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Making Sense of Nirvana!!!!




The Buddha's death was not like the death of unenlightened beings, for whom it is only one more stage in the cycle of rebirth and suffering. Having, after innumerable existences in divine, human, and animal form, attained Enlightenment, he was released from that cycle. What happens to an enlightened person after death is a question the Buddha refused to answer. None of the categories of human thought apply to the Tathagata, the `Perfect One', and therefore this question makes no sense.

The recorded sayings of early monks and nuns unmistakably show that Nirvana is experienced as a state of ineffable calm, a joyous tranquillity. The Buddha said: `There is a sphere which is neither earth, nor water, nor fire, nor air, which is not the sphere of the infinity of space, nor the sphere of the infinity of consciousness, the sphere of nothingness, the sphere of neither perception nor non-perception, which is neither this world nor the other world, neither sun nor moon. I deny that it is coming or going, enduring, death or birth. It is only the end of suffering.' (Udana 8o) It is one of the wonders of Buddhist art that painters and sculptors have succeeded in conveying this ineffable state through the image of the Buddha meditating on his deathbed.


According to Buddhist teachings, the Buddha's death differed from that of unenlightened beings. For ordinary individuals, death is seen as another stage in the cycle of rebirth and suffering, perpetuating the cycle of samsara. However, the Buddha, having attained Enlightenment, transcended this cycle and was released from the process of rebirth.

Regarding what happens to an enlightened person after death, the Buddha chose not to provide a definitive answer. The reason for this is that the enlightened state of the Tathagata, or the Perfect One, goes beyond conventional human understanding. The Buddha believed that the usual categories of human thought, including concepts of existence and non-existence, do not apply to the enlightened state. Therefore, attempting to comprehend what happens to an enlightened person after death would be futile and nonsensical.

In Buddhist scriptures, Nirvana, the state of enlightenment, is described as an ineffable and joyous tranquillity. The Buddha referred to a sphere that transcends the physical elements of earth, water, fire, and air, as well as the meditative spheres of infinite space, consciousness, nothingness, and neither perception nor non-perception. This sphere is beyond both the worldly and the otherworldly realms, and it is not bound by concepts of time, enduring, birth, or death. It is simply the cessation of suffering, the end of the cycle of samsara.

Buddhist artists have sought to depict the Buddha's experience of Nirvana and the tranquillity associated with it, particularly during his final moments on his deathbed. Through various artistic mediums such as paintings and sculptures, they have attempted to convey the indescribable state of peace and liberation achieved by the Buddha. These artistic representations serve as a reminder and inspiration for practitioners to aspire toward attaining their own liberation from suffering.

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