enlightenment -- (education that results in understanding and the spread of knowledge)
nirvana, enlightenment -- ((Hinduism and Buddhism) the beatitude that transcends the cycle of reincarnation; characterized by the extinction of desire and suffering and individual consciousness)
Enlightenment, Age of Reason -- (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")