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62 EASTERN HORIZON | BOOK BRIEFS

BOOKS IN BRIEF BOOKS IN BRIEF

Bhikkhu Anālayo, The Signless and the Deathless. On It is interesting to read Venerable Anālayo explain
the Realization of Nirvana. Wisdom: USA. 2023. pp 236. that through practicing bare awareness, we can stop
Hardcover. US$34.95 defilements that come from grasping at signs—and stop
www.wisdomexperience.org signs from arising in the first place. Realizing Nirvana
therefore entails a complete stepping out of the way the
mind usually constructs experience.
This is another classic text by the author, a renown
Theravada Buddhist scholar and practitioner. In this In Part 2, the author writes about The Deathless. Deftly
book, Venerable Anālayo surveyed selected passages avoiding the extremes of nihilism and eternalism that
from the Pali Canon about Nirvana (Pāli, Nibbāna), the often cloud our understanding of Nirvana, he shows
final goal of liberation for Buddhists. He breaks new us that deathless as an epithet of Nirvana “stands for
ground, or rediscovers old ground, by presenting a new the complete transcendence of mental affliction by
way of approaching Nirvana, based on the Buddha’s mortality”—ours or others’—and that it is achievable
teachings on how our minds construct experience while still alive. There are altogether 12 chapters in this
section. He starts with an explanation of the Deathless,
Divided into two parts, Part I titled The Signless the breakthrough to liberation, perception, going
comprises 13 chapters. He starts with an explanation beyond conflict, arriving at the truth, beyond views,
of the meaning of “sign” or “nimitta. This is followed non-proliferation, the quenching of fire, freedom from
by how one grasps at Signs, the construction of ignorance, annihilation and happiness, and a Middle
mental experience, Bare Awareness, the Sign of pain, Path position. Just as in Part I, the author also provides a
unwholesome thoughts and conceit, non-attention and good summary at the end of this section.
attention, characteristics of Signless Concentration
as a meditative practice, subdued perception and Advanced practitioners and scholars alike will value the
unestablished consciousness, and awakening and work for its meticulous academic expertise and its novel
emptiness. He also provides a good summary towards way of explaining the highest of all Buddhist goals—the
the end of the chapter where one can understand the final end of suffering. EH
close similarity between emptiness and signlessness.