One Siddhartha, Four Versions

The first three chapters of the novel describe Siddhartha’s experiences in India, the land so full of spirituality, and are followed by the interlude, “Awakening,” in which Siddhartha is awakened with the idea that he is spiritually unattached and must seek a new path. One sees noticeable differences in the four versions from the very first chapter, “Der Sohn des Brahmanen” (The Son of the Brahman). It is almost as if there are different Siddharthas in various versions. The discontent in Siddhartha’s mind is initially not intense in Soman and Vaidya’s version. “सिद्धार्थ मात्र स्वतःच्या आयुष्याबद्दल फारसा समाधानी नव्हता!”1Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha: Eine indische Dichtung, trans. Kamlesh Soman and Shriniwas R. Vaidya (Pune: Goyal Prakashan, 2016), 12. Subsequent references to this translation will be given as Soman and Vaidya, page number. (Siddhartha however was not very satisfied with his life) in comparison with Raut’s version where he was never at ease in his mind; he was sad and discontented inside: “सर्वांना आनंद वाटणारा सिद्धार्थ मनोमनी दुःखी होता. … पण तो मनातून कायम अस्वस्थ असायचा”2Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha: Eine indische Dichtung, trans. Ulka Raut (Aurangabad: Saket Prakashan, 2021), 10–11. Subsequent references to this translation will be given as Raut, page number. (Where everyone thought Siddhartha was happy, he felt sadness within himself. … But he always felt uneasy [in his mind]). On the other hand, the discontent in Siddhartha’s mind (मन) in Tadphale’s version is accompanied by disinterest and unhappiness. “पण तो स्वतः मात्र अत्यंत अस्वस्थ होता. त्याचे मन कशातच लागत नसे. … त्याचे मन अशांत होते”3Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha: Eine indische Dichtung, trans. Avinash Tadphale (Trivandrum: Hermann Hesse Society of India, 2017), 4. Subsequent references to this translation will be given as Tadphale, page number. (But he was very uneasy. He could not show interest in anything at all). In contrast, Sardeshmukh’s version is more poetic in its description: “सिद्धार्थ स्वतः सुखाला पारखा होता”4Tadphale, 15. (Siddhartha was devoid of happiness). In fact, in this version the feeling of not being sated and the dissatisfaction in his mind are compared with seeds: “अतृप्तीची व असमाधानाची बीजं आपल्यात मूळ धरून राहिली आहेत याची सिद्धार्थाला जाणीव होऊ लागली”5Tadphale, 15. (The seeds of dissatisfaction and discontent have unwantedly taken roots in him. Siddhartha had started realizing this).

Similarly, the concept of Atman, which is present in Raut’s and Tadphale’s versions, has been replaced by Atma in Soman and Vaidya’s text.6Atman is a term from the Vedanta school of thought. Atma is a general Sanskrit term that is used in a broader sense. Atman is the original Sanskrit word in vocative form meaning “innermost essence”; declined in the nominative singular as Atma.7Karel Werner, Yoga and Indian Philosophy (New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1998), 57–58. The reader can connect Atma, which is used more often in Marathi, to Mahatma, which means “great soul” in Soman and Vaidya’s text, referring to the one who is enlightened with knowledge.8Soman and Vaidya, 15. Tadphale’s text also uses the word Mahatma to refer to what Siddhartha’s parents want him to become, and then later to Gautama Buddha.9Tadphale, 22. Interestingly, Sardeshmukh’s text does not talk about Atman at all, but rather interprets the idea as parmatma, which signifies the “supreme Self.”10Gottfried De Purucker, An Occult Glossary: A Compendium of Oriental and Theosophical Terms (Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2003), 130. Atma would be the individual soul, Mahatma would refer to the enlightened soul, and Parmatma would be the universal divine. The words Atma, Mahatma, and Parmatma have different meanings and are in an increasing gradation spiritually.

