In search of truth
By Neeti Nigam
Attaining moksha has been the core objective of individuals of this land since time immemorial. This journey of self fulfilment formed the theme of Sanjib Ray’s Bengali play Shraman.
Set in 500 BC, the play is about a man who believes that he can discover truth by himself. Siddhartha, the protagonist is a son of a Brahmin who decides to leave his house in search of truth. On the way he meets the Buddha and accepts his teachings, but also realises that if he wants to attain moksha, he will have to do it on his own. Driven by the desire to know life in detail, Siddhartha encounters wandering ascetics, monks, and successful merchants, as well as a courtesan named Kamala and a boatman who has attained enlightenment. Each of them teaches him a valuable lesson about love, work, friendship, fatherhood and spirituality. However, his biggest teacher and facilitator in the search for truth is a boatman whose entire life revolves around the river. It is through and from him that Siddhartha realises the ultimate truth that like the river, both life and time are unending and eternal, and inhabit a space where nothing is lost and from where everything comes back.
“I chose Dr Hermann Hesse’s Siddharth for my play because I find staging a classical novel very thrilling. This German novelist came to India and did research across the country. He discovered how the Buddha got Nirvana. In the play, I have focused more on the boatman which is not so in the novel. That was the most challenging aspect of the whole story,” says Ray.
He adds, “From a political and economic point of view, it was the beginning of a great change, a new era. Siddhartha started his journey by leaving behind family, wealth and love and he finally learnt the eternal truth of life from an ordinary boatman. The most important aspect of Siddhartha’s journey is his growing awareness about every aspect of life.”
The play has some very good performances by the actors, especially Murari Mukhopadhyay who played Siddhartha’s character and Goutam Sadhukhan, the boatman.
A film Siddhartha based on the novel was released in 1972 in India. It starred Shashi Kapoor and Simi Garewal and was directed by Conrad Rooks.
