The Journey to the West, Revised Edition, Volume 1

by Unknown

  In a moment, he lowered the direction of his cloud and returned to the Flower-Fruit Mountain. The four mighty commanders were seen drilling troops with the Monster Kings of various caves. “Little ones,” this Monkey King cried in a loud voice, “old Monkey has returned!” The flock of monkeys all came to kowtow and received him into the depths of the cave dwelling. As the Monkey King ascended his throne, they busily prepared a banquet to welcome him. “Receive our congratulations, Great King,” they said. “Having gone to the region above for more than ten years, you must be returning in success and glory.” “I have been away for only half a month,” said the Monkey King. “How can it be more than ten years?”

  “Great King,” said the various monkeys, “you are not aware of time and season when you are in Heaven. One day in Heaven above is equal to a year on Earth. May we ask the Great King what ministerial appointment he received?”

  “Don’t mention that! Don’t mention that!” said the Monkey King, waving his hand. “It embarrasses me to death! That Jade Emperor does not know how to use talent. Seeing the features of old Monkey, he appointed me to something called the BanHorsePlague, which actually means taking care of horses for him. It’s a job too low even to be classified! I didn’t know this when I first assumed my duties, and so I managed to have some fun at the imperial stables. But when I asked my colleagues today, I discovered what a degraded position it was. I was so furious that I knocked over the banquet they were giving me and rejected the title. That’s why I came back down.” “Welcome back!” said the various monkeys, “welcome back! Our Great King can be the sovereign of this blessed cave dwelling with the greatest honor and happiness. Why should he go away to be someone’s stable boy?” “Little ones,” they cried, “send up the wine quickly and cheer up our Great King.”

  As they were drinking wine and conversing happily, someone came to report: “Great King, there are two one-horned demon kings outside who want to see you.” “Show them in,” said the Monkey King. The demon kings straightened out their attire, ran into the cave, and prostrated themselves. “Why did you want to see me?” asked the Handsome Monkey King. “We have long heard that the Great King is receptive to talents,” said the demon kings, “but we had no reason to request your audience. Now we learn that our Great King has received a divine appointment and has returned in success and glory. We have come, therefore, to present the Great King with a red and yellow robe for his celebration. If you are not disdainful of the uncouth and the lowly and are willing to receive us plebeians, we shall serve you as dogs or as horses.” Highly pleased, the Monkey King put on the red and yellow robe while the rest of them lined up joyfully and did homage. He then appointed the demon kings to be the Vanguard Commanders, Marshals of the Forward Regiments. After expressing their thanks, the demon kings asked again, “Since our Great King was in Heaven for a long time, may we ask what kind of appointment he received?” “The Jade Emperor belittles the talented,” said the Monkey King. “He only made me something called the BanHorsePlague.” Hearing this, the demon kings said again, “Great King has such divine powers! Why should you take care of horses for him? What is there to stop you from assuming the rank of the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven?” When the Monkey King heard these words, he could not conceal his delight, shouting repeatedly, “Bravo! Bravo!” “Make me a banner immediately,” he ordered the four mighty commanders, “and inscribe on it in large letters, ‘The Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.’ Erect a pole to hang it on. From now on, address me only as the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven, and the title Great King will no longer be permitted. The Monster Kings of the various caves will also be informed so that it will be known to all.” Of this we shall speak no further.

  We now refer to the Jade Emperor, who held court the next day. The Celestial Master Zhang8 was seen leading the deputy and the assistant of the imperial stables to come before the vermilion courtyard. “Your Majesty,” they said, prostrating themselves, “the newly appointed BanHorsePlague, Sun Wukong, objected to his rank as being too low and left the Heavenly Palace yesterday in rebellion.” Meanwhile, the Devarāja Virūḍhaka, leading the various celestial guardians from the South Heaven Gate, also made the report, “The BanHorsePlague for reasons unknown to us has walked out of the Heaven Gate.” When the Jade Emperor heard this, he made the proclamation: “Let the two divine commanders and their followers return to their duties. We shall send forth celestial soldiers to capture this monster.” From among the ranks, Devarāja Li,9 who was the Pagoda Bearer, and his Third Prince Naṭa came forward and presented their request, saying, “Your Majesty, though your humble subjects are not gifted, we await your authorization to subdue this monster.” Delighted, the Jade Emperor appointed Pagoda Bearer Devarāja Li Jing to be grand marshal for subduing the monster, and promoted Third Prince Naṭa to be the great deity in charge of the Three-Platform Assembly of the Saints. They were to lead an expeditionary force at once for the Region Below.

