Siddhartha hears all the different voices of the river and discerns all the forms it contains. He sees his own past and all the people he has known. He also sees the insatiable desire which drives all life toward its goal. Yet he also knows that every act is necessary and good; every thing and every creature contains the Buddha-nature within it, and that all goals are reached, after which life changes its form and continues. When he hears the ten thousand voices of the river together at the same time, he realizes that none is separate from any of the others, and when he does not try to attach himself to any one particular voice, the sound of the river becomes a great song, the music of life in its eternal perfection. Armed with this knowledge, he can love and respect all creatures.