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Chapter six, with the childlike people, said Arthur. Went to Kamaswami,

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the merchant. He was directed into
a rich house. Servants led him between

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precious carpets into a chamber where he
awaited the master of the house. Kamaswami

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entered, a swiftly, smoothly moving
man with very gray hair, with very

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intelligent, cautious eyes, with a
greedy mouth. Politely, the host and

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the guest greeted one another. I
have been told, the merchant began,

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that you were a Brahman, a
learned man, but that you seek to

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be in the service of a merchant. Might you have become destitute Brahman,

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so that you seek to serve No, said Sir Arthur. I have not

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become destitute, and have never been
destitute. You should know that I am

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coming from the Samanas, with whom
I have lived for a long time.

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If you're coming from the Samanas,
how could you be anything but destitute.

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Aren't the Samanas entirely without possessions?
I am without possessions, said said Arthur.

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If this is what you mean,
surely I am without possessions. But

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I am so voluntarily, and therefore
I am not destitute. But what are

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you planning to live of being without
possessions? I haven't thought of this yet,

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sir. For more than three years
I have been without possessions and have

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never thought of what I should live. So you've lived of the possessions of

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others. Presumably this is how it
is. After all, a merchant also

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lives of what other people own.
Well said, But he wouldn't take anything

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from another the person for nothing.
He would give his merchandise in return.

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So it seems to be Indeed,
everyone takes, everyone gives. Such is

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life. But if you don't mind
me asking, being without possessions, what

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would you like to give? Everyone
gives what he has. A warrior gives

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strength, the merchant gives merchandise,
the teacher teachings, the farmer rice,

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the fisher fish. Yes, indeed, and what is it now that you've

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got to give? What is it
that you've learned, what you're able to

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do? I can think, I
can wait, I can fast. That's

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everything. I believe that's everything.
And what's the use of that? For

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example? The fasting? What is
it good for? It is very good,

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sir. When a person has nothing
to eat, fasting is the smartest

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thing he could do. When,
for example, Sir Arthur hadn't learned to

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fast, he would have to accept
any kind of service before this day is

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up, whether it may be with
you or wherever, because hunger would force

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him to do so. But like
this, Sir Arthur can wait calmly.

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He knows no impatience, He knows
no emergency for a long time. He

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can allow hunger to besiege him and
can laugh about it. This, Sir,

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is what fasting is good for.
You're right, Sir Maana, wait

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for a moment. Kamaswami left the
room and returned with a scroll, which

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he handed to his guest while asking
can you read this? Sir Arthur looked

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at the scroll on which a sales
can tract had been written down, and

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began to read out its contents.
Excellent, said Kamaswami, And would you

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write something for me on this piece
of paper. He handed him a piece

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of paper and a pen, and
Sir Darthur wrote and returned the paper.

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Kamaswami read, writing is good.
Thinking is better, Being smart is good,

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Being patient is better. It is
excellent how you're able to write.

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The merchant praised him. Many a
thing we will still have to discuss with

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one another. For today, I'm
asking you to be my guest and to

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live in this house. Sir Arthur
thanked and accepted and lived in the dealer's

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house. From now on. Clothes
were brought to him and shoes, and

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every day a servant prepared a bath
for him. Twice a day a plentiful

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meal was served, but Siddhartha only
ate once a day, and ate neither

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meat, nor did he drink wine. Kamaswamy told him about his trade,

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showed him the merchandise and storage rooms, showed him calculations. Saddartha got to

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know many new things. He heard
a lot and spoke little, and,

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thinking of Kamala's words, he was
never subservient to the merchant, forced him

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to treat him as an equal,
yes even more than an equal. Kamaswami

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conducted his business with care and often
with passion, but Saddartha looked upon all

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this as if it was a game, the rules of which he tried hard

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to learn precisely, but the contents
of which did not touch his heart.

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He was not in Kamaswami's house for
long when he already took part in his

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landlord's business, but daily at the
hour appointed by her. He visited beautiful

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Kamala wearing pretty clothes, fine shoes, and soon he brought her gifts as

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well. Much he learned from her
red a smart mouth. Much he learned

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from her tender supple hand, him
who was regarding love still a boy,

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and had a tendency to plunge blindly
and insatiably into lust, like into a

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bottomless pit. Him. She taught
thoroughly, starting from the basics, about

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that school of thought which teaches that
pleasure cannot be taken without giving pleasure,

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and that every gesture, every caress, every touch, every look, every

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spot of the body, however small
it was, had its secret which would

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bring happiness to those who knew about
it and unleash it. She taught him

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that lovers must not part from one
another after celebrating love without why admiring the

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other, without being just as defeated
as they have been victorious, so that

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with none of them should start feeling
fed up or bored, or get that

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evil feeling of having abused or having
been abused. Wonderful hours he spent with

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the beautiful and smart artist became her
student, her lover, her friend.

