Kleshamara, Kleśamāra, Klesha-mara: 6 definitions
Introduction:
Kleshamara means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
The Sanskrit term Kleśamāra can be transliterated into English as Klesamara or Kleshamara, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
In Buddhism
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Kleśamāra (क्लेशमार) refers to the “Māra of vices”, according to the Gaganagañjaparipṛcchā: the eighth chapter of the Mahāsaṃnipāta (a collection of Mahāyāna Buddhist Sūtras).—Accordingly, “[...] “How then, son of good family, does the Bodhisattva transcend the way of four Māras and vanquish all Māras and adversaries? (1) Son of good family, the Bodhisattva transcends the Māra inherent in the parts of personality by knowing and understanding the fact that all dharmas are just like an illusion; (2) He transcends the Māra of vices (kleśamāra) by correctly understanding in accordance with tradition; (3) He transcends the Māra of death by understanding the dependent origination; (4) He transcends the Māra of the sons of gods by not forgetting the thought of awakening. [...]”.
Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.
Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayana or tantric Buddhism)
Kleśamāra (क्लेशमार) (lit. “the māra of the destructive emotions”) refers to one of the “Four Maras” (according to the Sūtrayāna) who collectively represent the four types of obstructive, “demonic” forces (sometimes also translated as “demons”) which create obstacles to practitioners on the spiritual path.—According to the “Great Tibetan Dictionary”: The Māra of the destructive emotions prevents one from accomplishing virtue, since one is under the power of destructive emotions such as desire and anger. The coarse Māra of the destructive emotions are the root and subsidiary destructive emotions. The subtle Māra of the destructive emotions are for example the emotional habitual tendencies in the mind of an Arhat.
Tibetan Buddhism includes schools such as Nyingma, Kadampa, Kagyu and Gelug. Their primary canon of literature is divided in two broad categories: The Kangyur, which consists of Buddha’s words, and the Tengyur, which includes commentaries from various sources. Esotericism and tantra techniques (vajrayāna) are collected indepently.
General definition (in Buddhism)
Kleśamāra (क्लेशमार) or simply Kleśa refers to “the defilements destroyer” and represents one of the four destroyers” (māra) as defined in the Dharma-saṃgraha (section 80). The Dharma-samgraha (Dharmasangraha) is an extensive glossary of Buddhist technical terms in Sanskrit (e.g., kleśa-māra). The work is attributed to Nagarguna who lived around the 2nd century A.D.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Kleśamāra (क्लेशमार).—m. (= Pali Kilesa°), one of the four Māras; see Māra.
Kleśamāra (क्लेशमार):—s. u. māra .
Kleśamāra (in Sanskrit) can be associated with the following Chinese terms:
1) 煩惱魔 [fán nǎo mó]: “evil demon of afflictions”.
2) 身魔 [shēn mó]: “Māras of the body”.
Note: kleśamāra can be alternatively written as: kleśa-māra.
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Klesha, Mara.
Full-text: Mara, Fan nao mo, Shen mo, Klesha, Four maras, Hevajra, Simo.
Relevant text
Search found 4 books and stories containing Kleshamara, Kleśamāra, Klesha-mara, Kleśa-māra, Klesa-mara, Klesamara; (plurals include: Kleshamaras, Kleśamāras, maras, māras, Klesamaras). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Maha Prajnaparamita Sastra (by Gelongma Karma Migme Chödrön)
Bodhisattva quality 12: having passed beyond the works of Māra < [Chapter X - The Qualities of the Bodhisattvas]
Amarakoshodghatana of Kshirasvamin (study) (by A. Yamuna Devi)
Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy < [Chapter 4 - Cultural Aspects]
Dasabhumika Sutra (translation and study) (by Hwa Seon Yoon)
Part 6 - The Sixth Stage named Abhimukhi < [Chapter 4 - Annotated Translation of the Dasabhumika-Sutra]
Mahavastu (great story) (by J. J. Jones)
Chapter XXIV - After the enlightenment < [Volume III]