In Shaivism, the term Mala refers to the obstructions which prevent the revelation of one’s true nature and spiritual liberation. Shaivism talks about three Malas, contraction or impurities, that afflict all of us as human beings. Mala refers to dust, dirt and impurity. Malas are those restricting conditions, both personal and impersonal, which hamper the free expression of the spirit.

Malas are contradictions of will (emotion), a contraction of knowledge and a contraction of action. At the level of Shiva, will, thought and action are simultaneous and inseparable. Shiva can manifest anything. He is empowered and effective. Impure will involves desire: we are not content with our lot. We think we need this or that to make us whole. Simultaneously we feel that we can’t achieve our goals and are ineffectual.

When we are confused about the direction and meaning of our lives, we manifest the contraction of knowledge. Finally, we are bound to our bodies and accumulate negative karma or we do good things and acquire good karma. Action limits us and we cannot do everything.

The three Malas

Shaivism defines this problem, by speaking about the three Malas. Karma mala, Maviya mala and Anava mala.

Karma Mala relates to the physical body. It is the result of selfish and fearful actions. The actions we perform can be good or bad. If we perform good deeds, we have good karma. The bondage of karma is that we live with results of our actions. Karma binds individuals to the cycle of birth and death.

Maviya mala refers to the mind and limited knowledge. We have to develop our awareness and eliminate negative thoughts. Abhinava Gupta says, ‘whoever wishes to have access to the divine nature, should first of all purify his thoughts’. Maviya mala is related to the power of Maya.

Anava Mala is a sense of imperfection, lack of individuality and there is a sense of isolation. Universal consciousness is reduced to a tiny entity. All limitations emerge from this state. It is of two kinds, in the loss of its freedom and in the loss of the power of its knowledge. It’s the root cause of the ego and feeling empty.

The three malas represent the different layers of limitation that prevent individuals from realizing their true nature as Shiva.

Aim Hrim Klim