Many other Kuan Yin transformations are described ful y in
the various Mahayana Sutras and the underlying concept for all
are basical y the same -- an expression of the limitless compas-
sion of this great bodhisat va. One of the most important forms
which all Kuan Yin devotees should recognise and revere is that
of the Four-arm Avalokitesvara, worshipped by all Tibetans as
CHENRIZIG, the Holder of the White Lotus. It is in the male
form which has two hands in the praying-gesture known as the
`namaskara-mudra' while the other two hands hold his symbols,
the Crystal Rosary and the Lotus Flower. He is the emana-
tion and therefore the spiritual son of Amitabha Buddha, who
blessed him and whereupon the Bodhisat va brought forth the
famous prayer, known as the Mani Mantra:
"OM MANI PADME HUM"
is Mantra of Universal Protection is recited ceaselessly by
mil ions of Kuan Yin adherents in countries where Mahayana
Buddhism is practised. It is a very powerful mantra whose
efficacy have helped countless number of people in every way.
Another great compassionate form is that of the `Al -sided One',
the Eleven-faced Kuan Yin. is is an esoteric form which is
widely popular in Tibet and its neighbouring countries where
Vajrayana, the third vehicle of Buddhism, is practised. Several
famous temples in Japan have this image but it is a rarity in
Chinese temples. Here is the legend:
"Avalokitesvara, the Al -Pitying One descended into hel , con-
verted the wicked and liberated them to Sukhavati, the Western
Paradise of his spiritual father, Amitabha. No sooner had he
emptied the hell of its inhabitants, within the next instant other
beings were reborn there to fill up their places. Out of despair
and grief in discovering the extent of wickedness in the world
and the ut er helplessness of saving all mankind, the Bodhi-
sat va's head split into ten pieces.
Amitabha Buddha quickly came to the rescue of his beloved
disciple and caused each of the pieces to become a head, placed
them in three tiers of three, with the tenth head on top and his
own image above them al ."
us the Great Compassionate One was endowed with twenty-
two eyes instead of two, to see al suffering, and eleven brains in-
stead of one, to concentrate on the best means of saving mankind.
As mentioned earlier, Kuan Yin is always accepted by the average
Chinese to be a female Bodhisat va due to her various manifes-
tations and legend in China. To refer to her as a male deity will
surely cause many a brow to wrinkle up and pairs of confused
eyes staring at you for the profanity ut ered. is is because the
great majority of her devotees and faithfuls are lacking in doctri-
nal knowledge and it is for this particular reason that this book
has been prepared. To them Kuan Yin is a great Being who can
be counted upon for help under any circumstances for she has
indeed helped countless others, so that just to have faith in this
Goddess of Mercy is good enough and that the complicated doc-
trines of the Buddhas should be left to the monks and nuns who
will be there to guide them whenever the need arises. is may
be a commendable show of faith but it benefits only a limited
number of people who have the good karma to develop it. It will
not help to instruct the younger generation to develop an inter-
est in Buddhism or to practise it. What is more important is that
every Buddhist should have a fair knowledge of who the Buddha
is, and what are his important teachings so that Buddhism can
be practised meaningful y and objectively. is will also help to
do away with superstition and wrong practice and at the same
time provide intel igent answers to the questions that are posed
by those of other faiths.
But let us get back to the subject on this great Bodhisat va whose
sphere of influence is much greater than the Buddha for she has
more temples built in her name than all the Buddhas and Bodhi-
sat vas of the Buddhist Pantheon. Her merit is incalculable, like
drops of rain fal ing continuously for a year. She is cal ed the
Greatly Compassionate One because of her vow of `saving all
living beings and therefore commit ing herself to being the last
person in the universe to attain Buddhahood!'
In the Lotus Sutra the Buddha said that anyone who cal s upon
Kuan Yin will be delivered instantly from all their sufferings.
By virtue of her supernatural power, she is able to save all living
beings from all kinds of danger, give them what they want, and
preach the Dharma freely by appearing in whatever form that
suits the nature of the faithful.
To call for Kuan Yin's help one needs only to humbly recite her
name continuously with:
CHENRIZIG -- FOUR-ARMED AVALOKITESVARA
"NAMO TA-PEI KUAN SHIH YIN P'USA"
(Namo to the Greatly Compassionate Kuan Shih Yin P'usa)
or, one may recite her mantra of Universal Protection:
"OM MANI PADME HUM"
e power of the function of reciting any of the above prayers is
inconceivable. If someone has grave problems or even demonic
obstructions and recites Kuan Yin P'usa's name or the Mani
Mantra, the problems will disappear or the demon will run away.
ere are many people who are suffering from having a lot of de-
sires which are their causes of unhappiness, desires such as greed
for wealth, social status, fame, sex, food and other mundane
things, these people should try to recite constantly the name of
Kuan Yin and their useless desires will melt away.
Desire arises out of thoughts. Many people are not aware of
their thoughts even though they are very harmful to them and
to others. eir minds are not real y clear so that even thoughts
of greed, anger, lust, and ignorance are left unchecked and in
time evil deeds will be commit ed. ose who wish to rid their
mind of greed and desire should constantly recite, "Namo Ta-Pei
Kuan Shih Yin P'usa", with the deepest respect and all their at-
tention focused on it. In time the efficacy of this recitation will
be felt and all kinds of defiled thoughts will soon disappear. To
ful y understand what is meant by this description of the power
of holding Kuan Yin's name, one should give it a try -- `experi-
ence is always the best teacher'.
