by Chiara Ganzer

Created on: March 16, 2010

Avalokiteshvara-  The One Who Hears the Cries of the World

John Daido Loori a Zen Master who founded Zen Mountain Monastery in New York said:

“Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva is the Hearer of the Cries of the World. And one of the characteristics of Avalokiteshvara is that she manifests herself in accord with the circumstances. So she always presents herself in a form that's appropriate to what's going on. In the bowery, she manifests as a bum. Tonight, in barrooms across the country, she'll manifest as a drunk. Or as a motorist on the highway, or as a fireman, or a physician. Always responding in accord with the circumstances, in a form appropriate to the circumstances.”

The god Avalokiteshvara - Bodhisattva of infinite compassion and mercy- is the personification of perfect compassion and determination. His vow is to save all sentient beings before entering the bliss of Buddhahood. When he realised that a great number of beings were still flooding into the hells, despite his teaching of the Dharma, his body shattered in great agitation and despair. This might seem extreme, but his exasperation was great.

Amitabha Buddha -who became his personal teacher- came to aid him with the spiritual force of Buddha's powers and  Avalokiteshvara obtained a new body with a thousand helping hands coupled with the eyes in each palm, which symbolized Wisdom and Compassion.

In this way he renewed the vow to saving all sentient beings because “always responding in accord with the circumstances, in a form appropriate to the circumstances”.

Origin

Avalokitesvara is the most popular of Mahayana Buddhist deities and is included in all Tibetan Buddhist traditions. He was born from a ray of light emanating from the eye of Amitabha, the Buddha of Infinite Light, the principal Buddha in the Land of Ultimate Bliss (Pure Land). Only through devotion to Amitbha Buddha the true human being gives up obsessions and fixations and achieve the central Mahayana concept of Nirvana.

Avalokiteshvara motivated by pure compassion and love as a Godness of Infinite Compassion is a bodhisattva- the personification  of bodhichitta- and he wish to attain complete enlightenment for all beings. He is venerated as the ideal of karuna, the activity of compassion in the world.

In China Avalokitevara -known as Kuan Yin- is depicted in a female form, an effect of Taoistic and Tantric influences from the 8th to 10th century. By the ninth century her popularity had prevailed

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