Guan Yin

Guan Yin
Guan Yin depicted as aseagoddessriding adragon.Photographed byGünter Trageseron April 4th, 2005.
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	Quan âm
Simplified Chinese	Quan âm
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Guānyīn Wade–Giles Kuan1-yin1 Wu Suzhounese KueÂm bìnhInÂm bình Gan Romanization Guon In Hakka Romanization Guān Rhīm Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Gūnyām Jyutping Gun1 Jam1 Southern Min HokkienPOJ Koan-im
Full Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	Quan thế âm
Simplified Chinese	Quan thế âm
Literal meaning	"[The One Who] Perceives the Sounds of the World"
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Guānshìyīn Wade–Giles Kuan1-shih4-yin1 Wu Suzhounese KueÂm bìnhSyuÂm khứInÂm bình Hakka Romanization Guān Shè Rhīm Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Gūnsai Yām Jyutping Gun1 Sai3 Jam1 Southern Min HokkienPOJ Koan-sè-im
Burmese name
Burmese	ကွမ်ယင်မယ်တော်
IPA	[kwàɴ jɪ̀ɴ]
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese	Quan Âm Quán Thế Âm
Hán-Nôm	Quan âm Quan thế âm
Thai name
Thai	กวนอิม
Korean name
Hangul	관음 관세음
Hanja	Quan âm Quan thế âm
Transcriptions Revised Romanization Gwan-eum Gwan-se-eum
Japanese name
Kanji	Quan âm Quan âm Quan thế âm Quan âm bồ tát Quan tự tại
Transcriptions Romanization Kannon Kanzeon Kwannon (archaic) Kanjizai
Sinhala name
Sinhala	නාථ දෙවියෝ
Tibetan name
Tibetan	སྤྱན་རས་གཟིགས

Guan Yin(also spelledKwan Yin) is the Chinese name ofAvalokiteshvara,theBodhisattvaandincarnationof compassion and mercy.

Her full name isGuanshiyinwhich means "Observing the sounds (or cries) of the world." She represents mercy and compassion and is popular in the East and the West.

She takes various forms all over the world, in different eras and various forms. She can appear in the world as either male or female.

Names in Asian langauges

• InMacau,Hong Kong,and southernChinashe is calledKwun YumorKun Yum.
• InMeiteishe is calledLailempi Kwaan Yeen(ꯂꯥꯢꯂꯦꯝꯄꯤ ꯀ꯭ꯋꯥꯟ ꯌꯤꯟ).
• InJapaneseshe is calledKannon( quan âm ),Kan'on,orKanzeon( quan thế âm ).
• InKoreanshe is calledGwan-eum(관음) orGwanse-eum(관세음).
• InThaishe is calledKuan Im(กวนอิม),Phra Mae Kuan Im(พระแม่กวนอิม), orChao Mae Kuan Im(เจ้าแม่กวนอิม).
• InIndonesianshe is calledKwan ImorDewi Kwan Im.The wordDewiin the name is referring asDeviorGoddess.Sometimes she is calledMak Kwamwhich means Mother Kwan Yin.
• InVietnameseshe is calledQuan Âm, Quán Thế ÂmorQuán Thế Âm Bồ Tát.
• InKhmer,he is called"Preah Mae Kun Ci Iem".
• In Tibet (Vajrayana Buddhism), she is called Chenrezig and the Dalai Lama is often regarded as a present reincarnation.

Iconography

Depiction of Guan Yin in Vietnam.

TheThreefold Lotus Sutradescribes Guan Yin as aBodhisattvawho can take any form. She can transform into a male, female, adult, child, elder, human, or non-human, in order to teach theDharma.TheThreefold Lotus Sutrastates that Guan Yin has 33 different manifestations. Seven of these are female.

Representations of Guan Yin in theSong Dynastyweremasculinein appearance. Images and statues of Guan Yin during this time later became both genders because of the Lotus Sutra. Because Guan Yin is considered to be thepersonificationof compassion and kindness, and a mother-goddess as well as a patroness ofmothersandsailor,the representation of the Bodhisattva became mostly female around the 12th century. In the modern period, Guan Yin is often depicted as a beautiful, young white-robed woman, a depiction which derives from the earlierPandaravasiniform.

In China, she is often depicted as young and beautiful, wearing white robes and a necklace of Indian/Chinese royalty. In the left hand she holds a vase that contains the elixir of immortality and in the right hand, she holds a willow branch. Guan Yin wears a crown with an image ofAmitabhaBuddha.

Guan Yin is a prominent figure inJourney to the West.One of the four classics of Chinese literature, it tells the tale ofTang DynastymonkChen Hui's epic pilgrimage with three other traveling companions. Guan Yin enlistsMonkey King (Sun Wukong),previously imprisoned by the Buddha, to aid Chen Hui in his pilgrimage to India forSutraandReliquary.She later recruitsZhu Bajie (Pigsy)after his defeat at the staff of Monkey King, andSha Wujing (Sandy)as a body guard for Chen Hui.

Related pages

• Bodhisattva