Ebros Large Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva Kwan Yin Riding On Chinese Dragon Statue

Guanyin is the bodhisattva associated with compassion as venerated by East Asian Buddhists, usually as a female. The name Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means "Observing the Sounds (or Cries) of the World". She is also sometimes referred to as Guanyin Pusa (simplified Chinese: 观音菩萨; traditional Chinese: 觀音菩薩; pinyin: Guānyīn Púsà; literally "Bodhisattva Guanyin").[1] Some Buddhists believe that when one of their adherents departs from this world, they are placed by Guanyin in the heart of a lotus, and then sent to the western pure land of Sukhāvatī.[2] It is generally accepted among East Asian adherents that Guanyin originated as the Sanskrit Avalokiteśvara (अवलोकितेश्वर). Commonly known in English as the Mercy Goddess or Goddess of Mercy,[3] Guanyin is also revered by Chinese Taoists (or Daoists) as an Immortal. However, in folk traditions such as Chinese mythology, there are other stories about Guanyin's origins that are outside the accounts of Avalokiteśvara recorded in Buddhist sutras.