Do all Buddhists say that nirvana exists?
Upvote:0
I think all Buddhists say there is Nirvana.
It's true that in Mahayana Buddhism, Nirvana does not have svabhava. In this question, I tried to link Theravada emptiness to Mahayana emptiness. My understanding of this is that Nirvana does not have the inherent essence given to it by mental reification. This means Nirvana is not what you imagine it to be, but it does not mean that it does not exist. It means that the mental idea that I have of Nirvana is non-existent.
However, a disagreement between Theravada and Mahayana is on the topic of whether Nirvana and Samsara are the same, or completely different. This answer may have the right explanation to the fact that probably there is no disagreement after all. I quote it here:
Samsara is Nirvana in at least two senses:
Nirvana is achieved here, in this world (="samsara"). We don't fly to another planet or go to other dimension when we achieve Nirvana; our perception changes, and so does our subjective reality.
Samsara is Nirvana because we should stop trying to escape. Trying to escape "this" is what makes it Samsara. The idea of otherworldly Nirvana is exactly the kind of craving that leads to suffering. Samsara is Nirvana means one has stopped craving. That is called cessation.
So, ultimately, there may be no real disagreements between Buddhist traditions on Nirvana.
Upvote:1
Nibbana is an element (dhatu).
There are these two elements:
Dve imā, ānanda, dhātuyo—
the conditioned element and the unconditioned element.
saṅkhatādhātu, asaṅkhatādhātu.
When a mendicant knows and sees these two elements,
Imā kho, ānanda, dve dhātuyo yato jānāti passati—
they’re qualified to be called ‘skilled in the elements’.
ettāvatāpi kho, ānanda, ‘dhātukusalo bhikkhū’ti alaṃvacanāyā”ti.
MN 115
The Pali suttas use the term "sa dhatu" rather than "sabhava".
Mendicants, whether Realized Ones arise or not, this element persists, this regularity of natural principles, this invariance of natural principles:
Uppādā vā, bhikkhave, tathāgatānaṃ anuppādā vā tathāgatānaṃ, ṭhitāva sā dhātu dhammaṭṭhitatā dhammaniyāmatā.
AN 3.136
The term "sabhava" has a valid meaning in Theravada Commentary but because the term contains the word "bhava" (which has different meanings & can mean "ego"), the Mahayana misconstrue "sabhava" and use for for their propaganda. Also, the Mahayana teaches emptiness different to the Buddha. Mahayana exists because people have different ideas. In the Pali suttas, the term "emptiness" does not mean "empty of inherent existence". It means empty of "ego" or "I-thinking" & "my-thinking". Theravada does not concern itself with whether "things" exist or not. Theravada only concerns itself with ending suffering; which occurs with the ending of craving, attachment & egoism. If I believe a computer exists, this does not cause suffering. Suffering only occurs when I regard a computer as "my computer".
More post
- 📝 What is meant by Namu Amida Butsu and also Nam-myoho-renge-kyo?
- 📝 Spiritual friendship with the Buddha
- 📝 Five Precepts - did Buddha really preach them?
- 📝 Is understanding a practice?
- 📝 Is the term " mind " another way of describing awareness?
- 📝 Do meditation or chanting make one less agitated?
- 📝 How should I stop thinking that I am even slightly enlightened?
- 📝 How to get rid of demons or evil spirits?
- 📝 What are the benefits of solitary practice?
- 📝 Looking for anti-anti-monasticism apologia from a Buddhist perspective
- 📝 Can I cancel my consciousness?
- 📝 Is Goenka's "Freeflow of sensations" the same as pīti?
- 📝 Was Anuruddha, one of the ten Great Disciples of the Buddha, born in Sri Lanka?
- 📝 Can I ordain if i have psoriasis?
- 📝 What is Zen Qigong in Zen Buddhism?
- 📝 If Samsara is natural in origin, is the Wheel of Dharma artificial?
- 📝 How to distinguish dukkha ñanas from the arising of psychological issues?
- 📝 What is the relationship between Tathāgatagarbha and Buddha Nature?
- 📝 What would be some very concise Buddhist teachings and symbols that could be on (future) coinage?
- 📝 Can you gain stream entry by focusing on the clinging and stress going on at the five clinging aggregates?
- 📝 Am I condemned for an extramarital affair?
- 📝 Translation of Pali term "Arati"
- 📝 Should you meditate with a timer?
- 📝 Multiverse in Buddhism?
- 📝 Trying to find causes of everything
- 📝 Where does it say "in-between worlds"?
- 📝 Is karma of arms giving depends on the reciever?
- 📝 Role of the Buddhist in preserving the original teachings
- 📝 self-hypnotization-autosuggestion - chanting
- 📝 Why is only intentional action considered as Karma, which gives rise to corresponding consequences?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Do all Buddhists say that nirvana exists?
- 📝 Why do Buddhists argue that nirvana is nothing in addition to the skandhas?
- 📝 Which Buddhists say that there are no conventionally existent wholes, and for what reasons?
- 📝 Do any Buddhists say that everyone's Buddha nature repeats an infinite number of times?
- 📝 Are all Buddhists vegetarian?
- 📝 Is Nirvana the goal for all Buddhist?
- 📝 Do all Buddhists abstain from alcohol?
- 📝 What do buddhists do in a situation of war where all able-bodied men must become soldiers?
- 📝 Did the Buddha really say that "life is suffering"?
- 📝 Why do Buddhists believe that the Buddha was enlightened, despite that he claimed it himself?
- 📝 How do Buddhists justify or explain that monks and/or temples amass and use wealth?
- 📝 If Buddhism is about moderation, then why is it that you can attain nirvana only after renouncing worldly possessions?
- 📝 What do secular Buddhists say about Nirvana?
- 📝 Where does it say Siddhartha Gautama mastered all types of meditation?
- 📝 Did Buddha ever say that educated people would be a problem?
- 📝 What do Buddhists religious texts say about the environment?
- 📝 Does any sect claim that only Shakyamuni will ever achieve great nirvana
- 📝 If someone says publicly that he has achieved nirvana , can it be true?
- 📝 Tatramajjhattatā • Equanimity • In the middle of all that
- 📝 When the Pali suttas say that it is not the "same" thing that is born and dies what do they mean?
- 📝 Buddhists advise against "me and mine" does that include times?
- 📝 Do Buddhists claim that if there was a self it could not be annihilated?
- 📝 Does enlightenment in all teachings amount to a progressively deeper realisation that I am already enlightened?
- 📝 Where did the Buddha say that Teachings that don't contain the Noble Eightfold Path cannot lead to Enlightenment?
- 📝 Do the scholastic sects say that chan practice is something separate from themselves?
- 📝 Does any buddhist school, extant or otherwise, say that there is no svabhava what-so-ever?
- 📝 Where does it say that venerable Moggallana got lost in space?
- 📝 As a Buddhist, is it right to say that anything about Buddhism is right?
- 📝 Is it correct to say that true compassion (not trying to be) only manifest when there is wisdom?
- 📝 Nirvana is the ground layer underneath them all