D. Various
Kinds of Nirvana
The Yogachara school of Buddhism speaks of four kinds of nirvana:
nirvana of pure original nature, nirvana with remainder, nirvana
without remainder, and nirvana of non-abiding.
The nirvana of pure original nature is the seeing of dharmakaya
(body of truth), the true nature of all phenomena. While delusion
may temporarily cloud our seeing the dharmakaya, its integrity is
never compromised. Dharmakaya has countless wondrous aspects and
encompasses all things. It is not the same as all dharmas, yet it
is no different. Dharmakaya is our pure, original nature. If we
look inside of ourselves, we all can see dharmakaya.
Nirvana with remainder is attained when one is still alive. In this
case, the word remainder refers to the effects of karma. The term
“with remainder” means that while no new karma is being created,
the effects of past karma have not been entirely extinguished.
Because of the presence of the physical body, one still feels the
various effects of hunger, temperature, sickness, and aging. In
nirvana with remainder, one still has to eat when hungry or rest
when tired. Even though the body continues to go through sickness,
old age, and death, the mind is no longer enslaved by these
processes. Regardless of one's circumstances, one can still go on
with life in a calm, collected way. This is what is meant by
nirvana with remainder. Even today, there are some living examples
of people who have attained this kind of nirvana. Mahakasyapa, one
of the Buddha's great disciples, is such an example. From the time
when the Buddha was alive some twenty-five hundred years ago,
Mahakasyapa is said to be still alive in this world today.
According to one of the sutras that prophesized the coming of
Maitreya, the Buddha had instructed Mahakasyapa to remain in this
world and be the custodian of his robes and alms bowl until the
time Maitreya Bodhisattva becomes the next buddha of this world
some 67 billion years from now. Pindola, the Long-Brow Arhat, is
another example of one who has attained nirvana with remainder. The
Buddha has also asked him to stay on in this world to teach the
Dharma to sentient beings after his own passing. In my readings, I
have come across three references to him making an appearance to
help the people of this world.
The state of nirvana without remainder, or parinirvana, is reached
when all effects of karma are completely worked out, and the
physical body is nothing but a thing of the past. Without the
creation of new karma, there is no coming together of the five
aggregates and no new birth results. In this state, one's true
nature is “dissolved” in all phenomena and becomes one with the
universe. Just as sugar dissolves in water without a trace, its
presence, though not visible, is indisputable. This total harmony
is summed up in the saying, “Time from antiquity to the present is
nothing apart from the present thought. The boundless land that
separates you and me is nothing more than the tip of a down
feather.”
In the Agamas, there is a story about a Brahmacari with the divine
eye. He could look at someone and see the person's past lives. When
he looked at a heap of human bones, he could accurately surmise who
the person was and when the person died. One day, the Buddha
pointed to a heap of human bones and asked him if he knew whom they
belonged to. He looked intently at the bones, but had no clue whose
they were. The Buddha then explained to the Brahmacari, “That
person has entered nirvana. His being is now beyond time and space.
He is free of life and death. He is now one with phenomenon and
noumenon. He now spans all ten directions and pervades all dharma
realms. This is why you cannot discern who he was.” From this, we
can see that one who has attained nirvana without remainder is
totally free of the burdens of a physical body.
Nirvana of non-abiding is also known as mahanirvana or
anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Of those who have attained mahanirvana,
the sutras say, “Out of wisdom, one is no longer attached to life
and death. Out of compassion, one is no longer attached to
nirvana.” They see through the emptiness of the cycle of rebirth
and continually reappear in this world to guide sentient beings
through the sea of suffering. They have everything, yet they do not
call anything their own. They are always active helping sentient
beings, yet they are always at peace. They are not attached to any
one way and can skillfully employ all means.
From the discussion of these various kinds of nirvana, we can see
that one does not have to wait until the end of one's life to enter
nirvana. When Prince Siddhartha became a fully enlightened buddha
under the bodhi tree, he entered the realm of nirvana with
remainder. When the Buddha passed away at the age of eighty between
two sala trees, he entered nirvana without remainder. During the
forty plus years when the Buddha traveled far and wide to teach the
Dharma to all those with a willing ear, he lived a life free of
attachment. This kind of life that is purposeful yet without
fixation on purpose is free and at ease. This is the realm of
nirvana of non-abiding.
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