  Devarāja Li and Naṭa kowtowed to take leave and went back to their own mansion. After reviewing the troops and their captains and lieutenants, they appointed Mighty-Spirit God to be Vanward Commander, the Fish-Belly General to bring up the rear, and the General of the Yakṣas to urge the troops on. In a moment they left by the South Heaven Gate and went straight to the Flower-Fruit Mountain. A level piece of land was selected for encampment, and the order was then given to the Mighty-Spirit God to provoke battle. Having received his order and having buckled and knotted his armor properly, the Mighty-Spirit God grasped his spreading-flower ax and came to the Water-Curtain Cave. There in front of the cave he saw a great mob of monsters, all of them wolves, insects, tigers, leopards, and the like; they were all jumping and growling, brandishing their swords and waving their spears.

  “Damnable beasts!” shouted the Mighty-Spirit God. “Hurry and tell the BanHorsePlague that I, a great general from Heaven, have by the authorization of the Jade Emperor come to subdue him. Tell him to come out quickly and surrender, lest all of you be annihilated!” Running pell-mell into the cave, those monsters shouted the report, “Disaster! Disaster!” “What sort of disaster?” asked the Monkey King. “There’s a celestial warrior outside,” said the monsters, “who claims the title of an imperial envoy. He says he came by the holy decree of the Jade Emperor to subdue you, and he orders you to go out quickly and surrender, lest we lose our lives.” Hearing this, the Monkey King commanded, “Get my battle dress!” He quickly donned his red gold cap, pulled on his yellow gold cuirass, slipped on his cloud-treading shoes, and seized the compliant golden-hooped rod. He led the crowd outside and set them up in battle formation. The Mighty-Spirit God opened wide his eyes and stared at this magnificent Monkey King:

  The gold cuirass worn on his body was brilliant and bright;

  The gold cap on his head also glistened in the light.

  In his hands was a staff, the golden-hooped rod,

  That well became the cloud-treading shoes on his feet.

  His eyes glowered strangely like burning stars.

  Hanging past his shoulders were two ears, forked and hard.

  His remarkable body knew many ways of change,

  And his voice resounded like bells and chimes.

  This BanHorsePlague with beaked mouth and gaping teeth

  Aimed high to be the Equal to Heaven Sage.

  “Lawless ape,” the Mighty-Spirit God roared powerfully, “do you recognize me?” When the Great Sage heard these words, he asked quickly, “What sort of dull-witted deity are you? Old Monkey has yet to meet you! State your name at once!” “Fraudulent simian,” cried the Mighty-Spirit, “what do you mean, you don’t recognize me? I am the Celestial General of Mighty-Spirit, the Vanward Commander and subordinate to Devarāja Li, the Pagoda Bearer, from the divine empyrean. I have come by the imperial decree of the Jade Emperor to receive your submission. Strip yourself of your apparel immediately and yield to the Heavenly grace, so that this mountainful of creatures can avoid execution. If you dare but utter half a ‘N
o,’ you will be reduced to powder in seconds!”

  When the Monkey King heard those words, he was filled with anger. “Reckless simpleton!” he cried. “Stop bragging and wagging your tongue! I would have killed you with one stroke of my rod, but then I would have no one to communicate my message. So, I’ll spare your life for the moment. Go back to Heaven quickly and inform the Jade Emperor that he has no regard for talent. Old Monkey has unlimited abilities. Why did he ask me to mind horses for him? Take a good look at the words on this banner. If I am promoted according to its title, I will lay down my arms, and the cosmos will then be fair and tranquil. But if he does not agree to my demand, I’ll fight my way up to the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists, and he won’t even be able to sit on his dragon throne!” When the Mighty-Spirit God heard these words, he opened his eyes wide, facing the wind, and saw indeed a tall pole outside the cave. On the pole hung a banner bearing in large letters the words, “The Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.”

