Monkey
– Journey to the West – Chapter 1
One
The divine root being conceived, the origin emerges:
The moral nature once cultivated, the Great Tao is born.
The poem said:
Before Chaos divided, Heaven and Earth were confused;
Formless and void- such matter no man had seen.
But when P’ an Ku the nebula dispersed,
Creation began, the impure parted from the pure.
The supreme goodness, benefic to every creature,
Enlightened all things to attain the good.
If you would know creation’s work through the spans of time,
You
must read The Chronicle of Deliverance in the Westward Journey.
We heard that, in order of Heaven and Earth, a single period consisted of 129, 000 years. Dividing this period into twelve epochs were the twelve stems of Tzu, Ch’ou, Yin, Mao, Ch’en, Ssu, Wu, Wei, Shen, Yu, Hsu, and Hai, with each epoch having 10, 8000 years. Considered as the horary circle, the sequence would be thus: the first of dawn appears in the hour of Tzu, while at Ch’ou the cock crows; daybreak occurs at Yin, and the sun rises at Mao; Ch’en comes after breakfast, and by Ssu everything is planned; at Wu the sun arrives at its meridian and declines westward by Wei; the evening meal comes during the hour of Shen, and the sun sinks completely at Yu; twilight sets in at Hsu, and people rest by the hour of Hai. This sequence may also be understood macrocosmically. At the end of the epoch of Hsu, Heaven and Earth were obscure and all things were indistinct. With the passing of , 400 years, the beginning of Hai was the epoch of darkness. This moment was named Chaos, because there were neither human beings not the two spheres. After another 5, 400 years the Hai ended, and as the creative force began to work after great perseverance, the epoch of Tzu drew near and again brought gradual development. Shao K’ang-chieh said:
When winter moved to the middle of Tzu,
No change occurred in the mind of heaven.
The male principle had barely stirred,
And all things were as yet unborn.
At this point, the firmament first acquired its foundation. With another 5, 400 years came the Tzu epoch; the ethereal and the light rose up to form the four phenomena of the sun, the moon the stars, and the heavenly bodies. Hence it is said, the Heaven was created at Tzu. This epoch came to its end un another 5, 400 years, and the sky began to harden as the Ch’ou epoch approached. The I Ching said, “Great was the male principle; supreme, the female! They made all things, in obedience to Heaven.” At this point, the Earth became solidified. In another 5, 400 years after the arrival of the Ch’ou epoch, the heavy and the turbid condensed below and formed the five elements of water, fire, mountain, stone, and earth. Hence it is said, the Earth was created at Ch’ou. With the passing of another 5, 400 years, the Ch’ou epoch came to its end and all things began to grow at the beginning of the Yin epoch. The Book of Calendar said: “ The heavenly aura descended; the earthly aura rose up. Heaven and Earth copulated, and all things were born.” At this point, Heaven and Earth were bright and fair; the yin had intercourse with the yang. In another 5, 400 years, during the Yin epoch, humans, beasts, and fowls came into being, and thus the so- called three forces of Heaven, Earth, and Man were established. Hence it is said, man was born at Yin.
Following p’an Ku’s construction of the universe, the rule of the Three Kings, and the ordering of the relations by the Five Emperors, the world was divided into four freat continents. They were: the East Purvavideha Continent, the West Aparagodaniya Continent, the South Jambudvipa Continent, and the North Uttarakuru Continent. This book is solely concerned with the East Purvavideha Continent.
Beyond
the ocean there was a country named Ao- lai. It was near a great ocean, in the midst of which was
located the famous
Its majesty commands the wide ocean;
Its spendor rules the jasper sea;
Its majesty commands the wide ocean
When, like silver mountains, the tide sweeps fishes into caves;
Its splendor rules the jasper sea
When snowlike billows send forth serpents from the deep.
Plateaus are tall on the southwest side;
Soaring peaks arise from the Sea of the East,
There are crimson ridges and portentous rocks.
Precipitous cliffs and prodigous peaks.
Atop the crimson ridges
Phoenixes sing in the pairs;
Before the precipitous cliffs
The unicorn singly rests.
At the summit is heard the cry of golden pheasants;
In and out of stony caves are seen the strides of dragons;
In the forest are long- lived deer and immortal foxes.
