Since the first time I saw a friend’s figurine of the Goddess Kwan Yin, a beautiful gilded porcelain statue with blue adornments, I have been fascinated by the associated stories of betrayal, sacrifice and eventual compassion. I leave it to the reader to research the various accounts of the life of the goddess (you could start at Wiki); most of them I find compelling and humbling.
Kwan Yin, the Goddess of Compassion
The Heart Sūtra (In Mandarin 般若波羅蜜多心經) is considered one of the writings of the Buddhist Perfection of Wisdom. It’s calls upon Kwan Yin to enlighten our way to the perfection of wisdom through acts of compassion. And although I don’t pretend to be in any way knowledgeable or worthy of attempting of this spiritual path, I am repeatedly inspired by this Sūtra.
The Sūtra itself has been set to music many times. But that didn’t stop me from my own devotions.
In this track, I have set the Sūtra spoken by a chorus in Mandarin, shimmering over a musical texture which features a C Major diatonic flute made by master craftsman Steven Deruby. I have designated it a free download for the month of July, 2011.
I invite you to click below if you would like the free download.
Bill Leyden 