Topic: Kuan Yin

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1. Yang Liu Guan Yin
(yahng lyoh gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who holds a willow branch
[a Healing Power--her willow branch drips with sweet dew]

 
2.  Long Tou Guan Yin
(lohng tow gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of the dragon head
[the symbol of Kuan Yin's Power--and everything having to do with her Dragons]
 
3.  Chi Jing Guan Yin
(cher jing gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who holds the sutra
[her Knowledge and Wisdom--really, Kuan Yin as Prajnaparamita!]
 
4.  Yuan Guang Guan Yin
(yewen gwahng gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of complete light
[complete = whole; a vast Wholeness of Light that banishes all shadows]
 
5.  Yu Xi Guan Yin
(yew shee gwan yeen)
playful Kuan Yin
[happy, laughing, smiling, playful, lighthearted Aspect]
 
6.  Bai Yi Guan Yin
(bye yee gwan yeen)
white-robed Kuan Yin
[her Purity--also Kuan Yin in the mantle of Pandaravasini, "the White-robed One", Consort of Amitabha Buddha]
 
7.  Lian Wo Guan Yin
(lyen wo gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who sits on a lotus leaf
[sitting upon, enthroned upon, having dominion over the chakras]
 
8.  Long Jian Guan Yin
(lohng jyen gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who views waterfalls or swift water
[Mistress of Energy Flow, and the Waterfall of Light and Blessing coming down from Above]
 
9.  Shi Yao Guan Yin
(sher yao gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who give medicines
[Bestower of all Healing, Remedies, Cures on all levels]
 
10.  Yu Lan Guan Yin
(yew lahn gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of the fish basket
[Abundance, Prosperity, Fertility--also Community, Friendship, Marriage, the Auspicious Symbol of the Double Fishes--also all of this through Mastery of Water and Emotion]
 
11.  De Wang Guan Yin
(duh wahng gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin, the Queen of Merit or Virtue
[Merit and Virtue as TE, the Power or Shakti of the Divine Mother; mastery of the Kundalini]
 
12.  Shui Yue Guan Yin
(shway yweh gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of moon and water
[Mastery of emotion, the Water Element; dominion over images and appearanes or reflections]
 
13.  Yi Ye Guan Yin
(yee yeh gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of the one leaf
[attaining the Whole through one part of the Whole, because every part has the whole contained in it.  One leaf can give you the whole tree, or book]
 
14.  Qing Jing Guan Yin
(ching jing gwan yeen)
blue-throat Kuan Yin
[for cancelling out all poisons--mental, emotional, physical]
 
15.  Wei De Guan Yin
(way duh gwan yeen)
powerful and virtuous Kuan Yin
[again, mastery of Shakti and Kundalini]
 
16.  Yan Ming Guan Yin
(yen ming gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who extends life
[extending not only quantity but quality of Life and Life Force]
 
17.  Zhong Bao Guan Yin
(johng bao gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of various treasures
[treasures of every kind, including in the sense of hidden treasures of Teaching and Blessing]
 
18.  Yan Hu Guan Yin
(yen hoo gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of the rock cave
[the rock cave can be the Secret Chamber; also it can be, in another aspect, the cave of the subconscious and unconscious, which Kuan Yin takes dominion over]
 
19.  Ning Jing Guan Yin
(ning jing gwan yeen)
the calming Kuan Yin
[harmony, peace of body and mind and soul--overcoming anger]
 
20.  A Nou Guan Yin
(ah nou gwan een)
the Anu Kuan Yin
[image of Kuan Yin seated upon a rock looking out over the sea to find beings in distress]
 
21.  A Mo Di Guan Yin
(ah mo dee gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of (the Buddha Amoghasiddhi’s) fearlessness
[Kuan Yin as expression of the Dhyani Buddha Amoghasiddhi]
 
