The Two Nirvanas

Pali: nibbana,

For Sanskrit: atman read Pali: atta

Theodore Stcherbatsky’s book ‘The conception of Buddhist Nirvana’ is still the best work on this topic. However, Stcherbatsky was an academic and his literary archaeology purely theoretical, hence did not have to put his life on the line. His book lacks serious modern criticism of the Nirvana concept.

For the young idealist intending to dedicate his or her life to attaining the goal of the Buddhist Path, rather than merely enjoying the perks of the cushy job of a popular Buddhist priest running a meditation centre for beginners, understanding that the Buddhist path is a lonely and brutally tough one, fraught with uncertainty, at least further along the way, is absolutely necessary. Fearlessness and high intelligence are required to succeed (i.e. as Gautama, the Tathagata, pointed out). More importantly, deciding the meaning, if any, of nirvana (nibbana) is vital if he (or she) is not to go astray. Unless a clear understanding of the goal of the Buddhist Path (for bhikkus, not for the laity) is attained, there is little hope of reaching (i.e. realizing) the goal. Having myself been a bhikku and seen many, many (Western) bhikkus and bhikkunis fail and give up, amidst sheer awful suffering (and not a few suicides), clear understanding of the goal, i.e. of the two nirvanas is sine qua non.