On the trees are divine fowls and black cranes.
Strange grass and flowers never wither;
Green pines and cypresses keep eternal their spring.
Immortal peaches are always fruit- bearing;
Lofty bamboos often detain the clouds.
Within a single gorge the creeping vines are dense;
The grass color of measdows all around is fresh.
This is indeed the pillar of Heaven, where a hundred rivers meet-
The Earth’s great axis, in ten thousand kalpas unchanged.
There was on top of that very mountain an immortal stone, which measured thirty- six feet and five inches in height and twenty- four feet in circumference. The height of thirty- six feet and five inches correspond to the three hundred and sixty-five cyclical degrees, while the circumference of twenty- four feet corresponded to the twenty- four solar terms of the calendar. On the stone were also nine perforations and eight holes, which correspond to the Palaces of the Nine Constellations and the Eight Trigrams. Though it lackes the shade of trees on all sides, it was set off by epidendrums on the left and right. Since the creation of the world, it had been nourished for a long period by the seeds of Heaven and Earth and by the essences of the sun and the moon, until quickened by divine inspiration, it became pregnant with a divine embryo. One day, it split open, giving birth to a stone egg about the size of a playing ball. Exposed to the wind, it was transformed into a stone monkey endowed with fully developed features and limbs. Having learned at once to climb and run, this monkey also bowed to the four quarters, while two beams of golden light flashed from his eyes to reach even the Palace of the Polestar. The light disturbed the Great Benevolent Sage of Heaven, the Celestial Jade Emperor of the Most Venerable Deva, who attended by his divine ministers, was sitting in the cloud Palace of the Golden Arches, in the Treasure Hall of the Divine Mists. Upon seeing the glimmer of the golden beams, he ordered Thousand- Mile Eye and Fair- Wind Ear to open the South Heavenly Gate and to look out. At this command the two captains went out to the gate, and, having looked intently and listened clearly, they returned presently to report, “ Your subjects, obeying your command to locate the beams, discovered that they came from the Flower- Fruit Mountain at the border of the small tinent. On this mountain is an immortal stone which has given birth to an egg. Exposed to the wind, it has been transformed into a monkey, who, when beams that reached the Palace of the Polestar. Now that he is taking some food and drink, the light is about to grow dim.” With compassionate mercy the Jade Emperor declared, “ These creatures from the world below are born of the essences of Heaven and Earth, and they need not surprise us.”
That monkey in the mountain was able to walk, run, and leap about; he fed on grass and shrubs, drank from the brooks and streams, gathered mountain flowers, and searched out fruits from trees. He made his companions the tiger and the lizard, the wolf and the leopard,; he befriended the civet and the deer, and he called the gibbon and the baboon his kin. AT night he slept beneath stony ridges, and in the morning he sauntered about the caves and the peaks. Truly, “ in the mountain there is no passing of time; the cold recedes, but one knows not the year.” One very hot morning, he was playing with a group of monkeys under the shade of some pine trees to escape the heat. Look at them, each amusing himself in his own way by
Swinging from branches to branches,
Searching for flowers and fruits;
They played two games or three
With pebbles and with pellets;
They circles sandy pits;
They built rare pagodas;
They chased the dragon flies;
They ran down small lizards;
Bowing low to the sky,
They worshipped Bodhisattvas;
They pulled the creeping vines;
They plaited mats with grass;
They searched to catch the louse
They bit or crushed with their nails;
They dressed their furry coats;
They scraped their finger nails;
Some leaned and leaned;
Some rubbed and rubbed;
Some pushed and pushed;
Some pressed and pressed;
Some pulled and pulled;
Some tugged and tugged;
Beneath the pine forest they played without a care,
Washing themselves in the green- water stream.
So, after the monkeys had frolicked for a while, they went to bathe in the mountain stream and saw that its currents bounced and splashed like tumbling melons. As the old saying goes, “Fowls have their fowl speech, and beasts have their beast language.” The monkeys said to each other, “We don’t know where this water comes from. Since we have nothing to do today, let us follow the stream up to its source to have some fun.” With a shriek of joy, they dragged along males and females, calling out to brothers and sisters, and scrambled up the mountain alongside the stream. Reaching its source, they found a great waterfall. What they saw was
A column of rising white rainbows,
A thousand fathoms of dancing waves-
Which the sea wind buffets but cannot server,
On which the river moon shines and reposes.
