Instead of being considered a stand-alone deity, Shaolin believes Vajrapāni to be an emanation of the Bodhisattva Guanyin. The Chinese scholar A'De noted this was because the "Lotus Sutra" says Guanyin takes on the visage of whatever being that would best help pervade the dharma. The exact "Lotus Sutra" passage reads: “To those who can be conveyed to deliverance by the body of the spirit who grasps the "vajra" (Vajrapāni) he preaches Dharma by displaying the body of the spirit who grasps the "vajra".”