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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.
By her own words, she is a complex energy
presence. 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. According to Marjorie's
channelings, the closest association of Kwan
Yin being linked to a person energetically
in recent times is Miao Shan, an ancient
Chinese princess who was known for her great
compassion. Here is a qoute from Kwan Yin
about this:
"Although I am Bodhisattva, I am energy.
I am not a person. Basically, the Kwan Yin
energy was never in one single body. It has
always been a great part of the energy of
all of compassion of all the Universe. What
you see in front of you [Marjorie] is one
person who has been able to tap in and release
for a period of time, so that she can let
us be a part of her reality and to share
that with you so that you can be encouraged,
and that you can also bring forward the part
of you that knows the truth."
The name "Kwan Yin" is a derivation
of a Chinese name for the goddess that is
this energy of motherly compassion. This
is really a description of her energy ("she
who hears the cries of the people")
which has become accepted as her name on
earth. 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.
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"
-- the one who hears the prayers of
anyone
wanting to conceive a child -- to increase
their fertility. There is a connection
with
the care of souls, both during birth
and
after death. Taoists invoke her presence
to free newly departed souls from the
judgement
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 1000 years,
spreading
from its birthplace in India to 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.
There,
Avalokita, or Kwan Yin, was adopted
as a
god in the male form and later was
gradually
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.
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, "Om 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. The Chinese translation
of the Sanskrit Avalokita is Kuanshih Yin,
the full form of the shortened Kuan Yin,
or Kwan Yin.
It is said in ancient writings that she was
embodied as Miao Shan (whose name means "wonderfully
kind one"), a Chinese princess who lived
about 700 BC. 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 called 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 she was about to enter
heaven,
she paused at the threshold as the
cries
of the world reached her ears, and
she 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.
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. To me, gods and
goddesses, angels, Ascended Masters and Bodhisattvas
are all individual parts of the whole of
the God Force which permeates everything.
I have no problem with labels as such.
In depictions she is shown with pearls of
illumination in one hand; and with the other
she pours 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.
A 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.
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