Journey to the West (vol. 2)

by Wu Cheng-En

The five dragons went to the West as instructed,

  While Monkey hung behind for his master's sake.

  Sword and halberd flashed like coloured lightning;

  The spears and sabers gleamed like rainbows.

  The wolf-toothed mace

  Was powerful, short and flexible;

  The gold-banded cudgel

  Could change at its owner's will.

  There were crashes like firecrackers,

  And the rhythmic clang of metal being struck.

  The monster was attacked by fire and water,

  And weapons crowded close around the spirits.

  The cries of battle frightened wolves and tigers;

  The din disturbed both gods and devils.

  Just when the battle was still unresolved

  The evil spirit fetched out his treasure again.

  When Monkey had been leading the five dragons and two generals in fight against the demon king for an hour the demon took off his pouch and held it in his hand. “Watch out, gentlemen,” exclaimed Monkey in horror. Not realizing what was happening, they all stopped attacking with their weapons and surged forward. There was a loud swish as the demon king threw his pouch into the air. Abandoning the five dragons and the two generals to be wrapped up in the pouch, the Great Sage Monkey escaped by somersaulting up above the ninth heaven. The evil spirits returned in triumph once more, tied them up too, took them down into the pit and put the lid on it.

  Monkey landed his cloud and lay sprawled out under the peak, listless and dispirited. “That demon is a terror,” he thought with bitter regret, and without realizing what was happening he shut his eyes as if he were going to sleep.

  Just then there came a call: “Great Sage, don't go to sleep. Get up and rescue them as soon as you can. Your master's life is in great danger.” At once Monkey opened his eyes again and sprang to his feet to see that it was the Duty God of the Day.

  “You wretched little god,” Monkey shouted, “you were so greedy for your blood and sacrifices over there that you haven't reported for duty for days. Why are you coming to disturb me now? Put out your foot. I'm going to hit you a couple of times to cheer myself up. I'm feeling low.”

  The Duty God hastily bowed and said, “Great Sage, you are one of the happy immortals in the human world. How could you possibly be feeling low? We've been here for a long time on the Bodhisattva's orders to keep secret guard over the Tang Priest. We and the local gods have never left him for a moment, which is why we can't pay our respects to you often enough. You can't hold that against me.”

  “If you're guarding him,” Monkey replied, “tell me where the evil spirit has imprisoned the constellations, the protectors, the guardians, my master and the rest of them. What are they suffering?”

  “Your master and your fellow-disciples have been hung up in the cloister outside the main hall,” the Duty God replied. “The constellations are all in agony in a pit. For the last couple of days I've had no news of you, Great Sage, but I've just seen that the evil spirits have captured the divine dragons, Tortoise and Snake and put them in the pit too. It was only then that we realized you must have fetched some reinforcements, Great Sage, which is why we came specially to look for you. Whatever you do you must rescue them at once, Great Sage, no matter how tired you are.”

  Hearing this, Monkey said to the duty god, the tears streaming down his face, “I'm too ashamed to go up to Heaven, and I haven't the nerve to go to the sea. I'm afraid of asking for the Bodhisattva's help and too miserable to look the Buddha in the face. The ones who were captured just now were the True Martial God's Tortoise, Snake and five dragons and their forces. There's nowhere else I can turn for help. What am I to do?”

  The Duty God smiled as he replied, “Relax, Great Sage, I've thought of some elite troops who are bound to be able to subdue these demons. You went to Wudang just now that was in the Southern Jambu Continent. The troops I have in mind come from the same continent, from Bincheng on Mound Xuyi. It's what's now called Sizhou. There's a Great Sage Bodhisattva King Teacher there who has enormous magical powers. He has a disciple called Little Prince Zhang and four divine generals: the other year they subdued the Water Mother Goddess. You should go there yourself to ask him. If he in his kindness is willing to help you're bound to be able to catch the demon and save the master.”

  The news delighted Monkey, who said, “You look after the master and don't let him come to any harm while I go off to ask his help.”