Minor departures from the original may be translators’ interpretations, or may be due to variations in source texts, as it could not be established whether all the translations are from the same English original. For example, in Raut’s version, the bodies of the Samanas, referred to as Sanyasis, who have relinquished every belonging, are naked “वस्त्रहीन देह,” and their faces look angry “रागीट.”11Raut, 13. In Sardeshmukh’s version they are called Shramana, or nomadic recluses “भटके बैरागी,”12Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha: Eine indische Dichtung, trans. Tryambak V. Sardeshmukh (Pune: Madhushree Publication, 2020), 18. Subsequent references to this translation will be given as Sardeshmukh, page number. they are likewise naked, slim, resembling emaciated wolves and have wounds on their shoulders.13Sardeshmukh, 18. In Soman and Vaidya’s version they are called Sadhus and Sadhaka, also described as pilgrims “तीर्थयात्री,” clothed with the bare minimum “लज्जारक्षणापुरतीच वस्त्रे.”14Soman and Vaidya, 16. Tadphale’s version initially explains in a footnote that Saman is not a distortion of the Marathi word “shraman” but a word from the Pali language.15Pali is an ancient sacred language in which the Buddhist canon is written. It existed from at least since the fourth century BCE until it died out in the fourteenth century. “Pali,” University of Oxford, accessed April 22, 2023, https://www.orinst.ox.ac.uk/pali#:~:text=P%C4%81li%20is%20the%20language%20of,P%C4%81li%20literature%20is%20vast. The text explains that they are Sadhus of the Saman community on pilgrimage. The Samanas are adorned with loincloths (लंगोट) in this version.16Tadphale, 7.

We can note that ascetics from different communities in India have varied practices and beliefs regarding attire or its relinquishment. Although the variations described above may seem like minor details at the outset, the path of spirituality to be followed, the daily rituals, and even the amount and type of food consumed and how this food is procured, would all vary.

Hesse narrates the conversation of Siddhartha seeking permission from his father to embark on his journey, wherein the father makes Siddhartha aware of how challenging life could be on his chosen path of spirituality, but Siddhartha is steadfast about his beliefs and wants to go. Hence, in the German original he answers in the affirmative. Siddhartha’s decision to go and stay with the Samanas is crucial to the plot. In Raut’s version, Siddhartha tells his father that he has taken the decision to become a Sanyasi and is sure his father will not oppose him.17Raut, 14. Siddhartha is aware of his destiny; the act of seeking permission is a mere formality. This is in contrast to Soman and Vaidya’s Siddhartha, who really does want his father’s permission.18Soman and Vaidya, 18. The Siddhartha here is immature and the father is overbearing. The father anticipates dangers and continues to dissuade Siddhartha from leaving home. In Tadphale’s version, Siddhartha anticipates that his father will try to stop him.19Tadphale, 8. In Sardeshmukh’s version, Siddhartha has come to inform his father of his decision and to find out whether he would object to it.20Sardeshmukh, 18. He knows what he wants to do and is persistent in seeking his father’s approval. His determination humbles his father and finally permission is granted and there is a realization that, mentally, Siddhartha has long since left the house. Thus, four different Siddharthas are created by the respective translators of the novel through differences in their respective Siddharthas’ states of mind, choices of words, actions and perspectives.

The third-person narrators created by the translators in the respective versions also take the reader’s linguistic capability into consideration while narrating, for example, the Shlokas (verses of praise with a specific meter) from the Chandogya-Upanishad are rendered in Sanskrit in Sardeshmukh’s version without much explanation, assuming the reader would be well-versed in Sanskrit and aware of these Shlokas. This is the translation that was published long before the other three versions. Tadphale’s narrator, on the other hand, explains the meaning of Shlokas in Marathi, without actually quoting the Shlokas, thus in a nuanced manner acknowledging that they are in a different language, yet anticipating that readers would have little knowledge of Sanskrit, whereas Raut’s and Soman and Vaidya’s narrators give the Shlokas directly in Marathi, ignoring, thereby, that the Shlokas are not originally in Marathi. In the German text, the Shlokas are in German.21Sardeshmukh, 20. Where Hesse writes of going to the river to perform sandhya, here he refers to sandhya, the practice of morning and evening adorations performed after the holy bath. On closer scrutiny of the book, the customer turned reader would find several words in the text that do exist in Marathi but are used very rarely in today’s parlance, for example, “मनीषा” (wish), “अवनत दृष्टी” (reclinate gaze), “तापसी तरुण” (a young ascetic), “उदय पावला” (arise), and “अनिकेत” (someone without an abode).22Sardeshmukh, 29, 30, 36, 39, and 42. These words are not of colloquial usage, rather they are obscure and decorative.

