Eknath Easwaran

 There are many distinguished scholars who try to interpret as far as the intellect can what nirvana means... They will say that nirvana is the annihilation of the ego concept; but this definition is far from adequate... Nirvana is really an awakening, which is the meaning of the Buddha’s name: “One who is awake,” from the root budh, “to wake up.” What happens is you wake up from separateness into the whole – from being a fragment to being the indivisible whole... A Buddha is one who becomes aware of the wholeness of life and lives for the welfare of all. Yes , from the negative side, nirvana means you are completely empty of yourself. You have to empty yourself completely of all your likes and dislikes, of your selfish attachments, your self-will, your petty personal desires... So nirvana is emptiness. But it is also complete fullness. In order to be full you have to empty yourself completely of yourself... The intellect can never understand this. The only way to understand nirvana is to experience it...