Kwan Yin is a He!

[shrub]

Gene,

In your Shaolin Temple article, you referred to Kwan Yin in feminine terms. In fact, Kwan Yin is a male. He was depicted in woman's clothings in honor to his respect and caring for women.

[Felipe Bido]

I thought the TV series "Monkey Magic" had cleared up the doubts about Kwan Yin

[WanderingMonk]

Kwan Yin is a she.

Guan Zhi Zai is a HE.

Guan Zhi Zai manifest in whatever form that it is most beneficial for the situation. In this case, Kwan Yin is a female manifestation of Him for the chinese followers. so, it is a She.

[gfx]

wow, now I have way more respect for cross dressers. If I only knew! :D

[MoreMisfortune]

who knows... all chinese names sound gender-less to me
probly cos some... dudes... really digged them cute silk clothes and wussy make-up combined with dubious hair style
go figure

[GeneChing]

It's sort of a zen koan if you will. Kwanyin began as the Indian deity Avalokiteshvara, which was clearly male. Somewhere, somehow, as Buddhism travelled across China, Kwanyin had a sex change and became female. The deities are clearly of the same origin, but there is a significant difference on how Kwanyin is represented in China versus it's Indian roots. There's even a different legend in China how Kwanyin arose from Miaoshan, the third daughter of King Miaochung.

shrub, do your research. It was a little more than just cross-dressing in China.

[Eddie]

and is Nan Hai Goo Foh the same (kwan ying incarnated as different beings)?

[GeneChing]

I have no idea what you are saying without the Chinese characters. Foh is probably fo meaning 'buddha' as in amitoufo - I can't sound out the rest. Kwan Yin is formally Kwan Lu Yin, or Kannon in Japanese. In the Song, she retained her masculine persona, as seen in the Tunhuang frescos were he has a mustache. But by the 10th century, Kwan Yin is feminine. No one is sure what happened there. Some think that it is linked to Avalokiteshvara's consort, White Tara. Apparently Bai Kuan Yin (white kwan yin) is a literal translation of White Tara.

[David Jamieson]

Somewhere, somehow

That's similar to the old "and then a miracle happens" Equation found in some mathematical explanations of the universe' structure.

I thought that Kwan Yin manifested as a female in the case where she represented compassion and mercy. Seeing as this was a virtue of women in the cultural paradigm at the time (heck, it still is now!)

But I had heard that the gods are spirits that will present themselves in the form that you need to see them in to grasp the message.

...anyway

[GeneChing]

I'm gonna guess that this means 'south sea'. Goo is still babytalk to me...