Gebruiker:Blueknight/Mara demon

Relief-fragment van Mara in stijl van Gandhara, gevonden in vallei van Swat

Mara's assault on the Buddha (an aniconic representation: the Buddha is only symbolized by his throne), 2nd century, Amaravati, India

Mara (Sanskriet: मार, Māra; Sinhala: මාරයා; Chinees: 天魔; pinyin: Tiānmó of traditioneel Chinees: 魔羅; vereenvoudigd Chinees: 魔罗; pinyin: Móluó; Japanes: 魔羅, romanized: Mara; ook マーラ, Māra of 天魔, Tenma; Tibetaans Wylie: bdud; Khmer: មារ; Thais: มาร), in Boeddhisme, is de demonische halfgod die prins Siddhartha (Gautama Boeddha) probeerde te verleiden met visies van mooie vrouwen van wie in diverse legendes beweerd wordt dat zij dochters van Mara zijn.^[1]

In de spirituele wereld van het boeddhisme wordt Mara geassocieerd met dood, wedergeboorte en verlangen.^[2] De van origine Duitse boeddhistische monnik Nyanaponika Thera^[3] beschreef Mara als "de verpersoonlijking van de krachten die de verlichting actief tegenwerken."^[4]

Meerdere metaforische uitingen van Māra[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

In het traditionele boeddhisme zijn vier a vijf metaforische uitingen van Māra beschreven:^[5]

Kleśa-māra - Māra als de belichaming van alle niet constructieve emoties (Kleshas), zoals hebzucht, haat en dwaasheid.
Mṛtyu-māra - Māra als De dood (Mrtyu).^[6]
Skandha-māra - Māra als metafoor voor het geheel van conditioned bestaan.
Devaputra-māra - de deva van sensuous realm, die probeerde te voorkomen dat Gautama Buddha de cyclus van dood en wedergeboorte kon doormaken op de nacht van Boeddha's verlichting (Nirwana).

Karakter[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

In de vroege periode van boeddhisme gold zowel een letterlijke als psychologische interpretatie van Mara.^[7]^[8]

Mara is described both as an entity having an existence in Kāma-world,^[9] just as are shown existing around the Buddha, and also is described in pratītyasamutpāda as, primarily, the guardian of passion and the catalyst for lust, hesitation and fear that obstructs meditation among Buddhists. The Denkōroku refers to him as the "One Who Delights in Destruction", which highlights his nature as a deity among the Parinirmitavaśavarti devas.^[10]

"Buddha defying Mara" is a common pose of Buddha sculptures.^[11]^[12] The Buddha is shown with his left hand in his lap, palm facing upwards and his right hand on his right knee. The fingers of his right hand touch the earth, to call the earth as his witness for defying Mara and achieving enlightenment. This posture is also referred to as the bhūmisparśa "earth-witness" mudra.

Three daughters[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

In some accounts of the Buddha's enlightenment, it is said that the demon Māra didn't send his three daughters to tempt but instead they came willingly after Māra's setback in his endeavor to eliminate the Buddha's quest for enlightenment.^[13] Mara's three daughters are identified as Taṇhā (Thirst), Arati (Aversion, Discontentment), and Rāga (Attachment, Desire, Greed, Passion).^[12]^[14] For example, in the Samyutta Nikaya's Māra-saṃyutta, Mara's three daughters were stripping in front of Buddha; but failed to entice the Buddha:

They had come to him glittering with beauty –

Taṇhā, Arati, and Rāga –

But the Teacher swept them away right there

As the wind, a fallen cotton tuft.^[15]

Some stories refer to the existence of Five Daughters, who represent not only the Three Poisons of Attraction, Aversion, and Delusion, but also include the daughters Pride, and Fear.{{citation needed|date=December 2018}}

Mara's conversion[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp and the Denkoroku both contain a story of Mara's conversion to Buddhism under the auspices of the monk Upagupta.

According to the story, Upagupta journeyed to the kingdom of Mathura and preached the Dharma with great success. This caused Mara's palace to tremble, prompting the deity to use his destructive powers against the Dharma. When Upagupta entered samadhi, Mara approached him and slipped a jade necklace around his neck.

