The Holy land of the Shaolin

In China, Japan, Korean and Southeast Asia, the Goddess of Mercy or widely known as Guan yin (chin.: Guanshiyin 觀世音) is usually represented as a gentle lady in white robes carrying a vase with a willow twig. This image is extremely popular since the Song Dynasty. In India however, images were made portraying Guan yin as a handsome prince wearing a crown bearing the image of his teacher-Buddha Amitabha (chin.: émituofo 阿彌陀佛) . It is also worth mentioning here that in scriptures, Shakyamuni Buddha addresses Guan Yin as “pious man” (chin.: shânnanzi 善男子) which implies that he manifested as a male during Buddha’s time. In Tibet, Guan Yin is still thought of as male and is portrayed as a youth with 4 arms bearing a string of white quartz prayer beads, a wish fulfilling jewel and a white lotus in bloom. There are also other representations showing him with 18, 42 etc hands carrying various ritual implements. Another common convention is to show Guan yin and bodhisattva Da Shi Zhi (大勢至 Vajrapani) on the left and right of Amitabha Buddha respectively. This triad is usually called “ The 3 holy ones of the West”. 

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