Rivers have always played an important role in the domestic and religious lives of Indians. It is their source of life and means of spiritual cleansing. It is a symbol to all philosophies that seek timelessness and perfection. For Siddhartha, it separates the polarities of his life. On one side of the river is Kamala, and on the other side is Gotama. He learns from traveling back and forth across the river and listening to it. Eventually, the traveling stops and Siddhartha becomes completely attuned to the voice of the river. Soon, the polarities dissolve into a whole that Siddhartha eagerly embraces. The river serves as both a boundary and a symbol of unity. "The many-voiced song of the river echoed softly He could no longer distinguish the different voices- the merry voice from the weeping voice, the childish voice from the manly voice. They all belonged to each other They were all interwoven and interlocked, entwined in a thousand ways And all the voices, all the goals, all the yearnings, all the sorrows all the pleasures, all the good and evil, all of them together was the world the music of life." (109-110) .
The culture is also important to Siddhartha. When the novel opens, Siddhartha is a Brahmin. Brahmins were at the top of the social caste system. They were princes and other figures of authority. Although they had access to all they desired, Siddhartha never felt fulfilled while with them. He was searching to be enlightened and could not find his desires in earthly goods. When he and Govinda join the Samanas, they give up everything to reach their ultimate goal of Nirvana. They travel around without possessions and never have a permanent shelter. When Siddhartha and Govinda encounter Gotama, the ultimate Buddha, Siddhartha still doesn't feel enlightened and decides to completely change the course of his life. He goes to the city Samsara and meets Kamala, who is a whore.
