Enlightenment - Definition

n 1: education that results in understanding and the spread of
knowledge [ant: unenlightenment]
2: (Hinduism and Buddhism) the beatitude that transcends the
cycle of reincarnation; characterized by the extinction of
desire and suffering and individual consciousness [syn:
nirvana, enlightenment]
3: a movement in Europe from about 1650 until 1800 that
advocated the use of reason and individualism instead of
tradition and established doctrine; "the Enlightenment
brought about many humanitarian reforms" [syn:
Enlightenment, Age of Reason]