Avalokiteshvara

deity sky Vajrayana Buddhism single tradition · 12

Avalokiteshvara embodies compassion. Practitioners often gravitate toward specific yidams based on personal affinity or spiritual aspirations. Some practitioners find resonance in the compassionate embrace of Avalokiteshvara.

↻ synthesized from 12 sources

When

First attested
300 CE
Attested period
300 – 2020
Historical notes
Mentioned in the Kāraṇḍavyūhasūtra (4th–5th century CE).

Relationships

syncretized with
Guanyin, Avalokitasvara
served by
Sagara

Expand to full subgraph →

Sources

Source passages

“Some practitioners are drawn to the wisdom of Manjushri, while others find resonance in the compassionate embrace of Avalokiteshvara.”

#10753 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001

“According to one story, Tārā arose from Avalokiteshvara's compassionate tears when he wept on seeing all the suffering of all the beings in samsara. His tears turned into a lotus, out of which Tārā arose.”

#11396 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001

“Thousand-Armed Ushnishasitatapattra is a special form of the goddess Tara, a female form of the thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara. Her iconography is probably the most complex in the Tibetan Buddhist pantheon.”

#29343 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001

“According to various Mahayana sources, numerous Hindu deities are considered to be emanations of Avalokiteshvara. For example, in the Kāraṇḍavyūhasūtra (4th–5th century CE), Great universal deities called Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma and Saraswati are all said to have emerged from Avalokiteshvara bodhisattva's body”

#36513 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001