The Pali Text Society's Pali-English Dictionary

the B. faith. Many are the pet names, the poetic epithets, bestowed upon it, each of them -- for they are not
synonyms -- emphasising one or other phase of this many -- sided conception -- the harbour of refuge, the
cool cave, the island amidst the floods, the place of bliss, emancipation, liberation, safety, the supreme, the
transcendental, the uncreated, the tranquil, the home of ease, the calm, the end of suffering, the medicine
for all evil, the unshaken, the ambrosia, the immaterial, the imperishable, the abiding, the further shore, the
unending, the bliss of effort, the supreme joy, the ineffable, the detachment, the holy city, and many others.
Perhaps the most frequent in the B. texts is Arahantship, 2 the state of him who is worthy 3; and the one
exclusively used in Europe is Nirvana, the 2 dying out, 3 that is, the dying out in the heart of the fell fire of
the three cardinal sins -- sensuality, ill -- will, and stupidity (Sa'yutta iv.251, 261)," (Early Buddhism pp.
72, 73.) And Heiler says (p. 42 l. c.): "Nirv!na is, although it might sound a paradox, in spite of all
conceptional negativity nothing but 2 eternal salvation, 3 after which the heart of the religious yearns on the
whole earth." The current simile is that of fire, the consuming fire of passion (r!g -- aggi), of craving for
rebirth, which has to be extinguished, if a man is to attain a condition of indifference towards everything
worldly, and which in the end, in its own good time, may lead to freedom from
-- 363 --
rebirth altogether, to certain and final extinction (parinibb!na). -- Fire may be put out by water, or may go
out of itself from lack of fuel. The ethical state called Nibb!na can only rise from within. It is therefore in
the older texts compared to the fire going out, rather than to the fire being put out. The latter point of view,
though the word nibb!na is not used, occurs in one or two passages in later books. See J i.212; Miln 346,
410; SnA 28; Sdhp 584. For the older view see M i.487 (aggi an!h!ro nibbuto, a fire gone out through lack
of fuel); Sn 1094 (akiñcana' an!d!na' eta' d"pa' an!para' Nibb!na' iti); S i.236 (attada*.esu nibbuto
s!d!nesu an!d!no); S ii.85 (aggikkhandho purimassa up!d!nassa pariy!d!n! aññassa ca anup!h!r! an!h!ro
nibb!yeyya, as a fire would go out, bereft of food, because the former supply being finished no additional
supply is forthcoming); sa -- up!d!no dev!na' indo na parinibb!yati, the king of the gods does not escape
rebirth so long as he has within him any grasping S iv.102; p!rag( sabbadhamm!na' anup!d!ya nibbuto A
i.162; p!ragato jh!y" anup˚ nibbuto, a philosopher, freed, without any cause, source, of rebirth A iv.290
(etc., see nibbuta). d!vaggi -- nibb!na' the going out of the jungle fire J i.212; aggi nibb!yeyya, should the
fire go out M i.487; aggikkhandho nibbuto hoti the great fire has died out Miln 304; nibbuto gin" my fire is
out Sn 19. The result of quenching the fire (going out) is coolness (s"ta); and one who has attained the state
of coolness is s"tibh(ta. s"tibh(to 'smi nibbuto Vin i.8; Pv i.87; s"tibh(to nir(padhi, cooled, with no more
fuel (to produce heat) Vin ii.156; A i.138; nicch!to nibbuto s"tibh(to (cp. nicch!ta) A ii.208; v.65.
anup!d!n! d"pacci viya nibbut! gone out like the flame of a lamp without supply of fuel ThA 154 (Ap.
153). -- nibbanti dh"r! yath' âya' pad"po the Wise go out like the flame of this lamp Sn 235. This refers to
the pulling out of the wick or to lack of oil, not to a blowing out; cp. va&&i' pa&icca telapad"po j!leyya S
ii.86; Th 2, 116 (pad"pass' eva nibb!na' vimokkho ahu cetaso). The pulling out of the wick is expressed by
va&&i' okassay!mi (=d"pava&&i' !ka..hemi ThA 117) cp. on this passage Pischel, Leben & Lehre des
Buddha 71; Mrs. Rh. Davids, Buddhism 176; Neumann, Lieder 298). pajjotass' eva nibb!na' like the going
out of a lamp S i.159#. B. Since rebirth is the result of wrong desire (k!ma, kilesa, !sava, r!ga etc.), the
dying out of that desire leads to freedom & salvation from rebirth and its cause or substratum. Here
references should be given to: (1) the fuel in ethical sense (cp. A 1: aggi); (2) the aims to be accomplished
(for instance, coolness=peace); (3) the seat of its realisation (the heart); (4) the means of achievement (the
Path); (5) the obstacles to be removed. -- 1. Fuel= cause of rebirth & suffering: !s!va (intoxications).
kh"*!sav! jutimanto to loke parinibbut! the wise who are rid of all intoxications are in this world the
thoroughly free S v.29; s!vak! !sav!na' khay! viharanti A iv.83; kodha' pahatv!na parinibbi'su an!sav!
(are completely cooled) A iv.98; !savakh"*o danto parinibbuto Sn 370; sagga' sugatino yanti parinibbanti
an!sav! those of happy fate go to heaven, but those not intoxicated die out Dh 126; nibb!na' adhimutt!na'
atthangacchanti !sav! Dh 226; !sav!na' khay! bhikkhu nicch!to parinibbuto It 49; vimutti -- kusuma --
sañchanno parinibbissati an!savo Th 1, 100. -- k!m! (cravings) nikk!mo nibbano N!go Sn 1131. -- kilesa --
(nibb!na) vice (only in certain commentaries). kilesa -- nibb!nass' âpi anup!d! parinibb!nass' âpi santike
DhA i.286; up!d!na' abh!vena anup!diyitv! kilesa -- nibb!nena nibbut! DhA iv.194. -- nibbid!
(disenchantment). Nibb!na' ekanta -- nibbid!ya vir!g!ya etc. sa'vattati S ii.223; nibbijjha sabbaso k!me
sikkhe nibb!na' attano Sn 940. -- r!ga vir!go nirodho nibb!na' S i.136#; desento viraja' dhamma'
nibb!na' akutobhayan S i.192; yo r!gakkhayo (dosa˚ . . . moha˚ . . .): ida' vuccati nibb!na' S iv.251, &