22.  Ye Yi Guan Yin
(yeh yee gwan yeen)
Parnashabari (leaf-robed) Kuan Yin
[another healing and nurturing manifestation]
 
23.  Liu Li Guan Yin
(lyoo lee gwan yeen)
lapis lazuli Kuan Yin
[lapis is the color of healing and long life, and of the Healing Buddhas and Bodhisattvas]
 
24.  Do Lo Guan Yin
(do lo gwan yeen)
the Tara Kuan Yin
[Kuan Yin as Tara]
 
25.  Ge Li Guan Yin
(guh lee gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of the clam
[Kuan Yin as the opener of shut or closed or unmoving situations, people, energies]
 
26.  Liu Shi Guan Yin
(lyoh sher gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of six hours
[the ancient Chinese "clock" was divided into 3 periods of six hours--therefore mastery of time, and Kuan Yin's protection throughout the entire day and night]
 
27.  Pu Bei Guan Yin
(poo bay gwan yeen)
universally compassionate Kuan Yin
[all-compassionate]
 
28.  Ma Lang Fu Guan Yin
(mah lahng foo gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin the wife of Ma Lang
[Ma Lang means "Mr. Ma" or "Husband Ma", based on a legend; I would say seeing oneself as the pure consort of Kuan Yin, her helpmate and active expression on earth]
 
29.  He Jang Guan Yin
(huh jahng gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of joined palms (in prayer, harmony with others, etc.)
[prayer, goodwill, harmonious relations]
 
30.  Yi Ru Guan Yin
(yee roo gwan een)
Kuan Yin of Oneness
[Oneness in all ways--wholeness, integration of oneself  and oneself with Kuan Yin--in this Manifestation She stands upon a Cloud and has mastery over all Energy]
 
31.  Bu Er Guan Yin
(boo are gwan yeen)
non-dual Kuan Yin
[not separate or divided or fractured from Oneself or from Kuan Yin]
 
32.  Chi Lian Guan Yin
(cher lyen gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin who holds the lotus
[holds = has mastery of the chakras]
 
33.  Sa Shui Guan Yin
(sah shway gwan yeen)
Kuan Yin of pure water
[pure liquid Light, Sweet Dew--can be used to bless water and liquids, also]
 

[erismoksha]

This one - closest to what she looked like - pretty close.

[nichi]

Hey, that's Fish-Basket Kuan Yin!
That would make sense!

[Michael]

that one reminds me of my aunti Noni

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Kuan-Yin is one of the most universally loved deities of Buddism. She is known as a Goddess of Compassion and Loving Kindness, and altars, throughout the Orient, have been dedicated to her. Her followers constantly pray to both her presence and her flame, seeking her guidance in every aspect of their lives. Kuan-Yin is quite frequently referred to as "Kuan Shih Yin," as well, which translates, quite literally, to mean "the one who regards, looks on, or hears the sounds of the world."

In India, Kuan-Yin is known as Avalokitesvara, which is a Sanskrit word that means "to gaze or regard something." When Avalokitesvara was translated by the Chinese, it then became Kuan Shih Yin-Kuan, which means "to regard." The word Shih means the "world," and the word Yin means the "sounds. Pu Sa is Chinese for Bodhisattva, so that particular mantra ends up meaning "to take refuge in the Bodhisattva who listens to the sounds of the world".

Throughout Asia, whether in Japan, Korea, Tibet, or China, images of Kuan-Yin appear everywhere: in homes, in temples, and within thousands of shrines, roadside grottos and shaded pools. Kuan-Yin's followers often bring her gifts of flowers and fruit. Those gifts are never brought in supplication, though, because Kuan-Yin has neither the need nor the desire for that. Rather, she prefers to lead her followers in whatever direction is best suited for them, and she does so gently, and with love. Knowing that, it is easily understandable why Kuan-Yin is considered to be one of the kindest and giving Goddesses that the world has ever known.
Kuan-Yin has always been an inspiration to her followers. When they hear tales about her many noble actions, they find themselves wanting to help others, as well, by giving of themselves, or what they might have. Following in Kuan-Yin's footsteps, they also embrace her belief that people must avoid causing pain to any creature in the universe.

