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Possible ancient meanings of nirvana
For nir (or
nis) read: not (or no). 1. For vána,
derived from (root word) ván read: 1.
like, love; wish, desire; gain, procure; conquer, win; possess;
prepare; Nirvana derived from this
root meaning of ván can mean: elimination of (i.e. no) like, love; wish,
desire; gain, procure; conquer, win; possess; prepare. The general meaning of
this nirvana version is ‘given’ as ‘the elimination of desire, craving,
thirst and so on’ (all of which create bondage). 2.
tree; forest; thicket, cluster, group; quantity; wood; Nirvana derived from this
root meaning of ván means: elimination of (i.e. no) tree; forest; thicket,
cluster, group; quantity; wood. The general meaning of this nirvana version
is ‘given’ (by Buddhist priests) as the elimination of ignorance or confusion
(and which creates bondage). 2. For vâna,
derived from (root word) vâ read:
1.
blow (of wind); emit (an odour), be wafted or diffused
Nirvana derived from this (root word) vâ is
generally taken (i.e. by Buddhist priests) to mean: extinguished, gone out,
released from bondage (i.e. as in moksha, Pali: vimokkha). This
is the most abstract version of nirvana and, by putting the emphasis on nir, appears to mean ‘no’ (i.e. quit, end,
eliminate, empty (of) whatever) actual content.
2. weave
Nirvana derived from the (root word) vâ is generally taken (i.e. by
Buddhist priests) to mean: not connected, un-clustered, not intermingled
(hence free). 3.
dry
Take your pick! The extraordinary ambiguity
of the word nirvana, and which served – and still serves – as a basic premise
(i.e. goal) of Buddhist everyday reality and its elimination theory, should
really make one wonder why the Buddha did not apply ‘right thinking’ and
define the term clearly. In short,
and with a little bit of lateral thinking, the important part of the word
nirvana does not appear to be the highly ambiguous term vana but nir, meaning ‘not’ or ‘no’ (or un-), which by
extension came to mean nothing, i.e. empty of (sunyata) (abiding)
thingness, the latter notion becoming synonymous with anatman or
(Pali) anatta. The
Buddha’s description of nirvana
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