Editing Parinirvana

{{italic title}}
{{Short description|Concept in Buddhism}}

[[Image:Paranirvana.JPG|thumb|The death of the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]], or '''Mahaparinirvana''', [[Gandhara]] 2–3rd century]]
{{Buddhist term
|title=  Parinirvana 
|en=     [[Nirvana]] after death,<br />Nirvana without remainder,<br /> Nirvana without residue
|pi=     parinibbāna
|pi-Latn=
|sa=     परिनिर्वाण
|sa-Latn=parinirvāṇa
|id=parinirwana
|my=     ပရိနိဗ္ဗာန်
|my-Latn=pa.ri.nibban
|zh=     [[wikt:般涅槃#Chinese|般涅槃]]
|zh-Latn=bōnièpán
|ko=     반열반
|ko-Latn=banyeolban
|ja=     [[wikt:般涅槃#Japanese|般涅槃]]
|ja-Latn=hatsunehan
|lo=ປະລິນິພພານ
|lo-Latn=palinipphan
|km= បរិនិព្វាន
|km-Latn=bârĭnĭpvéan
|si=     [[:si:ගෞතම බුද්ධ පරිනිර්වාණය|පරිනිර්වාණය]]
|si-Latn=parinirvāṇaya
|tl=pawinilbana
|bo=     མྱང་འདས།
|bo-Latn=myang 'das
|th=    [[:th:ปรินิพพาน|ปรินิพพาน]]
|th-Latn=parinipphan
}}
In [[Buddhism]], '''''Parinirvana''''' ([[Sanskrit]]: ''{{IAST|parinirvāṇa}}''; [[Pali language|Pali]]: ''{{IAST|parinibbāna}}'') describes the state entered after death by someone who has attained ''[[Nirvana (Buddhism)|nirvana]]'' during their lifetime. It implies a release from ''[[samsara|{{IAST|Saṃsāra}}]]'', [[karma]] and [[Rebirth (Buddhism)|rebirth]] as well as the dissolution of the ''[[skandha]]s''.

In some [[Mahayana|Mahāyāna]] scriptures, notably the ''[[Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra|Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra]]'', ''parinirvāṇa'' is described as the realm of the eternal true [[Ātman (Buddhism)|Self]] of the Buddha.

In the [[Buddha in art]], the event is represented by a [[reclining Buddha]] figure, often surrounded by disciples.

==Final nirvana at death==
{{Main|Nirvana (Buddhism)#Nirvana after death}}

In the Buddhist view, when ordinary people die, each person's unresolved karma passes on to a new birth; and thus the karmic inheritance is reborn in one of the [[Six Paths]] of ''[[Samsara (Buddhism)|samsara]]''. However, when a person attains nirvana, they are liberated from karmic rebirth. When such a person dies, it is the end of the cycle of rebirth.{{sfn|Gethin|1998|p=76}} Contemporary scholar Rupert Gethin explains:{{sfn|Gethin|1998|p=76}}
{{quote|Eventually 'the remainder of life' will be exhausted and, like all beings, such a person must die. But unlike other beings, who have not experienced 'nirvāṇa', he or she will not be reborn into some new life, the physical and mental constituents of being will not come together in some new existence, there will be no new being or person. Instead of being reborn, the person 'parinirvāṇa-s', meaning in this context that the five aggregates of physical and mental phenomena that constitute a being cease to occur. This is the condition of 'nirvāṇa without remainder [of life]' (nir-upadhiśeṣa-nirvāṇa/an-up ādisesa-nibbāna): nirvāṇa that comes from ending the occurrence of the aggregates (skandha/khandha) of physical and mental phenomena that constitute a being; or, for short, khandha-parinibbāna. Modern Buddhist usage tends to restrict 'nirvāṇa' to the awakening experience and reserve 'parinirvāṇa' for the death experience.}}

==Parinirvana of Buddha Shakyamuni==
[[Image:ParNir.jpg|thumb|Buddha attaining Parinirvana – Depicted in cave 26 of [[Ajanta Caves]] – India]]

Accounts of the purported events surrounding the Buddha's parinirvāṇa are found in a wide range of Buddhist canonical literature. In addition to the Pāli Mahāparinibbāna sutta (DN 16) and its Sanskrit parallels, the topic is treated in the ''Saṃyutta-nikāya'' (SN 6.15) and the several Sanskrit parallels (T99 p253c-254c), the Sanskrit-based ''[[Ekottara Agama|Ekottara-āgama]]'' (T125 p750c), and other early sutras preserved in Chinese, as well as in most of the Vinayas preserved in Chinese of the early Buddhist schools such as the [[Sarvastivada|Sarvāstivādins]] and the [[Mahāsāṃghika]]s. The historical event of the Buddha's parinirvāṇa is also described in several later works, such as the Sanskrit ''[[Buddhacarita]],'' the ''Avadāna-śataka'', and the Pāli ''Mahāvaṃsa''.

According to Bareau, the oldest core components of all these accounts are just the account of the Buddha's ''parinirvāṇa'' itself at [[Kushinagar|Kuśinagara]] and the funerary rites following his death.<ref>Bareau, Andrė: [http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/issue/befeo_0336-1519_1979_num_66_1 ''La composition et les étapes de la formation progressive du Mahaparinirvanasutra ancien''], Bulletin de l'École française d'Extrême-Orient 66, 45–103, 1979</ref> He deems all other extended details to be later additions with little historical value.

===Within the Mahaparinibbana Sutta (Pali)===
The ''Parinirvana'' of the [[Buddha]] is described in the ''[[Mahaparinibbana Sutta]]''. Because of its attention to detail, this [[Theravada]] ''sutta'', though first committed to writing hundreds of years after his death, has been resorted to as the principal source of reference in most standard studies of the Buddha's life.<ref name="Buddhism">Buddhism: Critical Concepts in Religious Studies, Paul Williams, Published by Taylor & Francis, 2005. p. 190</ref>

===Within the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa sūtra===
[[Image:MahaparinirvanaAttendants.jpg|thumb|Attendants to the Parinirvana, Gandhara, [[Victoria and Albert museum]]]]
In contrast to these works which deal with the Buddha's ''parinirvāṇa'' as a biographical event, the ''Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa sūtra'' was written hundreds of years later.<ref>The Mahaparinibbana Sutta is pre-Ashokan; see Juliane Schober, ''Sacred biography in the Buddhist traditions of South and Southeast Asia.'' University of Hawaii Press, 1997, p. 171, while the Mahayana text dates to the second century CE or later: see Shimoda, Masahiro: ''A Study of the Mahāparinivāṇasūtra ~ with a Focus on the Methodology of the Study of Mahāyāna Sūtras'', Shunjū-sha (1997) pp. 446–448.</ref> The Nirvana Sutra does not give details of the historical event of the day of the ''parinirvāṇa'' itself, except the Buddha's illness and [[Cunda Kammāraputta|Cunda's]] meal-offering, nor any of the other preceding or subsequent incidents, instead using the event as merely a convenient springboard for the expression of standard Mahayana ideals such as the ''[[tathagata-garbha|Tathagata-Garbha]]''/''[[buddha-dhatu|Buddha-Dhatu]]'' doctrine, the eternality of the Buddha, and the soteriological fate of the ''[[Icchantika]]s'' and so forth.<ref>"The Doctrine of Buddha-nature in the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra", by Ming-Wood Liu, in: ''Buddhism: Yogācāra, the epistemological tradition and Tathāgatagarbha''. Paul Williams, Published by Taylor & Francis, 2005. p. 190</ref>

===Location of Gautama Buddha's death and parinirvana===
It has been suggested by Waddell that the site of the death and ''parinirvana'' of [[Gautama Buddha]] was in the region of [[Rampurva]]: "I believe that Kusīnagara, where the Buddha died may be ultimately found to the North of [[Bettiah]], and in the line of the [[Pillars of Ashoka|Aśōka pillars]] which lead hither from [[Patna]] (Pāțaliputra)"<ref>"A Tibetan Guide-book to the Lost Sites of the Buddha's Birth and Death", [[L. A. Waddell]]. [[Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal]], 1896, p. 279.</ref> in Bihar. It still awaits proper archaeological excavation.