Kuan-Yin is seen, by the humble, as the Great Mother Goddess, who is also their friend, benefactor and protector, while philosophers tend to see her as the divine force of compassion, spreading harmony throughout the universe. Some of Kuan-Yin's followers say that they feel her near them, while a few even claim that she has appeared before them.

A seventh century Tibetan painting depicts Avalokitesvara Kuan-Yin having a thousand arms with which to scatter her blessings. She really has no need for all those arms, though. Two arms and hands are all that is necessary for Kuan-Yin to hold the particular objects that she requires to help others. In one hand she holds a vase containing amrita, which is the dew of immortality; while in the other, she holds a spray of willow branches, that she uses to sprinkle compassion and infinate mercy upon her followers.

The Chinese revere Kuan-Yin, with great joy, and they cast her in the role of a savior. It is believed that anyone in distress who calls to Kuan-Yin with complete sincerity, will be rescued by her from all suffering and harm. Looking at that from another perspective, Kuan-Yin symbolizes the liberating energy of compassion, which is an indispensable aid in the quest for enlightenment.

~Author not noted on
http://www.purifymind.com/

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Kuan Yin is the compassionate Saviouress of the East. Throughout the Orient altars dedicated to this Mother of Mercy can be found in temples, homes and wayside grottoes and prayers to her Presence and her Flame are incessantly on the lips of devotees as they seek her guidance and succor in every area of life.

Still very much a part of Eastern culture. Kuan Yin has awakened interest in her path and teaching among a growing number of Western devotees who recognize the powerful presence of "the Goddess of Mercy and Compassion," along with that of the Virgin Mary, as an illuminator and intercessor of the Seventh Age of Aquarius.

The long history of devotion to Kuan Yin provides insight into the character and example of this Lightbearer who has not only laid down her life for her friends but taken it again and again as intercessor and burdenbearer. For centuries, Kuan Yin has epitomized the great ideal of Mahayana Buddhism in her role as "bodhisattva (Chinese p'u-sa)--literally a being of bodhi, or enlightenment," who is destined to become a Buddha but has foregone the bliss of Nirvana with a vow to save all children of God.

The name Kuan Shih Yin, as she is often called, means literally "the one who regards, looks on, or hears the sounds of the world." According to legend, Kuan Yin was about to enter heaven but paused on the threshold as the cries of the world reached her ears.

There is still much scholarly debate regarding the origin of devotion to the female bodhisattva Kuan Yin. Kuan Yin is considered to be the feminine form of Avalokitesvara (Sanskrit), the bodhisattva of compassion of Indian Buddhism whose worship was introduced into China in the third century.

Scholars believe that the Buddhist monk and translator Kumarajiva was the first to refer to the female form of Kuan Yin in his Chinese translation of the Lotus Sutra in 406 A.D. Of the thirty-three appearances of the bodhisattva referred to in his translation, seven are female. (Devoted Chinese and Japanese Buddhists have since come to associate the number thirty-three with Kuan Yin.)

Although Kuan Yin was still being portrayed as a male as late as the tenth century, with the introduction of Tantric Buddhism into China in the eighth century during the T'ang dynasty, the image of the celestial bodhisattva as a beautiful white-robed goddess was predominant and the devotional cult surrounding her became increasingly popular. By the ninth century there was a statue of Kuan Yin in every Buddhist monastery in China.

Despite the controversy over the origins of Kuan Yin as a feminine being, the depiction of a bodhisattva as both 'god' and 'goddess' is not inconsistent with Buddhist doctrine. The scriptures explain that a bodhisattva has the power to embody in any form--male, female, child, even animal-depending on the type of being he is seeking to save. As the Lotus Sutra relates, the bodhisattva Kuan Shih Yin, "by resort to a variety of shapes, travels in the world, conveying the beings to salvation."

