“Who
enters nirvana? There is only extinction of suffering, pacification of
suffering, coolness and disappearance.”
《雜阿含經》卷26：「誰般涅槃？唯苦滅、苦息、清涼、沒。」
Remarks:
Buddha Sakyamuni taught that a Dharma master set forth by the
Tathagata is the one who teaches about the bodily form, if one is able to speak
of it as dharma for which one must feel dislike, for which one must cut off
one's desires, and for which one must extinguish, so as to subsequently attain
tranquility and quiescence, then he is reckoned as a Dharma master. When
teaching about the sensation, perception, formation, and vijnana, if one is
able to speak of them as dharma for which one must feel dislike, for which one
must cut off one's desire, and for which one must extinguish, so as to subsequently
attain tranquility and quiescence, then he is reckoned as a Dharma master. These
highlight for us that the path to liberation denotes the mode of a total extinguishment
of oneself to attain nirvana, and no longer have any of the five-aggregates self.
Now, the question is: “Who enters nirvana?”
The Buddha explains further, “The notion of nirvana denotes the extinction of suffering.” That is, as an individual is devoid of the five aggregates, he/she is also apart from seeing, hearing, feeling, and cognizing and is ultimately extinct and tranquil, and there exists no perceiver to perceive the extinction and tranquility. To explain the quote in plain language terms, after the extinction of suffering, there will be pacification of suffering, and coolness, thus denoting the mode of disappearance––nirvana.
However, we all know that Buddhist teachings rely on all phenomena within the six transmigration of the three realms to describe the nirvanic nature of the True Mind, that which is a signless, intangible dharma, and indescribable by terms and language. The Mahayana Dharma distinctly reveals the noumenon of nirvana––the True Mind.
Hence, nirvana is not tantamount to nihilism, as we (Buddhist practitioners) know the fact that there exists the apex true reality, Alaya-vijnana (the 8th vijnana, True Mind).
#Buddha #Buddhism #alayavijnana #nirvana
Thanks so much for spreading this knowledge and awareness. Excellent blog. Learning from every single post.
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