  Monkey then set off on his somersault and left that demon-infested place to go straight to Mount Xuyi. He was soon there, and when he looked around he saw that it was a fine place.

  The Yangtse was not far to the South,

  To the North it faced the Huai River.

  To the East it led to the islands in the sea,

  To the West it was connected with Fengfou.

  On the mountain-top was a lofty temple

  While springs gushed forth from its sides.

  Grotesquely-shaped rocks towered high;

  Lofty pines were elegantly angular.

  There was always fresh fruit in season,

  And every kind of flower opened in the sun.

  People moved around like armies of ants

  While boats came from far and wide like flights of geese.

  On it there stood

  The Auspicious Crag Temple,

  The Palace of the Eastern Peak,

  The Shrine of the Five Illustrious Ones,

  The Tortoise Mountain Monastery.

  Rhythmic bells and incense smoke rose to the heavens.

  There were also

  The Crystal Spring,

  The Valley of Five Stupas,

  The Terrace of Eight Immortals,

  The Apricot Orchard.

  The colours of the mountain and trees lit up Bincheng.

  Boundless were the stretches of cloud,

  While hidden birds still sang when they were tired.

  Never mind mounts Tai, Song, Heng or Hua;

  Here was the beauty of an earthly paradise.

  The Great Sage enjoyed the view enormously as he crossed the Huai River, entered the city of Bincheng, and arrived at the gates of the Great Sage's Dhyana Monastery. Over the majestic halls and colorful cloisters there towered a pagoda. Indeed:

  It rose ten thousand feet through clouds to the sky;

  The golden vase penetrated the heavens above.

  The light from it filled the universe;

  No shadows were cast on its windows.

  Heavenly music was heard when the wind rang the bells;

  The sun shone on roof-dragons facing the Buddha-hall.

  Birds constantly came here to sing their complaints;

  Endlessly beautiful was the view of the Huai River.

  Monkey looked at it all as he went in to the inner gates, where the Bodhisattva King Teacher, who was expecting him, had come out to meet him with Little Prince Zhang. After they had greeted each other and exchanged polite remarks Monkey said, “I'm escorting the Tang Priest to fetch the scriptures from the Western Heaven. We have come to the Lesser Thunder Monastery where there's a Yellow-browed Demon who's pretending to be a Buddha. Not realizing he was an impostor, my master kowtowed to him and was captured. Then I was caught inside a pair of golden cymbals until, thank goodness, the constellations who had been sent down from heaven rescued me. I smashed the cymbals, but when we fought him again he wrapped the heavenly gods, the protectors, the guardians, my master and my fellow-disciples up in a cloth bag. As I have nowhere else to turn, Bodhisattva, I've come to call on you and ask you to give play to your great strength. Use the magic powers with which you put down the Water Mother and saved the common people to go with me to rescue my master. Then he can take the scriptures back to China to be transmitted forever, praise the wisdom of our Buddha and make the prajna-paramita better known.”

  “What you ask today is indeed for the greater glory of our Buddha,” said King Teacher, “and I really ought to go myself. But
it's early summer now, just the time when the Huai River floods. The Great Sage Water Ape I subdued recently gets active when there's water, and I'm worried that he'd take advantage of my absence to make so much trouble that no divine powers could bring him back under control. I'll send my disciple with four generals to help you force the demon into submission.”

  Monkey thanked him then headed back by cloud with the four generals and Little Prince Zhang to the Lesser Western Heaven, where they went straight to the Lesser Thunder Monastery. Here Little Prince Zhang brandished his paper-white spear and the four generals swung their superb swords as they shouted abuse to challenge the demons to battle.

  When the little devils ran inside to report this, the demon king led his devils out once more, had his drums beaten and replied, “Who've you persuaded to come this time?”

  Before the words were all out of his mouth Little Prince Zhang at the head of the four generals shouted, “Damned evil spirit! Do you have no eyes in your head? Don't you recognize who we are?”

