The Buddha Said, “I See You Mara”

The problem with all institutions is an exaggeration of form over essence. Humans are clever creatures who turn essential nature into a form which becomes more important than the essence – with the help of Mara, the lord of illusion.

This the process of formalism, where the outer shell of an institution replaces its inner soul, and the original mission dies. When we spend our lives serving the form, we’re trapped in a maze of our own making, thinking we’re doing good while our spiritual and moral nature slowly starves.

Mara’s ultimate goal is not to cause blatant, fiery evil, but to keep consciousness trapped in samsara (the cycle of mundane existence). By shifting an institution’s focus from substance to form, Mara performs the ultimate trick of making people believe that they are serving virtue when they are actually serving an empty ritual.

The only way to defeat Mara, as the Buddha showed, is simply to recognise it.
When the Buddha said, “I see you, Mara”, the illusion lost its power.

By recognising that form has overtaken substance,
we are doing exactly the same as the Buddha.