nirvana
nounAU, UK /nɪəˈvɑː.nə/ · US /nɪɹˈvɑ.nə/
Etymology Borrowed from Sanskrit निर्वाण (nirvāṇa, “blown or put out, extinguished”), from निस् (nis, “out”) + वा (vā, “to blow”), the second part cognate with Russian ве́тер (véter, “wind”), weather, vent and wind.
2
Colloquial State of paradise; heightened or great pleasure or peace; a state of universal perfection and bliss.
- Welcome to this celebration of legal abortion. I wish January 22 meant more than that. The truth is that we are not winging our way to a state of nirvana for reproductive rights.1988 February 7, Stephanie Poggi, “What's Choice Got To Do With It?”, in Gay Community News, volume 15, number 29, page 5:
- Though we don’t all reach nirvana when we swim, swimming may well be that last refuge from connectivity — and, for some, the only way to find the solitary self.2014 February 14, Bonnie Tsui, “The Self-Reflecting Pool”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 15 Aug 2021:
1 more example
- No, Virginia, the combination of Trump’s tax cuts and tariffs don’t help and, yes, when the AI investment bubble pops GDP growth will drop making the deficit/GDP ratio worse, unless you believe the tech bros hype about AI suddenly delivering universal nirvana.2026 January 24, Michael Pascoe, “America’s mighty economic power has feet of clay”, in Michael West Media:
- Derived terms
- Beervana, goonvana, nerdvana, nirvana fallacy, nirvanic, nirvanol, parinirvana