The Journey to the West, Revised Edition, Volume 1

by Unknown

  The Region of Darkness is the nether region proper to Earth. As Heaven is for gods and Earth for ghosts, so life and death proceed in cyclic succession. Fowls are born and animals die; male and female, they multiply. Births and transformations, the male begotten of the procreative female—such is the order of Nature, and it cannot be changed. But now appears Sun Wukong, a Heaven-born baneful monkey from the Water-Curtain Cave in the Flower-Fruit Mountain, who practices evil and violence, and resists our proper summons. Exercising magic powers, he utterly defeated the ghostly messengers of Ninefold Darkness; exploiting brute force, he terrorized the Ten Merciful Kings. He caused great confusion in the Palace of Darkness; he abrogated by force the Register of Names, so that the category of monkeys is now beyond control, and inordinately long life is given to the simian family. The wheel of transmigration is stopped, for birth and death are eliminated in each kind of monkey. Your poor monk therefore risks offending your Heavenly authority in presenting this memorial. We humbly beg you to send forth your divine army and subdue this monster, to the end that life and death may once more be regulated and the Underworld rendered perpetually secure. Respectfully we present this memorial.

  When the Jade Emperor had finished reading, he again gave a command: “Let the Lord of Darkness return to the Underworld. We shall send our generals to arrest this culprit.” King Qinguang also touched his head to the ground gratefully and left.

  The Great Heavenly Deva called together his various immortal subjects, both civil and military, and asked, “When was this baneful monkey born, and in which generation did he begin his career? How is it that he has become so powerfully accomplished in the Way?” Scarcely had he finished speaking when, from the ranks, Thousand-Mile Eye and Fair-Wind Ear stepped forward. “This monkey,” they said, “is the Heaven-born stone monkey of three hundred years ago. At that time he did not seem to amount to much, and we do not know where he acquired the knowledge of self-cultivation these last few years and became an immortal. Now he knows how to subdue dragons and tame tigers,9 and thus he is able to annul by force the Register of Death.” “Which one of you divine generals,” asked the Jade Emperor, “wishes to go down there to subdue him?”

  Scarcely had he finished speaking when the Long-Life Spirit of the Planet Venus came forward from the ranks and prostrated himself. “Highest and Holiest,” he said, “within the three regions, all creatures endowed with the nine apertures can, through exercise, become immortals. It is not surprising that this monkey, with a body nurtured by Heaven and Earth, a frame born of the sun and moon, should achieve immortality, seeing that his head points to Heaven and his feet walk on Earth, and that he feeds on the dew and the mist. Now that he has the power to subdue dragons and tame tigers, how is he different from a human being? Your subject therefore makes so bold as to ask Your Majesty to remember the compassionate grace of Creation and issue a decree of pacification. Let him be summoned to the Upper Region and given some kind of official duties. His name will be recorded in the Register and we can control him here. If he is receptive to the Heavenly decree, he will be rewarded and promoted hereafter; but if he is disobedient to your command, we shall arrest him forthwith. Such an action will spare us a military expedition in the first place, and, in the second, permit us to receive into our midst another immortal in an orderly manner.”