  “Whose underlings are you?” the demon king said. “How dare you help him?”

  “I am the disciple of the Great Sage of Sizhou, the Bodhisattva King Teacher, and I'm here on his orders with four divine generals to capture you,” the prince replied.

  “What sort of martial arts do you have,” replied the demon king with a sneer, “that give you the nerve to be so insulting?”

  “As you want to know about my martial powers,” the prince replied, “let me tell you:

  My people come from the Flowing Sands River,

  Where my father used to be king of Sandland.

  I was a weak and sickly child,

  Born under a bad influence and an unlucky star.

  Long had I admired my master's immortal powers,

  When in a chance meeting he taught me the secret.

  Half a pill of elixir cured my sickness;

  I abandoned my throne to cultivate my conduct.

  Once I knew bow to live as long as heaven;

  My face became youthful and will remain so forever.

  I have been to the assemblies under the dragon-flower tree,

  And ridden by cloud to the Buddha's hall.

  Seizing the fogs and winds I subdued the watery tribe;

  I defended the mountain by subduing dragons and tigers.

  The dutiful people raised a lofty pagoda

  To calm the seas through the glow of its relics.

  My paper-white spear can capture all demons;

  Evil spirits are caught in the gray sleeve of my coat.

  Now peace and joy reign in the city of Bincheng,

  And all the world praises Little Zhang's fame.”

  When the demon king heard this he replied with a touch of a mocking smile, “Prince, when you abandoned your throne to follow the Bodhisattva King Teacher what sort of arts of immortality did you learn? All you're good for is capturing water monsters in the Huai River. You shouldn't have believed all the nonsense Sun the Novice talked and have come across all those mountains and rivers to offer your life. We'll soon find out whether you're immortal or not.”

  When Little Zhang heard this he was very angry and thrust straight for the demon's face with his spear. The four generals all rushed into the attack together and so did the Great Sage Monkey, wielding his iron cudgel. The splendid evil spirit was not afraid in the least as he blocked, parried and struck back with his short and flexible wolf-tooth mace. It was a fine battle:

  The little prince with his paper-white spear,

  Made stronger by the four generals' swords,

  Wukong using his gold-banded cudgel,

  With one heart they surrounded the demon king.

  Truly his magical powers were great

  As without a trace of fear he resisted their attacks.

  The wolf-tooth mace was a Buddha weapon

  Preserving him from wounds by swords or spear.

  Wile howled the wind

  Through the turbid swirl of evil vapors.

  One used his skill for love of mortal things;

  The other's heart was set on the Buddha and the scriptures.

  They charged and they raged,

  Shrouding sun, moon and stars in cloud,

  Each of them evil and vicious in anger.

  For long the Three Vehicles could not assert dominance:

  Bitter and well-matched was the battle of rival skills.

  After the fight had been going on for a long time and was still inconclusive the evil spirit undid his pouch and Monkey once more shouted, “Look out, gentlemen.” The prince and his followers did not realize what he was telling them to look out for, so with a swish the demon king had them caught in his pouch. Only Monkey escaped in time. We will not describe how once more the demon king returned in triumph, sent for ropes, and had them tied up and put into the pit under lock and lid.

  When Monkey leapt up into the sky and saw the demon leading his troops back and fastening the gates he brought his auspicious light down to land and stood on the Western slope of the mountain. “Master!” he wept aloud in his misery,

  “Since being converted and becoming a monk

  I've been grateful to Guanyin for ending my woes.

  In escorting you West to seek the great Way

  I have helped you towards the Buddha's own temple.

  Who would have thought when the going looked easy

  That we'd be attacked by so mighty a monster.

  None of my tricks or devices succeed;

  All the help I have looked for has just been in vain.”

  As Monkey was in the very depths of misery a brightly-coloured cloud suddenly landed to the Southwest and the whole mountain peak was lashed with a torrential rainstorm. “Wukong,” a voice called, “do you know who I am?” Monkey hurried forward to look and this is what he saw:

  Big ears, a broad jaw and a square face;

  Wide shoulders, a deep chest and a fat body.

