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Art & Science of Meditation
Philosophy and Religion
positive means of describing this ultimate, and emptiness is also a dependent concept meaning absence of divisive selves which own their existence to craving.
The Buddha categorically refused to pinpoint what exactly nirvana entailed or what happens to an enlightended soul after death. As it is impossible to conceive the concept of emptiness, the Buddha never attempted to explain it and left it open to interpretation. It has been explained that nirvana is extinguishing all objects and thoughts into one singular undivided consciousness underlying everything. That consciousness is undifferentiated, unqualified and one without a second. It is closer to the vedantic concept of Brahmin.
The greatest contribution of the Buddha lies in giving us a probing path without any fixed belief system associated with religions. Spirituality concerns direct experience of realisation over and above any belief system. Hence the Buddha steered a middle course between absolute denial and positive affirmation. He wanted us to develop absolute awareness of the entire cosmos and empathetic compassion for all sentient beings. The rest being silence, is required to be experienced in silence.
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