© Museo Hermann Hesse Montagnola
Reading on the 64th anniversary of the death of Hermann Hesse
Sunday, 9 August 2026, 17.00 · Church of Sant’Abbondio, Gentilino ♿
After a journey to Umbria in 1904, Hesse wrote a passionate biography of Francis of Assisi (1181 or 1182–1226), the saint who – much like Siddhartha in ancient India – became for him a model of inner quest and renunciation of material possessions. In his biographical essay, Hesse portrays Francis not as a distant, unattainable saint, but as a vividly human figure, endowed with extraordinary spiritual strength and boundless love for nature and all living creatures. The reading follows Hesse’s perspective, which recognises in Francis a spiritual brother and a symbol of inner freedom. Reading Hesse’s words on Francis today means not only celebrating two remarkable lives, but also encountering a tension that concerns us all: the search for a path that is truly our own, capable of uniting spirituality and humanity, interiority and action. In this sense, Hesse and Francis continue to walk beside us.
Read by Antonio Ballerio (Italian) and Ernst Süss (German)
Entrance fee: «Pay What You Want» principle.