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06 - Siddhartha - Hermann Hesse · Adventure Books Collection

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Chapter six, with the childlike people, said Arthur. Went to Kamaswami,
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the merchant. He was directed into a rich house. Servants led him between
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precious carpets into a chamber where he awaited the master of the house. Kamiswami
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entered, a swiftly, smoothly moving man with very gray hair, with very
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intelligent, cautious eyes, with a greedy mouth. Politely, the host and
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the guest greeted one another. I have been told, the merchant began,
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that you were a Brahmin, a learned man, but that you seek to
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be in the service of a merchant. Might you have become destitute Brahman,
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so that you seek to serve No, said sad Arthur. I have not
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become destitute, and have never been destitute. You should know that I am
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coming from the Somanas, with whom I have lived for a long time.
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If you're coming from the Somanas, how could you be anything but destitute.
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Aren't the Somanas entirely without possessions? I am without possessions, said said Arthur.
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If this is what you mean, surely I am without possessions. But
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I am so voluntarily, and therefore I am not destitute, but what are
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you planning to live of being without possessions? I haven't thought of this yet,
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sir. For more than three years I have been without possessions and have
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never thought of what I should live. So you've lived of the possessions of
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others. Presumably this is how it is. After all, a merchant also
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lives of what other people own. Well said, But he wouldn't take anything
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from another the person for nothing. He would give his merchandise in return.
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So it seems to be indeed, everyone takes, everyone gives. Such is
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life. But if you don't mind me asking, being without possessions, what
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would you like to give? Everyone gives what he has. A warrior gives
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strength, the merchant gives merchandise, the teacher teachings, the farmer rice,
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the fisher fish. Yes, indeed, and what is it now that you've
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got to give? What is it that you've learned? What you're able to
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do? I can think, I can wait, I can fast. That's
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everything. I believe that's everything. And what's the use of that? For
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example? The fasting? What is it good for? It is very good,
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sir. When a person has nothing to eat, fasting is the smartest
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thing he could do when, for example, said Arthur hadn't learned to fast,
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he would have to accept any kind of service before this day is up,
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whether it may be with you or wherever, because hunger would force him
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to do so. But like this, said Arthur, can wait calmly.
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He knows no impatience, He knows no emergency for a long time. He
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can allow hunger to besiege him and can laugh about it. This, sir,
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is what fasting is good for. You're right, Samana, wait for
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a moment. Kameswami left the room and returned with a scroll, which he
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handed to his guest while asking can you read this? Sad Arthur looked at
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the scroll on which a sails can tract had been written down, and began
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to read out its contents. Excellent, said Kamaswami, and would you write
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something for me on this piece of paper. He handed him a piece of
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paper and a pen, and Saddartha wrote and returned the paper. Kamaswami read,
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writing is good. Thinking is better, Being smart is good, Being
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patient is better. It is excellent how you're able to write. The merchant
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praised him. Many a thing we will still have to discuss with one another
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for to day, I'm asking you to be my guest and to live in
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this house. Sadd Arthur thanked and accepted, and lived in the dealer's house.
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From now on. Clothes were brought to him and shoes, and every
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day a servant prepared a bath for him. Twice a day a plentiful meal
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was served, but Saddartha only ate once a day, and ate neither meat,
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nor did he drink wine. Kamaswami told him about his trade, showed
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him the merchandise and storage rooms, showed him calculations. Saddartha got to know
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many new things. He heard a lot and spoke little, and, thinking
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of Kamala's words, he was never subservient to the merchant, forced him to
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treat him as an equal, yes, even more than an equal. Kamaswami
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conducted his business with care and often with passion, but Saddarthur looked upon all
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this as if it were a game, the rules of which he tried hard
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to learn precisely, but the contents of which did not touch his heart.
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He was not in Kamaswami's house for long, when he already took part in
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his landlord's business, but daily at the hour appointed by her he visited beautiful
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Kamala wearing pretty clothes, fine shoes, and soon he brought her gifts as
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well. Much he learned from her red a smart mouth. Much he learned
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from her tender supple hand, him who was regarding love still a boy,
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and had a tendency to plunge blindly and insatiably into lust, like into a
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bottomless pit. Him. She taught thoroughly, starting from the basics, about
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that school of thought which teaches that pleasure cannot be taken without giving pleasure,
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and that every gesture, every caress, every touch, every look, every
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spot of the body, however small it was, had its secret which would
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bring happiness to those who knew about it and unleash it. She taught him
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that lovers must not part from one another after celebrating love without wine, admiring
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the other, without being just as defeated as they have been victorious, so
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that with none of them should start feeling fed up or bored, or get
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that evil feeling of having abused or having been abused. Wonderful hours he spent
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with the beautiful and smart artist became her student, her lover, her friend.
