'Tis the story of the Wondrous One,
Like who on Earth, there has been none
Mistress of the Southern Sea,
The kindest Lady there could ever be!

Daughter of the corrupt King Pao-ying,
Sister of Princesses' Miao-yen and Miao-yin
Miao-Shan, in 7th century China, as a child was born
On a trembling & wonderfully fragrant Earth, with flower blossoms that sprang forth, all around!

Covered with many-coloured clouds,
With the most compassionate smile, of which the King and Queen should've been proud
Holding a scroll or book of prayers,
Was the Compassionate Saviouress, for the whole world, who cares!

Adorning Her neck was a white crystal rosary,
To call upon the Buddhas for help
Representing leading into Nirvana all living beings,
It looked the most divine of things!

Days, months and years soon rolled by,
The little Princess, grew big, before the eye
She dressed plainly, ate once a day,
Was kind and gentle to all, be it March or May!

Soon the King was on a husband-hunt,
Oh, it became his major brunt
Miao-Shan, devoted to helping others, told her father
"I'd marry someone if by so doing I can help alleviate the suffering of all mankind", else on this he mustn't ponder!

The King became enraged at this,
Like an angry cobra, he began to hiss
Then forced Her to slave away at menial tasks,
How could he of a Goddess this ask?!

The Queen and her sisters admonished her,
To them also, She wouldn't hear
So the King sent Her off to a monastery,
But in doing so, there was treachery!

For wanting Her to change her mind,
The wicked King, was so unkind
He ordered the nuns to mis-treat Her,
Making Her do tasks, we'd dread to hear!

She was forced to collect wood and water,
Run the barren kitchen garden, an impossible matter
But to the amazement of one and all,
A spring welled up near the kitchen...
And the garden flourished even in winter, tall!

Angry Pao-ying now wanted to kill,
Miao-Shan and the nuns, for whom hatred in his heart, did fill
He sent to the monastery his henchmen,
But when they reached, a sprit emerged from a fog of clouds, that saved the "Patroness of Fishermen"!

It carried Her away, to an island remote and safe,
Where She lived for nine years, and did miracles in a cave
Then, one day, the King became ill,
Restless and hungry, all his wealth him couldn't heal!

One day, a monk dropped by,
To cure the King, he'd stopped by
However, the remedy required was tough,
The arms and eyes of one free from hatred, had to be ground up!

This seemed impossible to the King,
Who thought, now left to do, was nothing
But the monk assured, he could help,
If a Bodhisattva living in the king's domain would surrender these items, Herself!

The King sent an envoy to find Her,
Who made his request, to the Lady, so Dear
She severed Her arms, cut out Her eyes,
To think of Her pain, my heart just cries!

The envoy returned, the medicine was made,
The King instantly recovered, all his disease did fade
He thanked the monk, who admonished him,
And said, "You should thank the one who gave their eyes and arms", and then disappeared before him!

Believing this was divine intervention,
The king ordered for a coach to be prepared
Heading off with his family, to find the unknown Bodhisattva, now his chief mission
He wanted to thank Her, for restoring his life, this beautiful being of God's creation!

Soon the royal family arrived,
They saw Miao-Shan, Her eyes and arms, she'd sacrificed
Then, The Merciful Redemptress spoke up,
"Mindful of my father's love, I have repaid him with my eyes and arms"!

With eyes full of tears, hearts full of shame,
Miao-Shan's family to hug her, forward came
Instantly auspicious clouds formed around Her,
Fragrance filled the air, far and near!

Mother earth trembled, flowers rained down,
Within a minute, the Boddhisattva, would be gone
Suddenly there appeared, hovering in the air,
A holy manifestation of One Thousand Eyes and One Thousand Arms, of the Goddess of Mercy, for all who did care!

To honour this beautiful divine being,
Her family built a shrine on that spot...now isn't that 'something'!
This came to be called, "The Fragrant Mountain",
To go visit this someday, is my heart's intention!