==In Mahayana literature==
[[File:Buddha in Nirvana (Death of Sakyamuni), Kamakura period, 13th century, wood - Tokyo National Museum - DSC05096.jpg|thumb|Buddha's Parinirvana (Death of Sakyamuni), Kamakura period, 13th century, wood - Tokyo National Museum]]
[[File:Parinirvana Miyajima.jpg|thumb|Parinirvana Shrine, [[Itsukushima|Miyajima]], Japan ]]
According to the ''Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra'' (also called the ''Nirvana Sutra''), the Buddha taught that ''parinirvāṇa'' is the realm of the Eternal, Bliss, the [[Ātman (Buddhism)#The definition of .C4.81tman in Buddhism|Self]], and the Pure. Dr. Paul Williams states that it depicts the Buddha using the term "Self" to win over non-Buddhist ascetics.<ref>Paul Williams, ''Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations.''Taylor & Francis, 1989, p. 100. "... it refers to the Buddha using the term "Self" in order to win over non-Buddhist ascetics."</ref> However, the ''Mahaparinirvana Sutra'' is a long and highly composite Mahayana scripture,<ref>Paul Williams, ''Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations.''Taylor & Francis, 1989, pp. 98, 99.</ref> and the part of the sutra upon which Williams is basing his statement is a portion of the Nirvana Sutra of secondary Central Asian provenance - other parts of the sutra were written in India.<ref>Williams quotes Ruegg "La Traitė du Tathāgatagarbha de Bu Ston Rin Chen Grub" pp. 113–144, where the reference for this passage is given as Taisho 0525a12-b02 of the Dharmakṣema translation.  The entire Dharmakṣema translation is found at Taisho 0365c06-0603c26.  The first 10 juan which scholars unanimously accept as Indic in origin occupies just Taisho 0365c06-0428b20, while the remaining portion from 428b24-0603c26 is deemed by all scholars to be of Central Asian origin.  See [[Nirvana Sutra|Mahāyāna-Mahāparinirvāṇa Mahā-sūtra]], subsection "Transmission & Authenticity" for details of scholarly opinions of textual structure with references.</ref>

Guang Xing speaks of how the Mahayanists of the ''Nirvana Sutra'' understand the ''mahaparinirvana'' to be the liberated Self of the eternal Buddha:<ref>Guang Xing, ''The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikaya'', RoutledgeCurzon, Oxford, 2005, p. 89</ref>
{{quote|One of the main themes of the ''MMPS'' [''Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra''] is that the Buddha is eternal ... The Mahayanists assert the eternity of the Buddha in two ways in the ''MMPS''. They state that the Buddha is the ''dharmakaya'', and hence eternal. Next, they reinterpret the liberation of the Buddha as ''mahaparinirvana'' possessing four attributes: eternity, happiness, self and purity.}}

Only in Mahaparinirvana is this True Self held to be fully discernible and accessible.<ref>Kosho Yamamoto, ''Mahayanism: A Critical Exposition of the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra'', Karin Bunko, Tokyo, 1975, p. 62</ref>

Kosho Yamamoto cites a passage in which the Buddha admonishes his monks not to dwell inordinately on the idea of the non-self but to meditate on the Self. Yamamoto writes:<ref>Kosho Yamamoto, ''Mahayanism: A Critical Exposition of the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra'', the Karinbunko, Tokyo, 1975, p. 75</ref>

