Nirvana Poem by ATUL CHANDRA SARKAR

The wise made quest,
What is this called Nirvana?
Quoth one of the wisest,
It is the only Eternal Calm1!
Nirvana is not spoused,
Nirvana is not suppressed,
Nirvana is not produced,
Nirvana is the Serene Rest.
No leaves, no breeze,
No breath, no motion,
Nirvana is permanently quitting,
The path of transmigration.
No stir, no sound,
No form, no dust,
Nirvana, a flame snuffed,
A cessation of gust.
From the stench of karmas,
A state altogether free,
Free from the three flares,
Of lust, malice and folly.
From the attributes of things,
Origin, decay and death,
From the sylvan2 of skandhas,
Length, depth and breadth.
As cool water it assuages,
The fever of every vice,
Allays craving after matter,
And a life of spice.
As food, it is strength,
The support of life,
The pearly sheen of holiness,
Conquest of hunger's strife.
As limitless azure unborn,
Nor grows old nor dies,
Invincible, unobstructed,
As wishing gem satisfies.
As red sandal wood3
It is hard to attain,
Empty of evil dispositions,
As of corpses a main4.
As a mountain peak, immovable,
Exalted in altitude,
Devoid of evil saplings,
Pregnant with beatitude.
Realize inexplicable Nirvana,
It is not this, not this,
Epithets, metaphors, language fails,
Nirvana Tranquil, Nirvana Bliss!
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Metaphors at 1,2,3 and 4 are borrowed from 'Questions of Milinda' in which Bodhisattva Nagasena tries to explain the nature of Nirvana to King Milinda.