parinirvana

In Buddhism, individuals become awakened or achieve enlightenment (nirvana) but continue to live out the remainder of their natural lives. They pass on into the final state at their deaths, called “parinirvana.” Most importantly, this term refers to the Buddha Shakyamuni’s parinirvana at Kushinagara when he lay down between two trees and died. The event accompanied by many miracles is one of the Eight Great Events and one of the Twelve Deeds of the Buddha’s life, and is a very common topic for Buddhist illustration.