The mind of an Arahant is the mind that doesn’t have kilesa, doesn’t take anymore rebirth

Question: What happen to the citta of an Arahant after he or she Parinibbāna?

Than Ajahn:  The citta of an Arahant and the citta of the ordinary beings are the same. The only difference is that the citta of an Arahant is pure, it has no defilements, it has no lobha, dosa or moha, it has no cravings: no kāma-taṇhā, bhava-taṇhā, and vibhava-taṇhā. That’s the only difference. The mind of an Arahant is the mind that doesn’t have kilesa, doesn’t take anymore rebirth, that’s all. The mind of ordinary people still have defilements, greed, cravings, and they keep on taking rebirths after rebirths.

Question: What is the difference between Nibbāna and Parinibbāna?

Than Ajahn:  Nibbāna means the state of mind that is pure, free from defilements, free from love, hate and delusion, free from cravings – craving from sensual pleasures, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming. Nibbāna is a purify mind, a state of mind that can happen when you are alive. The Buddha attained the state of Nibbāna under the Bodhi tree when he was 35 years old. When the Buddha died, instead of using the term death, we use the term parinibbāna. It means he had given up his physical body. His mind is now separated from the body.

A Nibbāna mind that has no physical body is called parinibbāna. If you meditate and if you can get rid of all your desires, your mind becomes pure, which means your mind has reached nibbāna but you still have physical body. But the term parinibbāna is normally only used for the Buddha or the noble disciples to indicate that he died. In Asia, when someone dies, people have different term for it. If one is a King, when he died, people didn’t say that the King has died, but people said that the King has gone to heaven. This is a terminology to indicate one person’s death. If a Buddha or an Arahant dies, people said he is parinibbāna.

By Ajaan Suchart Abhijāto