by Wu Cheng-En
“We have vegetarian food in plenty,” Erlang replied, “and monastic wine too.” All the brothers then drank and talked of the old days under the light of the moon and the stars; when the sky was their canopy and the earth their mats.
How true it is that the night is long in loneliness and short in pleasure. Soon the East started to become light and Pig, feeling very cheerful and energetic after a few drinks, said, “It's getting light. I'm going down to challenge them to battle.”
“Be careful, Marshal,” said Erlang. “Just lure him out for my brothers and me to deal with.”
“I understand,” grinned Pig, “I understand.” Watch as he tucks up his clothes, grabs his rake, makes water-dividing magic, jumps in, goes straight to the archway, and charges into the palace with a great war-cry.
The dragon sons were wearing the hempen clothes of mourning as they watched and wept over the dragon's body while the dragon grandsons and the prince were preparing the coffin at the back. Then in came Pig, roaring abuse at them. He landed a terrible blow from his rake that made nine holes in a dragon son's head. The dragon's widow fled inside in terror with the rest of them.
“The long-snouted monk's killed my son now,” she howled, and on hearing this the prince led the dragon grandsons out to fight, wielding his crescent-bladed halberd. Pig raised his rake to parry the halberd and fought a fighting retreat till he jumped out of the water. The Great Sage Equaling Heaven and the seven sworn brothers all leapt into the fray, thrusting furiously with sword and spear. One of the dragon grandsons was chopped up into mincemeat.
Seeing that things were going badly the prince rolled in front of the mountain, turned back into himself, spread his wings, and started circling around. Erlang then took his golden bow, fixed a silver pellet to it pulled it to its full extent, and fired it in the air. The monster pulled in its wings and swooped down to bite Erlang with the head that shot out from its waist. Erlang's slim dog leapt up, barked, and bit off the head, which dripped blood. The monster fled for his life in great pain, heading straight back for the Northern Sea. Pig wanted to go after him but Monkey stopped him.
“Don't chase him,” he said. “Never corner a defeated enemy. Now the dog's bitten that head off I'm sure he'll be more dead than alive. I'm going to turn myself into his double. I want you to part the waters and chase me in there to find the princess and trick the treasure out of her.”
“You don't have to chase him if you don't want to,” said Erlang and his six sages, “but by letting a creature like that stay alive you are only creating trouble for the future.” The nine-headed gory monsters that are still found today are its descendants.
Pig did as he was told and parted a way through the waters for Monkey, looking just like the monster, to flee with himself in noisy pursuit. They soon reached the dragon palace, where Princess Infinitely Sage asked, “Why are you in such a state, prince?”
“Pig beat me,” Monkey replied, “and chased me in here. I'm no match for him. Hide the treasures somewhere safe.”
Not realizing in her alarm that he was an impostor, she fetched a golden casket from the rear palace that she gave to Monkey with the words: “This is the Buddha relic.” Then she fetched a white jade box that she gave to Monkey saying, “This is the nine-lobed magic fungus. Hide the treasures away where they'll be safe while I fight two or three rounds with him to cover you. When the treasures are safe come and join in the fight.”
Monkey then tucked the treasures into his clothes, rubbed his face, and turned back into himself. “Have a good look, princess,” he said. “Am I really your husband?” As the princess made a desperate grab for the boxes Pig ran up and knocked her to the floor with a blow on the shoulder from his rake.
The ancient dragon's widow was fleeing as Pig grabbed her and raised his rake to smash her. “Stop!” said Monkey. “Don't kill her! Keep her alive for when we go back to announce our victory at court.” Pig then lifted her up out of the water while Monkey followed him to the bank with the two boxes.
“Thanks to your power and prestige, elder brother, we have recovered the treasures and wiped out the thieving devils,” said Monkey.
“That was no credit of ours,” said Erlang. “In the first place the king's good fortune equaled heaven, and in the second you worthy brothers showed your boundless powers.”
