The Buddha sought salvation in the extinction of the self; but if there is no self, what is there to be saved? Nirvana is the end of suffering; but this promises no more than what we all achieve, usually without too much effort, in the course of nature. Death brings to everyone the peace the Buddha promised after lifetimes of striving. The Buddha sought release from the round of rebirth. E. M. Cioran writes: The search for deliverance is justified only if we believe in transmigration, in the indefinite vagabondage of the self, and if we aspire to put an end to it. But for those of us who do
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