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Here with Kamala was the worth and purpose of his present life. Knit
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with the business of Kamaswami, the merchant passed to duties of writing important letters
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and contracts on to him, and got into the habit of discussing all important
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affairs with him. He soon saw that Siddartha knew little about rice and wool
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shipping and trade, but that he acted in a fortunate manner, and that
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Siddartha surpassed him the merchant in calmness and equanimity, and in the art of
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listening and deeply understanding previously unknown people. This Brahman, he said to a
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friend, is no proper merchant, and will never be one. There is
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never any passion in his soul when he conducts our business. But he has
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that mysterious quality of those people to whom success comes all by itself. Whether
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this may be a good star of his birth, magic, or something he
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has learned amongst some manas he always seems to be merely playing with our business
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affairs. They never fully become a part of him, They never rule over
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him. He is never afraid of failure, He is never upset by a
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loss. The friend advised the merchant give him from the business he conducts for
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you, a third of the profits, but let him also be liable for
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the same amount of the losses. When there is loss, then he'll become
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more zealous. Kamaswami followed the advice, but Saddartha cared little about this.
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When he made a profit, he accepted it with equanimity. When he made
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losses, he laughed and said, well, look at this, So this
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one turned out badly. It seemed, indeed, as if he did not
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care about the business. At one time, he traveled to a village to
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buy a large harvest of rice there, but when he got there, the
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rice had already been sold to another merchant. Nevertheless, Siddartha stayed for several
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days in that village, treated the farmers for a drink, gave copper coins
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to their children, joined in the celebration of a wedding, and returned extremely
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satisfied from his trip. Kamaswami held against him that he had not turned back
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right away, that he had wasted time and money. Saddartha answered, stop
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scolding, dear friend. Nothing was ever achieved by scolding. If a loss
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has occurred, let me bear that loss. I am very satisfied with this
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trip. I have gotten to know many kinds of people. A Brahmin has
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become my friend. Children have sat on my knees, Farmers have shown me
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their fields. Nobody knew that I was a merchant. That's all very nice,
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exclaimed Kamaswami indignantly. But in fact you are a merchant, after all,
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one ought to think. Ah, might you have only traveled for your
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amusement? Surely, said Arthur laughed. Surely I have traveled for my amusement.
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For what else? I have gotten to known people and places. I
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have received kindness and trust. I have found friendship. Look, my dear,
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if I had been Comeswami, I would have traveled back, been annoyed
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and in a hurry as soon as I had seen that my purchase had been
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rendered impossible, and time and money would indeed have been lost. But like
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this, I've had a few good days. I've learned, had joy.
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I've neither harmed myself nor others by annoyance and hastiness. And if I'll ever
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return there again, perhaps to buy an upcoming harvest, or for whatever purpose
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it might be, friendly people will receive me in a friendly and happy manner,
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and I will praise myself for not showing any hurry and displeasure at that
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time, So leave it as it is, my friend, and don't harm
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yourself by scolding. If the day will come when you will see this sir
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Darthur is harming me, then speak a word and Saddarthur will go on his
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own path. But until then let's be satisfied with one another. Futile were
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also the merchant's attempts to convince Saddartha that he should eat his bread. Saddartha
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ate his own bread, or rather they both ate other people's bread, all
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people's bread. Saddartha never listened to Kamaswami's wiries, and Kamaswami had many wiries,
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whether there was a business deal going on which was in danger of failing,
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or whether a shipment of merchandise seemed to have been lost or a debtor
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seemed to be unable to pay. Kamaswami could never convince his partner that it
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would be useful to utter a few words of wiry or anger, to have
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wrinkles on the forehead to sleep badly. When one day Kamaswami held against him
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that he had learned everything he knew from him, he replied, would you
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please not kidney with such jokes. What I've learned from you is how much
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a basket of fish costs and how much interests can be charged on loaned money.
