JUNQUE

If all I thought, said, and did could be summed up in words and put here that'd be pretty pathetic. I am a human being with a myriad of values, emotions, and perceptions of the world: both inner and outer. A few labels that describe my beliefs to some extent are: Absurdist, Buddhist, Pacifist, Anarchist, a Lover, avid Reader, Horror Film Buff, and Free-Thinker. Otherwise, look around, if you like then follow me; I try to make my page as eclectic as my personality and interests. Have a good life.

Enlightenment & Nirvana (Part VIII; On Buddhism)

Oh where, oh where do I begin? Where do I end? I suppose we’ll start with those questions. Where is the beginning of enlightenment? Where is the end? Where is the beginning of nirvana? Where is it’s end? 

This is so difficult to even answer these questions. There are many different sects and divisions within Buddhism and so many different perspectives on these two things. I believe I will give you the two views which differ most from one another and say everything that can fit between the two positions does exist as a view. 

What is enlightenment? This varies so much. 

On one extreme, enlightenment and nirvana are said to occur simultaneously. Enlightenment however is more something you achieve, whereas nirvana is a state of being. So some believe if you end up enlightened you have stepped into the state that is called nirvana as well. Here enlightenment and nirvana begin at the same time. 

Enlightenment is a poor translation of the word bodhi which would better be understood as simply “awakening.” We could see enlightenment as the point where a person’s entire mind and heart have received the truths of Buddhism and are unwavering in that. Nirvana could be said to begin with enlightenment then, but one is still far from it; an enlightened being has merely begun to walk down the right path towards nirvana. 

Enlightenment, stripping it of various doctrinal beliefs, is simply the awareness of the Truth. That truth is something I would not be so presumptuous and arrogant as to assume I could communicate it here. 

What is nirvana? 

Nirvana is liberation from this world of delusion, liberation from the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance. It is a state where we see this interdependent reality as it truly is. We see that everything is emptiness and emptiness is everything. It isn’t “heaven” or “always being happy.” It is something beyond these ideas.

What does all of this mean? It is something a person must discover for them-self. Nirvana is beyond intellectual comprehension. One cannot reason their way to nirvana. The noble eightfold path is the way to nirvana, but what exactly awaits a person who achieves nirvana, no one knows. It is impossible to communicate.  

There is only one sure thing I can say about nirvana. It is freedom from the cycle of samsara. When a person attains nirvana, they will no longer be reborn.This does not necessarily mean that the person ceases to exist; it is something we cannot know and therefore cannot speak of. What I can glen from my reading is this: your karmic energy no longer struggles and powers the wheel of samsara and suffering. 

Hopefully this post will help describe these concepts without making assumptions about them too much. Questions and comments are always appreciated. 

  1. goroundthemarch reblogged this from junque
  2. junque posted this