Journey to the West (vol. 3)

by Wu Cheng-En

  “Disciple,” said Sanzang, “was I not worried when you went? I remembered that you could change into other things, so I was sure you would come to no harm. But the idiot was born clumsy and can't transform himself, which makes this a very dangerous business. You must go and rescue him.”

  “Stop complaining, Master,” said Brother Monkey. “I'll go and save him.”

  Monkey rushed up the mountain thinking resentfully, “I'm not going to make life easy for that idiot if he wishes me dead. I'll go and see what the evil spirits are doing with him. Before I rescue him I'll let him suffer a bit.” He then made magic with his hands, said the words of a spell, shook himself, turned into the tiniest of insects and flew into the cave, where he landed at the bottom of one of Pig's ears to be taken inside with the evil spirit. The second demon chief had led his three thousand junior devils trumpeting and drumming loudly to the cave, where they stopped.

  He now took Pig inside and said, “I've got one, elder brother.”

  “Show me,” the senior demon replied.

  Unwinding his trunk the second demon chief flung Pig to the ground and said, “There he is.”

  “That one's useless,” said the senior demon.

  “Your Majesty,” put in Pig when he heard this, “if I'm no use let me go and find a more useful one to capture.”

  “He may not be any use,” said the third demon chief, “but he is the Tang Priest's disciple Zhu Bajie. Tie him up and put him to soak in the pool at the back. When his bristles have been soaked off we can open his belly up, salt him and dry him in the sun. He'll go down well with some wine on a rainy day.”

  “That's that then,” exclaimed Pig in horror. “I've fallen into the clutches of a demon who's a salt-pork peddler.” The demon hordes fell on him, tied his hands and feet together, carried him to the pool at the back, pushed him in and went back.

  When the Great Sage flew there to have a look he saw the idiot with his four limbs pointing upwards and his snout downwards as he half floated and was half sinking, grunting through his snout. He really was a ridiculous sight, like a big blackened frost-bitten lotus pod that has shed its seeds in September or October. Seeing his face the Great Sage felt both loathing and pity for him.

  “What shall I do?” he wondered. “After all, he is another member of the Dragon Flower Assembly. I just wish he wouldn't keep trying to divide up the luggage, split our band, and incite the master to say the Band-tightening Spell. The other day I heard Friar Sand say that he'd stashed some money away for himself. I wonder if it's true. I'll give him a scare and find out.”

  The splendid Great Sage flew down to his ear and called in a disguised voice, “Zhu Wuneng, Zhu Wuneng.”

  “This is terrible,” thought Pig in alarm, “Wuneng is the name the Bodhisattva Guanyin gave me. I've been called Zhu Bajie all the time I've been with the Tang Priest. How can there be anyone here who knows my name is Wuneng?” So he could not restrain himself from asking, “Who's that calling my Buddhist name?”

  “Me,” said Monkey.

  “Who are you?” the idiot asked.

  “I'm a catcher,” Monkey replied.

  “Where from, sir?” asked Pig in terror.

  “From the Fifth King of the Underworld, and he's sent me to fetch you,” said Monkey.

  “Then please go back and ask the Fifth King as he's such a good friend of my senior fellow-disciple Sun Wukong to give me a day's grace. You can come for me tomorrow.”

  “You're talking nonsense,” Monkey replied. “If King Yama of Hell decides you're to die in the third watch nobody will keep you till the fourth. Come with me at once if you don't want me to put a rope round your neck and drag you off.”

  “Do me a favour,” said the idiot. “Even with a face like mine still want to go on living. I'll certainly die if I have to, but give me a day till these evil spirits have captured my master and the rest of us, so I can see them again before we're all done for.”

  “Very well then,” said Monkey, grinning to himself. “I've got about thirty people to capture around here in this batch. When I've caught them I'll come back for you. That'll give you a day's grace. Give me some money. I'm sure you've got some.”

  “Oh dear,” said Pig, “we monks don't have money.”

  “If you haven't then I'm dragging you off,” said Brother Monkey. “Come with me.”

