Buddhist Beliefs about Life and Death » Nibbana and the Noble Eightfold Path

Liberation and nibbana

In What Is Life For? Meaning, Purpose, Salvation and Liberation, you met liberation: being set free from something that holds us back. In Samsara, Kamma and Rebirth in Buddhism, you met samsara, the endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth, and in The Four Noble Truths: Dukkha and Tanha you learned that it is full of dukkha, suffering and dissatisfaction. For Buddhists, liberation means escape from that cycle. The name for this freedom is nibbana.

The word is linked to the idea of a fire going out. Think of a candle flame that is blown out when there is nothing left to feed it. Buddhists teach that three fires burn in the mind: greed, hatred and ignorance. Nibbana is the "blowing out" of those fires. When they die down, nothing is left to cause craving, so the causes of dukkha stop.

Key terms:

• Nibbana (recap from Buddhism: Impermanence, Compassion and Caring for the World): the "blowing out" of greed, hatred and ignorance; the end of dukkha and of rebirth. It is the Pali word for what Sanskrit calls nirvana.
• Noble Eightfold Path: the eight parts of the path that the Buddha taught as the way to end dukkha.
• Sila: ethics, or good conduct.
• Samadhi: meditation, a calm and focused mind.
• Dhammapada: a much-loved collection of the Buddha's sayings.
• Arhat: in Theravada Buddhism, a person who has reached nibbana.

What nibbana means

Nibbana has several meanings, and Buddhists often say it is hard to put into words. Four main ideas are worth knowing.

Buddhists believe a person can reach nibbana while still alive. The Buddha is said to have done this at his enlightenment, then lived and taught for many years. Such a person has put out greed, hatred and ignorance but still has a body. Buddhists believe that when this person dies, there is final nibbana and no more rebirth. In Theravada Buddhism a person who reaches nibbana is called an arhat. Mahayana Buddhists hold up the bodhisattva, who delays final release to help others. These are different views of the goal. You will study them fully in The Sangha: Bhikkhus, Bhikkhunis and Bodhisattvas.

The Noble Eightfold Path

The fourth Noble Truth says there is a way to end dukkha. It is the Noble Eightfold Path, sometimes called the Middle Way, as you saw in Why People Follow the Buddha's Path, or Do Not. Think of it as a training programme for the whole person: what you think, what you do and what your mind is like. Its eight parts fall into three groups.

The parts support one another. Wisdom shows you why greed and hatred cause suffering. Ethics stops you feeding them through what you say and do. Meditation calms the mind so that wisdom can grow deeper. Buddhists do not usually treat it as eight steps taken one after another. It is more like a rope of eight strands, with each strand strengthening the others. The Dhammapada praises the Eightfold Path as the best of paths. Meditation in practice is covered in Buddhist Worship and Meditation.

The Three Refuges

To "take refuge" means to look to something for guidance and safety. Buddhists use the Three Refuges (also called the Three Jewels):

• The Buddha: the teacher who found the path and showed it to others.
• The Dhamma: his teaching, the truth about how things are and the way to freedom.
• The Sangha: the Buddhist community, especially those who follow the path.

The spec words them as the Buddha, the Dhammapada and the sangha. The usual wording is the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha, and the Dhammapada is the collection of his sayings that puts the Dhamma into short verses. Many Buddhists recite the Refuges daily and in ceremonies, in the words "I go to the Buddha for refuge", and the same for the Dhamma and the Sangha.

Does life have meaning only for religious people?

For Buddhists the purpose of life is to follow the path, grow in wisdom and kindness, and move towards nibbana. Some Buddhists see this as the true purpose of existence. Others stress that the path is about how we live now, so even people who never reach nibbana benefit from it. Many Buddhists also say that wisdom and kindness are not owned by Buddhism. A non-Buddhist who lives honestly and caringly is following much of the Eightfold Path, even if they never use the name. Some secular Buddhists (who follow the teaching without belief in rebirth) use the Buddha's teaching for a calmer, kinder life in daily life. Other Buddhists answer that without the aim of nibbana, life will always be tied to dukkha.

Exam-style question

Paper 1 style. Parts (a) and (b) test AO1. Parts (c) and (d) test AO1 and AO2.

(a) Identify three parts of the Noble Eightfold Path. [3 marks]

(b) Choose one religion. Outline two beliefs about liberation in this religion. [4 marks]

(c) Choose one religion. Explain why followers of this religion try to reach liberation. [6 marks]

(d) 'Only religious people can find a purpose in life.' Evaluate this statement, showing you have considered different points of view. In your answer you should refer to at least one religion. [12 marks]