Its cold breath divides the green ranges;
Its tributaries body, its name a cascade,
Appears truly like a hanging curtain.
All the monkeys clapped their hands in acclaim: “Marvelous
water! Marvelous Water! So this waterfall is distantly connected with the
stream at the base of the mountain, and flows directly out, even to the
Today his fame will spread,
His fortune arrives with time;
Fated to line in this place,
He’s sent as king to his palace.
Look at him! He closed his eyes, crouched low, and with one leap he jumped straight through the waterfall. Opening his eyes at once and raising his head to look around, he saw that there was neither water nor waves inside, only a gleaming, shining bridge. He paused to collect himself and looked more carefully again: it was a bridge made of sheet iron. The water beneath it surged through a hole in the rock to reach the outside, filling in all the space under the arch. With bent body he climbed on the bridge, looking about as he walked, and discovered a beautiful place that seemed to be some kind of residence. Then he saw
Fresh mosses piling up indigo,
White clouds like jade afloat,
And luminous sheens of mist and smoke;
Empty windows, quiet rooms,
And carved flowers growing smoothly on benches;
Stalactites suspended in milky caves;
Rare blossoms voluminous over the ground.
Pans and stoves near the wall show traces of fire.
Bottles and cups on the table contain leftovers.
The stone seats and beds were truly lovable;
The stone pots and bowls were more praiseworthy.
There were, furthermore, a stalk or two of tall bamboos,
And three or five sprigs of plum flowers.
With a few green pines always draped in rain,
This whole place indeed resembled a home.
After staring at the place for a long time, he jumped across
the middle of the bridge and looked left and right. There in the middle was a
stone tablet on which was inscribed in regular, large letter: “The Blessed Land
of Flower- Fruit Mountain, the Cave Heaven of Water- Curtain Cave.” Beside
himself with delight, the stone monkey quickly turned around to go back out
and, closing his eyes and crouching again, leaped out of the water, “a great
stroke of luck.” The other monkeys surrounded him and asked, “How is it inside?
How deep is the water?” The stone monkey replied, “There isn’t any water at
all. There’s a sheet iron bridge, and beyond it is a piece of heaven- sent
property.” “What do you mean that there’s property in there?” asked the
monkeys. Laughing, the stone monkey said, “This water splashes through a hole
in the rock and fills the space under the bridge. Beside the bridge there is a
stone mansion with trees and flowers. Inside are stone ovens and stoves, stone
pots and pans, stone beds and benches. A stone tablet in the middle has the
inscription, ‘The Blessed Land of the
A retreat from the wind,
A shelter from the rain.
You fear no frost or snow;
You hear no thunderclap.
Mist and smoke are brightened,
Warmed by a holy light-
The pines are ever green;
Rare flowers, daily new.”
When the monkeys heard that, they were delighted, saying, “You go in first and lead the way.” The stone monkey closed his eyes again, crouched low, and jumped inside. “All of you,” he cried, “Follow me in! Follow me in!” The braver of the monkeys leaped in at once, but the more timid ones stuck out their heads and then drew them back, scratched their ears, rubbed their jaws, and chattered noisily. After milling around for some time, they too bounded inside. Jumping across the bridge, they were all soon snatching dishes, clutching bowls, or fighting for stoves and beds- shoving and pushing things hither and thither. Befitting their stubbornly prankish nature, the monkeys could not keep still for a moment and stopped only when they were utterly exhausted. The stone monkey then solemnly took a seat above and spoke to them: “Gentlemen! ‘If a man lacks trustworthiness, it is difficult to know what he can accomplish!’ You yourselves promised just now that whoever could get in here and leave again without hurting himself would be honored as king. Now that I have come in and gone out, gone out and come in, and have found for all of you this heavenly grotto in which you may reside securely and enjoy the privilege of raising a family, why don’t you honor me as your king?” When the monkeys heard this, they all folded their hands on their breasts and obediently to rank and age, and, bowing reverently, they intoned, “Long live our great king!” From that moment, the stone monkey ascended the throne of kingship. He did away with the word “stone” in his name and assumed the title, Handsome Monkey King. There is a testimonial poem which says:
When triple spring mated to produce all things,
A divine stone was quickened by the sun and the moon:
The egg
became a monkey and reached the
A name he had and in elixir success.