  A jolly voice that was full of fun,

  A pair of bright and sparkling eyes.

  His clothes hung open; luck was all about him.

  His straw sandals were comfortable and his spirits high.

  He was the lord of the land of bliss,

  The laughing monk Maitreya.

  As soon as Monkey saw him he kowtowed immediately and said, “Where are you going, Lord Buddha from the East? I beg you to forgive me for failing to keep out of your way.”

  “I'm here because of the demon in the Lesser Thunder Monastery,” the Buddha replied.

  “I am very grateful for your great kindness, my lord,” Monkey replied. “May I ask where the demon is from and where he became an evil spirit? What sort of treasure is that pouch of his? Please tell me, my lord.”

  “He was a yellow-browed page who used to strike my stone chime,” the Buddha Maitreya replied. “On the third day of the third month this year I left him looking after my palace when I went to an assembly of the Primal One. That was when he stole some of my treasures and became a spirit as an imitation Buddha. That pouch is my future heaven bag, or what's generally called a human seed bag. The wolf-tooth cudgel was originally the stick for striking the chime.”

  When Monkey heard this he shouted, “You're a splendid laughing monk, I must say. By letting that boy escape you let him masquerade as a Buddha and ruin things for me. You ought to be charged with slack management of your household.”

  “I was careless,” Maitreya replied. “Besides, your master and you disciples have not yet come to the end of the demons you will have to deal with. That is why every kind of spiritual creature has been coming down to earth. It's right that you should suffer. Now I'm here to capture him for you.”

  “That evil spirit has very great magic powers,” Monkey replied, “and you haven't got any weapons. How can you possibly subdue him?”

  “I'll make a little hut under the mountain,” said Maitreya, “where I grow fruit and melons. You challenge him to battle, lose in the fight that follows, an
d lure him into my melon patch. All my melons are still unripe, so you're to change into a big ripe melon. When he gets there he's bound to want a melon and I'll give you to him. Once you're in his stomach you can do what you like to him. Then I'll get his pouch and we can put him inside it.”

  “It's a very good plan,” Monkey replied, “but how will you know which is the ripe melon I'll have turned into? And why should he be willing to go there after me?”

  “I'm the ruler of the world,” laughed Maitreya, “and I have miraculous vision. Of course I'll know which one is you. I'd recognize you whatever you turned into. The only worry is that the demon won't come after you. I'll have to teach you some new magic.”

  “But he's bound to catch me in his pouch,” Monkey replied, “not come after me. What magic power could I use?”

  “Stretch your hand out,” Maitreya said. Monkey stretched out his left hand. Maitreya moistened the forefinger of his own right hand with some magic saliva, wrote “stop” on it, and told Monkey to make a fist. If he opened that hand again in the demon's face the demon would certainly come after him.

  Monkey cheerfully made the fist as he had been instructed and went back to the monastery gates, brandishing his cudgel with one hand as he shouted, “Evil spirit, your lord and master Monkey's here. Come out at once and we'll see who's the champion.” When the little devils rushed inside to report the demon king asked how many soldiers Monkey had brought with him this time.

  “None,” they replied. “He's here by himself.”

  “That Monkey's at his wit's end and exhausted,” the demon king laughed, “and he can't get anyone else to help. He's just throwing his life away now.” Once he was in his armor again he took his treasure and his flexible wolf-tooth mace and went out through the monastery gates shouting, “You won't be able to hold out this time, Sun Wukong.”

  “Damned demon,” Monkey replied abusively. “What do you mean, I won't be able to hold out?”

  “Look at you,” the demon replied. “You're at your wit's end and exhausted. There's nobody else you can turn to for help. Now you're here again to try to resist me there won't be any more divine soldiers or anything like that to help you. That's why I said you wouldn't be able to hold out.”