Upagupta reciprocated by transforming the corpses of a man, a dog, and a snake into a garland and gifted it to Mara. When Mara discovered the true nature of the gift, he sought the help of Brahma to remove it. Brahma informed him that because the necklace was bestowed by an advanced disciple of the Buddha, its effects could only be assuaged by taking refuge in Upagupta.

Mara returned to the human world where he prostrated before the monk and repented. At Upagupta's recommendation, he vowed never to do harm to the Dharma and took refuge in the Three Jewels.^[16]

The former source includes a gatha that Mara recited when his suffering was lifted:

Adoration to the Master of the three samādhis,
To the sage disciple of the ten powers.
Today I wish to turn to him
Without countenancing the existence
Of any meanness or weakness.^[17]

Zie ook[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Ah Puch -
Demiurge -
Grīmekhalaṃ -
Id, ego and super-ego
Maravijaya Buddha (A Buddharupa attitude depicting the scene against Mara)
Mare -
Marzanna -
Mayasura -
Mors (mythology) -
Temptation of Christ and Temptation of St. Anthony (similar themes in Christianity)

Vergelijkbare (half)goden in andere mythologieën[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Anubis - Egyptisch
Eros - Grieks
Hades - Grieks
Kamadeva - (half)god in hindoeïsme
Thanatos - Grieks
Izanami - Japans

Voetnoten[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Bronnen, noten en/of referenties

↑ Zie, bij voorbeeld, Samyutta Nikaya 4.25, getiteld, "Māra's dochters" (Bodhi, 2000, pp. 217–20), als ook Suttanipata 835 (Saddhatissa, 1998, pagina 98). In beide teksten worden Mara's dochters (Māradhītā) gepersonifieerd door sensueel Verlangen (taṇhā), Afkeer (arati) en Passie (rāga).
↑ Trainor, Kevin (2004). Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide. Oxford University Press, p. 34. ISBN 9780195173987.
↑ (en) - een geleerde Duitser die een boeddhistische Theravada(?) monnik is geworden. Link naar Engelstalige Wikipedia.
↑ Thera, Nyanaponika (2008). The Roots of Good and Evil: Buddhist Texts translated from the Pali with Comments and Introduction. Buddhist Publication Society, p. 22. ISBN 9789552403163.
↑ Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism.. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ (2013), 530–531, 550, 829. ISBN 9780691157863.
↑ (en) - de dood in boeddhistische spirituele betekenis. Link naar Engelstalige Wikipedia.
↑ Williams, Paul (2005). Buddhism: The early Buddhist schools and doctrinal history ; Theravāda doctrine, Volume 2. Taylor & Francis, 105–106. ISBN 9780415332286.
↑ Keown, Damien (2009). Buddhism. Sterling Publishing Company, p. 69. ISBN 9781402768835.
↑ www.wisdomlib.org, Mara, Māra: 13 definitions. www.wisdomlib.org.
↑ The Denkōroku: The Record of the Transmission of the Light. OBC Shasta Abbey Press (2003). Geraadpleegd op 6 december 2019.
↑ Vogel, Jean Philippe, Barnouw, Adriaan Jacob (1936). Buddhist Art in India, Ceylon, and Java. Asian Educational Services, 70–71.
↑ ^a ^b The Buddha's Encounters with Mara the Tempter: Their Representation in Literature and Art. www.accesstoinsight.org.
↑ Keown, Damien (2004). A Dictionary of Buddhism. Oxford University Press, p. 174. ISBN 9780191579172.
↑ See, e.g., SN 4.25 (Bodhi, 2000, pp. 217–20), and Sn 835 (Saddhatissa, 1998, p. 98). In a similar fashion, in Sn 436 (Saddhatissa, 1998, p. 48), taṇhā is personified as one of Death's four armies (senā) along with desire (kāmā), aversion (arati) and hunger-thirst (khuppipāsā).
↑ SN 4.25, v. 518 (Bodhi, 2000, p. 220).
↑ The Denkōroku: The Record of the Transmission of the Light. OBC Shasta Abbey Press (2003). Geraadpleegd op 6 december 2019.
↑ Daoyuan, Whitfield, Randolph S. (translator) (2015). Record of the Transmission of the Lamp: Volume One. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN 9783738662467.

