Tuesday
Meeting Chenrezig in Sound: Understanding Chenrezig’s Name and the Meaning of the Chenrezig Mantra
by Frederick Meyer
An excerpt from the Shambhala Online Blog posted April 12, 2024
In recent years, Chenrezig—the Tibetan name for the Buddhist deity Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion—has become an important part of my spiritual practice. I have a strong affinity for sound, and much of my learning about Chenrezig has been in the form of sound and meaning: what “Chenrezig” itself means and how it relates to Avalokiteshvara’s other names, what the Sanskrit and Tibetan versions of the word compassion actually mean, and the meaning of the famous Chenrezig mantra OM MANI PADME HUM.
In this article, I want to share both what I’ve learned about Chenrezig himself, as well as my own process of exploration. I feel the process I’ve followed shows how association and meaning can unfold along the Buddhist path, especially the parts of the path that are rich in energy and iconography.
Throughout this article, I’ll be describing what I learned about Chenrezig in my explorations , as well as weaving in Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s teachings on the same topic. I only discovered Trungpa Rinpoche’s teachings on Chenrezig within the past month, so it’s been very interesting to compare my own independent learning with his teaching, and I hope to illustrate that dynamic as well.
Chenrezig: First Connections
I had heard of Chenrezig growing up, but I didn’t connect strongly to Chenrezig until around three years ago, when my father, a longtime Buddhist practitioner, began practicing Four-Armed Chenrezig sadhana practice with a Tibetan Lama living in Hawaii. At his suggestion, I began joining for the weekly sadhana practice.
The lama often played a YouTube video (with the sound off) during the visualization part of the sadhana. The video includes a thangka of Chenrezig that I really like—something about the eyes and facial expression, and the vibrant colors. I found that looking at it gave me a certain feeling, and I began to carry that with me.
Because of his enthusiasm for the practice, I gifted my father a Chenrezig thangka for one of his birthdays, and then later bought one for myself. When my thangka arrived (about a year and a half ago now), I found that the energy of my own interest in and connection with Chenrezig heightened significantly.
From there, I began exploring Chenrezig in earnest, and that’s where I began to learn in depth about Chenrezig’s name, the meaning of compassion, and the meaning of the Chenrezig mantra.
Chenrezig: What the Name Means
The Tibetan name Chenrezig means “continuously looking,” and has been translated as:
- “One who looks with unwavering eye”
- “Unblinking Eyes”
- “One who always looks upon all beings (with the eye of compassion)”
Trungpa Rinpoche translates Chenrezig as: “He Who Sees All Sentient Beings.”
Chenrezig is the Tibetan version of the Sanskrit name Avalokiteshvara, which means “lord who gazes upon the world.” The idea of this name (in both Sanskrit and Tibetan) is that the loving gaze of compassion—the gaze of Chenrezig, compassion itself—forever holds all beings.
Avalokitasvara: The Female Compassion Deity
What I find most interesting about Chenrezig’s name is that there is another form of the Sanskrit name Avalokiteshvara. Wikipedia does a wonderful job summarizing the history, and it felt like a major revelation to me when I read it. The other name is Avalokitasvara: “Who hears the cries of the world.”
Western scholars originally thought this name had been made up, in error, by Chinese translators from Sanskrit, who named the deity Guanshiyin, “[The One Who] Perceives the Sounds of the World,” or “who perceives the world’s lamentations.” Shortened to Guanyin (and later rendered in Japan as Konan), this is the contemporary Chinese name for Avalokiteshvara, who is represented as a female compassion deity.
Scholars later realized that Avalokitasvara is actually a correct—and older—name of the deity, which was later developed into Avalokiteshvara (adding the sense of “lord” and changing “hear” to “see”). Guanshiyin, “Who Hears the Cries of the World,” wasn’t a mistranslation at all.
As I mentioned, I have a strong affinity for sound, and learning this alternate name of Chenrezig had a profound effect on me. One who gazes (lovingly) upon the world sounds, to me, nice but a little distant—but “hearing the world’s cries” carries a strong feeling I can immediately connect with.
In fact, many of my most immediate and piercing experiences of compassion have been sound-based. As an example, I have a small dog, and this morning when I picked her up, she yelped loudly (I don’t know why, and she wasn’t hurt). I was immediately pierced by a feeling that was so immediate I didn’t have a name for it. I feel it was a strong hit of compassion—the powerful, immediate, primordial feeling that is true compassion, not the refined notion of charity and concern for others that we might often think of.
To continue reading Meeting Chenrezig in Sound: Understanding Chenrezig’s Name and the Meaning of the Chenrezig Mantra by Frederick Meyer please visit the Shambhala Online Blog webpage here.