The twelfth-century legend of the Buddhist saint Miao Shan, the Chinese princess who lived in about 700 B.C. and is widely believed to have been Kuan Yin, reinforced the image of the bodhisattva as a female. During the twelfth century Buddhist monks settled on P'u-t'o Shan--the sacred island-mountain in the Chusan Archipelago off the coast of Chekiang where Miao Shan is said to have lived for nine years, healing and saving sailors from shipwreck--and devotion to Kuan Yin spread throughout northern China.

In Buddhist theology Kuan Yin is sometimes depicted as the captain of the "Bark of Salvation," guiding souls to Amitabha's Western Paradise, or Pure Land--the land of bliss where souls may be reborn to receive continued instruction toward the goal of enlightenment and perfection. The journey to Pure Land is frequently represented in woodcuts showing boats full of Amitabha's followers under Kuan Yin's captainship.
Amitabha, a beloved figure in the eyes of Buddhists desiring to be reborn in his Western Paradise and to obtain freedom from the wheel of rebirth, is said to be, in a mystical or spiritual sense, the father of Kuan Yin. Legends of the Mahayana School recount that Avalokitesvara was 'born' from a ray of white light which Amitabha emitted from his right eye as he was lost in ecstasy.

Thus Avalokitesvara, or Kuan Yin, is regarded as the "reflex" of Amitabha-a further emanation or embodiment of "maha karuna (great compassion), the quality which Amitabha himself embodies in the highest sense. Many figures of Kuan Yin can be identified by the presence of a small image of Amitabha in her crown. It is believed that as the merciful redemptress Kuan Yin expresses Amitabha's compassion in a more direct and personal way and prayers to her are answered more quickly.

The iconography of Kuan Yin depicts her in many forms, each one revealing a unique aspect of her merciful presence. As the sublime Goddess of Mercy whose beauty, grace and compassion have come to represent the ideal of womanhood in the East, she is frequently portrayed as a slender woman in flowing white robes who carries in her left hand a white lotus, symbol of purity. Ornaments may adorn her form, symbolizing her attainment as a bodhisattva, or she may be pictured without them as a sign of her great virtue.

Kuan Yin's presence is widespread through her images as the "bestower of children" which are found in homes and temples. A great white veil covers her entire form and she may be seated on a lotus. She is often portrayed with a child in her arms, near her feet, or on her knees, or with several children about her. In this role, she is also referred to as the "white-robed honored one." Sometimes to her right and left are her two attendants, Shan-ts'ai Tung-tsi, the "young man of excellent capacities," and Lung-wang Nu, the "daughter of the Dragon-king."

Kuan Yin is also known as patron bodhisattva of P'u-t'o Shan, mistress of the Southern Sea and patroness of fishermen. As such she is shown crossing the sea seated or standing on a lotus or with her feet on the head of a dragon.

Like Avalokitesvara she is also depicted with a thousand arms and varying numbers of eyes, hands and heads, sometimes with an eye in the palm of each hand, and is commonly called "the thousand-arms, thousand-eyes" bodhisattva. In this form she represents the omnipresent mother, looking in all directions simultaneously, sensing the afflictions of humanity and extending her many arms to alleviate them with infinite expressions of her mercy.

Symbols characteristically associated with Kuan Yin are a willow branch, with which she sprinkles the divine nectar of life; a precious vase symbolizing the nectar of compassion and wisdom, the hallmarks of a bodhisattva; a dove, representing fecundity; a book or scroll of prayers which she holds in her hand, representing the dharma (teaching) of the Buddha or the sutra (Buddhist text) which Miao Shan is said to have constantly recited; and a rosary adorning her neck with which she calls upon the Buddhas for succor.

Images of Avalokitesvara often show him holding a rosary; descriptions of his birth say he was born with a white crystal rosary in his right hand and a white lotus in his left. It is taught that the beads represent all living beings and the turning of the beads symbolizes that Avalokitesvara is leading them out of their state of misery and repeated rounds of rebirth into nirvana.

