e-magazine
The Hot Zone
China's newly announced air defense identification zone over the East China Sea aims to shore up national security
Current Issue
· Table of Contents
· Editor's Desk
· Previous Issues
· Subscribe to Mag
Subscribe Now >>
Expert's View
World
Nation
Business
Finance
Market Watch
Legal-Ease
North American Report
Forum
Government Documents
Expat's Eye
Health
Science/Technology
Lifestyle
Books
Movies
Backgrounders
Special
Photo Gallery
Blogs
Reader's Service
Learning with
'Beijing Review'
E-mail us
RSS Feeds
PDF Edition
Web-magazine
Reader's Letters
Make Beijing Review your homepage
Hot Links

cheap eyeglasses
Market Avenue
eBeijing

Nation
Backgrounders> Nation
UPDATED: December 20, 2006 NO.20 MAY 18, 2006
The Gaze of Guanyin
Many Chinese, whether Buddhists or not, have a place in their homes for the Bodhisattva of Mercy and Compassion
By TANG YUANKAI
Share

At least once a year, Yuan Ying, 62, travels all the way from Beijing to Putuoshan, a mountain on a 12-sq km island on the Zhoushan Archipelago, 160 km east of Hangzhou Bay, Zhejiang Province. She goes there to offer prayers to Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy. This year, she went there on April 13, the day on which the first World Buddhist Forum was held in Hangzhou.

"April 13 is also believed to be the birthday of one of the reincarnations of Guanyin,'' said Yuan. But for all this devotion, Yuan is no Buddhist. And therein lies the popularity of the Bodhisattva (Buddha to be) of Infinite Compassion and Mercy, who finds a ready niche in many a Chinese home. Most Chinese do not know about Sakyamuni, but few would not have heard of Guanyin.

This widespread belief in Guanyin came after Buddhism entered China around the first century and Lotus Sutra, a key sutra of Mahayana Buddhism, was translated into Chinese. According to Buddhist sutras, the merciful Guanyin will respond to every cry for help. Even if surrounded by fire, the mere recitation of her name will extinguish the blaze, say believers. Likewise, prayers for a baby by an infertile woman will never go unanswered, they say.

According to Liu Zhongyu, professor with the East China Normal University, Chinese followers of Buddhism pray for redress in this life rather than in the after-life. This accounts for the popularity of the worship of Guanyin.

The Bodhisattva is also popular in Tibet, the holy land of Tibetan Buddhism. Many spiritual leaders in Tibetan history are regarded as reincarnations of Guanyin. Lhasa's famous Potala Palace is believed to be Guanyin's residence. It is said that in 641, Songtsam Gambo (617-650), King of the Tubo Kingdom, married Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty, who brought a Guanyin statue into Tibet. Later, she asked Songtsam Gambo to build a temple to house the statue, which later expanded into the 1,000-room Potala Palace.

Besides April 13, February 19, June 19 and September 19, are also important dates for Guanyin's worshippers as they are supposed to represent her birthday, the day of spiritual enlightenment and nirvana, respectively. The Dai ethnic group of Yunnan Province also worships Guanyin, celebrating her birthday with food, drink and a parade.

While today Guanyin is usually represented as a female "with a thousand arms and eyes,'' it has not always been so. Some representations in ancient times show a tall, well-built, fully bearded figure; some are incredibly ferocious and wicked.

It was during the Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589) that Guanyin's image became female. Chen Xingqiao, Deputy Secretary-General of the Buddhism Association of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, attributes this transformation to the need to conform to traditional Chinese belief in goddesses and the lack of a female image in Buddha figures and to reinforce the divine attributes of mercy and compassion.

In addition to sculptures and paintings, literary works have also promoted the popularity of Guanyin. For many Chinese, Journey to the West, one of the four classical Chinese literary works, provided the earliest exposure to Guanyin.

"The real meaning of worshiping Guanyin is about behaving like Guanyin," said the abbot of Putuoshan. He believes that in a society comprising multiple cultures, order and harmony will be lost without a basic common belief. "Peace among people with different ideologies depends on the building of common beliefs, and Guanyin is one of them," he says. The Bodhisattva's qualities of mercy, wisdom, courage, love and peace are seen as in keeping with the hopes of a modern world. As Gene Reeves, a representative at the World Buddhist Forum from the United States, put it: "In some sutras, Bodhisattva is a title and a mark of high rank, but Guanyin Bodhisattva is more about behavior."

Legend of Putuoshan

Putuoshan was originally called "Meiling." In ancient times, it was a stopover between China, Japan and Korea. The word Putuo is said to have derived from Sanskrit and believed to mean "beautiful white flowers.''

In 916, a Japanese monk came to study Buddhism in China. In Shanxi Province's Wutaishan Mountain, one of the four famous Buddhism sites in China, he was so touched by the grandeur of a sublime Guanyin statue that he wanted to take it back to Japan. Worried that he might be stopped, he carried it away secretly. But when his boat passed Meiling around Zhoushan Archipelago, a strong wind began to blow in, stirring up huge waves. Many lotus flowers bloomed suddenly, preventing the boat from moving further.

After three days and nights, the monk had to get off the boat and repented in front of the statue. He finally decided to settle down there and built a place to house the statue. This later became Putuoshan.



 
Top Story
-Protecting Ocean Rights
-Partners in Defense
-Fighting HIV+'s Stigma
-HIV: Privacy VS. Protection
-Setting the Tone
Most Popular
 
About BEIJINGREVIEW | About beijingreview.com | Rss Feeds | Contact us | Advertising | Subscribe & Service | Make Beijing Review your homepage
Copyright Beijing Review All right reserved