Entries filed under Community Articles
Munsel School – Surviving the Earthquake – HIGHLIGHT
It is Tuesday night at 11PM. Khenpo Gawang is in Memphis at the computer waiting for a Skype call from Yushu. This is the third week of giving dharma teaching to a group of villagers. Time goes by and no one comes online for ... continuePosted May 4, 2010 by candia_ludy
LGBTQ Path: Confidence and Compassion – HIGHLIGHT
Joe Schoech interviews Acharya Eric Spiegel, who along with Acharya Eve Rosenthal will be leading Confidence & Compassion: An LGBTQ Weekend, May 7th-9th at Karme Choling. Your upcoming program here at Karme Choling is called Confidence and Compassion, what’s the relationship between those two qualities? Compassion ... continuePosted April 23, 2010 by jschoech
Placing the Earthquake in our Lineage – HIGHLIGHT
Neal Greenberg offers an insightful discussion on the connection of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche to places in and around Jyekundo affected by the earthquake. The Shambhala Times has paired his reflections on lineage connections in the region with images shared by the Varja Vidya Foundation of the ... continuePosted April 19, 2010 by
Joining in with the Bodhisattva Activity in Jyekundo – HIGHLIGHT
By Lydon Comstock In the midst of the immense destruction and loss of life in Jyekundo and the surrounding area, I’ve been strongly struck by how hard so many people there are working to help those who are in need. Perhaps this is coming through more ... continuePosted April 18, 2010 by
Crossword Puzzle for Buddhaphiles – HIGHLIGHT
The Shambhala Times is pleased to present the first crossword puzzle for Buddhaphiles, composed by Ravenna Michalsen. Can you name the birthplace of the Buddha, the seed syllable of Amitabha, or a misunderstanding of emptiness? Try your hand at this crossword by printing out the puzzle ... continuePosted April 12, 2010 by Ravenna
Tonglen for Poland and Her People – HIGHLIGHT
Dear Sangha, Please, remember in your practice those who died this morning in a plane crash near Smolensk, Russia, including Poland’s top authorities: the President, his wife, ministers, senators, Parliament deputies, military commanders, bishops, NGO and charity leaders. Over 80 people. They went to Russia to pay ... continuePosted April 11, 2010 by
Join Our New Network on Aging – HIGHLIGHT
By David Whitehorn Each year more Shambhalians experience the delights and challenges of what is conventionally termed ‘old age’. Some of us are ourselves celebrating birthdays in our 60s, 70s, 80s or 90s. Many of us have family members or friends who are. A recent survey ... continuePosted April 9, 2010 by David Whitehorn
Mindfully Naked at 80mph – HIGHLIGHT
Mark Manzutto, from the Albuquerque Shambhala Center, contemplates the thrill of motorcycle riding There is no way to express the sensation of flying down a long New Mexico road at 80 mph on a warm summer day. The realization of what you are doing is ... continuePosted April 7, 2010 by
Chicago Shambhala Center Director Named – HIGHLIGHT
The Governing Council of the Shambhala Meditation Center of Chicago is pleased to announce that Tom Adducci has been selected and appointed as the new Center Director. This appointment is the fruition of our Lion’s Leap Campaign to hire a full-time Center Director. The Governing Council notified ... continuePosted March 28, 2010 by
Illness and the Benefits of Meditation – HIGHLIGHT
Yesterday, this article went out to over 400 publications in the US and Canada. It features Jeff Rubin, longtime Shambhala sangha member and teacher, Acharya Eric Spiegel, Ciprian Iancu, Co-Director of the New York Shambhala Center, and popular mindfulness teacher Jon Kabbat-Zin. Through Illness, Mindfulness Meditation ... continuePosted March 25, 2010 by
Hearts Melting for You – HIGHLIGHT
A poem offered by the Family Working Group, celebrating the announcement of our expectant Sakyong and Sakyong Wangmo To Khandro Tseyang To Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche And to the royal child On this good earth we waited for this precious being. On a Shambhla day when the earth ox turned into the ... continuePosted March 20, 2010 by
Bringing Conflict to the Path – HIGHLIGHT
A Gateway to Enlightened Society, By John Fox As a participant in the 2009 Congress, John Fox returned from Halifax inspired, and also eager to continue a dialog begun there concerning how to bring conflict and differing points of view to the Path. The particular ... continuePosted March 14, 2010 by john_fox
The Smell of Pinon Woodsmoke – HIGHLIGHT
First Annual Weekthun at Albuquerque Shambhala Center By Sandra Cowan I could smell the pinon woodsmoke each morning as I walked from the parking area to the adobe home that houses the Albuquerque Shambhala Center. What better way to start the New Year? I was delighted ... continuePosted March 10, 2010 by
A Garland of Videos about Shambhala – HIGHLIGHT
In May of 1975, I read Born in Tibet and Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism as fast as I could and then moved to Boulder, Colorado in August, as fast as I could. I figured that being there “in person” in Boulder, where Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche was ... continuePosted February 25, 2010 by John David Smith
Synchronizing Body, Heart & Mind – HIGHLIGHT
By Aaron Manier During the final days of the don season, a determined group of warriors assembled at the Atlanta Shambhala Center to participate in a week of intensive exploration of the body, heart, and mind. This weekthun experience was led by Hope Martin, a skilled teacher ... continuePosted February 22, 2010 by
RSS feed for the Community Articles category
View all posts from authors in Community Articles: Jillian_Johnson