Some other articles and concepts used in Sardeshmukh’s version are archaic, giving the text a sense of belonging to antiquity. These include pieces of clothing like “धोतर,”23Sardeshmukh, 51. a type of sarong worn by men resembling trousers,24“धोतर,” Shabdakosh English Marathi Dictionary, accessed March 21, 2023, https://www.shabdkosh.com/dictionary/marathi-english/%E0%A4%A7%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B0/%E0%A4%A7%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B0-meaning-in-english. and “उपरणं,”25Sardeshmukh, 51. a long cloth covering the upper part of the body,26“उपरणं,” Shabdakosh English Marathi Dictionary, accessed March 21, 2023, https://www.shabdkosh.com/search-dictionary. jewelry such as “कांकणं,”27Sardeshmukh, 50. a type of bangles, modes of travel like such as “मेणा,”28Sardeshmukh, 46–48. a palanquin,29“मेणा,” Shabdakosh English Marathi Dictionary, accessed March 21, 2023, https://www.shabdkosh.com/search-dictionary. and also the word “द्रव्य”30Sardeshmukh, 51. for money. Another striking difference from the other three versions is the usage of the formal “you,” “तुम्ही,” by Kamala while addressing Siddhartha and the informal “you,” “तू,” by Siddhartha while addressing Kamala throughout the chapter. This may have been the custom in the 1950s when the text was translated. Likewise, in the German version both use the informal du right from their first interaction.

The characters in Soman and Vaidya’s version are very articulate. Siddhartha seeks permission from his father, wherein the father makes Siddhartha aware of how things could be, and wonders what he should do and how he can convince this “crazy young man.” However, Siddhartha is steadfast about his beliefs and wants to go on his journey (“या वेड्या मुलाला मी कसे समजावू”).31Soman and Vaidya, 19. Even when the father accepts the decision and decides to grant permission to Siddhartha, he still keeps talking: “It’s okay, it’s your decision as you deem fit. Who am I to grant you permission? The [umbilical] connection [with your parents] was cut off when you were born. But we had nurtured it as well as we could. You are setting off on a journey by breaking this bond, dear son, this journey of finding the self is very arduous.”32Soman and Vaidya, 20. Our translation. And so on. This monologue by the father extends to almost a page. There are several additions to the text by the translators which are not present in the original German version and any of the other three Marathi translations. The long monologue gives the impression of an immature Siddhartha with a father who already knows what will unfold. He tells him, at the outset, that what he is looking for is already within him. And that he would be wiser and more mature through internal introspection.33Soman and Vaidya, 21.

Arguably, the translator is being unfair to Siddhartha as all this is an addition on their part. The father further instructs the son how and what he should learn and asks him to seek the blessings (आशीर्वाद)34Soman and Vaidya, 21. of his mother, and he informs Siddhartha that he has already blessed him. Tears well up in Siddhartha’s eyes on listening to all that is said, and the father also holds back tears. The adieu bid by the mother is likewise teary-eyed, giving the whole read a rather melodramatic tone. In a manner similar to telling a joke—in which the punchline may be ruined if one divulges some information at the wrong moment—in a literary translation one must not prematurely give away what needs to unravel in the course of the narration. Not only does Soman and Vaidya’s version expose too much at the wrong moments through an interpretative style of narration, it also loses its serious tone by unnecessarily using dialogue for such interpretation. Evidence of this is found in the dialogue between Siddhartha and Govinda as they set out to stay with the Samanas. In Soman and Vaidya’s version, Siddhartha tries multiple times to discourage Govinda from joining him and asks him to reconsider his decision because he would also suffer by being dragged along an unachievable path. Siddhartha further tells him that this path not only makes the feet go numb, but also the mind. Feet become bloodied. One often forgets where one is going. He then reminds Govinda that this journey will be one of realization, of enlightenment, and asks him to make up his mind.35Soman and Vaidya, 24. All this stands in stark contrast to the four to six words exchanged between the two in the other three versions: Siddhartha acknowledges Govinda’s decision to accompany him by saying, “Here you are?,”36Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha: Eine indische Dichtung (Berlin: Suhrkamp, 2020), 22. Our translation. and poses it as a question, to which Govinda responds “Here I am.”37Hesse, Siddhartha, 22. Our translation.