The brothers then all said, “As you have now succeeded, Brother Monkey, we shall take our leave of you.” Monkey expressed his thanks profusely and tried to persuade them to go to see the king. None of them agreed, and they led their forces back to Guankou.
Monkey carried the boxes and Pig dragged the dragon wife back to the city in next to no time, travelling by cloud and mist. The liberated monks of the Golden Light Monastery were waiting for them outside the city, and when they saw the two of them suddenly alight from the clouds, they went up and kowtowed, ushering them into the city. The king was then sitting in the main hall of the palace talking with the Tang Priest.
A monk came ahead and took his courage in his hands to go in through the palace gates and report, “Your Majesty, Lords Monkey and Pig are back with one of the thieves and the treasures.” The moment he heard this news the king hurried down from the throne hall to welcome them with the Tang Priest and Friar Sand. He was full of expressions of gratitude for their amazing achievement and he ordered a thanksgiving banquet.
“We don't need any drinks now,” said Sanzang. “We can only feast when my disciples have returned the treasure to the pagoda.” He then asked Monkey why it was that they were only back then as they had left the day before, Monkey then told him all about the battle with the prince, the death of the dragon king, meeting the True Lord Erlang, the defeat of the evil monsters and how he had got the treasures through trickery and transformation. Sanzang, the king and all the civil and military officials were delighted.
“Can the dragon wife talk in human speech?” the king then asked.
“Of course she knows human speech,” Pig replied. “She was married to a dragon and had a lot of dragon sons and grandsons.”
“In that case,” said the king, “she'd better tell us the whole story of their crimes.”
“I don't know anything about the theft of the Buddha relic,” she said. “That was all done by that husband of mine, the dragon who's a ghost now, and our son-in-law the nine-headed monster. They knew that the light from your pagoda came from the Buddha relic that they stole under cover of the blood rain.”
When asked how the magic fungus was stolen she answered, “My daughter the Infinitely Sage Princess sneaked into the Daluo Heaven and stole the Queen Mother's nine-lobed magic fungus from in front of the Hall of Miraculous Mist. The magic vapors of the fungus have nourished the relic, which will now be indestructible and shine for tens of thousands of years. Even if it's buried or put in a field it will give out thousands of beams of coloured light and auspicious vapors the moment it's brushed. You have now taken it back and killed my husband, all my sons, my son-in-law and my daughter. Please spare my life.”
“There'll be no mercy for you,” Pig replied.
“There's no such thing as a family that's all criminal,” said Monkey. “I'll spare your life on one condition: you look after the pagoda for me for ever.”
“A poor life is better than a good death,” the dragon wife replied. “Spare my life and I'll do whatever you want.” Monkey sent for an iron chain that was fetched by one of the aides.
He put it through the dragon wife's collarbone and said to Friar Sand, “Please ask the king to come and watch the treasures being put back in the pagoda.”
The king then had his carriage prepared and left the court hand-in-hand with Sanzang, accompanied by the civil and military officials. He went to the Golden Light Monastery and climbed the pagoda, where the relic was placed in a precious vase on the thirteenth floor just under the roof. The dragon wife was chained to the central column of the pagoda. Spells were then said to summon the local deities and city gods of the capital and the Guar
dians of the monastery, who were ordered to bring the dragon wife food and drink once every three days to keep her alive. If she tried any tricks they were to execute her on the spot. The gods all secretly accepted their orders. Brother Monkey used the magic fungus to sweep out the thirteen stories of the pagoda one by one, then put it in the vase to look after the relic. Then and only then did the pagoda shine anew with coloured light and an auspicious glow that could be seen from all directions and admired by the countries all around.
When they came down out of the pagoda the king thanked them with the words, “If you, venerable Buddha, and your three Bodhisattvas had not come here this matter would never have been cleared up.”
