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Guan_Yin.
Guan Yin
Kannon statue in Daienin, Mt. Koya, Japan
Guan Yin (觀音菩薩, Pinyin: Guānyīn Púsà, literal meaning: "The bodhisattva who observes the sounds (of the people from the secular world)"), also written Kuan Yin, Kwan Yin, Kwan-yin, Kun Iam and Kwun Yam, is a bodhisattva of compassion, worshipped by East Asian Buddhists. Guan Yin, especially in the female aspect, is also reverenced by Chinese Taoists as an Immortal. In Japanese, Guan Yin is called Kannon (観音) or more formally Kanzeon (観世音).
Guan Yin is believed to have developed from the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, covered in a separate article.
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1 History
2 Legend
3 Guan Yin and the Virgin Mary
4 Tie-Guan-Yin
History
With Buddhism, Guan Yin's worship was introduced into China as early as the 1st century AD, and reached Japan by way of Korea soon after Buddhism was first introduced into the country from the mid-7th century. This bodhisattva was introduced into Tibet (called Chenrezig) in the 7th century
Representations of the bodhisattva in China prior to the Song Dynasty (960-1279) were masculine in appearance. Images which later displayed attributes of both genders are believed to be in accordance with the Lotus Sutra where Avalokitesvara has the supernatural power of assuming any form required to relieve suffering and also has the power to grant children. (Thus, Avalokiteshvara could be transgendered.) Because this bodhisattva is considered the personification of compassion and kindness, a mother-goddess and patron of mothers and seamen, the representation in China was further interpreted in an all female form around the 12th century. In China, it is said that fishermen used to pray to her to ensure safe voyages. The titles 'Guanyin of the Southern Ocean' and 'Guanyin (of/on) the Island' stem from this tradition.
Avalokitesvara as portrayed in Tibet has a wide variety of manifestations, more popular ones including Sahasra-bhuja (with a thousand arms) and Ekadasmukha (with eleven faces), as well as the Dalai Lama. In China, however, Guan Yin is more usually represented as a beautiful white robed woman, a descendant of the original Pandaravasini form
Legend
Guanyin and child
One Buddhist legend presents Avalokitesvara as vowing to never rest until he had freed all sentient beings from samsara. Although with strenuously effort, he realized that still many unhappy beings were yet to be saved. After comprehending the great demand, he became overwhelmed and his head split into thousands of pieces. Fortunately, a Buddha assembled him back together again. With eleven heads gazing to the front and sides, Avalokiteshvara possesses the unique gift to see everywhere at once and reach out to the needy.
Another story, possibly Taoist in origin, describes her as the daughter of a cruel father who wanted her to marry a wealthy but uncaring man. She begged to be able to enter a temple instead. Her father allowed her, but asked the monks to give her very hard chores in order to discourage her. She was forced to work all day and all night while others slept in order to finish her work. However, she was such a good person that the animals living around the temple began to help her with her chores. Her father, seeing this, became so frustrated that he burned down the temple. Guan Yin put out the fire with her bare hands and suffered no burns. Now struck with fear, her father ordered her to be put to death. After she died she was made into a goddess for all of her kindness and began her journey to heaven. She was about to cross over into heaven when she heard a cry of suffering back on earth. She asked to be sent back and vowed to stay until all suffering had ended.
Guan Yin is associated across Asia with vegetarianism. Chinese vegetarian restaurants are generally decorated with her image, and she appears in most Buddhist vegetarian pamphlets and magazines.
Guan Yin and the Virgin Mary
Many observers have commented on the similarity between Guan Yin and the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Tzu-Chi Foundation has a potrait of Guan Yin and a baby that resembles the typical Madonna and Child painting.
During the Tokugawa shogunate period in Japan, when Christianity was banned and punishable by death, some underground Christian groups worshipped the Virgin Mary disguised as a statue of Kannon; such statues are known as Maria Kannon. Many had a cross hidden in an inconspicuous location.
Tie-Guan-Yin
There is a Chinese oolong tea (pinyin wulongcha 烏龍茶/乌龙茶) named Tie-Guan-Yin 鐵觀音/铁观音 (at one purveyor's) which has been translated as "Iron Goddess of Mercy".
There is a legend associated with this name. A peasant farmer often passed by an abandoned temple with an iron statue of Guan Yin inside. Saddened by the lack of care, he took it upon himself to sweep and clean the temple whenever he passed by. In thanks, Guan Yin visited the peasant in a dream and told him to look for treasure behind the temple. When he woke from the dream, he rushed to the rear of the temple and found a small tea shrub. The leaves of this shrub produced a particularly fragrant brew and the peasant became rich by cultivating and selling his "Iron Guanyin" tea.
See also: Buddhism in China
The above article is adapted from from Wikipedia All Wikipedia article text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
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