05. Give proof to substantiate that Theravada totally rejects the transcendental elucidation of Nibbana.

Concerning the word nibbana is borrowed from the pre-Buddhist literature, there is no mention of this term in either the Veda or Upanishad. There is no source which carried the Nirvana in the Pre-Buddhist literature. Therefore, We can safely suggest that the word nibbana was a Buddhistic term.

The person who has realized nibbana is called nibbata, the cool person. The nature of the person who has realized the nibbana is indicated in the term sitibhuta, the person who has become cool. The individual has three burning. Those are called ragaggi, dosaggi and mohaggi, fire of desire, fire of hatred and fire of ignorance become extinguished. This is why , The final goal of Buddhism is called nibbana.

In the Ratana sutta of the suttanipata, the Buddha said that the wise men extinguished as the fire, as the lamp extinguishes after death, “nibbanti dhira yatha yam padipo. Atthi yatha vegena kicco attam phaleti naupeti sakam, in the flame goes on there is no identification of the person who realizes the nibbana.

The term nirodha, cessation, indicates the nature of nibbana more and better than the term, nibbana itself. Everything in which the individual identifies ceases with the realization of nibbana. This is why, it is called nirodha. For the realization of nibbin, one must have at least three super knowledge , pubbenivasa, dibbacakkhu and asavakkhaya. These are the clairvoyance that is pubbenivasa, dibbacakkhu and the knowledge of the destruction of defiling impulses that is called asavakkhaya. This knowledge is not nibbana. These are the knowledge through which one can experience. This knowledge themselves are not the experience of nibbana.

These wrong views of nibbana now exist in the Theravada tradition itself. The nibbana is a topic which is comprehensively discussed in the Milinda panhâ, king Milinda asked various questions about nibbana from the Venerable Nāgasena. He was not very careful to say that it should be identical with a metaphysical entity, transcendental reality, Venerable Nāgasena declares that Venerable Buddhaghosa in the Visuddhimagga, He says that it is an entity. It is an existence of a difference nature. It is a mystic experience.

These is another discourse which is very useful our discussion. That is called Nibbānadhatu Sutta of the Itthivuttaka Pāli. Accordingly, there are two elements of nibbāna. One is upādisesa nibbanadhātu, the other is anupadisesa nibbānadhātu. The first is understood as the as the nibbānic experience of the living Arahabnt. The second is understood as the nibbanic experience of arahant after death. That is the nature arahant. Nibbanic experience this sense organs are function. This is called upadisesa nibbanadhatu. Sometime the arahant is that avoiding these pleasant and unpleasant through sense experience, I should live in the total bliss of nibbana without any kind of inter fear, obstruction.

There is no feeling and perception there is no taking of objects through the senses. This is called anupadisesa nibbanadhatu. So, both upadisesa ans anupadisesa elements are experienced by living arahant. It is wrong to say that one experienced by living arahant and the other is by death arahant.

(Word-509 created by Ven.vilasa)