KWAN YIN - An Introduction to the Goddess

[Myriel RAouine]

KWAN YIN

 

An introduction to the goddess

 

 

Known as The Goddess of Mercy, Gentle Protectress, Bodhisattva of

Compassion, even the savior of seamen and fishermen, she holds

many titles. The spelling of her name varies, but it is not so much the

arrangement of letters as it is the effect that her spoken name produces on

those with a Buddhist background, similar to a reaction in the West when one

is speaking of the Virgin Mary. In both cases, it invokes the feeling of

compassion and unconditional love. Indeed, her force is compared to Mother

Mary in the West, Green Tara in the Tibetan culture, the Virgin of

Guadeloupe in Mexico, and many other ancient goddesses, the matriarchy of

old. You might call her the Buddhist Madonna.

I asked Kwan Yin about her name and she said: “Kwan Yin is, ‘hears

the cries of the people,’ The Goddess of Mercy and Compassion.” In all

instances this seems like an accepted interpretation. Although there are

variations, the feeling is the same. She responds to the heartfelt needs and

anguish of the people of earth regardless of background or belief.

By her own words, she is not a singular soul, but more like an Oversoul,

a complex energy presence under the archetype of the Divine Feminine. Thus

when I ask her about her incarnations as “Kwan Yin,” this involves many

persons that have embodied and reflected this energy in their lives on earth,

as far as I can understand.

The term goddess always summons up images of myth, and although

some may see her as a mythical goddess, many on this planet worship her as

a living presence. From my teachings, gods and goddesses, angels, Ascended

Masters and Bodhisattvas are real, and are also individual parts of the whole

of All That Is, which permeates everyone and everything. The names are just

ways in which humanity can bring an understanding of great energies into

everyday language, but the feeling is more important.

Being one of the “mother” goddesses, she is especially connected to

those in need of any kind of help, be they sick, lost, frightened or simply in

unfortunate circumstances. She is a great protector and benefactor of the

weak, the ill and especially the children and the babies.

Many erect alters to Kwan Yin, the “bestower of children” as the one

who hears the prayers of anyone wanting to increase their fertility and

conceive a child. There is a connection with the care of souls, both during

birth and after death. Taoists invoke her presence to free newly departed

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souls from the judgment of the underworld. She guards the souls of the

newborn and guides them to their new parents.

Her range of influence is vast, from China to Korea and Japan, all the

way down into Malaysia. She has superceded her Buddhist traditions and

jumped into the realm of a more universally venerated goddess, now known

to those of many different faiths and sects. Her image can be found on most

any alter of worship in temples, homes, schools, shops, restaurants, out of the

way grottos and even on the dashboards of taxis.

Entwined in the faith of Buddhism, her first real appearance in literature

seems to be around 400 AD. By that time, Buddhism had been around for

nearly a thousand years, spreading from its birthplace in India into China and

subsequently to Korea, Japan and Tibet. Devotees of Avalokitesvara, or

Avalokita, Bodhisattva of Compassion of Indian Buddhism, brought the

concept of Avalokita to China.

Avalokita is depicted with many arms, hands and heads, sometimes with

an eye in each palm representing the ever watchful omnipresent mother,

ready to immediately reach out in any direction to alleviate suffering. In

Buddhist mythology, it states that Avalokita was born from Amitabha

Buddha’s right eye, after which he proclaimed, “Aum Mani Padme Hum” –

the jewel in the lotus – a sentiment of her preciousness to him. Some believe

she is actually an incarnation of Amitabha Buddha.

In China, Avalokita became Guanshiyin, or Kuan Shi Yin, and was

adopted as a god in male form. Gradually the male god was changed by some

to resemble a female, lending a rather androgynous element to her. By 1200

AD she was definitely a female portrayed in flowing robes with the

shortened name of Kuan Yin (although we use the form Kwan Yin in this

work.)

It is said in ancient writings that Kwan Yin was Miao Shan (whose

name means “wonderfully kind one”), a Chinese princess who lived about

700 BC. Kwan Yin, through Marjorie, confirms that this person was indeed

the last very strong embodiment of the Kwan Yin energy, but she is not the

only one. This legendary Buddhist saint is said to have spent nine years

living on an island off the coast of China, healing, meditating and saving

sailors from shipwreck. This island became a place of worship and

pilgrimage for many, especially in one of the caves there, which was

transformed into a shrine dedicated to Kwan Yin.

She is known as a Bodhisattva, literally a “being of bodhi, or

enlightenment.” Bodhi is the spiritual energy that produces an urge for

enlightenment, emanating Wisdom and Compassion. The Buddhas are the

primary stream from this energy, the secondary stream from the Buddhas

being the Bodhisattva. A Bodhisattva is any soul which has attained

enlightenment and has freed itself from the karmic cycle of rebirth, but which

has forgone the bliss of Nirvana, the merging with the Creator, in order to

help all the rest attain their enlightenment. This is their vow. It is said that as

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she was about to enter heaven, she paused at the threshold as the cries of the

world reached her ears and returned to help them. She is also called an

Ascended Master, which essentially means that one has learned all their

lessons, transmuted their karma and is not compelled to experience being

reborn into a physical body if they do not desire it.

In depictions she has pearls of illumination in one hand and with the

other hand she is pouring out “sweet dew,” the nectar of Wisdom and

Compassion, from a small vase, blessing all with physical and spiritual

peace. Her cupped hands are a symbol of the womb and the universal

feminine principal. She sometimes holds a sheaf of ripe rice, a metaphor for

sustenance supplied. The dragon is often seen with her, a symbol of wisdom,

strength and the power of divine transformation. As Divine Mother, always

there are children around her or being held by her. There are two small

attendants that show up periodically, a “young man of excellent capacities”

and the “daughter of the Dragon King,” both related to the legendary Miao

Shan. As reference to fishermen, sailors and water, she can be seen on a boat

or a lotus flower crossing the sea. Other things related to her are a dove, a

scroll of prayers, which are the teachings of Buddha, a rosary of white crystal

beads showing the rounds of rebirth and a willow spray with which she

sprinkles the divine nectar of life.

 

Through The Eyes of Kwan Yin

Channeled by Marjorie Musacchio.

Transcribed and edited by Craig

Robert Howell. Copyright © 2001

Second edition © 2005

 

http://www.mykwanyin.com/files/thrutheeyesofkwan05.pdf

 

[Myriel RAouine]

[Myriel RAouine]

Another AMAZING bit of information in connection with the Year of the Dragon: Lady Quan Yin or Kuan Yin is often depicted riding a DRAGON!!! The following was posted as a comment by Arleem

Quan Yin is known as the Goddess of Compassion and is often depicted riding on a dragon. She is the eastern counterpart of Mother Mary and she works to balance the feminine energy. She is one of the Lords of Karma representing the sixth ray. [I, for my part always associated her with the 7th - Violet Fire Cauldron - NEW YEAR DISPENSATION - but I know her to work with SEVERAL Rays ...] Isis carried the same 'mother energy' in Egyptian and Hinduism, Shakti (Vishnu's wife), Pavarti (Shiva's wife) and Sita (Rama's wife). Her proper name is Kuanshih Yin and means "She who harkens to the cries of the world".