CULTURAL BACKGROUND: Guanyin is one of the most venerated and well known of the Bodhisattvas, enlightened beings who have delayed entering paradise in order to help others attain enlightenment. Literally in the Chinese language, "Guanyin" means "observing the sounds," meaning she hears all the sounds from the world and listens to the prayers of her worshippers. This goddess comforts the troubled, the sick, the lost, and grants sons to the infertile. Her popularity has grown such through the centuries that she is also regarded as the protector of seafarers, farmers and travelers.