Soman and Vaidya’s version best exemplifies our contention that Indian translations of Siddhartha perform cultural re-appropriation. At the cost of being unfaithful to the original, it makes use of the original text in a manner that is entertaining and interesting to a set of readers of Marathi literature who enjoy melodrama. This kind of melodrama continues, for example, Siddhartha realizes that he is embarking on a new stage of life and is separating from Govinda after they meet Gautama Buddha, and Govinda starts crying. Siddhartha asks him not to cry, as otherwise he would himself not be able to hold back the tears. Govinda responds that he should let his tears flow. He has always worried about Siddhartha and it is the first time he is leaving him. Siddhartha asks him not to worry and says that with such an adieu he would also not be able to hold back his tears.38Soman and Vaidya, 45–46. This version is distant from the original German text and resembles a soap opera.

Soman and Vaidya’s version also loses authenticity because the style of language is not fitting to the epoch in which the narrative takes place. One of the arguments supporting the use of contemporary language is that it is more appealing to the reader. However, it also creates conditions under which the novel is not read with the same rigor. This may lead to the reader not perceiving the philosophical aspects, not reflecting on them as much and just skimming through the plot. The character of Gautama Buddha is not convincing when he says to Siddhartha such things as, “Go ahead, I’m all ears.”39Soman and Vaidya, 50. Our translation. The interjection “अरे” (hey you/you there) used by Gautama Buddha, who is supposed to be the Enlightened One, is problematic. Readers’ expectations of a character like Gautama Buddha are shattered due to the use of such interjections. The style of language in Soman and Vaidya’s version is more colloquial and rendered in the spoken Marathi of contemporary times. There are phrases and interjections in the conversations between characters which are timeless. In the following conversation, Siddhartha and Govinda are contemplating whether or not they should go and meet Gautama Buddha:

One of the philosophical concepts from the German text worth considering here is “Entselbstung”41Hesse, Siddhartha, 18. (depersonalization). Siddhartha is living with the Samanas and practicing depersonalization under the guidance of the oldest Samana. The German original sentence reads “Ein Reiher flog überm Bambuswald—und Siddhartha nahm den Reiher in seine Seele auf, flog über Wald und Gebirg, war Reiher, fraß Fische, hungerte Reiherhunger, sprach Reihergekrächz, starb Reihertod”42Hesse, Siddhartha, 25. (A heron flew over the bamboo wood—and Siddhartha took the heron into his soul, flew over forest and mountains, became a heron, ate fishes, suffered heron hunger, used heron language, died a heron’s death).43Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha, trans. Hilda Rosner (London: Penguin, 1954), 12. It is also noteworthy to compare what has happened to the phrase “Siddhartha nahm den Reiher in seine Seele auf.”44Hesse, Siddhartha, 49. Our translation. In Raut’s version, “the egret gets accommodated in Siddhartha’s soul”;45Ulka Raut, 18. Our translation. in Soman and Vaidya’s version “Siddhartha unifies his soul with the egret’s soul”;46Soman and Vaidya, 27–28. Our translation. in Tadphale’s version, “Siddhartha entraps the egret in himself.”47Tadphale, 13. Our translation. In Sardeshmukh’s version the bird is not an egret (बगळा) as in the other three texts, rather it is kraunchpakshi (क्रौंचपक्षी), which could signify a flamingo, a swan, or a crane: “Siddhartha assimilates this crane/flamingo/swan into himself.”48Sardeshmukh, 22. Our translation. Thus, the process of experiencing the world from the perspective of the bird is different in each case. While the concept of “Entselbstung” has been skipped in Tadphale’s version, it becomes refusing oneself (“स्वतःला नाकारण्याचा … अभ्यास”)49Soman and Vaidya, 27. in Soman and Vaidya’s version, controlling the mind (“मनोनिग्रह”)50Raut, 18. in Raut’s version, and in Sardeshmukh’s version, it is detachment and control over the senses (“अनासक्ती” [and] “इंद्रियदमन”).51Sardeshmukh, 22.