  The Mighty-Spirit God laughed scornfully three times and jeered, “Lawless ape! How fatuous can you be, and how arrogant! So you want to be the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven! Be good enough to take a bit of my ax first!” Aiming at his head, he hacked at him, but, being a knowledgeable fighter, the Monkey King was not unnerved. He met the blow at once with his golden-hooped rod, and this exciting battle was on.

  The rod was named Compliant;

  The ax was called Spreading Flower.

  The two of them, meeting suddenly,

  Did not yet know their weakness or strength;

  But ax and rod

  Clashed left and right.

  One concealed secret powers most wondrous;

  The other vaunted openly his vigor and might.

  They used magic—

  Blowing out cloud and puffing up fog;

  They stretched their hands,

  Splattering mud and spraying sand.

  The might of the celestial battler had its way:

  But the Monkey had boundless power of change.

  The rod uplifted—a dragon played in water;

  The ax arrived—a phoenix sliced through flowers.

  Mighty-Spirit, whose name spread through the world,

  In prowess truly could not match the other one.

  The Great Sage whirling lightly his iron staff

  Could numb the body with one blow on the head.

  The Mighty-Spirit God could oppose him no longer and allowed the Monkey King to aim a mighty blow at his head, which he hastily sought to parry with his ax. With a crack the ax handle split in two, and Mighty-Spirit turned swiftly to flee for his life. “Imbecile! Imbecile!” laughed the Monkey King, “I’ve already spared you. Go and report my message at once!”

  Back at the camp, the Mighty-Spirit God went straight to see the Pagoda Bearer Devarāja. Huffing and puffing, he knelt down saying, “The BanHorsePlague indeed has great magic powers! Your unworthy warrior cannot prevail against him. Defeated, I have come to beg your pardon.” “This fellow has blunted our will to fight,” said Devarāja Li angrily. “Take him out and have him executed!” From the side came Prince Naṭa, who said, bowing deeply, “Let your anger subside, Father King, and pardon for the moment the guilt of Mighty-Spirit. Permit your child to go into battle once, and we shall know the long and short of the matter.” The Devarāja heeded the admonition and ordered Mighty-Spirit to go back to his camp and await trial.

  This Prince Naṭa, properly armed, leaped from his camp and dashed to the Water-Curtain Cave. Wukong was just dismissing his troops when he saw Naṭa approaching fiercely. Dear Prince!

  Two boyish tufts barely cover his skull.

  His flowing hair has yet to reach the shoulders.

  A rare mind, alert and intelligent.

  A noble frame, pure and elegant.

  He is indeed the unicorn son from Heaven above,

  Truly immortal as the phoenix of mist and smoke.

  This seed of dragon has by nature uncommon features.

  His tender age shows no relation to any worldly kin.

  He carries on his body six kinds of magic weapons.

  He flies, he leaps; he can change without restriction.

  Now by the golden-mouth proclamation of the Jade Emperor

  He is appointed to the Assembly: its name, the Three Platforms10

  Wukong drew near and asked, “Whose little brother are you, and what do you want, barging through my gate?” “Lawless monstrous monkey!” shouted Naṭa. “Don’t you recognize me? I am Naṭa, third son of the Pagoda Bearer Devarāja. I am under the imperial commission of the Jade Emperor to come and arrest you.” “Little prince,” said Wukong laughing, “your baby teeth haven’t even fallen out, and your natal hair is still damp! How dare you talk so big? I’m going to spare your life, and I won’t fight you. Just take a look at the words on my banner and report them to the Jade Emperor above. Grant me this title, and you won’t need to stir your forces. I will submit on my own. If you don’t satisfy my cravings, I will surely fight my way up to the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists.”

