mara's role in buddhism vs. christian satan.

[nathanielfirst]

hello, I am attempting to ascertain the role of king mara in buddhism.

From what I've seen it seems to me that mara is not neccesarily involved in tempting people into sin, like adultery, murder, illegal acts, lack of compassion, but rather in keeping people committing those virtues and vices which keep him in samsara, under his control. Is that right? I've heard that mara himself attained his position as such through rebirth, due to virtuous acts and one day looses it when his virtue expires, to vbe replaced by another. thus he is not an opponent of virtue and promoter of vice but an opponent of meditation, calmness, extinction.

i could be way off, I am only slowly reading the pali canon.

does mara send minions to distract lay followers, as the christian satan would, or only harass the sangha? I keep picking up this idea that mara really doesn't care about normal people, though the christian satan does care to cause them to sin, but mara concentrates on threats to his dominion i.e. some arahat who might escape his control, some monk. Is that idea about right?

anyone who could clarify these ideas, would be much appreciated.

 

[Engyo]

You pretty much have it, as far as I understand. Mara doesn't figure much into my particular school's teachings, other than during the story of the Buddhas attainment of enlightenment.

People are born into samsara, and are already under Mara's dominion. Those who are approaching enlightenment are the only ones who he is in danger of losing, so there is where his attentions are focussed, so to speak..........

The other way to look at it, more common to my school, is that Mara is an avatar of all those things which help distract or prevent people from attaning enlightenment; all their attachments, sufferings, and so on. From this viewpoint the story of Mara tempting Siddhartha under the Bodhi Tree is allegory and metaphor for all of the vicissitudes of life (I always wanted to use that word in a sentence).

 

[Rainbow Mage]

I am formerly a Chinese Pure Land Buddhist. I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds by answering you in a DIR forum. We in Pure Land usually viewed Mara as a literal being, akin to the Christian Satan, except that he only functions within the mind. He doesn't do things like afflict people with illnesses or control the weather, etc. Mara and his train are seen as demons generally among Theistic Buddhists. You can see the concept of demons althroughout Theistic variants of Buddhism, and also exorcisms.

 

[LuisDantas]

I tend to see Mara as a parable for ignorance. Then again, I also believe that the Christian Satan (and for that matter, the Shaitan of Islamic texts) are also parables for ignorance and its destructive consequences.

 

[Akshara Dasa]

From my viewpoint Mara is temptation. When Buddha was under the Bodhi Tree there were many temptations he went threw, but he remained still threw them. That was Mara's attack. When Mara saw his effort was futile, he left. At that moment Siddarta Gotama's mind attained the Stainless Dhamma-eye and he then became a Sammasambuddha, or a Buddha who teaches to others. If you look closely at your Mind, you will see that from temptation many desires come from. They are basically the same. No tempations, no desires and vise versa.

Mara does distract you from the path threw all sorts of desires like the christian Satan would keep you away from confesstion, etc. But are they the same, not really though there are similarities. Mara lives within ones impure mind, Satan lives in some hell.