觀音

See also: 观音

Chinese

observing sound(s)
cry(/ies)
trad. (觀音)
simp. (观音)
The statue of "Guanyin of the South China Sea" on Putuoshan Island off Zhejiang, China. Chinese Buddhism credits the location as her first appearance in China.

Etymology

“[One who] Observes Sounds”, in reference to the prayers and cries of sentient beings who need help, a calque of Sanskrit अवलोकितस्वर (avalokitasvara, literally down-observe-sound), the original form of अवलोकितेश्वर (avalokiteśvara, Avalokiteśvara), the bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas.

Synonymous with 觀世音观世音 (Guānshìyīn, “One who Observes the Sounds of the World”), which interpreted the middle element of the Sanskrit compound as लोक (loka, world). The shorter form became more common during the Tang dynasty to avoid naming the taboo personal name of Emperor Taizong of Tang, 李世民.

Compare Tibetan སྤྱན་རས་གཟིགས (spyan ras gzigs, literally one who looks down with an unwavering eye).

Pronunciation


Note:
  • guêng1 im1 - Chaohzou;
  • guang1 im1 - Jieyang.
    • Wu
      • (Shanghai):
        • Wugniu: 1kuoe-in
        • MiniDict: kuoe in
        • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): 1kuoe-in
        • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /kuø⁵⁵ in²¹/

Rime
Character
Reading # 1/2 1/1
Initial () (28) (34)
Final () (62) (140)
Tone (調) Level (Ø) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Closed Open
Division () I III
Fanqie
Baxter kwan 'im
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang
/kuɑn/ /ʔˠiɪm/
Pan
Wuyun
/kʷɑn/ /ʔᵚim/
Shao
Rongfen
/kuɑn/ /ʔiem/
Edwin
Pulleyblank
/kwan/ /ʔjim/
Li
Rong
/kuɑn/ /ʔjəm/
Wang
Li
/kuɑn/ /ĭĕm/
Bernard
Karlgren
/kuɑn/ /ʔi̯əm/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex
guān yīn
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex
gun1 jam1

Proper noun

觀音

  1. (~菩薩) (Buddhism) Guanyin
  2. (, formerly ) Guanyin (a district of Taoyuan, Taiwan, formerly a rural township)
  3. () Guanyin (a town in Yunxi, Shiyan, Hubei, China)

Usage notes

Although Avalokiteśvara was reckoned a male figure and Guanyin was first depicted as a male in Chinese art, she is now almost always understood to be and referenced as a goddess or female boddhisattva.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (觀音):

Others:

  • Burmese: ကွမ်ယင် (kwam-yang)
  • English: Guanyin
  • Indonesian: Kwan Im
  • Thai: กวนอิม

Japanese

Kanji in this term
かん
Hyōgaiji
おん > のん
Grade: 1

Proper noun

(かん)(のん) • (Kannon) 

  1. Kyūjitai form of 観音

Korean

Hanja in this term

Proper noun

觀音 • (Gwaneum or McCune-Reischauer: Kwanŭm or Yale: Kwan.um) (hangeul 관음)

  1. Hanja form? of 관음 (Guanyin).

Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term

Proper noun

觀音

  1. chữ Hán form of Quan Âm (Guanyin).
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