“Your Majesty,” Monkey said, “Golden Light is not a good name as it's not something permanent. Gold can melt and light is only shining vapor. As we monks have gone to some trouble on your behalf we would like to change the name to Subdued Dragon Monastery. This will ensure that you live for ever.” The king ordered that the name be changed and a new board hung up that read.
NATION-PROTECTING
SUBDUED DRAGON MONASTERY
FOUNDED BY ROYAL COMMAND
He then commanded that a banquet be laid on and sent for painters to paint portraits of the four of them. Their names were recorded in the Tower of Five Phoenixes. The king then had his carriage brought out to see the Tang Priest and his disciples on their way. He tried to give them gold and jewels, but they firmly refused to accept anything. Indeed:
Evil had been wiped out;
Now calmness once more reigned.
Sunshine had been brought back,
The pagoda's light regained.
If you don't know what happened on the journey ahead listen to the explanation in the next installment.
Chapter 64
Wuneng Works Hard on Thorn Ridge
Sanzang Talks of Poetry in the Wood Immortals' Hermitage
The story has been told how the king of Jisai thanked Tang Sanzang and his three disciples for capturing the demons and pressed on them gold and jade, none of which they would accept. The king therefore told his aides to have made for each of them two suits of clothing like those they were wearing, two pairs of socks, two pairs of shoes and two belts. They were also provided with dry rations, and their passport was duly examined and returned. They were seen out of the city by a procession of carriages, the civil and military officials, the common people of the city and the monks of the Subdued Dragon Monastery. There was also loud music. After six or seven miles they took their leave of the king, to be accompanied for a further six or seven miles by everyone else. Then all the others turned back except the monks of the Subdued Dragon Monastery, who were still with them after twenty miles. Some of the monks wanted to accompany them to the Western Heaven and the others wanted to cultivate their conduct and wait on them.
Seeing that none of them was willing to turn back Monkey decided to use his powers. He pulled out thirty or forty of his hairs, blew on them with magic breath, shouted, “Change!” and turned them into ferocious striped tigers that leapt roaring about on the path ahead. Only then were the monks scared into going back. The Great Sage then led the master as he whipped his horse forward and they were soon far away.
At this the monks began to weep aloud, shouting, “Kind and honorable sirs, fate must be against us since you won't take us with you.”
Let us tell not of the wailing monks but of how the master and his three disciples headed along the main path West for a while before Monkey took his hairs back. Once again the seasons were changing, and it was now the end of winter and the beginning of spring, neither hot nor cold. As they were making their way along without a care they saw a long ridge in front of them over which the road led. Sanzang reined in his horse to look. He saw that the ridge was overgrown with brambles and creepers. Although the line of the path could be made out there were brambles and thorns all over it. “How are we going to manage that path, disciples?” he asked.
“No problem,” Monkey replied.
“But, disciple, the path is covered with thorns. We could only manage it by crawling on our bellies like snakes or insects. Your backs will be bent with walking, and I'll never be able to ride the horse.”
“There's nothing to worry about, Master,” Pig replied. “I'll clear the thorns away with my rake. It'll be just like gathering up kindling for the fire. Never mind about riding your horse-I promise we could even get up there in a carrying-chair.”
“You are very strong,” the Tang Priest replied, “but it is a long way and it will be hard. I don't know where you'll find the energy to do that distance: goodness only knows how far it is.”
“There's no need to guess,” said Monkey. “I'll go and have a look.” When he jumped up into the air he saw it stretching away endlessly. Indeed:
Vast was its size;
It was covered in mist and rain.
Soft was the carpet of grass on the path;
The mountain was covered in brilliant green.
New leaves were sprouting in dense abundance,
Fragrant creepers climbed all around.
When seen from afar no end was in sight;
From close to it seemed a mass of verdant cloud,
Luxuriant, mysterious and green.
The winds soughed everywhere
As the ridge shone bright in the sunshine.
There was pine and cypress and bamboo,
Many a plum and willow, and mulberry too.
Climbing figs coiled round ancient trees,
While creepers entwined the weeping poplars,
All twisted together like a frame,
Woven together in a bed.