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These are your areas of expertise. I haven't learned to think from you,
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My dear Kamswami, you ought to be the one seeking to learn from
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me. Indeed, his soul was not with the trade. The business was
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good enough to provide him with the money for Kamala, and it earned him
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much more than he needed. Besides from this, Sir Arthur's interest and curiosity
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was only concerned with the people whose businesses, crafts, worries, pleasures,
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and acts of foolishness used to be as alien and distant to him as the
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moon. However, easily he succeeded in talking to all of them, in
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living with all of them, in learning from all of them. He was
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still aware that there was something which separated him from them, and this separating
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factor was him being a Samana. He saw mankind going through life in a
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childlike or animal like manner, which he loved and also despised. At the
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same time, he saw them toiling, saw them suffering and becoming gray for
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the sake of things which seemed to him entirely unworthy of this price. For
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money, for little pleasures, for being slightly honored. He saw them scolding
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and insulting each other. He saw them complaining about a pain at which a
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samana would only smile, and suffering because of deprivations which a samana would not
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feel. He was open to everything these people brought his way. Welcome was
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the merchant who offered him linen for sale. Welcome was the debtor who sought
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another loan. Welcome was the beggar who told him for one hour the story
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of his poverty, and who was not half as poor as any given Somana.
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He did not treat the rich foreign merchant any different than the servant who
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shaved him, and the street vendor whom he let cheat him out of some
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small change when buying bananas. When Kamaswami came to him to complain about his
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worries or to reproach him concerning his business, he listened curiously and happily was
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puzzled by him, tried to understand him, consented that he was a little
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bit right, only as much as he considered indispensable, and turned away from
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him towards the next person who would ask for him, And there were many
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who came to him, many to do business with him, many to cheat
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him, many to draw some secret out of him, many to appeal to
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his sympathy, many to get his advice. He gave advice, he pitied,
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he made gifts, He let them cheat him a bit, And this
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entire game, and the passion with which all people played this game, occupied
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his thoughts just as much as the gods and Brahmans used to occupy them.
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At times, he felt deep in his chest a dying, quiet voice which
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admonished him quietly, lamented quietly, he hardly perceived it, And then for
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an hour he became aware of the strange life he was leading, of him,
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doing lots of things which were only a game of though being happy and
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feeling joy at times, real life still passing him by and not touching him.
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As a ballplayer plays with his balls. He played with his business,
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deals with the people around him, watched them, found amusement in them,
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with his heart, with the source of his being. He was not with
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them. The somewhere far away from him ran and ran invisibly, had nothing
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to do with his life anymore, And at several times He suddenly became scared
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on account of such thoughts, and wished that he would also be gifted with
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the ability to participate in all of this childlike naive occupations of the daytime,
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with passion and with his heart really to live, really, to act,
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really, to enjoy, and to live instead of just standing by as a
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spectator. But again and again he came back to beautiful Kamala learned the art
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of love, practiced the cult of lust, in which more than anything else,
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giving and taking becomes one. Chatted with her, learned from her,
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gave her advice, received advice. She understood him better than Govinda used to
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understand him. She was more similar to him. Once he said to her,
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you are like me. You are different from most people. You are
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Kamala, nothing else, and inside you there is a peace and refuge to
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which you can go at every hour of the day and be at home at
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yourself as I can also do. Few people have this, and yet all
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could have it. Not all people are smart, said Kamala. No said,
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said Arthur. That's not the reason why Kamaswami is just as smart as
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I and still has no refuge in himself. Others have it? Who are
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small children with respect to their mind. Most people, Kamala, are like
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a falling leaf which is blown and is turning around through the air and wavers
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and tumbles to the ground. But others a few are like stars. They
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go on a fixed course. No wind reaches them. In themselves. They
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have their law and their course. Among all the learned men and samanas of
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which I knew many, there was one of this kind, a perfected one.
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I'll never be able to forget him. It is that Gautama, the
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exalted one, who is spreading that teachings. Thousands of followers are listening to
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his teachings every day, follow his instructions every hour. But they are all
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falling leaves, not in themselves. They have teachings and a law. Kamana
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looked at him with a smile. Again, you're talking about him, she
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said. Again, you're having a samana's thoughts. Saddarthur said nothing, and
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they played the game of love, one of the thirds to your forty different
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games. Kamala knew her body was flexible like that of a jaguar, and
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like the beau of a hunter. He who had learned from her how to
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make love, was knowledgeable of many forms of lust, many secrets. For
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a long time, she played with said Arthur, enticed him, rejected him,
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forced him, embraced him, enjoyed his masterful skills until he was defeated
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and rested, exhausted by her side the Courtizan bent over him, took a
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long look at his face, at his eyes, which had grown tired.
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You are the best lover, she said thoughtfully. I ever saw You're stronger
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than others, more supple, more willing. You've learned my art well,
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said Arthur. At some time, when I'll be older, I'll want to
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bear your child. And yet, my dear, you've remained a samana.
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And yet you do not love me. You love nobody, isn't it so?
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It might very well be so, said Arthur, said tiredly, I
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am like you. You also do not love. How else could you practice
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love as a craft. Perhaps people of our kind can't love the childlike people
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can. That's their secret. End of chapter six