Think, wait, fast

You see, Kamala: when you throw a stone into the water, it hurries to the bottom by the shortest path. That’s how it is when Siddhartha has a goal, when he makes a decision. Siddhartha does nothing — he waits, he reflects, he fasts — but he passes through worldly affairs like a stone through water, doing nothing, not stirring; he is drawn, he lets himself fall. His goal draws him to itself, for he admits nothing into his soul that might oppose the goal. This is what Siddhartha learned from the ascetics. This is what fools call sorcery, believing demons perform it. Demons create nothing — demons don’t exist. Anyone can work magic, anyone can reach their goal, if they can think, if they can wait, if they can fast.

Hesse, “Siddhartha”