Here the flowers made living brocade;
Far spread the scent of boundless blossom.
Everyone's life has brambles and thorns.
But none are as tall as those in the West.
Having looked for a long time, Monkey brought his cloud down and said, “Master, it's a very long way.”
“How far?” Sanzang asked.
“I can't see any end to it,” Monkey replied. “There must be at least three hundred miles of it.”
“That's terrible,” said Sanzang.
“Don't be miserable, Master,” said Friar Sand with a laugh. “We know how to burn undergrowth. Set fire to it with a torch and all the thorns will be burned away. Then we'll be able to cross.”
“Don't talk nonsense,” Pig replied. “You can only clear the ground that way in November or later when the grass has withered and there are dead trees. The fire won't take otherwise. It'd never burn now, when everything's growing.”
“Even if it did burn it would be terrifying,” said Monkey.
“Then how are we to get across?” Sanzang asked.
“You'll just have to depend on me,” said Pig with a grin.
The splendid idiot made a spell with his hands and said the words of it, leaned forward, and said, “Grow!” He grew two hundred feet tall, then waved the rake and shouted. “Change!” It became three hundred feet long. Then he strode forward and wielded the rake two-handed to clear the undergrowth from both sides of the path. “Come with me, Master,” he said. Sanzang was delighted to whip the horse along and follow close behind while Friar Sand carried the luggage and Monkey used his cudgel to help clear the way. They did not let their hands rest for a moment all day long, and they had covered over thirty miles when near nightfall they came to an empty stretch of ground where a stone tablet stood in the middle of the path.
On the tablet the words THORN RIDGE were written large, and under them two lines of smaller writing read, “Two hundred and fifty miles of rampant thorns; few travelers have ever taken this road.”
When Pig saw this he said with a laugh, “Let me add a couple more lines to that: 'Pig has always been good at removing thorns; he's cleared the roads right to the West.'“ Sanzang then dismounted in a very good mood.
“Disciples,” he said, “I've put you to a lot of trouble. Let's stop here for th
e night and carry on at first light tomorrow.”
“Don't stop now, Master,” said Pig with a smile. “It's a clear sky and we're in the mood. It's all right if we carry on all bloody night.” The venerable elder had to accept his suggestion.
While Pig was working so hard in the lead all four of them pressed ahead without stopping for the night and another day until it was evening once more. In front-of them the trees and undergrowth were densely tangled and the wind could be heard rustling in the bamboos and soughing in the pines. Luckily they came to another patch of empty land where there stood an old temple outside whose gates pine and cypress formed a solid green shade, while peach and plum trees rivaled each other in beauty. Sanzang then dismounted and went with his three disciples to examine it. This is what they saw:
Before the cliff an ancient shrine stood by a cold stream;
Desolation hung all around the hill.
White cranes in the thickets made the moon seem brighter;
The green moss on the steps had been there for years.
The rustle of green bamboo seemed like human speech;
The remaining calls of the birds seemed expressions of grief.
Dogs and hens never came, and few human souls;
Wild flowers and plants grew all over the wall.
“This place strikes me as very sinister,” said Monkey. “Let's not stay here long.”
“You're being overcautious, brother,” remarked Friar Sand. “As this is deserted and I don't think there are any monsters, wild beasts or fiends, there's nothing to be afraid of.” No sooner were the words out of his mouth than there was a gust of sinister wind and an old man emerged from the temple gateway. He wore a turban, a pale-coloured gown and grass sandals, and he held a crooked stick. He was accompanied by a devil servant with a blue face, terrible fangs, red whiskers and a red body who was carrying on his head a tray of cakes.
“Great Sage,” said the old man as they both knelt down, “I am the local god of Thorn Ridge. As I knew you were coming but had nothing better to offer you I have prepared this tray of steamed cakes for your master. Do all have some. As there are no other houses for hundreds of miles I hope you will accept a few to stave off the pangs of hunger.”
