The ShinsungHwa of Hermann Hesse (2019): Illuminating Literary Consciousness
A Brief Description of Hermann Hesse’s ShinsungHwa
When I began creating Hermann Hesse’s ShinsungHwa, the path to the spiritual core emerged from his head and ascended upward, as it typically does in most cases. The flow reached a moderate height—neither particularly high nor low—before coming to rest. At this endpoint, a symbol of light manifested itself, and as I painted the bright yellow energy, I experienced a profound sense of joy and lightness.
As I drew the circular energy that surrounded this symbol of light, a deep sense of stillness and tranquility penetrated my chest. Though this presence made no statements or assertions, I could feel an unmistakable force emanating from it—something that seemed to push gently inward.
There was movement, yet it was so profoundly quiet that it appeared motionless… This was my personal impression of Hermann Hesse’s energy. As I rendered that yellow energy, I began to sense the world he had aspired to create. It’s difficult to express this in words. Two concentric rings of circular energy formed around the symbol of light, and when I felt this energy being transmitted, I actually wanted to conclude the ShinsungHwa right there.
Quote
“Some of us think holding on makes us strong; but sometimes it is letting go.”
“Without words, without writing and without books there would be no history, there could be no concept of humanity.”
“Oh, love isn’t there to make us happy. I believe it exists to show us how much we can endure.”
“We are not going in circles, we are going upwards. The path is a spiral; we have already climbed many steps.”
“There is no reality except the one contained within us. That is why so many people live such an unreal life. They take the images outside them for reality and never allow the world within to assert itself.”
“The bird fights its way out of the egg. The egg is the world. Who would be born must first destroy a world. The bird flies to God. That God’s name is Abraxas.”
“Solitude is independence. It had been my wish and with the years I had attained it. It was cold. Oh, cold enough! But it was also still, wonderfully still and vast like the cold stillness of space in which the stars revolve.”
“If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part of yourself. What isn’t part of ourselves doesn’t disturb us.”
The Writer Who Taught Generations to Find Themselves
Have you ever felt like you don’t quite fit in anywhere? Like you’re searching for something important, but you’re not sure what it is? If so, you’re not alone – and you’re definitely not the first person to feel this way. A German-Swiss writer named Hermann Hesse spent his entire life writing about these feelings, and his books have helped millions of people around the world understand themselves better.
A Restless Beginning
Hermann Hesse was born on July 2, 1877, in a small German town called Calw, nestled at the edge of the Black Forest. Right from the start, he was what we might call a “handful.” His mother once wrote to his father about their four-year-old son: “The little fellow has a life in him, an unbelievable strength, a powerful will”. She worried about his “tyrannical temperament” and “passionate turbulence,” but she also saw something special brewing beneath the surface.
School didn’t go well for young Hermann. He attended a strict Protestant boarding school where he struggled with depression and even attempted suicide, landing him temporarily in a sanatorium. Rather than breaking him, these early struggles planted the seeds for what would become his life’s work: understanding the human soul and helping others navigate their own inner storms.
Finding His Voice Through Words
After leaving formal education behind, Hesse became what we call an autodidact – someone who teaches themselves. He devoured books on theology, Greek mythology, and works by famous German writers like Goethe and Nietzsche. Working in bookstores in different cities, he soaked up knowledge like a sponge while quietly writing his own poetry and stories.
His breakthrough came in 1904 with his first novel, Peter Camenzind. The book struck a chord with young Germans who were tired of their rapidly industrializing world and longed for something more natural and authentic. Suddenly, Hesse could support himself as a full-time writer – a dream come true for the former bookstore clerk.
The Psychology of Self-Discovery
What made Hesse’s writing special wasn’t just his storytelling ability, but his deep dive into what he called “biographies of the soul”. He believed every person needed to go on an inner journey to resolve their struggles with themselves and the world around them. This wasn’t just theory for Hesse – he lived it.
When personal crises hit him hard, Hesse began psychoanalysis with a disciple of the famous psychologist Carl Jung. This experience transformed his writing completely. His 1919 novel Demian emerged from this period, packed with psychological insights about how troubled young people can achieve self-awareness. The book had such a powerful impact on Germans returning from World War I that it made Hesse famous throughout the country.
Eastern Wisdom Meets Western Literature
Long before it became trendy, Hesse was fascinated by Eastern religions and philosophies. His novel Siddhartha, which tells the story of a young man’s spiritual journey in ancient India, became one of his most beloved works. The book reflects Hesse’s lifelong study of Oriental myths and religions, but he wrote it in a way that anyone could understand and relate to.
This wasn’t just intellectual curiosity for Hesse. He genuinely believed that Eastern ideas about meditation, self-reflection, and finding balance could help Western readers deal with their own problems. His characters often struggle between opposite forces – like the mind versus the heart, or spiritual growth versus worldly success – and slowly learn to find harmony between them.
The Counterculture Prophet
Here’s where Hesse’s story gets really interesting. For decades, he was mainly known in German-speaking countries. Then something unexpected happened in 1960s America. English translations of his books like Steppenwolf and Siddhartha appeared in paperback just as the counterculture movement was taking off.
Suddenly, hippies, rock musicians, and other rebels found themselves captivated by Hesse’s stories of spiritual seeking and personal growth. Psychedelic guru Timothy Leary called him “the poet of the interior journey”. The rock band Steppenwolf even took their name from one of his novels. Hesse himself wasn’t a drug-taking dropout – in his day, counterculture meant things like vegetarianism and nudism – but his themes of personal growth and resistance to conformity spoke directly to a new generation.
Hesse’s final novel, The Glass Bead Game, won him the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1946. Set in the 23rd century, it imagines a world where intellectual elites spend their time mastering a complex game that combines mathematics, music, logic, and philosophy. It sounds complicated, but at its heart, it’s another story about someone trying to balance the life of the mind with real-world responsibilities.
Today, Hesse’s influence extends far beyond literature. K-Pop group BTS has referenced his work in their songs, and his ideas continue to resonate with people facing modern challenges like social media pressure, career anxiety, and environmental concerns. His central message remains as relevant as ever: resist the pressure to conform and become who you truly are.
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