  The Jade Emperor was highly pleased with this statement, and he said, “We shall follow the counsel of our minister.” He then ordered the Star Spirit of Songs and Letters to compose the decree, and delegated the Gold Star of Venus to be the viceroy of peace. Having received the decree, the Gold Star went out of the South Heaven Gate, lowered the direction of his hallowed cloud, and headed straight for the Flower-Fruit Mountain and the Water-Curtain Cave. He said to the various little monkeys, “I am the Heavenly messenger sent from above. I have with me an imperial decree to invite your great king to go to the Upper Region. Report this to him quickly!” The monkeys outside the cave passed the word along one by one until it reached the depth of the cave. “Great King,” one of the monkeys said, “there’s an old man outside bearing a document on his back. He says that he is a messenger sent from Heaven, and he has an imperial decree of invitation for you.” Upon hearing this, the Handsome Monkey King was exceedingly pleased. “These last two days,” he said, “I was just thinking about taking a little trip to Heaven, and the heavenly messenger has already come to invite me!” The Monkey King quickly straightened out his attire and went to the door for the reception. The Gold Star came into the center of the cave and stood still with his face toward the south. “I am the Gold Star of Venus from the West,” he said. “I came down to Earth, bearing the imperial decree of pacification from the Jade Emperor, and invite you to go to Heaven to receive an immortal appointment.” Laughing, Wukong said, “I am most grateful for the Old Star’s visit.” He then gave the order: “Little ones, prepare a banquet to entertain our guest.” The Gold Star said, “As a bearer of imperial decree, I cannot remain here long. I must ask the Great King to go with me at once. After your glorious promotion, we shall have many occasions to converse at our leisure.” “We are honored by your presence,” said Wukong; “I am sorry that you have to leave with empty hands!” He then called the four mighty commanders together for this admonition: “Be diligent in teaching and drilling the young ones. Let me go up to Heaven to take a look and to see whether I can have you all brought up there too to live with me.” The four mighty commanders indicated their obedience. This Monkey King mounted the cloud with the Gold Star and rose up into the sky. Truly

  He ascends the high rank of immortals from the sky;

  His name’s enrolled in cloud columns and treasure scrolls.

  We do not know what sort of rank or appointment he received; let’s listen to the explanation in the next chapter.

  FOUR

  Appointed a BanHorse, could he be content?

  Named Equal to Heaven, he’s still not appeased.

  The Gold Star of Venus left the depths of the cave dwelling with the Handsome Monkey King, and together they rose by mounting the clouds. But the cloud somersault of Wukong, you see, is no common magic; its speed is tremendous. Soon he left the Gold Star far behind and arrived first at the South Heaven Gate. He was about to dismount from the cloud and go in when the Devarāja Virūḍhaka leading Pang, Liu, Kou, Bi, Deng, Xin, Zhang, and Tao, the various divine heroes, barred the way with spears, scimitars, swords, and halberds and refused him entrance. The Monkey King said, “What a deceitful fellow that Gold Star is! If old Monkey has been invited here, why have these people been ordered to use their swords and spears to bar my entrance?” He was protesting loudly when the Gold Star arrived in haste. “Old man,” said Wukong angrily to his face, “why did you deceive me? You told me that I was invited by the Jade Emperor’s decree of pacification. Why then did you get these people to block the Heaven Gate and prevent my entering?” “Let the Great King calm down,” the Gold Star said, laughing. “Since you have never been to the Hall of Heaven before, nor have you been given a name, you are quite unknown to the various heavenly guardians. How can they let you in on their own authority? Once you have seen the Heavenly Deva, received an appointment, and had your name listed in the Immortal Register, you can go in and out as you please. Who would then obstruct your way?” “If that’s how it is,” said Wukong, “it’s all right. But I’m not going in by myself.” “Then go in with me,” said the Gold Star, pulling him by the hand.

  As they approached the gate, the Gold Star called out loudly, “Guardians of the Heaven Gate, lieutenants great and small, make way! This person is an immortal from the Region Below, whom I have summoned by the imperial decree of the Jade Emperor.” The Devarāja Virūḍhaka and the various divine heroes immediately lowered their weapons and stepped aside, and the Monkey King finally believed what he had been told. He walked slowly inside with the Gold Star and looked around. For it was truly

  His first ascent to the Region Above,

  His sudden
entrance into the Hall of Heaven,

  Where ten thousand shafts of golden light whirled as a coral rainbow,

  And a thousand layers of hallowed air diffused mist of purple.

  Look at that South Heaven Gate!

  Its deep shades of green

  From glazed tiles were made;

  Its radiant battlements

  Adorned with treasure jade.

  On two sides were posted scores of celestial sentinels,

  Each of whom, standing tall beside the pillars,

  Carried bows and clutched banners.

  All around were sundry divine beings in golden armor,

  Each of them holding halberds and whips,

  Or wielding scimitars and swords.

