Hello! This edition of Lit Visions is a podcast with Akhil Aryan, technology entrepreneur and content creator - where we discuss Hermann Hesse’s timeless novel, Siddhartha.
It feels particularly appropriate given that I am currently living in a small Ashram on the banks on the River Ganges:
My guest today is Akhil Aryan who is a technology entrepreneur and content creator. He has built and sold multiple businesses and is currently the co-founder and CEO of Altergo, a company whose software is helping accelerate Earth's transition to new energy. Akhil is also on a personal mission to 'enable everyone to do their life's best work'. He creates content on topics related to business, philosophy, decision making and financial freedom.
We first met in 2014 on a startup accelerator program at Google Campus in London, where we bonded over entrepreneurship, spirituality and creative expression. In a recent catchup, our conversation turned to literature, specifically Hermann Hesse's novel Siddhartha - and we ended up discussing the book on this podcast.
Siddhartha is a philosophical story that follows the journey of a young man who is on a quest for enlightenment. It's a novel that I first read as a teenager and have come back to, every few years. It has always offered me new perspective, meaning and even refuge during turbulent times.
Now what I really love about this conversation with Akhil is that it takes places in parallel dimensions. In the first, we're talking about the book. And in the second, we are applying the lens of Siddhartha to everyday life and work situations. I've always felt that fiction and reality share a powerful bridge and episodes like this one only reinforce my belief.
It was truly a pleasure speaking with Akhil. He is one of the most fascinating people I've ever met and I'm sure this won't be the last time he appears on this podcast.
Listen on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
Where you can find us:
Say hi to Akhil on IG: www.instagram.com/akhilaryanofficial
Say hi to Dhru on IG: www.instagram.com/dhrupadkarwa
Say hi to Dhru of Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa
Mentioned in this episode:
- for essays, podcasts and speculative fictionSiddhartha by Herman Hesse
Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul Sartre
Show notes:
0:00 - Introduction
02:42 - What Siddhartha means to Akhil
03:31 - Akhil as Siddhartha
07:41 - On knowing yourself
10:35 - Subject-Object relationships
12:30 - Siddhartha’s different personas
14:50 - I can think. I can wait. I can fast.
19:55 - Thoughts are maps, Actions are vehicles
22:05 - What is essence?
29:05 - Why I am? Who I am?
32:57 - Siddhartha does not procrastinate
37:15 - The power of clarity
39:08 - Difference between truth and meaning
42:45 - The mystery of Siddhartha
44:14 - Akhil's sequence of sentences
48:15 - On Govinda
57:03 - Hermann Hesse’s depression
01:02:46 - Why should someone read Siddhartha
Book Discussion: Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse