The beauty of dhamma is the exposition that everything we understand to be as an ability is actually a hindrance and a cause of suffering.
Please explain, i do not understand.
I was always under the impression that Mahayana parinirvana was the same as Theravada parinibbāna, and so that’s why they have the Bodhisattva ideal, so that you vow not to attain parinibbāna. Could you elaborate on their wrong view?
This is a misunderstanding that is quite widespread. The Bodhisattva does not make a vow not to attain Buddhahood. In fact, it is exactly the opposite. The Bodhisattva makes an altruistic vow to become a Buddha as fast as possible to relieve the suffering of sentient beings. It makes no sense whatsoever to delay becoming a Buddha as a Buddha is the most qualified to actually help sentient beings. Again, this is a widespread misunderstanding.
As for how Theravada posits parinibbāna versus Mahayana parinirvana that is a complicated issue. Their are disputes within Theravada regarding what parinibbāna is. See the myriad and near endless threads on this subject about what nibbāna is from Theravada practitioners with sometimes heated debates. The same can be said of Mahayana parinirvana. In fact, you can find many of the same debates.
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Maybe there really isn’t an actual difference between Mahayana and Theravada, but it is in how we perceive the Buddha’s Teaching.
The Theravada Teaching of being a refuge unto oneself is a powerful one, for example. Much Dhammic progress can be made when one uses critical thinking and Bodhi practices, and just plain Compassion towards others, because being a good person can really help others grow. Whomever it may be that you are interacting with, just being kind to them may change their entire life. So I think the greatest matter of fact is kindness, and that is how Buddhism will prosper well into the age and well into the cosmos.
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I’d like to point out that there’s a profound and deeply ingrained misunderstanding of the term ‘nirvana’ throughout the Chinese-speaking world. In Chinese, the word that often follows ‘nirvana’ is ‘rebirth.’ They use the phrase ‘nirvana rebirth’ to describe the phoenix from Western mythology.
Which word would that be? 凤凰 (chinese pheonix) doesn’t seem to be it. the other term for western pheonix I found on wiki is 不死鸟. Doesn’t fit the bill. Just not dying bird.
The phrase will be “涅槃重生” used in chinese to describe the rebirth of “不死鳥”
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Wow, I have to agree with you more then, that it’s harder to get the core of the dhamma if one is just sticking to the Chinese, and most likely to be exposed to Mahāyāna ideas only. Wow. This made it into the cultural aspect of the language.
梵文 Nirvana（涅槃）的原意是“被吹去、被消去”。好象一盞油燈的“油”，燒盡後，燈火便也熄滅、消失了。佛教修行人，天天苦修（包括思想與身體兩方面），到最後，死期來到（佛教忌用死字），便離世去“涅槃”了。用我們的話來説（不信佛教者），所謂涅槃，即是指人“死了”而言。佛教用涅槃來代替死字。對此，中英佛學辭典第三二八頁“涅槃”項中，也有相同的解釋，涅槃即是死。Nirvana、“blown out, gone out, put out, extinguished”;“liberated from existence”; “dead, deceased, defunct”。最後的“dead, deceased, defunct”，都是指“死亡”。小乘的涅槃，是灰身滅智，釋迦肉身已死，不復存在。但大乘的涅槃卻變成“常樂我淨”，把原來的“涅槃靜寂”變得熱鬧非凡了！
From ChatGPT translation:
In Sanskrit, Nirvana (涅槃) originally means “blown out, extinguished.” It is like the “oil” of an oil lamp: once the oil is burnt out, the flame is extinguished and disappears. Buddhist practitioners engage in rigorous daily practice (including both mental and physical aspects), and eventually, when the time of death arrives (Buddhism avoids using the word “death”), they leave this world and enter “Nirvana.” In our terms (non-Buddhists), what is called Nirvana actually refers to “death.” Buddhism uses Nirvana as a substitute for the word death. In this regard, the same explanation can be found in the entry for “Nirvana” on page 328 of the Chinese-English Buddhist Dictionary, where Nirvana is equated with death. Nirvana, “blown out, gone out, put out, extinguished”; “liberated from existence”; “dead, deceased, defunct.” The final “dead, deceased, defunct” all refer to “death.” In Theravada Buddhism, Nirvana means the annihilation of the body and mind; Shakyamuni’s physical body is dead and no longer exists. However, in Mahayana Buddhism, Nirvana has been transformed into “eternity, bliss, true self, purity,” turning the original “tranquil Nirvana” into something bustling and lively!
Yes, that’s my point.
But, as you said there are more and more theravada content have been translated into chinese (like some of Ajahn Brahm’s books), hope it will make this situation better.
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