Assignment 2- Neil McGinley

Two books held my interest this summer. Siddhartha which has held my interest since 4th grade if I’m being truthful. And Illusions the Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah. The two books, when read in close succession, came off as how to write the origins of a religious figure right, and how to do it wrong.
The Reluctant Messiah didn’t seem like it would resonate with me. I take issue first with the whole premise. We are all born into some amount of responsibility. If for some reason that responsibility is the messiah, buck up kiddo you’re in for a tough ride, regardless, I read it, but not to completion. The reluctant messiah began very interestingly, with journal pages, handwritten, scanned and put into the book. The entire first chapter is like this and honestly I still maintain the first chapter is the best part of the book. The author is a pilot of small planes, something that becomes almost ridiculously obvious as you continue, and the grease smeared journal pages, he wrote while flying about America.
The first chapter is a number of small stories, my favorite is about creatures at the bottom of the lake. From the moment they are born they hold on to the grass, to prevent the current from taking them away one day a creature just gets tired of it. This creature let’s go of the grass.  the current takes him out of the lake down the stream to another lake, also full of creatures. They see him and yell “ah the messiah” and “look he flies!” He tries desperately to explain he just let go but the current takes him off to better things. It’s good, it may suffer from what some call “fake deepness” but I liked it. Then the actual plot of the book is established. The main character, who I hypothesize is a self insert of the author. Meets a modern day Jesus born in Indiana who also flies small planes. This Jesus uses his godly powers to make wrenchs float, or something, and I stopped reading. It was way too much like Wolverine and not enough like Siddhartha.
Siddhartha is the story of the Buddha but told many years later by the German born Herman Hesse. In concept the two books are kind of similar. However while The Reluctant Messiah seemed like religious fan fiction Siddhartha seemed almost like nonfiction. I am not a Buddhist but I wouldn’t doubt the events of Siddhartha. He is a prince, Then a monk, then a vagabond, then he is enlightened. His life follows the pattern ours do. We are first given everything we want, then what we want is knowledge, then what we want is alchohol (I know my writing is dry but that was supposed to be a joke), then we reach a point where we have finally feel as if we have obtained some knowledge, some insight on our lives. The book doesn’t say there is a right way to live your life. Because there isn’t. The book doesn’t say knowledge will always get what you want. Because it won’t. The book even has a point where Siddhartha attempts suicide something that affects teenagers especially. It does not encourage suicide it just recognizes it, something many fail to do. If you were to ask a Buddhist about the Buddha’s origin story there’s a good chance they wouldn’t necessarily subscribe to Hesse’s version of events and I think this applies to the reluctant messiah as well.
My point is if you’re in the mood for a retelling of religious events/ a rebranding of religious figures read Siddhartha. It’s not really a religious text, spiritual is probably a better descriptor. Anyways Siddhartha is good.

Thank you, That is all.