Journey to the West (vol. 1)

by Wu Cheng-En

  “If Brother Monkey wasn't there,” the old fiend said, “he must have been killed by the wind, and he won't be going off to get soldiers to rescue his master.”

  “If the wind killed him, Your Majesty,” the other devils said, “we are in luck. But if he wasn't killed and went to fetch divine soldiers instead, what's to be done?”

  “What's so frightening about divine soldiers?” the old fiend said. “None of them can put down my wind except the Bodhisattva Lingji, so there's no need to fear the rest of them.”

  When Monkey heard this as he sat on a roof-beam, he was beside himself with delight. Flying straight out, he reverted to his real form and went back to the wood, calling, “Brother.”

  “Where have you been?” Pig asked. “I chased an evil spirit with a command flag away just now.”

  “Good for you,” said Monkey with a smile, “good for you. I changed myself into a mosquito and went into the cave to see our master. He was tied to a wind-settling stake in there and crying. I told him not to cry, flew up to a roof-beam, and had a good listen. I saw the one with the command flag come puffing and panting in to report that you'd chased him away and that he hadn't seen me. The old fined was making some wild guesses. First he said that I had been killed by his wind, then he said I'd gone to ask for the help of divine soldiers. It's wonderful-he gave the fellow's name away.”

  “Whose name?” Pig asked.

  “He said that no divine soldier could suppress his wind except the Bodhisattva Lingji,” Monkey continued, adding, “but I don't know where the Bodhisattva Lingji lives.”

  As they were wondering what to do, an old man came along the road. Look at him:

  He was strong enough not to need a stick,

  But his beard was like ice and his flowing hair snowy.

  Although his gold-flecked sparkling eyes seemed somewhat dim,

  His aged bones and muscles had not lost their strength.

  Slowly he walked, back bent, and head bowed down,

  But his broad brow and rosy cheeks were those of a boy.

  If you gave him a name from his looks,

  The Star of Longevity had come out of his cave.

  When Pig saw him he said with delight, “Brother, you know the saying, 'If you want to know the way down the mountain, ask a regular traveler.' Why don't you ask him?” The Great Sage put his iron cudgel away, unhitched his clothes, and went up to the old man. “Greetings, grandfather,” he said.

  Half replying to him and half not, the old man returned his bow and asked, “Where are you from, monk, and what are you doing in this desolate spot?”

  “We are holy monks going to fetch the scriptures,” Monkey replied. “Yesterday we lost our master here, and we would like to ask you, sir, where the Bodhisattva Lingji lives.”

  “Lingji lives a thousand miles due South of here,” the old man said, “on a mountain called Little Mount Sumeru. There is a holy place there which is the monastery where he preaches the scriptures. Are you going to fetch scriptures from him.”

  “No,” Monkey replied, “we're going not to fetch scriptures from him, but to trouble him over something else. How does one get there?”

  The old man pointed South and said, “That twisting path will take you.” Thus tricking the Great Sage into turning round to look, the old man turned into a puff of wind and disappeared from sight. All that could be seen of him was a piece of paper he had left beside the road. On it there were four lines of verse that read:

  “I report to the Great Sage Equaling Heaven,

  That I am Long Life Li.

  On Sumeru Mountain there is a Flying Dragon Staff,

  The weapon the Buddha once gave to Lingji.”

  Brother Monkey took the note turned, and set off. “What lousy luck we've been having for the last few days, brother,” said Pig. “For the last couple of days we've been seeing ghosts even in broad daylight. Who was that old man who turned into a wind?” Monkey handed the piece of paper to him, and when he had read it he said, “Who is this Long Life Li?”

  “He's the Great White Planet of the West,” Monkey replied.

  Pig immediately bowed low and said, “My benefactor, my benefactor. If he hadn't put in a memorial to the Jade Emperor, I don't know what would have become of me.”

  “So you're capable of feeling gratitude,” said Monkey. “Meanwhile, you're to hide deep in these woods without showing yourself, and keep a close watch on the baggage and the horse while I go to Mount Sumeru to ask the Bodhisattva to come.”

