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A mara, or a mare is a kind of malignant female wraith in Scandinavian folklore believed to cause nightmares. She also appears in Slavic folklore, but rather as a wriaith type, not the specific (named) person. She appears as early as in the Norse Ynglinga saga, but the belief itself is probably even older (see below). "Mara" is the Old Norse, Swedish, Finnish and Icelandic name, "mare" is Old English, Norwegian and Danish. In Polish the word mara (female ghost or wraith) is linked to the verb "marzyć" (to dream). However, the positive meaning of dream is rather new, as in the past the word had negative conotation: "to have a nightmare" or as a noun - "the bed of a man in agony". This meaning is stil present in old proverb ("idziesz na dzika, szykuj łoże, idziesz na niedźwiedzia, szykuj mary") which means: planing a boar hunt, prepare a bed; planing a bear hunt, prepare a deadman's bed. The mara gave also birth to female deamon of winter Marzanna. To this day, there is a folklore ritual still played in Poland: Marzanna (mara) straw doll is thrown to river at the first day of the spring. "Mareritt" is the Norwegian word for nightmare, meaning "ride of the mara" Image File history File links Mergefrom. ... In Polish mythology, mora are the souls of living people that leave the body during the night, and are seen as wisps of straw or hair or as moths. ... Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... Scandinavian folklore is the folklore of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the Swedish speaking parts of Finland. ... The current usage of the term nightmare refers to a dream which causes the sleeper a strong unpleasant emotional response. ... Slavic mythology and Slavic religion evolved over more than 3,000 years. ... The Ynglinga saga was originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. ... Old Norse is the Germanic language spoken by the inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300. ... Old English redirects here. ...

The mara was thought of as an immaterial being – capable of moving through a keyhole or the opening under a door – who seated herself at the chest of a sleeping person and "rode" him or her, thus causing nightmares. In Norwegian/Danish, the word for nightmare is mareritt/mareridt, meaning "mareride". The Icelandic word martröð has the same meaning, whereas the Swedish mardröm translates as "maredream". The weight of the mara could also result in breathing difficulties or feeling of suffocation (an experience now known as sleep paralysis). This phenomenon is present in the Finnish word for nightmare, painajainen, which is derived from the verb painaa, meaning "to press/to apply pressure". In the Finnish folklore, a Painajainen was originally a malign creature that climbed on the chest of a sleeping person, paralysing or even suffocating the sleeper. The current usage of the term nightmare refers to a dream which causes the sleeper a strong unpleasant emotional response. ... The current usage of the term nightmare refers to a dream which causes the sleeper a strong unpleasant emotional response. ... The Nightmare, by Henry Fuseli (1781) is thought to be one of the classic depictions of sleep paralysis perceived as a demonic visitation. ... The current usage of the term nightmare refers to a dream which causes the sleeper a strong unpleasant emotional response. ...

The mara was also believed to "ride" horses, which left them exhausted and covered in sweat by the morning. She could also entangle the hair of the sleeping man or beast, resulting in "marelocks", a belief probably originating as an explanation for Polish plait – a hair disease. Even trees could be ridden by the mara, resulting in branches being entangled. The undersized, twisted pine-trees growing on coastal rocks and on wet grounds are known in Sweden as martallar (marepines). Polish plait (Plica polonica in Latin) is a formation of hair. ... Subgenera Subgenus Strobus Subgenus Ducampopinus Subgenus Pinus See Pinus classification for complete taxonomy to species level. ...

According to a common belief, the free-roaming spirit of sleeping women could become maras, either out of wickedness or as a form of curse. In the latter case, finding out who the cursed person was and repeating "you are a mara" three times was often enough to release her from this condition. Look up Curse in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The concept of the mara has very old roots in the folklore of the Germanic peoples, possibly the belief was shaped as early as in proto-Indo-European religion. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the word can be traced back to an Indo-European root *mer, meaning to rub away or to harm.^[1] The Slavic nightmare spirit mora is likely to have been derived from this root as well, and possibly also the Irish deity Mórrígan and the Buddhist demon Māra (< PIE *mor-o-). The proto-Germanic name is *marōn (< PIE *mor-ōn-), and its Old English derivative is mære. The Anglo-Saxon belief in this creature still echoes in the word nightmare. In later English folklore, hags and witches took on many of the roles of the mara, producing terms such as hagridden and haglock. In Germany the activities of the mara (mahr) were shifted to the elves (nightmare in German is Albtraum or "elf-dream"). According to Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, the French word cauchemar ("sleep-mare") entered the French language from a Middle Dutch mare.^[2] Thor/Donar, Germanic thunder god. ... Ancient anthropomorphic Ukrainian stone stela (Kernosovka stela), possibly depicting a late Proto-Indo-European god, most likely Dyeus The existence of similarities among the deities and religious practices of the Indo-European peoples allows glimpses of a common Proto-Indo-European religion and mythology. ... The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (AHD) is an American dictionary of the English language published by Boston publisher Houghton-Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969. ... In Polish mythology, mora are the souls of living people that leave the body during the night, and are seen as wisps of straw or hair or as moths. ... The Mórrígan (great queen) or Morrígan (terror or phantom queen) (aka Morrígu, Mórríghan, Mór-Ríogain) is a figure from Irish mythology widely considered to be a goddess or former goddess. ... An aniconic representation of Maras assault on the Buddha, 2nd century CE, Amaravati (India). ... Old English redirects here. ... For other uses, see Anglo-Saxon. ... English folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in England over a number of centuries. ... Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, The Hag, August 1890. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Witchcraft. ... Read psychedelic section for amazing info! on the experiments of real elves good for school projects This article is about the small mythical creature, for the 2003 film, see Elf (film). ... The Dictionnaire de lAcadémie française is the official dictionary of the French language. ... French (français, langue française) is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered in speakers only by Spanish and Portuguese. ... Linguistically speaking, Middle Dutch is no more than a collective name for closely related languages or dialects which were spoken and written between about 1150 and 1500 in the present-day Dutch-speaking region. ...

Similar mythical creatures are the succubus/incubus, although the belief in the mara lacks the fundamental sexual element of these beings. For other uses, see Succubus (disambiguation). ... Incubus, 1870 This article is about the type of demon called an Incubus. For other uses, see Incubus. ...

Mara in popular culture

in Romeo and Juliet, a fairy with similar, if not identical, tendencies appears, but is known as Queen Mab. For other uses, see Romeo and Juliet (disambiguation). ... In English folklore, Queen Mab is a fairy. ...

Several Mara appear in the book The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, although the creatures as described have more in common with trolls. The Weirdstone of Brisingamen is a fantasy story by the author Alan Garner, first published in 1960. ... Troll statue in the forest near Geilo, Norway A troll is a member of a fearsome humanoid race from Scandinavian folklore, and its predecessor Norse mythology, as in The Three Billy Goats Gruff [1], the well-known Scandinavian folk tale in which a troll living under a bridge torments some...

The Mara appear in the Doctor Who serials Kinda and Snakedance. The Mara is a fictional villain from the long-running British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. ... This article is about the television series. ... Kinda is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from February 1 to February 9, 1982. ... Snakedance is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from January 18 to January 26, 1983. ...

In the Torchwood episode Small Worlds, Jack Harkness states that he thinks the evil, sadistic "fairies" are part Mara, which he describes as "kind of malignant wraiths" that suffocate people in their sleep. For plants known as torchwood, see Burseraceae. ... Small Worlds is an episode of the British science fiction television series Torchwood. ... For other persons and meanings, see Jack Harkness (disambiguation). ... This is a list of monsters and aliens from the television series Torchwood. ...

In White Wolf's Exalted RPG, there is a Second Circle Succubus-like Demon named Mara. Exalted is a role-playing game published by White Wolf Publishing. ...

In The Elder Scrolls series, Mara appears as one of the Goddesses in the pantheon of the nine divine. The Elder Scrolls (also known as Elder Scrolls or abbreviated as TES) is a computer role-playing game series, with Morrowind and Oblivion also being developed for consoles. ...

In the Blizzard RPG Diablo 2, a unique amulet bears the name "Mara's Kaleidoscope". For Mara is the name of NPC in Rogue Encampment.

In the Swedish RPG DoDT (Drakar och Demoner Trudvang) it is possible to attract a mara to haunt one's dreams when getting scared enough. RPG is an abbreviation with several different meanings: RPG programming language, is a native programming language for IBMs iSeries servers RPG Life Sciences, is an Indian Pharmaceutical Company Role-playing game, in which players assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create narratives Tabletop role-playing game, also called...

A character in Oh My Goddess! is a female demon (first class) named Mara. For other uses, see Oh My Goddess. ...

The rap group "Insane Clown Posse" often refers to the Mara in their lyrics, calling it "The Witch on your chest." Visitations of the "Witch" are often accompanied by the inability to move, and a crushing feeling on one's chest, preventing them from breathing.

In the manga Alice 19th by Yuu Watase, mara is the darkness that lives in people's hearts and causes them to say or do hurtful things.

In the popular Space simulator "Freespace 2," The Mara is a very powerful Fighter used by the main enemy of the game, the Shivans.

References

See also

• Nocnitsa
• Ephialtes
• Hindu Mara
• Mara (goddess)
• Buddhist Mara
• Sleep paralysis