Today Kuan Yin is worshipped by Taoists as well as Mahayana Buddhists--especially in Taiwan, Japan, Korea and once again in her homeland of China, where the practice of Buddhism had been suppressed by the Communists during the Cultural Revolution (1966-69). She is the protectress of women, sailors, merchants, craftsmen, and those under criminal prosecution, and is invoked particularly by those desiring progeny. Beloved as a mother figure and divine mediatrix who is very close to the daily affairs of her devotees, Kuan Yin's role as Buddhist Madonna has been compared to that of Mary the mother of Jesus in the West.

There is an implicit trust in Kuan Yin's saving grace and healing powers. Many believe that even the simple recitation of her name will bring her instantly to the scene. One of the most famous texts associated with the bodhisattva, the ancient Lotus Sutra whose twenty-fifth chapter, dedicated to Kuan Yin, is known as the "Kuan Yin sutra," describes thirteen cases of impending disaster--from shipwreck to fire, imprisonment, robbers, demons, fatal poisons and karmic woes--in which the devotee will be rescued if his thoughts dwell on the power of Kuan Yin. The text is recited many times daily by those who wish to receive the benefits it promises.

Devotees also invoke the bodhisattva's power and merciful intercession with the mantra OM MANI PADME HUM-- "Hail to the jewel in the lotus!" or, as it has also been interpreted, "Hail to Avalokitesvara, who is the jewel in the heart of the lotus of the devotee's heart!" Throughout Tibet and Ladakh, Buddhists have inscribed OM MANI PADME HUM on flat prayer stones called "mani-stones" as votive offerings in praise of Avalokitesvara. Thousands of these stones have been used to build mani-walls that line the roads entering villages and monasteries.

It is believed that Kuan Yin frequently appears in the sky or on the waves to save those who call upon her when in danger. Personal stories can be heard in Taiwan, for instance, from those who report that during World War II when the United States bombed the Japanese-occupied Taiwan, she appeared in the sky as a young maiden, catching the bombs and covering them with her white garments so they would not explode.
Thus altars dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy are found everywhere--shops, restaurants, even taxicab dashboards. In the home she is worshipped with the traditional "pai pai," a prayer ritual using incense, as well as the use of prayer charts--sheets of paper designed with pictures of Kuan Yin, lotus flowers, or pagodas and outlined with hundreds of little circles. With each set of prayers recited or sutras read in a novena for a relative, friend, or oneself, another circle is filled in. This chart has been described as a "Ship of Salvation" whereby departed souls are saved from the dangers of hell and the faithful safely conveyed to Amitabha's heaven. In addition to elaborate services with litanies and prayers, devotion to Kuan Yin is expressed in the popular literature of the people in poems and hymns of praise.

Devout followers of Kuan Yin may frequent local temples and make pilgrimages to larger temples on important occasions or when they are burdened with a special problem. The three yearly festivals held in her honor are on the nineteenth day of the second month (celebrated as her birthday), of the sixth month, and of the ninth month based on the Chinese lunar calendar.

In the tradition of the Great White Brotherhood Kuan Yin is known as the Ascended Lady Master who bears the office and title of "Goddess of Mercy" because she ensouls the God qualities of the law of mercy, compassion and forgiveness. She had numerous embodiments prior to her ascension thousands of years ago and has taken the vow of the bodhisattva to teach the unascended children of God how to balance their karma and fulfill their divine plan by loving service to life and the application of the violet flame through the science of the spoken Word.
Kuan Yin preceded the Ascended Master Saint Germain as Chohan (Lord) of the Seventh Ray of Freedom, Transmutation, Mercy and Justice and she is one of seven Ascended Masters who serve on the Karmic Board, a council of justice that mediates the karma of earth's evolutions--dispensing opportunity, mercy and the true and righteous judgments of the Lord to each lifestream on earth. She is hierarch of the etheric Temple of Mercy over Peking, China, where she focuses the light of the Divine Mother on behalf of the children of the ancient land of China, the souls of humanity, and the sons and daughters of God.

~Author not noted on
http://purifymind.com