His inward shape is concealed for it has no form,
But his outward form is by his action plainly known.
All mankind will be his subject in every age:
He’s called a king and a sage who rules over all.
The handsome Monkey King thus led a flock of gibbons and
baboons, some of whom were appointed by him as his officers and ministers. They
toured the
In the spring they gathered flowers for food and drink.
In the summer they went in quest of fruits for sustenance.
In the autumn they collected taros and chestnuts to ward off time.
In the winter they searched for yellow- sperms to live out the year.
The Handsome Monkey King had enjoyed this insouciant existence for three or four hundred years when one day, while feasting with the rest of the monkeys, he suddenly grew sad and shed a few tears. Alarmed, the monkeys surrounded him bowed down and asked, “What is disturbing the Great King?” The Monkey King replied, “Though I am very happy at the moment, I am a little concerned about the future. Hence my vexation.” The monkeys laughed and said, “The Great King indeed does not know contentment! Here we daily have a banquet on an immortal mountain in a blessed land, in an ancient cave on a divine continent. We are not subject to the unicorn or the phoenix, nor are we governed by the rulers of mankind. Such independence and comfort are immeasurable blessings. Why, then does he worry about the future?” The Monkey King said, “Though we are not subject to the laws of man today, nor need we be threatened by the rule of any bird or beast, old age and physical decay in the future will disclose the secret sovereignty of Yama, King of the Underworld. If we die, shall we not have lived in vain, not being able to rank forever among the heavenly beings?”
When the monkeys heard this, they all covered their faces and wept mournfully, each one troubled by his own impermanence. But look! From among the ranks a bareback monkey suddenly leaped forth and cried aloud, “If the Great King is so farsighted, it may well indicate the sprouting of his religious inclination. There are, among the five major divisions of all living creatures, only three species that are not subject to the Yama, King of the Underworld.” The monkey are the Buddhas, the immortals, and the holy sages; these three alone can avoid the Wheel of Transmigration as well as the process of birth and destruction, and live as long as Heaven and Earth, the mountains and the streams.” When the Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight, saying, “Tomorrow I shall take leave of you all and go down the mountain. Even if I have to wander with the clouds to the corners of the sea or journey to the distant edges of Heaven, I intend to find these three kinds of people. I will learn from them how to be young forever and escape the calamity inflicted by King Yama.” Lo, this utterance at once led him to leap clear of the Web of transmigration, and to turn him into the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven. All the monkeys clapped their hands in acclamation, saying, “Wonderful! Wonderful! Tomorrow we shall scour the mountain ranges to gather plenty of fruits, so that we may send the Great King off with a great banquet.”
Next day the monkeys duly went to gather immortal peaches, to pick rare fruits, to dig out mountain herbs, and to chop yellow sperms. They brought in an orferly manner every variety of orchids and epidendrums, exotic plants and strange flowers. They set out the stone chairs and stone tables, covering the tables with immortal wines and food. Look at the
Golden balls and pearly pellets,
Red ripeness and yellow plumpness.
Golden balls and pearly pellets are the cherries,
Their colors truly luscious.
Red ripeness and yellow plumpness are the plums.
Their taste- a fragrant tartness.
Fresh lungans
Of sweet pulps and think skins.
Fiery lychees
Of small pits and red sacks.
Green fruits of the Pyrus are presented by the branches.
The loquats yellow with buds are held with their leaves.
Pears like rabbit heads and dates like chicken hearts
Dispel your thirst, your sorrow, and the effects of wine.
Are sweet as the elixir of life;
Crisply fresh plums and strawberries
Are sour like cheese and buttermilk.
Red pulps and black seeds compose the ripe watermelons.
Four cloves of yellow rind enfold the big persimmons.
When the pomegranates are split wide,
Cinnabar grains glisten like specks of ruby;
When the chestnuts are cracked open,
Their tough brawns are hard like cornelian.
Walnut and silver almonds fare well with tea.
Coconuts and grapes may be pressed into wine.
Hazelnuts, yews, and crabapples overfill the dishes.