  Impressive may be the outer court;

  Overwhelming is the sight within!

  In the inner halls stood several huge pillars

  Circled by red-whiskered dragons whose golden scales gleamed in the sun.

  There were, moreover, a few long bridges;

  Above them crimson-headed phoenixes circled with soaring plumes of many hues.

  Bright mist shimmered in the light of the sky.

  Green fog descending obscured the stars.

  Thirty-three Heavenly mansions were found up here,

  With names like the Scattered Cloud, the Vaiśrvaṇa, the Pāncavidyā, the Suyāma, the Nirmāṇarati . . .1

  On the roof of every mansion the ridge held a stately golden beast.

  There were also the seventy-two treasure halls,

  With names like the Morning Assembly, the Transcendent Void, the Precious Light, the Heavenly King, the Divine Minister . . .

  In every hall beneath the pillars stood rows of jade unicorn.

  On the Platform of Canopus,2

  There were flowers unfading in a thousand millennia;

  Beside the oven for refining herbs,

  There were exotic grasses growing green for ten thousand years.

  He went before the Tower of Homage to the Sage,

  Where he saw robes of royal purple gauze

  Brilliant as stars refulgent,

  Caps the shape of hibiscus,

  Resplendent with gold and precious stones,

  And pins of jade and shoes of pearl,

  And purple sashes and golden ornaments.

  When the golden bells swayed to their striking,

  The memorial of the Three Judges3 would cross the vermilion courtyard;

  When the drums of Heaven were sounded,

  Ten thousand sages of the royal audience would honor the Jade Emperor.

  He went, too, to the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists

  Where nails of gold penetrated frames of jade,

  And colorful phoenixes danced atop scarlet doors.

  Here were covered bridges and winding corridors

  Displaying every where openwork carvings most elegant;

  And eaves crowding together in layers three and four,

  On each of which reared up phoenixes and dragons.

  There was high above

  A round dome big, bright, and brilliant—

  Its shape, a huge gourd of purple gold,

  Below which guardian goddesses hung out their fans

  And jade maidens held up their immortal veils.

  Ferocious were the sky marshals overseeing the court;

  Dignified, the divine officials protecting the Throne.

  There at the center, on a crystal platter,

  Tablets of the Great Monad Elixir were heaped;

  And rising out of the cornelian vases

  Were several branches of twisting coral.

  So it was that

  Rare goods of every order were found in Heaven’s Hall,

  And nothing like them on Earth could ever be seen—

  Those golden arches, silver coaches, and that Heavenly house,

  Those coralline blooms and jasper plants with their buds of jade.

  The jade rabbit passed the platform to adore the king.

  The golden crow flew by to worship the sage.4

  Blessed was the Monkey King coming to this Heavenly realm,

  He who was not mired in the filthy soil of man.

  The Gold Star of Venus led the Handsome Monkey King to the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists, and, without waiting for further announcement, they went into the imperial presence. While the Star prostrated himself, Wukong stood erect by him. Showing no respect, he cocked his ear only to listen to the report of the Gold Star. “According to your decree,” said the Gold Star, “your subject has brought the bogus immortal.” “Which one is the bogus immortal?” asked the Jade Emperor graciously. Only then did Wukong bow and reply, “None other than old Monkey!” Blanching with horror, the various divine officials said, “That wild ape! Already he has failed to prostrate himself before the Throne, and now he dares to come forward with such an insolent reply as ‘None other than old Monkey’! He is worthy of death, worthy of death!” “That fellow Sun Wukong is a bogus immortal from the Region Below,” announced the Jade Emperor, “and he has only recently acquired the form of a human being. We shall pardon him this time for his ignorance of court etiquette.” “Thank you, Your Majesty,” cried the various divine officials. Only then did the Monkey King bow deeply with folded hands and utter a cry of gratitude. The Jade Emperor then ordered the divine officials, both civil and military, to see what vacant appointment there might be for Sun Wukong to receive. From the side came the Star Spirit of Wuqu, who reported, “In every mansion and hall everywhere in the Palace of Heaven, there is no lack of ministers. Only at the imperial stables is a supervisor needed.” “Let him be made a BanHorsePlague,”5 proclaimed the Jade Emperor. The various subjects again shouted their thanks, but Monkey only bowed deeply and gave a loud whoop of gratitude. The Jade Emperor then sent the Star Spirit of Jupiter to accompany him to the stables.