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Here with Kamala was the worth and
purpose of his present life. Knit with

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the business of Kamaswami, the merchant
passed to duties of writing important letters and

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contracts onto him, and got into
the habit of discussing all important affairs with

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him. He soon saw that Siddhartha
knew little about rice and wool shipping and

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trade, but that he acted in
a fortunate manner, and that Siddartha surpassed

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him the merchant in calmness and equanimity, and in the art of listening and

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deeply understanding previously unknown people. This
Brahman, he said to a friend,

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is no proper merchant, and will
never be one. There is never any

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passion in his soul when he conducts
our business. But he has that mysterious

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quality of those people to whom success
comes all by itself. Whether this may

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be a good star of his birth, magic, or something he has learned

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amongst Somanas. He always seems to
be merely playing with our business affairs.

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They never fully become a part of
him, They never rule over him.

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He is never afraid of failure,
He is never upset by a loss.

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The friend advised the merchant give him
from the business he conducts for you a

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third of the prophets, but let
him also be liable for the same amount

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of the losses. When there is
a loss, then he'll become more zealous.

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Kamaswami followed the advice, but said, Arthur cared little about this.

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When he made a profit, he
accepted it with equanimity. When he made

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losses, he laughed and said,
well, look at this, So this

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one turned out badly. It seemed, indeed, as if he did not

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care about the business. At one
time, he traveled to a village to

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buy a large harvest of rice there, but when he got there, the

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rice had already been sold to another
merchant. Nevertheless, Siddartha stayed for several

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days in that village, treated the
farmers for a drink, gave copper coins

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to their children, joined in the
celebration of a wedding, and returned extremely

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satisfied from his trip. Kamaswami held
against him that he had not turned back

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right away, that he had wasted
time and money, said Arthur answered,

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stop scolding, dear friend. Nothing
was ever achieved by scolding. If a

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loss has occurred, let me bear
that loss. I am very satisfied with

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this trip. I've gotten to know
many kinds of people. A Brahmin has

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become my friend. Children have sat
on my knees, Farmers have shown me

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their fields. Nobody knew that I
was a merchant. That's all very nice,

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exclaimed Camiswami indignantly. But in fact
you are a merchant after all,

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one ought to think, or might
you have only traveled for your amusement?

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Surely, said Arthur laughed. Surely
I have traveled for my amusement. For

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what else? I've gotten to know
people and places. I have received kindness

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and trust. I have found friendship. Look, my dear, if I

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had been Camiswami, I would have
traveled back, been annoyed and in a

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hurry as soon as I had seen
that my purchase had been rendered impossible,

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and time and money would indeed have
been lost. But like this, I've

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had a few good days. I've
learned, had joy. I've neither harmed

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myself nor others by annoyance and hastiness. And if I'll ever return there again,

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perhaps to buy an upcoming harvest,
or for whatever purpose it might be,

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friendly people will receive me in a
friendly and happy manner, and I

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will praise myself for not showing any
hurry and displeasure at that time. So

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leave it as it is, my
friend, and don't harm yourself by scolding.

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If the day will come when you
will see this Sir d'Arthur is harming

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me, then speak a word and
Sir d'Arthur will go on his own path.

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But until then let's be satisfied with
one another. Futile were also the

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merchant's attempts to convince Siddartha that he
should eat his bread Siddartha ate his own

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bread, or rather they both ate
other people's bread, all people's bread.

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Siddartha never listened to Kamaswami's wiries,
and Kamaswami had many wiries, whether there

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was a business deal going on which
was in danger of failing, or whether

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a shipment of merchandise seemed to have
been lost or a debtor seemed to be

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unable to pay. Kamaswami could never
convince his partner that it would be useful

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to utter a few words of wire
or anger to have wrinkles on the forehead

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to sleep badly. When one day
Kamaswami held against him that he had learned

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everything he knew from him, he
replied would you please not kidney with such

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jokes. What I've learned from you
is how much a basket of fish costs

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and how much interests can be charged
on loaned money. These are your areas

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of expertise. I haven't learned to
think from you, My dear Kamaswami,

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you ought to be the one seeking
to learn from me. Indeed, his

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soul was not with the trade.
The business was good enough to provide him

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with the money for Kamala, and
it earned him much more than he needed.

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Besides, from this, Sirdarthur's interest
and curiosity was only concerned with the

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people whose businesses, crafts, wiries, pleasures, and acts of foolishness used

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to be as alien and distant to
him as the moon. However, easily

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he succeeded in talking to all of
them, in living with all of them,

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in learning from all of them.
He was still aware that there was

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something which separated him from them,
and this separating factor was him being a

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Samana. He saw mankind going through
life in a childlike or animal like manner,

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which he loved and also despised.
At the same time, he saw

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them toiling, saw them suffering and
becoming grave. For the sake of things

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which seemed to him entirely unworthy of
this price, for money, for little

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pleasures, for being slightly honored.
He saw them scolding and insulting each other.

