THE BEAUTIFUL LEGEND OF KUAN YIN
CHINA’S COMPASSIONATE GODDESS OF MERCY
recovered and on discovering how his own daughter whom he had persecuted had saved him, repented. T us did Kuan Yin “save” her father with her matchless act of compassionate charity. T e Goddess Kuan Yin is dearly loved
I
f there is a Goddess known to practically everyone of Chinese origin, it is surely the Goddess of Mercy, Kuan Yin Pusa who is universally known for
her wonderful compassion. She is also often referred to as the Chinese manifestation of the Indian Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, who is associated with the attributes of compassion, kindness and love. A bodhisattva is usually described as an Enlightened Being who has achieved complete understanding of the true nature of reality, and has left the world of suff ering; destined to become a Buddha, but who has not yet gone on to enjoy the bliss of Nirvana because they want to continue working on their vow to provide solace and comfort to all living beings who continue to suffer in the world of samsara. T e legend of Kuan Yin originates
from the story of a king who had three daughters. She was the youngest daughter of the King and from birth, she manifested great compassion for all living things. T e king arranged to fi nd her a rich husband, but Kuan Yin declined and instead pleaded with her father to let her enter a nunnery
46 FENGSHUIWORLD | JUNE 2015 | NOVEMBER 2015
instead. T e king relented and allowed her to go into the nunnery, but ordered that she be given the most diffi cult and degrading tasks in order to discourage her. But Kuan Yin only grew stronger in her resolve to endure whatever suff erings came her way, all for the sake of others. T e King become angry; he ordered the temple to be burned, and he even ordered that she be executed. But when the executioner struck Kuan Yin with his sword, it broke into a thousand pieces. He tried shooting with arrows, but these veered into a hundred diff erent directions. Finally, on his orders, they succeeded in killing her by strangulation. On arriving in hell she exuded such glorious light, she transformed the hell realm into paradise. King Yama, the ruler of the hell disapproved of Kuan Yin raising the brightness of hell, and brought her back to life. It happened then that the King, her
father, was struck down by a disease that could only be cured with the hand and eye of one completely free from anger. Kuan Yin heard this and allowed her hand to be cut off and her eye to be removed to cure the King. T e King
by millions of people around the world. She is usually shown robed in white, not unlike the Christian Virgin Mary, and many people equate these two Goddesses of diff erent religious traditions. But while Mary holds a rosary, Kuan Yin carries a sacred vase containing nectar. In her other hand, she holds a willow branch to sprinkle the nectar as blessings of help and peace to those seeking her assistance in a variety of problems. T e willow branch is a Buddhist symbol of healing. On Kuan Yin’s crown, there is usually an image of the Buddha Amitabha, who is regarded as the Guru of Kuan Yin. In Buddist tradition, Buddha Amitabha is the Head of the Lotus family of Buddhas (also known as the Padma family) to which Kuan Yin belongs. Sometimes she is shown holding a crystal mala or rosary with 108 beads. T e crystal mala is always associated with Kuan Yin, and each bead represents living beings in need of help from the goddess. T e crystal rosary hence symbolizes Kuan Yin leading suff ering beings out of their state of misery. T ere are many artistic renditions of the beautiful Goddess, but these can be grouped into three popular versions of Kuan Yin. T ese are the:
Thousand Armed Kuan Yin According to religious legend, Kuan Yin had vowed never to rest (or ever despair in her work of alleviating the suff ering of beings) until every sentient being had been liberated from their suff erings, and until all the hells were empty. Yet through the eons, in spite of thousands of years’ worth of work and effort, still there continued to be millions of unhappy beings not yet liberated from their suff erings. Struggling to comprehend the
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