  The Monkey King went happily with the Star Spirit of Jupiter to the stables in order to assume his duties. After the Star Spirit had returned to his own mansion, the new officer gathered together the deputy and assistant supervisors, the accountants and stewards, and other officials both great and small and made thorough investigation of all the affairs of the stables. There were about a thousand celestial horses,6 and they were all

  Hualius and Chizhis

  Lu’ers and Xianlis,

  Consorts of Dragons and Purple Swallows,

  Folded Wings and Suxiangs,

  Juetis and Silver Hooves,

  Yaoniaos and Flying Yellows.

  Chestnuts and Faster-than-Arrows,

  Red Hares and Speedier-than-Lights,

  Leaping Lights and Vaulting Shadows,

  Rising Fogs and Triumphant Yellows,

  Wind Chasers and Distance Breakers.

  Flying Pinions and Surging Airs,

  Rushing Winds and Fiery Lightnings.

  Copper Sparrows and Drifting Clouds,

  Dragonlike piebalds and Tigerlike pintos,

  Dust Quenchers and Purple Scales,

  And Ferghanas7 from the Four Corners.

  Like the Eight Steeds and Nine Stallions

  They have no rivals within a thousand miles!

  Such are these fine horses.

  Every one of which

  Neighs like the wind and gallops like thunder to show a mighty spirit.

  They tread the mist and mount the clouds with unflagging strength.

  Our Monkey King went through the lists and made a thorough inspection of the horses. Within the imperial stables, the accountants were in charge of getting supplies; the stewards groomed and washed the horses, chopped hay, watered them, and prepared their food; and the deputies and assistants saw to the overall management. Never resting, the Bima oversaw the care of the horses, fussing with them by day and watching over them diligently by night. Those horses that wanted to sleep were stirred up and fed; those that wanted to gallop were caught and placed in the stalls. When the celestial horses saw him, they all behaved most properly a
nd they were so well cared for that their flanks became swollen with fat.

  More than half a month soon went by, and on one leisurely morning, the various department ministers gave a banquet to welcome and congratulate him. While they were drinking happily, the Monkey King suddenly put down his cup and asked: “What sort of rank is this BanHorsePlague of mine?” “The rank and the title are the same,” they said. “But what ministerial grade is it?” “It does not have a grade,” they said. “If it does not have a grade,” said the Monkey King, “I suppose it must be the very highest.” “Not at all,” they replied, “it can only be called ‘the unclassified’!” The Monkey King said, “What do you mean by ‘the unclassified’?” “It is really the meanest level,” they said. “This kind of minister is the lowest of the low ranks; hence he can only look after horses. Take the case of Your Honor, who, since your arrival, have been so diligent in discharging your duties. If the horses are fattened, you will only earn yourself a ‘Fairly Good!’ If they look at all thin, you will be roundly rebuked. And if they are seriously hurt or wounded, you will be prosecuted and fined.”

  When the Monkey King heard this, fire leaped up from his heart. “So that’s the contempt they have for old Monkey!” he cried angrily, gnashing his teeth. “At the Flower-Fruit Mountain I was honored as king and patriarch. How dare they trick me into coming to look after horses for them, if horse tending is such a menial service, reserved only for the young and lowly? Is such treatment worthy of me? I’m quitting! I’m quitting! I’m leaving right now!” With a crash, he kicked over his official desk and took the treasure out of his ear. One wave of his hand and it had the thickness of a rice bowl. Delivering blows in all directions, he fought his way out of the imperial stables and went straight to the South Heaven Gate. The various celestial guardians, knowing that he had been officially appointed a BanHorsePlague, did not dare stop him and allowed him to fight his way out of the Heaven Gate.