  “Understood,” said Pig, “understood. You go as fast as you can. I've learned the tortoise's trick, and can pull my head in when necessary.”

  The Great Sage Monkey leapt into the air and headed South on his somersault cloud at tremendous speed. He could cover a thousand miles with a nod of his head, and do eight hundred stages with a twist of his waist. It was only an instant before he saw a high mountain surrounded by auspicious clouds and a propitious aura. In a valley on the mountain there was a monastery from which the distant sounds of bells and stone chimes could be heard, and a haze of incense smoke hung above it. Monkey went straight to the gate, where he saw a lay brother with prayer beads round his neck who was invoking the Buddha.

  “Greetings, lay brother,” said Monkey, clasping his hands in salutation.

  The lay brother bowed to him in reply and said, “Where are you from, sir?”

  “Is this where the Bodhisattva Lingji preaches the scriptures?” Monkey asked.

  “Yes, this is the place,” the lay brother replied. “Have you a message for him?”

  “I would like you to tell him that I am Brother Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, a disciple of the Patriarch Sanzang, the younger brother of His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Tang in the East, and there is a matter about which I should like to see the Bodhisattva.”

  “That's far too many words for me to remember, sir,” said the lay brother with a smile.

  “Then tell him that the Tang Priest's disciple Sun Wukong is here,” Monkey replied. The lay brother did as he asked and went into the preaching hall to pass on the message. The Bodhisattva put on his cassock, burnt some incense, and prepared to receive him. As the Great Sage went through the gate and looked inside he saw:

  A hall full of brocade,

  A room of awe-inspiring majesty.

  All the monks were chanting the Lotus Sutra

  While the aged head priest lightly struck the golden chime.

  The offerings made to the Buddha

  Were magic fruit and magic flowers;

  Set out on tables

  Were meatless delicacies.

  Dazzling candles

  Sent golden flames up to the rainbow,

  From fragrant incense

  Jade smoke rose to the translucent mist.

  With the sermon over and the mind at peace, a trance was entered.

  White clouds coiled around the tops of the pine trees.

  When the sword of wisdom is sheathed, the demon is beheaded;

  Great are the powers of the prajna-paramita.

  The Bodhisattva straightened his clothes and came out to meet Monkey, who climbed the steps into the hall and sat in the guest's seat. When the orders were given for tea to be brought, Monkey said, “I won't trouble you to give me tea. My master is in trouble on the Yellow Wind Mountain, and I have come to ask you, Bodhisattva, to use your great powers to subdue the demon and rescue my master.”

  “I have been ordered by the Tathagata Buddha to guard over the Yellow Wind Monster,” the Bodhisattva replied. “The Tathagata gave me a Wind-settling Pill and a Flying Dragon Staff. When I captured that monster before, the Tathagata spared his life and exiled him to live in seclusion on this mountain, where he is not allowed to kill or do any other evil. I never imagined that he would want to murder your master today. I must hold myself responsible for this as I have failed to carry out my orders.” The Bodhisattva wanted to keep Monkey for a meal and a talk, but in response to Monkey's urgent
pleading he took his Flying Dragon Staff and rode off with the Great Sage by cloud.

  A moment later they reached the Yellow Wind Mountain, and the Bodhisattva said, “Great Sage, as this evil monster is a bit scared of me, I'd better stay here inside the cloud while you go down and challenge him to come out and fight. Once you've lured him out, I can use my divine power.” Doing as he suggested, Monkey brought his cloud down to land; and without more ado he smashed down the gates of the cave with his iron cudgel.

  “Fiendish monster,” he shouted, “give my master back.”

