" Kuan Yin: Goddess of Compassion
"With mercy and compassion, Beloved Kuan Yin
Melt away this anger, and let me love again
Melt away this fear, and let us love again...
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasu Devaya"
(First four lines from the song, Prayer for the Warriors by Sophia, on the CD,
Prayer: A Multi-Cultural Journey of Spirit)
Known as the Great Celestial Bodhisattva of Compassion (a "bodhisattva"
is a person who delays his or her full enlightenment in order to aid in the liberation
of all sentient beings), Kuan Yin has been worshipped for centuries in many countries
and cultures.
Originating in India and brought to China in the fifth century, Kuan Yin was first
worshipped as an androgynous male figure known as Avalokitesvara. Due to the heavy
influence of female deity worship in many Chinese Provinces, by the late eighth
century, Avalokitesvara had transformed into a feminine deity known as Guan Shih
Yin. She is now known by many names (and spellings of her name) including: Quan
Yin, Kwan Yin, The Thousand-Armed Kwan Yin, Royal Ease Kwan Yin, Water Moon Kuan
Yin, and others. Here in the West, Kuan Yin has entered into the spiritual lives
of many. You see her presence in statuary, paintings, drawings and writings.
Many believe that Kuan Yin has been engaged in the world to help millions of people
with their lives. It's been said that by bringing her into your life, attuning
to her "state of consciousness," praying and meditating for her presence
and intervention, she will grace you with her compassion. Call upon her, chant
her name, put offerings on her altar, open your heart to her presence for the
purpose of easing your pain, suffering, and ignorance. Beseech her for protection
against illness, disease, disaster. Call upon her to manifest wonderful and noble
things in your life (some pray to her for conceiving children, creating and sustaining
harmony in one's life, helping others in need, etc.).
Although coming from a Christian background, I found myself drawn to KuanYin a
few years ago for some unexplained reason. Whenever I gazed upon an image of her,
my heart opened and my consciousness was flooded with love and compassion. During
morning meditations, I began practicing the Ishta Devata yogic ritual as taught
to me by Swami Jyothi Pranananda at the Temple of Kriya Yoga in Chicago, IL. This
ritual helps you to develop a close relationship with your Ishta (personal form
of the Divine) for the purpose of bringing you closer to God, helping you to find
answers and to learn. You may ask, "Why do I need a personal Ishta Devata
when God is omnipresent? Why not just meditate on or pray directly to God?"
By acknowledging the Almighty (the Universal Oneness) in a physical form, you
can better relate emotionally to what otherwise may seem to be an abstract philosophical
principle.
RamaKrishna is quoted as saying, "Imagine God as a sea without shores. Through
the cooling love of the Devotee, some of the water becomes frozen blocks of ice.
Now and then, God assumes a form and reveals himself to his lovers as a person.
But when the sun of knowledge rises, the blocks of ice melt away and God is without
form, no more a person. He is beyond description."
Thus, the closest you can come to describing the Divine is through a physical
form, one that embodies spiritual attributes that you wish to manifest.
When I first started to commune (converse, talk over, share time) with Kuan Yin,
I found it awkward. My mind kept saying I was unworthy: "Who am I to think
this Goddess would help me when others deserve her presence and help more?"
But as I persevered I began to enter into a relationship with her. She revealed
many deep lessons to me during my meditations. Lessons in how to allow more compassion
to flow through me, how to give self-less service to others, how to see the beauty
in others, myself, nature and the universe. Like a close friend, Kuan Yin has
been there for me whenever I've needed her.
One morning, after many months of communing with her, I had a problem and needed
her specific help. I was having trouble for weeks trying to quiet my mind during
meditation. I prayed to her for help. She said, "Hold an image of me sitting
in meditation, within your mind's eye (known as the third eye, brow chakra or
sun center). Now look closely at my image and within my sun center see an image
of yourself sitting in meditation. Zoom in on that image of yourself, look closely
at it's sun center and you see an image of me sitting in meditation. Zoom in on
that image of me, look closely at it's sun center and you see an image of yourself
sitting in meditation...." As I followed her instructions, going deeper and
deeper into the images, I lost all track of thinking. Before I knew it, I was
in a deep state of meditation. My mind was empty. My consciousness became infinite.
My prayer had been answered.
So ask your Ishta Devata to give you whatever help you need in your life - and
help will be forthcoming, maybe not in the way that you expect or immediately
recognize, but it will come.
By becoming intimate with one form of the Divine - whether it's Kuan Yin, Jesus,
Mary, Buddha or another - you become intimate with all forms of the Divine which,
in turn, brings you closer to and in union with "the ALL", the Universal
Consciousness, the Indescribable, whom we call God.
Thus, may you open your heart to your Ishta, accept Divine help, and embody your
Ishta's spiritual attributes so that you may become an even greater blessing unto
all sentient beings.
Namaste (the Divine within me bows to the Divine within you),
Jeffrey Pears
Jeffrey S. Pears, author of, "Healing the Heart through Forgiveness"
is both a teacher and lifetime student in the art of meditation. He is a Certified
Meditation Instructor trained at the Temple of Kriya Yoga in Chicago, IL. Additionally,
he has studied at the Institute of Advanced Perception (expanded awareness training),
is a Reiki Level II Healing Practitioner, a Compassion in Action Graduate (coping
with death and dying), and a Doctoral student at the American Institute of Holistic
Theology. He can be reached at:
Jeffrey Pears
Meditation Training
278 Grace Ave.
Elmhurst, IL 60126
(630) 993-0223
www.monasticminds.com
