Becoming Kuan Yin: The Evolution of Compassion

Best known for his work on dying, teacher and author Levine (A Gradual Awakening) explores the legend of Kuan Yin. This beloved Chinese manifestation of the Buddhist bodhisattva of compassion vows to help all sentient beings escape suffering. Retelling the story of her origin, Levine recounts how, when Miao Shan refused her cruel father's orders to marry, he sentenced her to harsh labor at a convent. Yet as she faced increasingly severe hardships tending the sick and dying, her compassion grew, until she finally became the bodhisattva Kuan Yin, "she who hears the cries of the world." He uses Miao Shan's legend as a starting point for a meditation on compassion for self and others, noting that "[h]ealing is to reoccupy those parts of ourselves abandoned to pain." Noting that Kuan Yin has been described as the "first acknowledged female Buddha," Levine identifies similarities to the life of Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism. Levine's writing isn't quite up to the task of lyrical celebration, but this short, heartfelt book offers hope in the face of extraordinary pain. (Sept.)