As concerns internalization, in the German text, Siddhartha thinks that he too would find truth like Gautama Buddha did by searching deep within himself: “Wohl, auch ich werde ins Innerste meines Selbst zu dringen suchen.”52Hesse, Siddhartha, 49. This realization is missing in Soman and Vaidya’s version—there is only Siddhartha’s dramatic lament that Govinda’s footsteps no longer accompany him;53Soman and Vaidya, 51. in Tadphale’s version, this looking within oneself is maintained: “I too should be able to reach my inner self”;54Tadphale, 30. Our translation. whereas in Raut’s version this looking within becomes an abstract “gaining victory on oneself”;55Raut, 35. Our translation. in Sardeshmukh’s translation, one overpowers one’s ego and becomes self-collected.56Sardeshmukh, 36.

In the first four chapters of the book, Siddhartha lives a life of deprivation with the Samanas. In the second part, that is the next three chapters, he lives a life of material and sexual pleasure. In the chapter “Kamala,” Siddhartha experiences the land of the senses and of corporal pleasure. The selected instance from the narrative here focuses on the realization that Kamala and Siddhartha are not like the Kindermenschen. They are different. They notice that they share this special bond and distance from the normal ups and downs of life, and that they can never truly love each other the way other people do. The word Kindermenschen is translated differently in the four referenced Marathi versions. It is translated by Tadphale as “बालकसामान,”57Tadphale, 61. which means like a child, whereas Raut and Soman and Vaidya have translated the concept as “सर्वसामान्य”58Raut, 65. and “सामान्य माणसं,”59Sardeshmukh, 62. respectively, which means common people or lay persons. Soman and Vaidya have skipped this sentence in their version. Kindermenschen is a term Hesse uses to signify that Siddhartha and Kamala are above the other people. Other people can understand love differently and can love. Probably these people have not reached the level Siddhartha and Kamala have, where they can detach themselves from emotions and feelings and practice what Hesse calls “Liebe als eine Kunst,”60Hesse, Siddhartha, 90. love as art. This has been translated by Tadphale as “प्रेमाचा असा व्यापार,”61Tadphale, 61. which means the trade of love. Soman and Vaidya translate it similarly to Tadphale, wording it as “व्यवसायासारखं,”62Soman and Vaidya, 94. which means business of love. Raut translates it as “प्रेमाकडे एक कला,”63Raut, 65. which means love as art, and Sardeshmukh translates it as “कलावंतीण,”64Sardeshmukh, 62. where Kamala practices the art of love. Raut’s translation is closer to Hesse’s words. Sardeshmukh has made Kamala an artist instead of her practicing love as a form of art.

The final part of the book develops a synthesis of the spiritual and the sensual, which is realized in the final chapter, “Om.” The chapter illustrates the totality of Siddhartha’s acquired knowledge and experience. Here Kamala asks Siddhartha whether he has achieved peace. She senses that he has found peace and conveys that to him. She says that she will find peace, too. He tells her just before her last breath that she has found peace. In his original German, Hesse expresses Kamala’s wish of finding peace using the simple future tense: “Auch ich werde Friede finden”65Hesse, Siddhartha, 136. (I, too, will find peace).66Our translation from the German to English.

The translations by Tadphale and Raut use the verb “िमळेल,”67Tadphale, 93–94; Raut, 99. which suggests “will get it” or “will find it.” This verb does not make the protagonist active, rather a passive participant, so that when Kamala obtains peace; she is not actively seeking it. In contrast, Sardeshmukh uses the verb form “िमळवीन,”68Sardeshmukh, 90. which also means “to find,” but here the protagonist plays an active role in finding it. Although in Soman and Vaidya’s version Kamala asks Siddhartha whether he has found peace, the passage where she expresses her wish of finding peace has been omitted.69Soman and Vaidya, 138.