Kumquats, sugarcanes, tangerines, and oranges crowd their tables.
Sweet yams are baked,
Yellow- sperms over-boiled,
The tubers minced with seeds of waterlily,
And soup in stone pots simmers on a gentle fire.
Mankind may boast its delicious dainties,
But what can best the pleasure of mountain monkeys?
The monkeys honored the Monkey King with the seat at the head of the table, while they sat below according to their age and rank. They drank for a whole day, each of the monkeys taking turn to go forward and present the Monkey King with wine, flowers, and fruits. Next day the Monkey King rose early and gave the instruction, “Little ones, cut me some pinewood and make me a raft. Then find me a bamboo for the pole, and gather some fruits and the like. I’m about to leave.” When all was ready, he got onto the raft by himself. Pushing off with all his might, he drifted out toward the great ocean and, taking advantage of the wind, set sail for the border of South Jambudvipa Continent. Here is the consequence of this journey:
The heaven- born monkey, strong in magic might,
He left the mount, he rode the raft and caught the fair wind;
He drifted across the sea in search of immortals’ way,
Determined in heart and mind to achieve great things.
It is his cause- and his portion- to quit all earthly zeals;
He’ll be enlightened without worries or cares.
He may be expected to meet some approving one
Who will reveal the origin and the dharma of all things.
It was indeed his fortune that, after he had boarded the wooden raft, a strong southeast wind which lasted for days sent him to the northwestern coast, the border of the South Jambudvipa Continent. He took the pole to test the water, and , finding it shallow one day, he abandoned the raft and jumped ashore. On the beach there were people fishing, hunting wild geese, digging clams, and draining salt. He approached them and, making a weird face and some strange antics, he scared them into dropping their baskets and nets and scattering in all directions. One of them could not run and was caught by the Monkey King, who stripped him of his clothes and put them on himself, aping the way humans wore them. With a swagger he walked through counties and prefectures, imitating human speech and human manners in the marketplaces. He rested by night and dined in the morning, but he was bent on finding the way of the Buddhas, immortals, and holy sages , on discovering the formula for eternal youth. He saw, however, that the people of the world were all seekers after profit and fame; there was not one who showed concern for his appointed end. This is their condition:
The quest for fame and fortune, when will it end?
This tyranny of early rising and retiring late!
Riding on mules they long for noble steeds.
Already prime ministers, they seek to be kings.
For food and raiment they suffer stress and strain.
Never fearful of Yama’s call to reckoning.
Searching for wealth and power to give to grandsons and sons,
No one is ever willing to turn back.
The Monkey King searched diligently for the way of
immortality, but he had no chance of meeting it. Going through big cities and
visiting small towns, he unwittingly spent eight or nine years on the South Jambudvipa Continent before he suddenly came upon the
A thousand peaks stand like rows of spears,
Like ten thousand cubits of screen widespread.
The sun’s beams lightly enclose the azure mist;
In darkening rain, the mount’s color turns cool and green.
Dry creepers entwine old trees;
Ancient fords edge secluded paths.
Rare flowers and luxuriant grass.
Tall bamboos and lofty pines.
Tall bamboos and lofty pines
For ten thousand years grow green in this blessed land.
Rare flowers and luxuriant grass
In all seasons bloom as in the Isles of the Blest.
The calls of birds hidden are near.
The sounds of streams rushing are clear.
Deep inside deep canyons the orchids interweave.
On every ridge and crag sprout lichens and mosses.
Rising and falling, the ranges show a fine dragon’s pulse.
Here in reclusion must an eminent man reside.
As he was looking about, he suddenly heard the sound of a man speaking deep within the woods. Hurriedly he dashed into the forest and cocked his ear to listen. It was someone singing, and the song went thus:
I watch chess games, my ax handle’s rotted.
I chop at wood, cheng- cheng the sound.
I walked slowly by the cloud’s fringe at the valley’s entrance.
Selling my firewood to buy some wine.
I am happy and laugh without restraint.
When the path is frosted in autumn’s height.
I face the moon, my pillow the pine root.
Sleeping till dawn
I find my familiar woods.
I climb the plateaus and scale the peaks
To cut dry creepers with my ax.
