The other shore; nirvāna.
彼岸 [py] bĭàn [wg] pi-an [ko] 피안 p'ian [ja] ヒガン higan ||| (1) Literally, the "other shore" as in the other side of a river that one intends to cross (Pali pārimaṃ tīraṃ). (2) In Buddhism, this term is used figuratively to refer to the goal of Buddhist practice--the attainment of nirvana or enlightenment. It is used in the context of leaving the world of saṃsāra and "crossing over" to the pure world of nirvana. (3) This is also a connotation of the Sansrit term pāramitā 波羅蜜, meaning "complete perfection."
(一)梵語 pāra,巴利語同。為「此岸」之對稱。迷界為此方之岸,稱此岸;悟界為彼方之岸,稱彼岸。即以業與煩惱為中流,生死之境界為此岸,涅槃為彼岸。〔釋禪波羅蜜次第法門卷一上〕
(二)梵語 pāramitā。音譯波羅蜜多。全稱為到彼岸。即自迷界之此岸至悟界之彼岸。(參閱「波羅蜜」3445)
(三)日本佛教用語。「彼岸會」之略稱。(參閱「彼岸會」3204)
梵語波羅,華譯為彼岸,此岸指生滅,彼岸指不生不滅的涅槃。
parā, yonder shore i. e. nirvāṇa. The saṃsāra life of reincarnation is 此岸 this shore; the stream of karma is 中流 the stream between the one shore and the other. Metaphor for an end to any affair. pāramitā (an incorrect etymology, no doubt old) is the way to reach the other shore.