  Lifting his head to look, Naṭa saw the words, “Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.” “What great power does this monstrous monkey possess,” said Naṭa, “that he dares claim such a title? Fear not! Swallow my sword.” “I’ll just stand here quietly,” said Wukong, “and you can take a few hacks at me with your sword.” Young Naṭa grew angry. “Change!” he yelled loudly, and he changed at once into a fearsome person having three heads and six arms. In his hands he held six kinds of weapons: a monster-stabbing sword, a monster-cleaving scimitar, a monster-binding rope, a monster-taming club, an embroidered ball, and a fiery wheel. Brandishing these weapons, he mounted a frontal attack. “This little brother does know a few tricks!” said Wukong, somewhat alarmed by what he saw. “But don’t be rash. Watch my magic!” Dear Great Sage! He shouted, “Change!” and he too transformed himself into a creature with three heads and six arms. One wave of the golden-hooped rod and it became three staffs, which were held with six hands. The conflict was truly earth-shaking and made the very mountains tremble. What a battle!

  The six-armed Prince Naṭa.

  The Heaven-born Handsome Stone Monkey King.

  Meeting, each met his match

  And found each to be from the same source.

  One was consigned to come down to Earth.

  The other in guile disturbed the universe.

  The edge of the monster-stabbing sword was quick;

  The keen, monster-cleaving scimitar alarmed demons and gods;

  The monster-binding rope was like a flying snake;

  The monster-taming club was like the head of a wolf;

  The lightning-propelled fiery wheel was like darting flames;

  Hither and thither the embroidered ball rotated.

  The three compliant rods of the Great Sage

  Protected the front and guarded the rear with care and skill.

  A few rounds of bitter contest revealed no victor,

  But the prince’s mind would not so easily rest.

  He ordered the six kinds of weapon to change

  Into hundreds and thousands of millions, aiming for the head.

  The Monkey King, undaunted, roared with laughter loud,

  And wielded his iron rod with artful ease:

  One turned to a thousand, a thousand to ten thousand,

  Filling the sky as a swarm of dancing dragons,

  And shocked the Monster Kings of sundry caves into shutting their doors.

  Demons and monsters all over the mountain hid their heads.

  The angry breath of divine soldiers was like oppressive clouds.

  The golden-hooped iron rod whizzed like the wind.

  On this side,

  The battle cries of celestial fighters appalled every one;

  On that side,

  The banner-waving of monkey monsters startled each person.

  Growing fierce, the two parties both willed a test of strength.

  We know not
who was stronger and who weaker.

  Each displaying his divine powers, the Third Prince and Wukong battled for thirty rounds. The six weapons of that prince changed into a thousand and ten thousand pieces; the golden-hooped rod of Sun Wukong into ten thousand and a thousand. They clashed like raindrops and meteors in the air, but victory or defeat was not yet determined. Wukong, however, proved to be the one swifter of eye and hand. Right in the midst of the confusion, he plucked a piece of hair and shouted, “Change!” It changed into a copy of him, also wielding a rod in its hands and deceiving Naṭa. His real person leaped behind Naṭa and struck his left shoulder with the rod. Naṭa, still performing his magic, heard the rod whizzing through the air and tried desperately to dodge it. Unable to move quickly enough, he took the blow and fled in pain. Breaking off his magic and gathering up his six weapons, he returned to his camp in defeat.

  Standing in front of his battle line, Devarāja Li saw what was happening and was about to go to his son’s assistance. The prince, however, came to him first and gasped, “Father King! The BanHorsePlague is truly powerful. Even your son of such magical strength is no match for him! He has wounded me in the shoulder.” “If this fellow is so powerful,” said the Devarāja, turning pale with fright, “how can we beat him?” The prince said, “In front of his cave he has set up a banner bearing the words, ‘The Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.’ By his own mouth he boastfully asserted that if the Jade Emperor appointed him to such a title, all troubles would cease. If he were not given this name, he would surely fight his way up to the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists!” “If that’s the case,” said the Devarāja, “let’s not fight with him for the moment. Let us return to the region above and report these words. There will be time then for us to send for more celestial soldiers and take this fellow on all sides.” The prince was in such pain that he could not do battle again; he therefore went back to Heaven with the Devarāja to report, of which we speak no further.