The following article is about the term Nirvana in the context
of Buddhism. See Nirvana (disambiguation) for other meanings.
Nirvana (Sanskrit -- Pali: Nibbana -- "beyond all that can be
described or defined") is the "goal" of Buddhism. In Chinese
Buddhist scriptures, the word is transliterated as Nie4 Pan2
(涅槃). Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha described Buddhism as a raft
which, after floating across a river, will reach nirvana. As a
term, it denotes the extinguishing or "blowing out" of a fire or
candle flame and carries the connotations of stilling, cooling,
and peace. This state is in opposition of suffering in which all
greed, aversion, delusion, ignorance, craving and ego-centered
consciousness are extinguished. Often considered ineffable,
Nirvana may be denoted as a continuity of void processes.
According to the physics taught at the time of the Buddha, a
burning fire seizes or adheres to its fuel; when extinguished,
it is unbound To Brahmin and Indian thought during the time of
Gautama Buddha, when a fi