佛教神话中的摩罗

Māra in Buddhist Mythology

佛教文献中没有单独成书的神话集,但佛教神话是存在的。它散见于三藏经典,尤其是佛陀传记类经文。即使在佛陀尚未被神化而仍然作为人师的巴利文经典中,神话成份也已见端倪。例如,《长尼迦耶》第十四部《大本经》(Mahāpadāna)中说佛陀具有天耳通、天眼通等等;《中尼迦耶》第一二三部《未曾有法经》(Acchariyabbhutadhamma)中记叙了佛陀出世时的神奇事迹。但在那里,陈述和描绘都很简炼和朴素。后来,随着“菩萨”

It is pointed out here that the image of the demon Māra in early Buddhist mythology was unknown to Brahmanism but was created by Buddhists to show that a Buddhist monk or nun could expect to overcome wickedness and achieve enlightenment.It is also pointed out that the descrip- tion of Māra having strong magic power,especially the power to get into one's belly,is also found in Chinese classical literature,though such description in Pāli works may be the earliest..