7. Enlightenment and Nirvana

What is enlightenment?

• waking up from the sleep inflicted on the mind by the three poisons and comprehends the Four Noble truths

• bringing insight into the true nature of the workd or Ultimate Reality (insight into the Three Marks of Existence)

• being freed from attachments, cravings and desires

• can be consiered as release or liveration from samsara

• many Buddhists believe that once you achieve enlightenent, you also achieve nirvana

What are the three knowledges the Buddha attained on enlightment?

• insight into his past lives

• insight into the workings of karma and rebirth

• insight into the Four Noble Truths

What is nirvana?

a state of freedom from dukkha, often understood to be escape from samsara, though not all Buddhists would say this

What noble truth is nirvana associated with?

nirohda (cessation of suffering)

What is a quote about the important of nirvana?

Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta: “And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the remainderless fading and cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, and letting go of that very craving.”

Why is describing nirvana hard?

nirvana is something that is hard for us to understand unless we have experienced it

What do teachings about pratitya samputpada teach us about nirvana?

• nirvana is an unconditioned element of reality, its real but different from all other constructed elemtns of reality and has some kind of necessary existence

• if it is not subject to dependent origination, then it cannot be characterised by dukkha or annica

• however, it is still believed to be characterised by non self

What are the different types of nirvana?

• nirvana with remainder

• parinirvana

• non abiding nirvana

What is nirvana with remainder?

in Theravada Buddhist, when a person becomes enlightened, they are said to have achieved nirvana with remainder as while they are still living, there is residue of the five aggregates

What is parinirvana?

• the final escaping from samsara which means there will be no further rebirths, occurs upon death

• the ultimate aim in Theravada Buddhism

What is non abiding nirvana?

• in the Mahayana tradition, it is sometimes seen that the goal of seeking self liberation is undesirable because it only focuses on liberating itself, so Mahayana Buddhists focus on the Boddhisattva ideal, where a person tries to liberate all sentient beings

• as bodhisattva, they are able to return to remain in the cycle of samsara in order to help others, known as non abiding nirvana

What is the Theravada View on enlightenment and nirvana?

• enlightenment and nirvana carry the same meaning, being freed from greed, hatred and ignorance

• enlightenment is also considered to be equal to the supreme insight and realisation of the for noble truths, which leads to nirvana

• once one has achieved enlightenment, they will be liberated from samsara upon their death so nirvana is something distinct to or outside of samsara, this is also because samsara is said to be characterised by dukkha, where nirvana is free from dukkha

What is the Mahayana View on enlightenment and nirvana?

• enlightenment in Mahayana tradition involves realising the Buddha-nature and realising that everything is characterised by emptiness

• the concept of sunyata also applies to their understanding of nirvana, since Bodhidharma, a Mahayana philosopher, said “by remaining in emptiness they remain in nirvana”

• there is no distinction between nirvana and samsara because both are characterised by emptiness

• Mahayana philosopher Nagarjuna said that “There is no distinction between samsara and nirvana and no distinction between nirvana and samsara”