Parinibbana can be experienced in this life!

• An Eternal Now

  30 Dec 12, 19:33

  
  

  What is Nirvana?

  
  

  The Buddha described two elements of Nibbana. The Nibbana element with residue remaining is the destruction of lust, hatred, and delusion attained by a Noble One (arahant), with the residue itself being a reference to "his five sense faculties remain unimpaired, by which he still experiences what is agreeable and disagreeable and feels pleasure and plain". The Nibbana element without residue remaining is that which “all that is felt, not being delighted, will become cool right here” (Iti 44). The common interpretation is that the first Nibbana element is attained when the Arahant/Noble One is still alive, and the latter comes in the passing away of the Noble One.

  
  

  For a long time I thought along this line, but as Geoff mentions, there is an alternative interpretation:

  
  

  
  

  Geoff:
  
  To paraphrase Ven. ÑÄ�ṇananda, it's not that an arahant gets half of nibbÄ�na upon awakening, and the other half when s/he dies. Upon awakening they have already "gone out," they are "cool," and they have reached "the end." Even parinibbÄ�na can be used to refer to a living arahant.
  
  The dhamma isn't about some sort of thanatos desire to attain completion in the grave. It's about realizing "the end" here and now.

  
  
  Geoff:

  retrofuturist wrote:some idea as to how consciousness might "function" ... i.e. without sankhara as its foundation
  

  
  I think that there are numerous sutta references to the awakened mind which explain what is not the foundation of an arahant's experience. Firstly, by way of training: The seen is merely the seen (diá¹­á¹­hamatta). The heard is merely the heard (sutamatta). The sensed is merely the sensed (mutamatta). The known is merely the known (viññÄ�tamatta). Ud 1.10 BÄ�hiya Sutta:

  ‘The seen will be merely the seen, the heard will be merely the heard, the sensed will be merely the sensed, the known will be merely the known.’ This is how you should train, BÄ�hiya.
  
  When, B�hiya, for you the seen will be merely the seen, the heard will be merely the heard, the sensed will be merely the sensed, the known will be merely the known, then B�hiya, you will not be that. When, B�hiya, you are not that, then B�hiya, you will not be there. When, B�hiya, you are not there, then B�hiya, you will be neither here nor beyond nor between-the-two. Just this is the end of unsatisfactoriness.
  

  
  Secondly, the absence of specific fabrication (abhisaá¹…kharoti) or volitional intention (abhisañcetayati) towards either existence or non-existence. MN 140 DhÄ�tuvibhaá¹…ga Sutta:

  One does not form any specific fabrication or volitional intention towards either existence or non-existence. Not forming any specific fabrication or volitional intention towards either existence or non-existence, he does not cling to anything in this world. Not clinging, he is not excited. Unexcited, he personally attains complete nibbÄ�na. He discerns that, ‘Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, done is what had to be done, there is nothing further here.’
  

  
  Cf. Ven. ÑÄ�ṇananda, NibbÄ�na Sermon 04:

  What is called the cessation of consciousness has a deeper sense here. It means the cessation of the specifically prepared consciousness, abhisaá¹…khata viññÄ�ṇa. An arahant's experience of the cessation of consciousness is at the same time the experience of the cessation of name-and-form.
  

  
  And Nibb�na Sermon 06:

  The more one sees preparations (saṅkh�ras) as preparations, ignorance is dispelled, and the more one dispels ignorance, the preparations lose their significance as preparations. Then one sees the nature of preparations with wisdom as signless, desireless, and void. So much so that, in effect, preparations cease to be preparations.... The relation of saṅkh�ras to ignorance is somewhat similar to the relation a drama has to its back-stage preparations. It seems, then, that from the standpoint of Dhamma the entire saṃs�ra is a product of specifically prepared intentions, even like the drama with its back-stage preparations....
  
  The phrase saá¹…khataṃ paá¹­iccasamuppannaṃ (e.g. M III 299), 'prepared and dependently arisen', suggests that the prepared nature is also due to that contact. What may be called abhisaá¹…khata viññÄ�ṇa (S III 58), 'specifically prepared consciousness', is that sort of consciousness which gets attached to name-and-form. When one sees a film show, one interprets a scene appearing on the screen according to one's likes and dislikes. It becomes a thing of experience for him. Similarly, by imagining a self in name-and-form, consciousness gets attached to it. It is such a consciousness, which is established on name-and-form, that can be called abhisaá¹…khata viññÄ�ṇa. Then could there be also a consciousness which does not reflect a name-and-form? Yes, there could be. That is what is known as anidassana viññÄ�ṇa, or 'non-manifestative consciousness'.
  

  
  And thirdly, consciousness which is unestablished (appatiá¹­á¹­ha viññÄ�ṇa). SN 22.53 Upaya Sutta:

  When that consciousness is unestablished, not increasing, not concocting, it is liberated. Being liberated, it is steady. Being steady, it is content. Being content, he is not excited. Unexcited, he personally attains complete nibbÄ�na. He discerns that, ‘Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, done is what had to be done, there is nothing further here.’
  

  
  As for the qualm that this last passage refers to the death of an arahant, the phrase: "Unexcited, he personally attains complete nibb�na. He discerns that, 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, done is what had to be done, there is nothing further here,'" is the standard paricope referring to the time of awakening, i.e. a statement of the attainment of arahant fruition (e.g. DN 15, MN 105, etc.), and not the time of death of an arahant.
  
  The above passages referring to the cognition of an arahant are succinctly presented in AN 4.24 K�ḷak�r�ma Sutta:

  Thus, monks, the Tath�gata does not conceive an [object] seen when seeing what is to be seen. He does not conceive an unseen. He does not conceive a to-be-seen. He does not conceive a seer.
  
  He does not conceive an [object] heard when hearing what is to be heard. He does not conceive an unheard. He does not conceive a to-be-heard. He does not conceive a hearer.
  
  He does not conceive an [object] sensed when sensing what is to be sensed. He does not conceive an unsensed. He does not conceive a to-be-sensed. He does not conceive a senser.
  
  He does not conceive an [object] known when knowing what is to be known. He does not conceive an unknown. He does not conceive a to-be-known. He does not conceive a knower.
  

  
  Ven. ÑÄ�ṇananda considered the KÄ�ḷakÄ�rÄ�ma Sutta important enough to write a text on it.
  
  All the best,
  
  Geoff

• An Eternal Now

  30 Dec 12, 19:46

  I sincerely hope everyone experiences the end of the world in this lifetime.
  
  "I tell you, friend, that it is not possible by traveling in space to reach the end of the world where there is no birth, aging and death. But at the same time, I tell you that there is no making an end of suffering without reaching the end of the world. The world, the beginning of the world, the end of the world, and the way leading to the end of the world is all within this fathom-long body, with its perception & conception." -AN 4.45
  
  "There is, bhikkhus, that base or sphere where there is no Earth, no Water, no Fire, no Air ; no base consisting of the infinity of space, no base consisting of the infinity of consciousness, no base consisting of nothingness, no base consisting of neither-perception-nor-non-perception ; neither this world nor another world nor both ; neither Sun nor Moon. Here, bhikkhus, I say there is no coming, no going, no staying, no decreasing, no uprising. Not fixed, not movable, it has no support. Just this is the end of suffering."
  The Udâna & the Itivuttaka, 102.

• An Eternal Now

  31 Dec 12, 01:32

  Interesting writings by Ven Nanananda on Nibbana: http://www.beyondthenet.net/calm/clm_main1.asp