When I gather enough to make a load,
I stroll singing through the marketplace
And trade it for three pints of rice,
With nary the slightest bickering
Over a price so modest.
Plots and schemes I do not know;
Without vainglory or attaint
My life’s prolonged in simplicity.
Those I meet,
If not immortals, would be Taoists,
Seated quietly to expound the Yellow Court.
When the Handsome Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight, saying, “So the immortals are hiding in this place.” He leaped at once into the forest. Looking again carefully, he found a woodcutter chopping firewood with his ax. The man he saw was very strangely attired.
On his head he wore a splint hat
Of seed- leaves freshly cast from new bamboos.
On his body he wore a cloth garment
Of gauze woven from the native cotton.
Around his waist he tied a winding sash
Of silk spun from an old silkworm.
On his feet he had a pair of straw sandals,
With laces rolled from withered sedge.
In his hands he held a fine steel ax;
A sturdy rope coiled round and round his load.
In breaking pines or chopping trees
Where’s the man to equal him?
The Monkey King drew near and called out: “Reverend
immortal! Your disciple raises his hands.” The woodcutter was so flustered that
he dropped his ax as he turned to return the salutation. “Blasphemy!
Blasphemy!” he said, “I, a foolish fellow with hardly enough clothes or food!
How can I bear the title of immortal?” The Monkey King said, “If you are not an
immortal, how is it that you speak his language?” The woodcutter said, “What
did I say that sounded like the language of an immortal?” The Monkey King said,
“When I came just now to the forests edge, I heard you singing, ‘Those I meet,
id not immortals, would be Taoists, seated quietly to expound the
The Monkey King said, “According to what you have said, you are indeed a gentleman of filial piety, and you will certainly be rewarded in the future. I hope, however, that you will show me the way to the immortal’s adobe, so that I may reverently call upon him.” “It’s not far. It’s not far,” the woodcutter said, “This mountain is called the Mountain of Heart and Mind, and in it is the Cave of Slanting Moon and Three Stars. Inside the cave is an immortal by the name of the Patriarch Subodhi, who has already sent out innumerable disciples. Even now there are thirty or forty persons who are practicing austerities with him. Follow this narrow path and travel south for about seven or eight miles, and you will come to his home.” Grabbing at the woodcutter, the Monkey King said, “Honored brother, go with me. I receive any benefit, I will not forget the favor of your guidance.” “What a boneheaded fellow you are!” the woodcutter said. “I have just finished telling you these things, and you still don’t understand. If I go with you, won’t I be neglecting my livelihood? And who will take care of my mother? I must chop my firewood. You go on by yourself!”
When the Monkey King heard this, he had to take his leave. Going out of the forest, he found the path and went past the slope of a hill. After he had traveled seven or eight miles, a cave dwelling indeed came into sight. He stood up straight to take a better look at this splendid place, and this was what he saw:
Mist and smoke in diffusive brilliance,
Flashing lights from the sun and moon,
A thousand stalks of old cypress,
Ten thousand stems of tall bamboo.
A thousand stalks of old cypress
Draped in rain half fill the air with tender green;
Ten thousand stems of tall bamboo
Held in smoke will paint the glen chartreuse,
Strangle flowers spread brocades before the door.
Jadelike grass emits fragrance beside the bridge.
On ridges protruding grow moist green lichens;
On hanging cliffs cling the long blue mosses.
The cries of immortal cranes are often heard.
Once in a while a phoenix soars overhead.
When the cranes cry,
Their sounds reach through the marsh to the distant sky.
When the phoenix soars up,
Its plume with five bright colors embroiders the clouds.
Black apes and white deer may come or hide:
Gold lions and jade elephants may leave or bide.
Look with care at this blessed, holy place:
It has
the true semblance of
He noticed that the door of the cave was tightly shut; all was quiet, and there was no sign of any human inhabitant. He turned around and suddenly perceived, at the top of the cliff, a stone slab approximately eight feet wide and over thirty feet tall. On it was written in large letters: “The Mountain of Heart and Mind; The Cave of Slanting Moon and Three Stars.” Immensely pleased, the Handsome Monkey King said, “People here are truly honest. This mountain and this cave really do exist!” He stared at the place for along time but dared not knock. Instead, he jumped onto the branch of a pine tree, picked a few pine seeds and ate them, and began to play.