  “Don't be so impatient, sir,” said the idiot, panicking. “I know that rope of yours is what they call the life-taking rope. Once It's round you you're dead. Yes, I have got some money. I've got a bit, but not much.”

  “Where is it?” Monkey demanded. “Give it me at once.”

  “Oh dear, what a pity!” said Pig. “From when I became a monk right up till now the kind people who feed monks have given me a bit more alms than the others because my belly's so big. I saved all the little bits of silver till I had about half an ounce. They were awkward to keep, so when we were in a city some time ago I asked a silversmith to melt them all together. The wicked man stole a few grains of it, so the ingot he made only weighed forty-six hundredths of an ounce. Take it.”

  “The idiot hasn't even got his trousers on,” grinned Monkey to himself, “so where can he have hidden it? Hey, where's your silver?”

  “It's stuffed inside my left ear,” Pig replied. “I can't get it myself because I'm tied up, so take it out yourself.” When Monkey heard this he put his hand out and took the silver from inside Pig's ear. It was indeed an ingot shaped like a saddle that weighed only forty-five or forty-six hundredths of an ounce. As he held it in his hands Monkey could not help roaring with laughter.

  Recognizing Monkey's voice the idiot started cursing him wildly from the water: “Damn and blast you, Protector of the Horses, for coming to extort money from me when I'm in such misery.”

  “I've got you now, you dreg-guzzler!” said Monkey. “Goodness only knows what I've had to suffer for the sake of protecting the master, while you've been making your fortune.”

  “Nonsense!” Pig retorted. “Call this a fortune? It's just what I've scraped off my teeth. I resisted spending it on my stomach, so I saved it to buy myself some cloth to get a tunic made. You've got it out of me by intimidation. You ought to share it with me.”

  “You won't get a cent of it,” Monkey replied.

  “I've paid you to spare my life,” said Pig, “so now you damn well ought to rescue me.”

  “Don't be so impatient,” said Monkey. “I'll rescue you all in good time.” Putting the silver away he turned back into himself and used his cudgel to bring Pig close enough to grab him by his feet, drag him ashore and untie him. Pig then sprang up, took off his clothes, wrung them out, shook them, and draped them still dripping wet over his shoulders.

  “Brother,” he said, “open the back gates. Let's go.”

  “There's no glory in sneaking out the back way,” replied Monkey. “We'll leave by the front gates.”

  “My feet are still numb after being tied up,” said Pig. “I can't run.”

  “Buck up and come with me,” said Monkey.

  The splendid Great Sage charged out, clearing his way by swinging his cudgel. The idiot had no choice but to endure the pain and keep close to him. When he saw the rake propped up by the second pair of gates he went over to it, pushed the junior devils aside, retrieved it and rushed forward, lashing out wildly. He and Brother Monkey charged through three or four pairs of gates, and goodness only knows how many junior devils they killed.

  When the senior demon chief heard all this he said to the second chief, “You captured a fine one! A fine one indeed! Look! Sun the Novice has rescued Pig and they've wounded or killed the juniors on the gates.” The second demon at once sprang to his feet and rushed out through the gates brandishing his spear.

  “Damned macaque,” he shouted at the top of his voice. “What a nerve! How dare you treat us with such contempt!” As soon as the Great Sage heard this he stopped still. The monster thrust his spear straight at him without allowing any argument
. With the unhurried skill of the expert Monkey raised his iron cudgel to hit back at the demon's face. The two of them fought a splendid battle outside the entrance to the cave:

  The yellow-tusked elephant in human form

  Had sworn brotherhood with the Lion King.

  Persuaded by the senior monster

  They plotted together to eat the Tang Priest.

  Huge were the powers of the Great Sage, Heaven's equal,

  Who helped the good against the bad and killed off demons,

  The incompetent Pig had met with disaster,

  So Monkey saved him and led him outside.

  When the demon king pursued them with great ferocity

  The spear and the cudgel each showed off its powers.

  The spear moved like a snake in the woods;

  The cudgel arose like a dragon from the sea.

  Where the dragon emerged the clouds were thick;

  Dense hung the mist where the snake went through the woods.