A significant deviation from the original plot is seen in the beginning of the third part in all four translations. To understand this, one must first look at the original German text. The third part of the book starts with the interlude, “By the River,” which serves to consolidate the experiences from the past and prepare Siddhartha for the future. The German version mentions the positive perspective of Siddhartha looking at the river and learning from it, as if the river is narrating something new to him, something that he has not known before. Siddhartha wanted to drown his old, tired, confused, and desperate self in this river, and in contrast to this, the new Siddhartha wishes to be by the river for a longer time and not leave it. This new Siddhartha is keen to learn from the river. What Hesse intends to impress upon his readers is the drowning of the old/tired self and the rebirth of the new self of Siddhartha. Siddhartha is now ready to explore more.

However, the translations suggest different meanings from that of Hesse’s original text. In Tadphale’s version, we read:

The sense of hope that is portrayed in the German version, where a new Siddhartha emerges, is missing from the translated versions. The translations portray Siddhartha’s entering the river and trying to drown himself as his attempt at suicide and the not-letting-go of his old self and his failure to accept change. The difference can also be attributed to the translations being based on English versions, where shifts in meaning may have already crept in.

In the chapter “Om,” in the German version, Siddhartha understands child-like people because he has learned what love is and knows how it feels to be tormented by love, especially love for his son.73Hesse, Siddhartha, 154. He describes all his thoughts and sorrows to his friend Vasudeva, then they meditate by the river, listening to it. They hear all the voices that together form “Om.” Vasudeva then reveals that it is time for him to go into the woods. The translators have used different means to express the joy of Om and how Siddhartha’s wounds are healed and how he has internalized Om. The “I” in Siddhartha has dissolved in the oneness.74Hesse, Siddhartha, 160.

The original German text has a musical rhythm. The beginning of the novel is a perfect example of this: “Schatten floß in seine schwarzen Augen im Mangohain, bei den Knabenspielen, beim Gesang der Mutter, bei den heiligen Opfern, bei den Lehren seines Vaters, des Gelehrten, beim Gespräch der Weisen”75Hesse, Siddhartha, 1. (Shadows passed across his eyes in the mango grove during play, while his mother sang, during his father’s teachings, when with the learned men)76Hesse, Siddhartha, trans. Rosner, 3. Hesse achieved this musicality by using longer sentences that give additional information in appositions of roughly equal lengths and by the repetition of certain words and phrases like “Schatten” (shadows) and “Heilige” (the holy one).77Hesse, Siddhartha, 1. Besides that, the use of words in the German original has an aesthetic appeal. The scene from the last chapter, “Govinda,” in which Siddhartha asks Govinda to kiss him on the forehead illustrates this. Govinda is taken aback, but he obliges. When he does so, Siddhartha’s philosophy is revealed to him in the form of visions.78Hesse, Siddhartha, 176–77. In this passage musicality is added to the text by describing in appositions. In addition, repetition is used in words and phrases like “Maske” (mask), and “Lächeln der Maske” (smile of the mask).”79Hesse, Siddhartha, 176–77. The Marathi versions reproduce the content more or less faithfully, but Hesse’s rhythm, and the text’s musicality have gone missing in some places. On the one hand, adjusting the phrases in Marathi to be of roughly the same length or matching them with the number of syllables may be an extremely complicated task as different languages do not employ the same syntactic means to express the same things. For instance, repetition could be considered a crucial literary element of the text, the essence of Hesse’s style for this text, which cannot be ignored. This aspect of the text was inaccessible to all four translators, since they used English translations as the source texts for their translations, thus making them re-translations of translation. But as we have argued, just as one would not accept short sentences in a translation of a text by Thomas Mann, or simple sentence constructions for Franz Kafka, the rhythm of Hesse’s text can be considered part of its essence and cannot be ignored during the translation process.