Bronnen[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Bodhi, Bhikkhu (trans.) (2000). The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya. Boston: Wisdom Pubs. ISBN 0-86171-331-1.
Saddhatissa, H. (translator) (1998). The Sutta-Nipāta. London: RoutledgeCurzon Press. ISBN 0-7007-0181-8.

Verder lezen[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Boyd, James W. (1971). Symbols of Evil in Buddhism. The Journal of Asian Studies 31 (1): 63–75. DOI: 10.2307/2053052.
Guruge, Ananda W.P. (1991). The Buddha's encounters with Mara, the Tempter: their representation in Literature and Art. Indologica Taurinensia 17–18: 183–208. Gearchiveerd van origineel op 22 november 2014.
Ling, Trevor O. (1962). Buddhism and the Mythology of Evil: A Study in Theravada Buddhism. London: Allen and Unwin

Externe links[bewerken | brontekst bewerken]

Dit artikel of een eerdere versie ervan is een (gedeeltelijke) vertaling van het artikel Mara (demon) op de Engelstalige Wikipedia, dat onder de licentie Creative Commons Naamsvermelding/Gelijk delen valt. Zie de bewerkingsgeschiedenis aldaar.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mara (Demon)}} Category:Demons in Buddhism Category:Buddhism and death ;Category:Destroyer gods Category:Evil deities

[1] Zie, bij voorbeeld, Samyutta Nikaya 4.25, getiteld, "Māra's dochters" (Bodhi, 2000, pp. 217–20), als ook Suttanipata 835 (Saddhatissa, 1998, pagina 98). In beide teksten worden Mara's dochters (Māradhītā) gepersonifieerd door sensueel Verlangen (taṇhā), Afkeer (arati) en Passie (rāga).

[:0-2] Trainor, Kevin (2004). Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide. Oxford University Press, p. 34. ISBN 9780195173987.

[3] (en) - een geleerde Duitser die een boeddhistische Theravada(?) monnik is geworden. Link naar Engelstalige Wikipedia.

[4] Thera, Nyanaponika (2008). The Roots of Good and Evil: Buddhist Texts translated from the Pali with Comments and Introduction. Buddhist Publication Society, p. 22. ISBN 9789552403163.

[5] Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism.. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ (2013), 530–531, 550, 829. ISBN 9780691157863.

[6] (en) - de dood in boeddhistische spirituele betekenis. Link naar Engelstalige Wikipedia.

[7] Williams, Paul (2005). Buddhism: The early Buddhist schools and doctrinal history ; Theravāda doctrine, Volume 2. Taylor & Francis, 105–106. ISBN 9780415332286.

[8] Keown, Damien (2009). Buddhism. Sterling Publishing Company, p. 69. ISBN 9781402768835.

[9] www.wisdomlib.org, Mara, Māra: 13 definitions. www.wisdomlib.org.

[10] The Denkōroku: The Record of the Transmission of the Light. OBC Shasta Abbey Press (2003). Geraadpleegd op 6 december 2019.

[11] Vogel, Jean Philippe, Barnouw, Adriaan Jacob (1936). Buddhist Art in India, Ceylon, and Java. Asian Educational Services, 70–71.

[tempter-12] The Buddha's Encounters with Mara the Tempter: Their Representation in Literature and Art. www.accesstoinsight.org.

[13] Keown, Damien (2004). A Dictionary of Buddhism. Oxford University Press, p. 174. ISBN 9780191579172.

[14] See, e.g., SN 4.25 (Bodhi, 2000, pp. 217–20), and Sn 835 (Saddhatissa, 1998, p. 98). In a similar fashion, in Sn 436 (Saddhatissa, 1998, p. 48), taṇhā is personified as one of Death's four armies (senā) along with desire (kāmā), aversion (arati) and hunger-thirst (khuppipāsā).

[15] SN 4.25, v. 518 (Bodhi, 2000, p. 220).

[16] The Denkōroku: The Record of the Transmission of the Light. OBC Shasta Abbey Press (2003). Geraadpleegd op 6 december 2019.

[17] Daoyuan, Whitfield, Randolph S. (translator) (2015). Record of the Transmission of the Lamp: Volume One. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN 9783738662467.

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