nown as The Goddess of Mercy, Gentle Protectoress, Bodhisattva of Compassion, even the savior of seamen and fishermen, she holds many titles. The spelling of her name varies, (Kwan Yin, Kuan Yin, Quan Yin, Guanshiyin, Guanyin, Kwannon, Gwun Yam, Gun Yam, Kannon and more) but it is not so much the arrangement of letters as it is the effect that her spoken name produces on those with a Buddhist background, similar to a reaction in the West when one is speaking of the Virgin Mary. In both cases, it invokes the feeling of compassion and unconditional love. Indeed, her force is compared to Mother Mary in the West, Green Tara in the Tibetan culture, the Virgin of Guadeloupe in Mexico, and many other ancient goddesses, the matriarchy of old. You might call her the Buddhist Madonna, or, as She calls Herself, “The Mother of all Buddhas”.

By her own words, she is a complex energy presence. Thus, when asked her about her incarnations as “Kwan Yin,” this involves many persons that have embodied and reflected this energy in their lives on earth, as far as we can understand. According to Sucheta’s channelings, the closest association of Kwan Yin being linked to a person energetically in recent times is Miao Shan, an ancient Chinese princess who was known for her great compassion. Here is a quote from Kwan Yin about this:

“Although I am Bodhisattva, I am energy. I am not a person. Basically, the Kwan Yin energy was never in one single body. It has always been a great part of the energy of all of compassion of all the Universe. What you see in front of you [Sucheta] is one person who has been able to tap in and release for a period of time, so that she can let us be a part of her reality and to share that with you so that you can be encouraged, and that you can also bring forward the part of you that knows the truth.”

The name “Kwan Yin” is a derivation of a Chinese name for the goddess that is this energy of motherly compassion. This is really a description of her energy (“she who hears the cries of the people”) which has become accepted as her name on earth. Although there are variations, the feeling is the same. She responds to the heartfelt needs and anguish of the people of earth regardless of background or belief.

Being one of the “mother” goddesses, she is especially connected to those in need of any kind of help, be they sick, lost, frightened or simply in unfortunate circumstances. She is a great protector and benefactor of the weak, the ill and especially the children and the babies. Many erect alters to Kwan Yin, the “bestower of children” — the one who hears the prayers of anyone wanting to conceive a child — to increase their fertility. There is a connection with the care of souls, both during birth and after death. Taoists invoke her presence to free newly departed souls from the judgement of the underworld. She guards the souls of the newborn and guides them to their new parents.

Her range of influence is vast, from China to Korea and Japan, all the way down into Malaysia. She has super-ceded her Buddhist traditions and jumped into the realm of a more universally venerated goddess, now known to those of many different faiths and sects. Her image can be found on most any alter of worship in temples, homes, schools, shops, restaurants, out of the way grottos and even on the dashboards of taxis.

Entwined in the faith of Buddhism, her first real appearance in literature seems to be around 400 AD. By that time, Buddhism had been around for nearly 1000 years, spreading from its birthplace in India to China, and subsequently to Korea, Japan and Tibet. Devotees of Avalokitesvara, or Avalokita, Bodhisattva of Compassion of Indian Buddhism, brought the concept of Avalokita to China. There, Avalokita, or Kwan Yin, was adopted as a god in the male form and later was gradually changed by some to resemble a female, lending a rather androgynous element to her. By 1200 AD she was definitely a female portrayed in flowing robes.

Avalokita is depicted with many arms, hands and heads, sometimes with an eye in each palm representing the ever watchful omnipresent mother, ready to immediately reach out in any direction to alleviate suffering. In Buddhist mythology, it states that Avalokita was born from Amitabha Buddha’s right eye, after which he proclaimed, “Om Mani Padme Hum” — Hail to the jewel in the lotus — a sentiment of her preciousness to him. Some believe she is actually an incarnation of Amitabha Buddha. The Chinese translation of the Sanskrit Avalokita is Kuan shih Yin, the full form of the shortened Kuan Yin, or Kwan Yin.

It is said in ancient writings that she was embodied as Miao Shan (whose name means “wonderfully kind one”), a Chinese princess who lived about 700 BC. This legendary Buddhist saint is said to have spent nine years living on an island off the coast of China, healing, meditating and saving sailors from shipwreck. This island became a place of worship and pilgrimage for many, especially in one of the caves there, which was transformed into a shrine dedicated to Kwan Yin.

She is called a Bodhisattva, literally a “being of bodhi, or enlightenment.” Bodhi is the spiritual energy that produces an urge for enlightenment, emanating Wisdom and Compassion. The Buddhas are the primary stream from this energy, the secondary stream from the Buddhas being the Bodhisattva.A Bodhisattva is any soul which has attained enlightenment and has freed itself from the karmic cycle of rebirth, but which has forgone the bliss of Nirvana, the merging with the Creator, in order to help all the rest attain their enlightenment. This is their vow. It is said that as she was about to enter heaven, she paused at the threshold as the cries of the world reached her ears, and she returned to help them. She is also called an Ascended Master, which essentially means that one has learned all their lessons, transmuted their karma, and is not compelled to experience being reborn into a physical body if they do not desire it.