After a moment he heard the door of the cave open with a squeak, and an immortal youth walked out. His bearing was exceedingly graceful; his features were highly refined. This was certainly ordinary young mortal for he had
His hair bound with two cords of silk,
A wide robe with two sleeves of wind.
His body and face seemed most distinct,
For visage and mind were both detached.
Long a stranger to all worldly things
He was the mountain’s ageless boy.
Untainted even with a speck of dust,
He feared no havoc by the seasons wrought.
After coming through the door, the boy shouted, “Who is causing disturbance here?” With a bound the Monkey King leaped down from the tree, and went up to him bowing. “Immortal boy,” he said. “ I am a seeker of the way of immortality. I would never dare cause any disturbance.” Laughing, the immortal youth asked, “Are you a seeker of Tao?” “I am indeed,” answered the Monkey King. “My master at the house,” the boy said, “has just left his couch to give a lecture on the platform. Before even announcing his theme, however, he told me to go out and open the door, saying, ‘There is someone outside who wants to practice austerities. You may go and receive him.’ It must be you, I suppose.” The Monkey King said, laughing, “It is I, most assuredly!” “Follow me in then,” said the boy. With solemnity the Monkey King set his clothes in order and followed the boy into the depths of the cave. They passed rows and rows of lofty towers and huge alcoves, of pearly chambers and carved arches. After walking through innumerable quiet chambers and empty studios, they finally reached the base of the green jade platform. Patriarch Subodhi was seen seated solemnly on the platform, with thirty lesser immortals standing below in rows. He was truly
An immortal of great perception and purest mien,
The master Subodhi, whose wondrous form of the West
Had no end or birth- such, the work of Double Three.
His whole appearance was with mercy suffused.
Vacuous, spontaneous, and freely changing,
His Buddha- nature could perform all things.
His majestic body and Heaven’s age were the same.
Fully tried and enlightened was this grand priest.
As soon as the Handsome Monkey King saw him, he prostrated
himself and kowtowed times without number, saying, “Master! Master! I, your
pupil, pay you my sincere homage.” The patriarch said, “Where do you come from?
Let’s hear you state clearly your name and country before you kowtow again.”
The Monkey King said, “Your pupil came from the
When the Patriarch heard this, he was secretly pleased, and said, “Well, evidently you have been created by Heaven and Earth. Get up and show me how you walk.” Snapping erect, the Monkey King scurried around a couple of times. The Patriarch laughed and said, “Though your features are not the most attractive, you do resemble a monkey (hu- sun) that feeds on pine seeds. This gives me the idea of deriving your surname from your appearance. I intended to call you by the name ‘Hu.’ Now, when the accompanying animal radical is dropped from this word, what’s left is a compound made up of the two characters, ku and yueh. Ku means aged and yeuh means female, but an aged female cannot reproduce. Therefore, it is better to give you the surname of ‘Sun.’ When the accompanying animal radical is dropped from this word, we have the compound tzu and hsi. .Tzu means a boy and hsi means a baby, so that the name exactly accords with the Doctrine of the Baby. So your surname will be ‘Sun.’” When the Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight. “Splendid! Splendid!” he cried, kowtowing, “At last I know my surname. May the master be even more gracious! Since I know my surname, let me be given a personal name, so that it may facilitate your calling and commanding me.” The Patriarch said, “Within my tradition are twelve characters which have been used to name the pupils according to their divisions. You are one who belongs to the tenth generation.” “Which twelve characters are they?” asked the Monkey King. The Patriarch said, “They are wide (kuang), great, (ta), wise (chih), intelligence (hui), true (chen), conforming (ju), nature (hsing), sea (hai), sharp (ying), wake- to (wu), complete (yuan), and awakening (chueh). Your ranks falls precisely on the work ‘wake- to’ (wu). You will hence be given the religious name ‘Wake- to Vacuity’ (wu-k’ung). All right?” Splendid! Splendid!” said the Monkey King, laughing; “henceforth I shall be called Sun Wu- k’ung.” So it was thus:
When the world was first, created there was no name;
To break the stubborn vacuity one needs to wake to vacuity.
We do not know what sort of Taoist cultivation he succeeded
in practicing afterward and must await the explanation in the next chapter.