The Goddess Of Mercy As An Indian Character

 

It's really an oddity when some older Chinese never knew that Buddhism came from India. Some people have even mistaken the Laughing Buddha for Siddharta Gautama. It might have even shocked some Chinese Buddhists when they were told that Buddha was an INDIAN man. Now, another character often represented as Chinese is actually also too obviously INDIAN. That's the goddess Guan Yin whose full name and title is Guan Shi Yin Pusa. The name means "She who hears the cries the cries of the world." Avalokitesvara means "one who looks from above". Another Sanskrit name is Gayatri meaning "she who hears the cries of the world".

Guan Yin in the Hindu context

Guan Yin's equivalent would be the goddess Gayatri. Gayatri is seldom seen as an incarnation of Saraswati or a totally different character. The name Gayatri is more synonymous with Guan Shi Yin than the name Avalokitesvara. Gayatri is called the Goddess of Mercy herself. One of Gayatri's temples is found in Pushkar Lake which leads to a story. 

Brahma, the four-faced god of creation, slew a demon. Brahma wanted to start a fire ceremony but Saraswati was taking too long. Brahma couldn't start the fire ceremony without having a wife to accompany him. Angered, Brahma requested Indra (the Jade Emperor in the Chinese context) to find a woman to fulfill the role. A beautiful shepherd girl showed up and she was soon handed over to Brahma. Brahma married Gayatri ASAP to start the fire ceremony on time. Saraswati got furious when she found Brahma starting the ceremony with a new wife. Saraswati cursed as many as she could. Gayatri diluted the curses upon hearing the crowd's cries for help. For this, the Gayatri Mantra was written in her honor by the monks. 

One of the curses was that on Indra himself. Indra was cursed that he would lose his heaven. Gayatri blessed Indra that he would regain it. Interestingly, the Journey to the West gives more power to Amitabha Buddha than the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor needed the help of Amitabha Buddha to stop Sun Wukong's rampage. In Ramayana, Indra had to plead with Vishnu to help stop Ravana's deadly rampage across the world. Gautama Buddha is often considered an incarnation of Vishnu to teach the dharma. It took the power of Amitabha to stop Sun Wukong's ever-mindless rampage. 

In Pushkar, the temple of Gayatri is in a lower location than Saraswati. Some legends say that Saraswati had accepted Gayatri as her equal. Saraswati represents knowledge while Gayatri represents compassion. Gayatri's temple would be lower because of Saraswati's seniority. Gayatri would turn fierce herself if needed to deliver sentient beings. Gayatri would come in any form if the aim is to deliver sentient beings from danger. The Gayatri mantra is also recited in times of danger. Gayatri delivers sentient beings from harm. An image of Brahma can be found in some Guanyin shrines - a hint that Guanyin is indeed Gayatri!

A familiar form of Gayatri is one with five faces and ten (or a thousand) arms. Wouldn't it resemble Guan Yin portrayed with many heads and arms? Gayatri's multi-headed and multi-armed form also held weapons. So does Guan Yin's multi-headed and multi-armed form. 

The story has the pilgrimage from China to INDIA

Guan Yin plays an important role as a guide to the monk Sanzang, Sun Wukong, Sha Wujing, and Zhu Baihe. Sha Wujing is often portrayed as an obese drunkard and may have served as Bo Rai Cho's inspiration in Mortal Kombat. Guan Yin's role would be to serve as a guide. Guan Yin was also the one who assigned Sanzang the Buddhist monk on the journey. It was also Guan Yin who gave the restraining headband to keep Wukong's behavior in check.

I remember talking about Buddhism and Hinduism while eating chicken curry. I soon said, "Buddha only looks Chinese because of the artist. If you think of it, even Guan Yin is actually from India." I mentioned Guan Yin's bindi and her wearing a sari or Indian dress. I also mentioned the name AVALOKITESVARA which is an Indian word. 

Another version of Guan Yin's story is that of the Chinese princess Miaoshan. Miaoshan refused to marry to become a Buddhist nun. Some versions of the story had her as an INDIAN PRINCESS instead. The Fragrant Mountain is found in India as well. It seems to put pieces of the story together. Guan Yin was actually an Indian princess! Guan Yin would forsake her status to become a Buddhist nun. Many portrayals of Guan Yin show her as a typical Indian woman. Other portrayals of her with multiple heads and arms just like a Hindu goddess.

The pilgrimage was to find the Buddhist sutras in India. Guan Yin being an Indian character would make more sense than a Chinese character.