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He saw them complaining about a pain
at which a samana would only smile,

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and suffering because of deprivations which a
samana would not feel. He was

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open to everything these people brought his
way. Welcome was the merchant who offered

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him linen for sale. Welcome was
the debtor who sought another loan. Welcome

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was the beggar who told him for
one hour the story of his poverty,

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and who was not half as poor
as any given Samana. He did not

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treat the rich foreign merchant any different
than the servant who shaved him, and

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the street vendor whom he let cheat
him out of some small change when buying

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bananas. When Kamaswami came to him
to complain about his worries or to reproach

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him concerning his business, he listened
curiously and happily was puzzled by him,

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tried to understand him, consented that
he was a little bit right, only

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as much as he considered indispensable,
and turned away from him. Towards the

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next person who would ask for him. And there were many who came to

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him, many to do business with
him, many to cheat him, many

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to draw some secret out of him, many to appeal to his sympathy,

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many to get his advice. He
gave advice, he pitied, he made

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gifts, He let them cheat him
a bit, And this entire game,

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and the passion with which all people
played this game, occupied his thoughts just

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as much as the gods and Brahmans
used to occupy them. At times,

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he felt deep in his chest a
dying, quiet voice which admonished him quietly,

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lamented quietly, he hardly perceived it, And then for an hour he

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became aware of the strange life he
was leading, of him, doing lots

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of things which were only a game
of though being happy and feeling joy at

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times, real life still passing him
by and not touching him. As a

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ball player plays with his balls,
he played with his business, deals with

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the people around him, watched them, found amusement in them, with his

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heart, with the source of his
being. He was not with them.

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The source ran somewhere far away from
him, ran and ran invisibly, had

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nothing to do with his life.
Anymore, And at several times he suddenly

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became scared on account of such thoughts
and wished that he would also be gifted

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with the ability to participate in all
of this childlike naive occupations of the daytime,

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with passion and with his heart really, to live, really, to

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act, really, to enjoy,
and to live instead of just standing by

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as a spectator. But again and
again he came back to beautiful Kamala learned

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the art of love, practiced the
cult of lust, in which more than

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anything else, giving and taking becomes
one. Chatted with her, learned from

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her, gave her advice, received
advice. She understood him better than Govinda

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used to understand and him she was
more similar to him. Once he said

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to her, you are like me. You are different from most people.

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You are Kamala, nothing else,
and inside you there is a peace and

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refuge to which you can go at
every hour of the day and be at

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home at yourself as I can also
do. Few people have this, and

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yet all could have it. Not
all people are smart, said Kamala.

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No, said, said Arthur.
That's not the reason why Kamaswami is just

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as smart as I and still has
no refuge. In himself. Others have

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it who are small children with respect
to their mind. Most people, Kamala,

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are like a falling leaf which is
blown and is turning around through the

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air and wavers and tumbles to the
ground. But others a few are like

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stars. They go on a fixed
course. No wind reaches them. In

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themselves. They have their law and
their course. Among all the learned men

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and samanas of which I knew many, there was one of this kind,

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a perfected one. I'll never be
able to forget him. It is that

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Gautama, the exalted one, who
is spreading that teachings. Thousands of followers

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are listening to his teachings every day, follow his instructions every hour. But

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they are all falling leaves, not
in themselves. They have teachings and a

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law. Kamala looked at him with
a smile. Again, you're talking about

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him, she said. Again,
you're having a samana's thoughts. Sadd Arthur

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said nothing, and they played the
game of love, one of the third

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to your forty different games. Kamala
knew her body was flexible like that of

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a jaguar, and like the bow
of a hunter. He who had learned

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from her how to make love,
was knowledgeable of many forms of lust,

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many secrets. For a long time, she played with Siddhartha, enticed him,

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rejected him, forced him, embraced
him, enjoyed his masterful skills until

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he was defeated and rested, exhausted
by her side the Courtizan bent over him,

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took a long look at his face, at his eyes, which had

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grown tired. You are the best
lover, she said thoughtfully. I ever

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saw You're stronger than others, more
supple, more willing. You've learned my

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art well, said Arthur. At
some time, when I'll be older,

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I'll want to bear your child.
And yet, my dear, you've remained

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a samana. And yet you do
not love me. You love nobody,

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isn't it so? It might very
well be so, said Arthur, said

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tiredly, I am like you.
You also do not love. How else

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could you practice love as a craft. Perhaps people of our kind can't love

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the childlike people can. That's their
secret. End of chapter six