycle"(15). Siddhartha learned to let the soul die to understand the path to enlightenment like the eldest Samanas but gave up on his journey as a Samana before he ever did find enlightenment. Siddhartha uses another method of searching when living as a young Brahmin. Siddhartha practiced daily Hindu rituals with his father. Siddhartha spends his time studying Hinduism with his friend Govinda and the Brahmins. He learns from the elder Brahmins how to offer sacrifices to the gods and practice ancient Hindu traditions, "performing the sacred ablutions, the sacred offerings"(5), "the service of meditation. He already knew how to speak the Om silently"(5), and "He already knew the feel Atman in the depths of his being"(5). Siddhartha begins his search with his father and the Brahmins but does not find what he is looking for and must move on to another path. On Siddhartha's search for his enlightenment and the meaning of life, he has many different ways of searching for what he is seeking in the end.
Govinda wants to find enlightenment through a teacher and seeks to be a faithful follower of his holy teacher. Since being friends with Siddhartha, Govinda wanted to learn how to achieve enlightenment by being loyal student.
