Dialogues with Death
Mara, Yama, and Coming to Terms with Mortality in Classical Hindu and Indian Buddhist Traditions
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12908577 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Michael Nichols (Saint Joseph's College, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2012 |
| Volume | 6 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 13-32 |
| Publication date | 2012-11-23 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions of South Asia (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1751-2689 • E-ISSN: 1751-2697 |
| Publisher | Equinox Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1558/rosa.v6i1.13 |
| OpenAlex | W2040343711 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 13 |
This article compares Hindu and Buddhist narratives involving debate or contest with the gods representing death in each respective tradition. In Hinduism, this is Yama, judge and god of the underworld, while in Buddhism, death, as well as the concept of rebirth and, more broadly, samsara itself, is represented by the malign figure Mara. Through a comparison of Buddhist Pali Canon texts to the Hindu Katha Upanisad, the Savitri episode in the Mahabharata, and brief excerpts of Puranas, I argue that both traditions employed a common trope of debate and contest with a god of death, but used that shared device to emphasize doctrinal beliefs and perspectives unique to their respective traditions. This strongly suggests a shared literary heritage between the two traditions of these mythic figures
Art · Buddhism · CONTEST · Hinduism · Literature · Narrative · Theology · Trope (literature · History · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Indian History and Philosophy · Philosophy · Religious studies · Religious Studies and Spiritual Practices
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Studies in Yama and MāRa
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The "Dramatic" Element in Brāhmaṇic Initiation
Theravada Buddhism's Meditations on Death and the Symbolism of Initiatory Death
Death and Deification
"The Initiatory Structure of the "Kaṭhopaniṣad
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,33 |
| Citation span | 2023 - 2023 (1) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |