User:Dorje108/kleshas

A kleśā (Sanskrit, also klesha; Pali: kilesa; Tibetan: nyon mongs), according to the Buddhist tradition, is a state of mind that leads to suffering. The three primary kleshas are ignorance, attachment, and aversion. Kleshas can also include states of mind such as anxiety, depression, and fear.

Contemporary Explanations of Kleshas
Generally speaking, kleshas are states of mind that obscure the mind and cause suffering. Contemporary translators have used many different English words to translate the term kleshas, such as: afflictions, passions, disturbing emotions, or defilements.

The following table provides brief descriptions of the term kleshas given by various contemporary Buddhist teachers and scholars. The table also indicates the English words used by each of these teachers as a translation for the term kleshas.

Etymology
In early Buddhist texts the kilesas generally referred to mental states which temporarily cloud the mind and manifest in unskillful actions. Over time the kilesas, and in particular the three poisons of ignorance, attachment, and aversion, came to be seen as the very roots of samsaric existence.
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