Kuan Yin's response can be instant or slightly delayed, it all
depends on one's karmic influence at that moment of prayer
and the intensity of faith in the cal ing. Miracles of Kuan Yin
answering the fervent prayers of those who cal ed upon her
name are countless. ey can easily fill up the entire volume of
the Britannica Encyclopedia for almost every devout devotee
will have a tale or two to tel . Here is a true account of a recent
happening, a miracle which has transformed the life of a lady
who was not even a devotee, and this is what she has writ en:
"e Fat Wah Aum Temple in Cheras was celebrating `See-fu
Tan', and a group of us went there during our lunch break, to taste
the vegetarian food served there. It was reputed to be the tastiest in
town. On arrival, each of us, fol owing the custom of the temple,
bought a bundle of joss-sticks for offering to the deities. Not
being a Buddhist I had no idea where the joss-sticks or incense
were to be offered, so I fol owed the actions of other worshippers;
I lit the incense and went round the hal placing a stick in each
incense urn that is placed in front of the deities. Having done that,
I found that I stil had quite a few sticks left. I looked around and
found that others were making their way to an adjourning hal .
ere were more altars and incense urns into which I continued
to place a joss stick in each of them. After placing my last stick of
incense I realised that there was stil one more altar left and it had
before it offerings of food, flowers, candles and fruits. is then
must be the altar of the `See-fu' whom the temple was honouring
that day. I felt terribly sorry that I had no more incense to make
my offering to this deity, so I knelt down to apologise. I then
recognised that it was the statue of KUAN YIN.
Suddenly I felt a cool breeze on my face and, at the same time,
a `thought' crossed my mind that I would be having a baby after
which I should serve Kuan Yin. is `thought' seemed rather
ridiculous as I already have two sons, aged five and two, and I
certainly have no intention whatsoever to have another child. As
for serving Kuan Yin, the thought was so foreign that I did not
know what it meant. Anyway, this strange experience was soon
forgot en.
e fol owing year I conceived. At the eighth month of my
pregnancy my gynaecologist informed me that my baby was in
a breech position. He then tried to shift the position of the baby
but was unsuccessful. at night I began to bleed and it got
worse the next day. It was then that I recal ed the incident at the
temple.
I had a strong desire to go back to the temple to ask Kuan Yin
for help but my husband could not bring me there due to busi-
ness commitments. However he did promise to take me there
the next day.
at night, I went into labour. At the hospital the water bag
burst and soon the baby's legs were out. e few at ending doc-
tors tried to deliver the baby and, after a few at empts, decided
to seek the help of the off-duty consultant. I was frightened out
of my wits and having no one to turn to, I burst into a prayer to
Kuan Yin, pleading for help! Just that `instant' thought of pray-
ing to her and these spontaneous words that came out of my
heart... and then, the most wondrous thing happened!
I suddenly saw a `figure-in-white' slowly floating down the long
corridor towards me. Although there was a wall separating the
delivery room and the corridor, Kuan Yin flowed through it. As
soon as she reached my room, I heard a doctor saying that I had
delivered the baby. Relief and deep feelings of joy raced through
my mind, Kuan Yin had given her blessings and I was extremely
grateful and happy. However, the grateful feelings were quickly
forgot en as soon as I was back to normalcy and returned to
the working life of a nurse. I guess this is quite natural to those
who are not too spiritual y-minded. With the hustle and bustle
of everyday living and other wordly distractions, Kuan Yin was
once more far from my mind.
A year ago, 1983, friends brought me to a private shrine in Petal-
ing Jaya to at end the Kuan Yin Festival. I was rather surprised
at the set-up there for it was not a regular temple, but I found the
atmosphere rather pleasant. My second visit there was during
the fol owing Kuan Yin Festival after which I felt drawn towards
the place, Kuan Yin worship had become a meaningful part of
my life. An unexplainable restless feeling would arise and each
time it would be quel ed through praying to Kuan Yin at that
place which is known as e Kuan Yin Contemplative Order or
KYCO for short. As a working mother of three children it was
not easy to find time to at end the twice weekly prayer gather-
ing which I have grown to love and each time I missed worship,
I felt terribly guilty about it. In order to pacify the guilt-feeling
each time that I could not at end worship, I would explain men-
tal y to Kuan Yin that my children must come first and that if
She real y wanted me to be consistent in my spiritual practice,
She must help me to overcome several obstacles. Somehow situ-
ations began to right themselves and I was able to worship Kuan
Yin with the least of obstacles.
Here is an incident which I would like to share it with others. On
the first day of January 1985 (Tuesday) I participated in the New
Year Prayer for World Peace during which e Great Compas-
sionate Dharani was recited 54 times amongst other Kuan Yin
prayers. During the chanting I happened to gaze at the Kuan
Yin image at the altar and I noticed a strange sight! e face of
Kuan Yin suddenly changed into a blank, like a mirror, and then
an image slowly formed in it! A hairy face appeared in it, darkish
looking which I thought was that of a monkey. is startled me
and I closed my eyes for fear of seeing anything unearthly. When
I had somewhat regained my confidence I looked at the Kuan Yin
face again. is time I saw the image of a kindly old man with a
very white beard. It appeared for only a short while after which
everything was back to normal. It was a strange but wonderful in-
cident which I can stil remember vividly in my mind. At the end
of the prayers, I had yet another remarkable vision. As I was about
to get up to leave, I distinctly heard a voice instructing me to kneel
down `for Kuan Yin was stil present'. My head was made to turn
towards the leader of the prayer group who was at that time talking
to a few persons while seated before the altar. I obeyed the inner
voice's instruction and upon doing so, I saw white light emit ing
from him. What was more amazing was that there was a kind of
energy-field which produced some kind of force which I could feel
even though I was some four or five feet from him. Time seemed
to be suspended and I had no idea of how long it lasted".
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