In other words, to avoid being tormented after death by perpetual rebirths, some of which may be humiliating, it is necessary to live a pure life and so to secure repose or Nirvâna. Nirvâna is by no means the cessation of all consciousness, but merely the end of transmigrations. From such a point of view, it is possible to interpret all, or at least nearly all, the passages in which Nirvâna is spoken of. When he was old and full of disease and afflicted with grievous pain, Buddha, being at the point of death, thought of his disciples and called them to him and said: “It is not meet that I should enter Nirvâna without having spoken with those who have cared for me, without speaking to the community of disciples. By the force of my will I shall subdue this disease and hold the life within me.” Some time afterwards, the reverend Ananda went to Buddha and spoke to him, saying amongst other words as follows: “The Sublime One will surely not enter into Nirvâna ere he has made known unto the community of disciples his wishes regarding them.” “Growing more and more feeble, the spirit of Buddha passed from ecstacy to ecstacy without ceasing, and knew every delight; then he entered into Nirvâna. And the earth trembled, and thunder rolled across the skies.”[201] It is clear that in this passage Nirvâna was associated with death. But it was with the death of a saint who had lived a pure life. Metempsychosis would not be inflicted on him, and he would enjoy repose. It is probable that the term Nirvâna later on came to be applied to the state of mind of a saint who, by living the pure life, would avoid transmigration after death. As the importance of Nirvâna lies in its contrast with metempsychosis, it is easy to see why the precise state of mind involved in it has not been described exactly. However, a survey of the Buddhistic writings makes it plain that at least Nirvâna was not associated with annihilation. In this respect Max Müller’s verdict must be taken as correct.