Siddhartha Socratic Seminar

1. Does participation in society enhance or inhibit individual growth? In what ways does community and social structure encourage growth? In what ways does it discourage it? Support one side.

2. How much do external rewards (from wealth, college degrees, career, lifestyle, etc) play into one’s overall fulfillment in life. Consider personal as well as cultural values.

3. Vasudeva says, “The river is everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the current, at the ocean . . . and the present only exists for it”(87). Explain the significance of this quote. How does this message relate to happiness and fulfillment?

4. How much should one consider others in pursuing her life’s meaning and goals? Are intimate relationships merely a crutch for the weak, or are they necessary for maturation and growth?

5. Is Samsara, the endless cycle of gain and loss, merely a clever spiritual term, or does it accurately define life in the western world? If it only yields suffering, anxiety, and despair (as the Existentialists suggest), why is this lifestyle propagated?

6. What is more beneficial to one’s personal growth: learning from others or learning from one’s own personal experience? Do we learn best through trial and error or through lecture and counsel? (Take into account our educational system as you reflect)

Siddhartha Socratic Seminar

1. Does participation in society enhance or inhibit individual growth? In what ways does community and social structure encourage growth? In what ways does it discourage it? Support one side.

2. How much do external rewards (from wealth, college degrees, career, lifestyle, etc) play into one’s overall fulfillment in life. Consider personal as well as cultural values.

3. Vasudeva says, “The river is everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the current, at the ocean . . . and the present only exists for it”(87). Explain the significance of this quote. How does this message relate to happiness and fulfillment?

4. How much should one consider others in pursuing her life’s meaning and goals? Are intimate relationships merely a crutch for the weak, or are they necessary for maturation and growth?

5. Is Samsara, the endless cycle of gain and loss, merely a clever spiritual term, or does it accurately define life in the western world? If it only yields suffering, anxiety, and despair (as the Existentialists suggest), why is this lifestyle propagated?

6. What is more beneficial to one’s personal growth: learning from others or learning from one’s own personal experience? Do we learn best through trial and error or through lecture and counsel? (Take into account our educational system as you reflect)