who else besides Buddha achieved the nirvana (cosmic consciousness)????? ?

That state is common; don't be miffed that there should be participants on Yahoo Answers who have achieved it.

For starters going back as far as the 19th Century America was the American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson, who had it and with it was quite stable. Through his considerable gift as a natural philosopher and writer did the gift accentuate under the state or cosmic consciousness.

It 'is' possible to sustain it for a long period of time, but of course, that designation -- long -- is relative. It 'is' in itself an unstable state as you suggest.

Not even those who have achieved the God-Absorbed state can persist in that state but do remain aligned to that Consciousness, for that merit does not descend, generally, but is 'ever' challenged: herewith is a difficulty with the very nature of the physical plane: which does not allow these high states to persist without, on occasion, instability occurring in the very areas where one would visit; for in some instances this can cause inclement weather events or other unusual natural phenomena to occur: it is simply the case of the light clashing with the dark, or, say, an area that is very negative in which if one who were dwelling in these high states is so used by Above for certain purposes [without their even knowing it], theirs can at once begin a cleansing process of an area.

No less, they are self-contained, merited, and if weren't would not be conferred the level nor able to wield this most high of states in the spirito-material planes in the first place. And even the God-Conscious state is not the highest of merit.

And there are many who have achieved this state, many of whom live and were born in America or Europe -- all occidentals, not easterners, one of whom appears periodically on television and whose writings are published and received quite well, to say the least.

It is a state far and above the Cosmic Consciousness -- well above -- and has a tremendous variance in degrees of power and powers!

Spiritual literature is chocked with those who achieved the Cosmic Consciousness state as well as achieved the High Astral State (such as did Jacob Boehm), and so on and up into the Soul- and God-Consciousness states where the annals of history feature the great spiritual giants, both men and women, inclusive of each of these states of consciousness.

In all love, As a matter of perspective, within a certain paradigm all that is experienced is from a Divine messenger and a Divine expression of Cosmic Consciousness. It matters not the form it takes. To hold this truth within and as a companion to the cognate of the oneness of God and the denial of the self as separate, is a beautiful key to a door the seeker wishes to open. The message is the most ancient of messages. It is not new or is it the exclusive domain of a particular religion. The message is not ours except it is realized. It exist not as words or logic but in the realm of realization or knowing. Blessings and peace, All in all, Nony

Lots of people, but they don't reach fame or receive accolades. There's a Buddhist nun who runs an abbey in Nova Scotia named Pema Chodron who has achieved enlightenment, and an author by the name of Than Nhat Thich (I think I spelled it right). But people who achieve enlightenment simply live their lives, unfamously.

EDIT: The Dalai Lama is someone who is called a Bodhisattva. That is a person who has achieved enlightenment, but refuses to enter Nirvana, choosing instead to continue to be reborn (not reincarnate, that's Hinduism) until all suffering is ceased.

dalai lama is not the incarnation of buddha...

the dalai lama reached or was close to reach nirvana

however the denied it and chose to stay on earth to help the humans

The Dali lama is a reincarnation so obviously he hasnt achieved the mythical nirvana

Isn't Nirvana a state of nothingness. If so I would say many atheists will reach this state before Buddhists.

yes nirvana is a thing held only to the Buddha religion although there are many different religions that can relate.

Kurt Kobain?

i did when i took a combo of mushrooms, peyote and some dank white widow for good measure

chuck norris :-)

I wouldn't know even if it happened to me !