Each and every practitioner initiating the Mahayana mind needs to

aspire after bodhisattvahood, that is, seeking the Buddha Way beyond,

converting all living beings around, and, at the same time, initiating vow to

give all to the saha world. Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva initiates vow to look

for all sounds of suffering and salvage all who suffer. As all living beings

caught in adversity call on his name, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva traces

the sounds of their hurt and comes to their rescue. He enables them to

transcend agony and is thus known as deliverer from pain and sorrow.

To familiarize with records of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, consult

Chapter on the Universal Gate in Lotus Sutra, Section on Avalokitesvara

Bodhisattva' s Omnipresent Hearing in Surangama Sutra, or Guanshiyin

Pusa Putuo Shan yi-ji (Extraordinary Footmarks of Avalokitesvara

Bodhisattva on Mount Putuo).