  The junior fiends on the gate all rushed back to report this, and the old monster said, “That damned ape really has a cheek-instead of behaving himself properly, he comes to smash my gates down. This time I'll use a magic wind that will certainly blow him to death.” Putting on his armour and taking his trident as before, he went out through the gate, and the moment he saw Monkey, he thrust straight at his chest with his trident, not uttering a single word. Monkey sidestepped to dodge it and hit back at the monster's face with his cudgel. When only a few rounds had been fought, the monster turned to the Southeast and was just going to open his mouth and blow out a wind when the Bodhisattva Lingji appeared in mid-air and dropped the Flying Dragon Staff on him. While the monster recited all sorts of spells, an eight-clawed golden dragon grabbed him with two of its claws and smashed him several times against a rock-face. At this the monster reverted to his real form-a brown marten.

  Monkey rushed at it and had raised his cudgel to kill it when the Bodhisattva stopped him and said, “Don't kill it, Great Sage. I must take it back to see the Tathagata. He used to be a marten who had obtained the Way underneath the Vulture Peak, and once he stole some of the pure oil from a crystal lamp. When the lamp went out he was so afraid of being caught by a Vajrapani that he ran away and became a spirit monster here. The Tathagata decided that as this was not a capital offence I should be sent to keep guard over him; but if he took life or committed any other evil deeds he was to be taken to the Vulture Peak. As he has now offended you, Great Sage, and captured the Tang Priest with the intention of murdering him, I must take him to see the Tathagata to be sentenced for his crime before this business can be regarded as cleared up.”

  Pig, meanwhile, who had been wondering about Monkey as he waited in the wood, heard a shout from the mountainside, “Pig, bring the luggage and the horse out.”

  Recognizing the voice as Monkey's, the idiot rushed out of the wood with the things and asked Monkey, “How did it go?”

  “I asked the Bodhisattva Lingji to come, and he used his Flying Dragon Staff to capture the evil spirit, who turned out to have been the spirit of a brown-coated marten and was taken off to the Vulture Peak by the Bodhisattva to see the Buddha. We two had better go into the cave to rescue our master.” The idiot was very pleased to hear the news.

  The pair of them charged into the cave and killed all the evil hares, fox-fiends, roebuck, and deer inside with the iron club and the rake. Then they went into the garden at the back to rescue their master. When he was outside he asked, “How did you two capture that evil spirit? How did you manage to rescue me?” Monkey told him all about how Lingji had subdued the fined, and Sanzang expressed his gratitude at great length while the two prepared a meal from the meatless food that there was in the cave. Then they left the cave and looked for the main path West once more.

  If you don't know what happened later, listen to the explanation in the next installment.

  Chapter 22

  Pig Fights a Great Battle in the Flowing Sands River

  Moksa Obeys the Dharma and Wins Friar Sand Over

  The story tells how the Tang Priest and his two disciples escaped from their troubles and pressed forward. Before long they had crossed the Yellow Wind Ridge and were heading West across a plain. The time passed rapidly, and summer gave way to autumn. Cold cicadas sang in moulting willow trees, and the Great Fire Star sank below the Western horizon. As they were travelling one day they saw the mighty waves of a great river, boiling and raging. “Disciple,” called out Sanzang from his horse, “do you see that broad river in front of us? Why are there no boats on it, and how are we going to get across?”

  “Those are really terrible waves,” said Pig when he saw the river, “and there aren't any boats to ferry us over.” Monkey sprang into the sky, shaded his eyes with his hand, and looked. “Master,” he said with horror, “we're in big trouble here. I can cross a river like this with a twist of my waist, but I'm afraid you'll never be able to cross it in ten thousand years.”

  “How wide is it, then?” Sanzang asked. “I can't see the other bank from here.”

  “About three hundred miles,” Monkey replied. “How can you be so sure of the distance, brother?” Pig asked. “These eyes of mine can see what's happening three hundred and fifty miles away in daytime,” Monkey replied. “When I took a look from up in the air just now I couldn't make out the length of the river, but I could see that it was a good three hundred and fifty miles wide.” Depressed and worried, Sanzang reined in his horse and noticed a stone tablet beside the river. The three of them went to look at it, and they saw the words FLOWING SANDS RIVER inscribed on it in the ancient curly style. On the base of the tablet were four lines in the standard script:

  “Three hundred miles of flowing sands,

  Three thousand fathoms of weak water,

  On which a goose feather will not float,

  And the flower of a reed will sink.”