  It was all for the sake of the Tang Priest

  That they fought each other with ferocity and hatred.

  When he saw the Great Sage start fighting the evil spirit, Pig stood on the spur, his rake upright. Instead of joining in to help, he watched with stupefied amazement. Monkey's cudgel was so powerful and his martial skills so faultless the evil spirit used his spear to parry Monkey's blows while unrolling his trunk to wrap round him. As Monkey knew about this trick he held his gold-banded cudgel out horizontally in both hands and raised them. The evil spirit's trunk caught Monkey round the waist but missed his hands. Just watch how Monkey belabors the evil spirit's trunk with his cudgel.

  When Pig saw this he beat his chest and said, “Oh dear! That monster's got lousy luck. When he caught me he got my arms too because I'm so clumsy, but he didn't when he caught that slippery character. He's got his cudgel in both hands, and all he needs to do is shove it up the monster's trunk to give him such a pain in the nostrils that it'll make the snot run. The monster'll never be able to hold him.”

  Monkey had not thought of this before Pig gave him the idea, but now he waved his cudgel to make it as thick as a hen's egg and over ten feet long and actually did shove it hard up the monster's trunk. This gave the evil spirit such a shock that he unraveled his trunk with a swishing noise. Monkey brought his hand round to grab the trunk and drag it forcefully towards him. To spare himself any more agony the monster stepped out and moved with Monkey's hand. Only then did Pig dare approach, raising his rake to hit wildly at the monster's flanks.

  “No,” said Brother Monkey, “that's no good. The prongs of your rake are so sharp they might break his skin. If he starts bleeding heavily and the master sees it he'll say we've been killing again. You'd better turn it round and hit him with the handle.”

  The idiot then raised the handle of his rake and struck the monster at every step while Monkey dragged him by the trunk. They looked like a pair of elephant boys as they led him down to the foot of the mountain, where Sanzang could be seen gazing with concentration at the two of them coming noisily towards him.

  “Wujing,” he said to Friar Sand, “what is it Wukong is leading?”

  “Master,” replied Friar Sand when he saw them, “big brother is dragging an evil spirit here by the nose. He really enjoys slaughter.”

  “Splendid, splendid,” said Sanzang. “What a big evil spirit, and what a long nose! Go and ask him if he's happy and willing to escort us over the-mountain. If he is he must be spared and not be killed.”

  Friar Sand at once rushed straight towards them shouting, “The master says you mustn't kill the monster if he's really willing to escort him across the mountain.” As soon as he heard this the demon fell to his knees and promised to do so in a very nasal voice. His voice was like this because Monkey was pinching his nostrils shut, making it sound as though he had a heavy cold.

  “Lord Tang,” he said, “I'll carry you across by chair if you spare my life.”

  “My master and we disciples are good people.” Monkey replied. “As you've said this we'll spare your life. Fetch the chair at once. If you break your word again we most certainly won't spare your life when we catch you next time.” The freed monster kowtowed and left. Monkey and Pig went to report to the Tang Priest on everything that had happened to them. Pig was overcome with shame as he spread his clothes out to dry in the sun while they waited.

  The second demon chief returned trembling and shaking to the cave. Even before his return some junior devils had reported to the senior and the third demon chiefs that Monkey had dragged him off by the trunk. In his anxiety the senior demon had led his hosts out with the third demon when they saw the second chief coming back alone. As they brought him inside and asked him why he had been released the second chief told them all about Sanzang's words of mercy and goodness. They looked at each other, at a loss for words.

  “Elder brother,” said the second demon chief, “shall we take Sanzang across?”

  “What a thing to say, brother,” replied the senior chief. “Sun the Novice is a monkey who shows the greatest benevolence and sense of justice. If he had wanted to kill me when he was in my stomach he could most certainly have done so. He only grabbed your trunk. He might have dragged you off and not let you go. All he did was to pinch your trunk and break its skin, and that's given you a scare. Get ready at once to take them across.”

  The third demon chief smiled and said, “Yes, yes, yes!”