{{quote|Having dwelt upon the nature of nirvana, the Buddha now explains its positive aspect and says that nirvana has the four attributes of the Eternal, Bliss, the Self, and the Pure ... the Buddha says: "O you bhiksus [monks]! Do not abide in the thought of the non-eternal, sorrowful, non-Self, and the not-pure and have things as in the case of those people who take the stones, wooden pieces, and gravel for the true gem [of the true Dharma] ... In every situation, constantly meditate upon the idea of the Self, the idea of the Eternal, Bliss, and the Pure ... Those who, desirous of attaining Reality meditatively cultivate these ideas, namely, the ideas of the Self [''atman''], the Eternal, Bliss, and the Pure, will skilfully bring forth the jewel, just like the wise person." }}

Michael Zimmermann, in his study of the [[Tathagatagarbha Sutra]], reveals that not only the ''Mahaparinirvana Sutra'' but also the ''Tathagatagarbha Sutra'' and the ''Lankavatara Sutra'' speak affirmatively of the Self. Zimmermann observes:<ref>Zimmermann, Michael (2002), [https://web.archive.org/web/20131111023508/http://iriab.soka.ac.jp/orc/Publications/BPPB/pdf/BPPB-06.pdf  ''A Buddha Within: The Tathāgatagarbhasūtra''], Biblotheca Philologica et Philosophica Buddhica VI, The International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology, Soka University, pp. 82–83</ref>

{{quote|The existence of an eternal, imperishable self, that is, Buddhahood, is the basic point of the ''TGS'' [''Tathagatagarbha Sutra''] ... the ''Mahaparinirvanasutra'' and the ''Lankavatarasutra'' characterize the ''tathagatagarbha'' explicitly as ''atman'' [Self].}}

==See also==
* [[Mahasamādhi]]
* [[Parinirvana Day]]
* [[Prabashvara]]
* [[Reclining Buddha]]
* [[The Final Death of the Buddha Sakyamuni]] - painting depicting Parinirvana in the [[Yale University Art Gallery]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}
{{notefoot}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Citation| last =Gethin | first = Rupert | year =1998 | title =Foundations of Buddhism | publisher =Oxford University Press}}
* {{Citation| last =Goldstein | first = Joseph | year =2011 | title =One Dharma: The Emerging Western Buddhism | publisher =HarperCollins, Kindle Edition}}
* {{Citation| last =Goleman | first = Daniel | year =2008 | title =Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama | publisher=Bantam, Kindle Edition}}
* {{Citation| last =Harvey | first =Peter | year =1990 |title =Introduction to Buddhism | publisher =Cambridge University Press}}
* {{Citation| last =Harvey | first = Peter | year =1995 |title =The Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvāṇa in Early Buddhism | publisher =Routledge|isbn= 0-7007-0338-1}}
* {{Citation| last =Keown | first =Damien | year=2000| title= Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction | publisher=Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition}}
* {{Citation| last =Lama Surya Das | year =1997 | title =Awakening the Buddha Within | publisher =Broadway Books, Kindle Edition}}
* {{Citation| last =Lopez | first =Donald S.| year =2001 | title =The Story of Buddhism | publisher =HarperCollins }}
* {{Citation| last= Traleg Kyabgon| year =2001 | title =The Essence of Buddhism | publisher = Shambhala}}
* {{Citation| last= Williams |first=Paul | year =2002 | title =Buddhist Thought | publisher = Taylor & Francis, Kindle Edition}}
* {{Citation| last= Walpola Rahula | year =2007| title =What the Buddha Taught| publisher = Grove Press, Kindle Edition}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://nirvanasutranet.com/ Complete translation of the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra] or [https://web.archive.org/web/20131019072030/http://webzoom.freewebs.com/nirvana-sutra/convenient/Mahaparinirvana_Sutra_Yamamoto_Page_2007.pdf PDF]
*[http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn06/sn06.015.than.html SN VI.15: Parinibbana Sutta – Total Unbinding]
*[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/nyregion/19buddha.html?_r=1  Article in The New York Times Buddha in Nirvana]

{{Buddhism topics}}
{{Gorakhpur division topics}}

[[Category:Buddhist philosophical concepts]]
[[Category:Gautama Buddha]]
[[Category:Buddhism and death]]
[[de:Nirwana#Parinirvana]]