  As the three of them were looking at this tablet they heard the waves make a roar like a collapsing mountain as a most hideous evil spirit emerged from the water:

  A head of matted hair, as red as fire,

  A pair of staring eyes, gleaming like lamps.

  An indigo face, neither black nor green,

  A dragon's voice like drums or thunder.

  On his body a cloak of yellow goose-down,

  Tied at the waist with white creeper.

  Nine skulls hung around his neck,

  And in his hands was an enormous staff.

  The monster came to the bank in a whirlwind and rushed straight at the Tang Priest. Monkey picked Sanzang up at once, turned, and made off up the high bank. Pig dropped his carrying-pole, grabbed his rake, and struck at the evil spirit, who parried the blow with his staff. Each of them showed his prowess on the banks of the Flowing Sands River, and it was a fine battle:

  The nine-pronged rake,

  And the ogre-quelling staff:

  Two men fighting on the banks of the river.

  One was the great commander Tian Peng

  The other the banished Curtain-lifting General.

  They used to meet in the Hall of Miraculous Mist,

  But now they were locked in ferocious combat.

  The rake had dug deep into clawed dragons,

  The staff had defeated tusked elephants.

  When either was held defensively, it was rock-solid;

  In attack they cut into the wind.

  While one clawed at head and face,

  The other never panicked or left an opening.

  One was the man-eating monster of the Flowing Sands River,

  The other was a believer, a general cultivating his conduct.

  The pair of them battled on for twenty rounds, but neither emerged as the victor. The Great Sage, who was holding on to the horse and looking after the luggage after carrying the Tang Priest to safety, became worked up into such a fury at the sight of Pig and the monster fighting that he ground his teeth and clenched his fists.

  When he could hold himself back no longer, he pulled out his cudgel and said, “Master, you sit here and don't be afraid. I'm going to play with him.” Ignoring Sanzang's pleas for him to stay, he whistled, jumped down to the side of the river, and found that the fight between Pig and the ogre was at its height. Brother Monkey swung his cudgel and aimed it at the ogre's head, but the ogre made a lightning turn and plunged straight into the river. Pig was hopping mad.

>   “Nobody asked you to come, elder brother,” he said. “That ogre was tiring and he could hardly fend my rake off. With few more rounds I would have captured him, but you gave him such a fright that he ran away, damn it.”

  “Brother,” said Monkey with a smile, “I must tell you frankly that the sight of you fighting so beautifully gave me an uncontrollable itch. I haven't used my cudgel for a whole month since we came down the mountain after dealing with the Yellow Wind Monster-I just had to join in the fun. How was I to know that the monster wouldn't want to play and was going to run away?”

  The two of them then clasped hands and went back talking and laughing to see Sanzang, who asked, “Did you catch the ogre?”

  “No,” Monkey said, “he couldn't take any more and dived back into the water.”

  “He has lived here for a long time, disciple,” Sanzang said, “and must know the shallows and deeps here. We must have a water expert to lead us across this vast expanse of weak water that has no boats.”

  “Yes,” said Monkey, “as the saying goes, 'What's near cinnabar goes red, and what's next to ink turns black.' As that ogre lives here he must be a water expert, so if we catch him we shouldn't kill him-we should make him take you across, master, before finishing him off.”

  “There's no time to lose, brother,” said Pig. “You go and catch him while I look after the master.”

  “This is something I can't talk big about,” said Monkey with a smile. “I'm not all that good at underwater stuff. Even to walk underwater I have to make a magic hand movement and recite a water-repelling spell before I can move. The only other way I can get about there is by turning myself into a fish, a shrimp, a crab or a turtle. I can manage any strange and wonderful magic on a mountain or in the clouds that you can do, but when it comes to underwater business, I'm useless.”