  “From the way you're talking, my good brother,” said the senior demon, “it sounds as though you're reluctant to let the Tang Priest go. If you don't, we'll take him across.”

  The third demon chief smiled again and said, “Elder brothers, it would have been luckier for those monks if they hadn't asked us to escort them but had slipped quietly across instead. By asking us to escort them they've fallen in with our plan to lure the tiger down from the mountain.”

  “What do you mean by 'luring the tiger from the mountain?'“ the senior demon asked.

  “Summon all the demons in our cave,” the third demon chief continued. “Choose one thousand from the ten thousand of them, then a hundred from the thousand, then sixteen and thirty from the hundred.”

  “Why do you want sixteen and thirty?” the senior demon asked.

  “The thirty must be good cooks,” the third demon chief replied. “Give them the best rice and flour, bamboo shoots, tea, gill fungus, button mushrooms, beancurd and wheat gluten. Send them to put up a shelter seven to ten miles along the way and lay on a meal for the Tang Priest.”

  “And what do you want the sixteen for?” the senior demon asked.

  “Eight to carry the chair and eight to shout and clear the way,” the third demon replied. “We brothers will accompany them for a stage of their journey. About 150 miles West of here is my city, and I've plenty of troops there to greet them. When they get to the city we'll do such and such and so on… The Tang Priest and his disciples won't be able to see what's happening to them. Whether we catch the Tang Priest or not depends completely on those sixteen demons.”

  The senior demon was beside himself with delight on hearing this. It was as if he had recovered from a drunken stupor or woken up from a dream. “Excellent, excellent,” he said, whereupon he mustered the demons, chose thirty to whom he gave the food and another sixteen to carry a rattan chair. As they set out the senior demon gave the following instructions to the rest of the demons: “None of you are to go out on the mountain. Sun the Novice is a very cautious ape, and if he sees any of you around he'll be suspicious and see through our plan.”

  The senior demon then led his underlings to a place beside the main road, where he called aloud, “Lord Tang, today's not an unlucky one, so please come across the mountain straight away.”

  “Who is that calling me, Wukong?” Sanzang asked when he heard this.

  “It's the demons I beat,” Monkey replied. “They're bringing a chair to carry you.”

  Putting his hands together in front of his ch
est Sanzang looked up to the sky and said, “Splendid, splendid! But for my worthy disciple's great abilities I could not proceed on my journey.” He then walked forward to greet the demons with the words, “I am most grateful for the consideration you gentlemen are showing. When my disciples and I return to Chang'an we will praise your admirable achievements.”

  “Please get into the carrying-chair, my lord,” the demons said, kowtowing. Having mortal eyes and body Sanzang did not realize that this was a trick. The Great Sage Sun, a golden immortal of the Supreme Monad with a loyal nature, thought that because he had captured and released the demons they were now won over. He never imagined that they had other plots in mind, so he did not investigate closely but went along with his master's ideas. He told Pig to tie the luggage on the horse and keep close to the master with Friar Sand while he cleared the way with his iron cudgel, watching out to see if all was well. While eight devils carried the chair and eight shouted in turn to clear the way the three demon chiefs steadied the poles of the chair. The master was delighted to sit upright in it and go up the high mountain by the main track, little realizing that

  Great grief would return in the midst of rejoicing;

  “Extremes,” says the classic, “create their negation.”

  Fated they were to meet with disaster,

  A star of ill-omen to mark desolation.

  The band of demons worked with one mind to escort them and serve them diligently at all times. After ten miles there was a vegetarian meal and after fifteen more miles another one. They were invited to rest before it grew late, and everything along their way was neat and tidy. Each day they had three most satisfactory and delightful meals and spent a comfortable night where they were able to sleep well.

  When they had traveled about 150 miles West they found themselves near a walled city. Raising his iron cudgel the Great Sage, who was only a third of a mile ahead of the carrying-chair, was so alarmed by the sight of the city that he fell over and was unable to rise to his feet. Do you know why someone of his great courage was so frightened by what he saw? It was because he saw a very evil atmosphere hanging over the town.