From time to time I like to post a fun blog not directly related to (though sometimes informed by) my research. Regular articles will resume after this entry.
Last updated: 12-28-2025
Readers may remember that DEATH BATTLE! (episode 162) featured a fight between Sun Wukong from Journey to the West (Xiyou ji, 西遊記, 1592 CE, “JTTW” hereafter) and Heracles / Hercules from Greco-Roman myth (fig. 1). The episode begins with the demi-god trekking up a mountain in order to fulfill the 11th of his famous 12 labors: procuring the Golden Apples of the Hesperides (Salapata, 2021), but he instead finds Monkey holding the fruit—food meant for his master, Tripitaka. Heracles demands the apple at sword-point, but he quickly discerns that the produce he’s been given was created from a magic hair. This leads to a deadly confrontation.
As I explain in my analysis of the episode, I initially liked how the fight began because both characters are known for stealing fruit in their respective mythologies (see no. 12 in my article listing their parallels). But in hindsight, this didn’t make much sense for two reasons. First, the golden apples are located in a land much further west than India, the scripture-pilgrims’ final destination in JTTW. Monkey could have easily gone to a location closer to their resting spot. And second, having the heroes meet during their respective adventures creates a temporal paradox since both are active at different times—late-Greek bronze age (c. 3000–1000 BCE) vs the early-Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). Therefore, in the end, the idea is very forced. But what would be a more natural way for the Son of Zeus and the Great Sage Equaling Heaven to come to blows?
This article proposes a more organic reason for conflict via a story idea based on elements from JTTW, Greek myth, Greco-Buddhist art, and Buddhist literature. But take note that the encounter is NOT meant to be a death battle. Remember that the rest of the journey still needs to take place.
Fig. 1 – The official thumbnail for the episode (larger version). Image found here.
1. Background
My pitch is an offshoot of a previous story idea. It follows the historical Xuanzang (玄奘, 602–664 CE) (on whom Tripitaka is based) on his quest for sutras through Central Asia and India, including years-long periods of study. While the original novel sees Daoism practiced by Chinese-speaking people as far away as the Western Continent (i.e. India), this wouldn’t be the case in the real world. Therefore, changes would have to be made to the narrative, such as the appearance of foreign gods outside of the Middle Kingdom. But as I noted in the original article, it would be a lot easier to include the devas of Buddhism (e.g. Shakra, Brahma, Heavenly Kings, etc.) since the religion was practiced throughout the areas traveled by Xuanzang. This, however, wouldn’t exclude gods from other pantheons like Heracles.
1.1. History
Now, I can already hear my readers asking, “How could Heracles possibly be associated with the gods of Buddhism?” Well, the first Greeks arrived in Central Asia and India during the reign of Darius the Great (550–486 BCE) and later Alexander the Great (356–323 BCE). And just like American Gods, these soldiers, merchants, artisans, and farmers brought their religion with them. The convergence of these two cultures eventually resulted in the demi-god appearing alongside Tathagata in the 1st to 3rd century CE Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara (modern day NW Pakistan to E and NE Afghanistan) (fig. 2). The Greek hero takes the place of the Buddha’s loyal protector, the yaksha-turned-dharma guardian Vajrapani (Sk: वज्रपाणि, lit: “Vajra [Thunderbolt] in hand”; Ch: Jingang shou pusa, 金剛手菩薩, lit: “Bodhisattva holding the vajra”). (I have to say that Heracles’ association with the thunderbolt is super fascinating given who his father is.) In fact, the common image of Vajrapani as a muscular, club-wielding deva in East Asia (fig. 3) is directly linked to his depiction as Heracles in Gandharan art! (See the 12-28-2025 update for one more of Heracles’ ties to India.)
I won’t go into further detail here since I’ve already taken the liberty of archiving papers on the subject in preparation for this article:
Fig. 2 – Detail of a stone carving of the Buddha preaching while Heracles-Vajrapani watches over him, Gandhara, 2nd or 3rd century CE, Schist (larger version). He wields a gada mace in his right hand and holds a bone-like vajra-club in the left. Adapted from an image found here. Copyright the Trustees of the British Museum. Fig. 3 – A Tang-era painting of Vajrapani, Dunhuang, Gansu Province, China, mid-9th to early-10th century CE, ink and colors on silk (larger version). Take note of his muscular physique and wispy beard. The vajra-club in his left hand is obscured by his leg. Image found here. Copyright the Trustees of the British Museum. See here for a Tang-era painting of Vajrapani with a visible club.
1.2. Literature and Folklore
Sun Wukong and Vajrapani have technically met before. For example, in the 13th century CE version of the JTTW story cycle, the Great Sage’s antecedent, the “Monkey Pilgrim” (Hou xingzhe, 猴行者), changes his magic staff into the dharma warrior while facing a white tiger spirit:
Monkey Pilgrim transformed his golden-ringed staff into a gigantic Yakşa whose head touched the sky and whose feet straddled the earth. In his hands he grasped a demon-subduing cudgel [jiangmochu, 降魔杵]. His body was blue as indigo, his hair red as cinnabar; from his mouth a fiery gleam shot forth over one thousand feet long” (based on Wivell, 1994, p. 1189). [1]
The titan eventually crushes her with his weapon (Wivell, 1994, p. 1189). The “demon-subduing cudgel” is another name for Vajrapani’s vajra-thunderbolt.
Also, the Monkey King interacts with Vajra warriors (Jingang, 金剛) related to Vajrapani numerous times in the standard 1592 CE JTTW. In chapter 52, his way is momentarily barred by the “Eight Great Vajras” (Ba da jingang, 八大金剛) when he seeks an unannounced audience with the Buddha (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 24). [2] In chapter 58, the eight warriors fail to stop Wukong and his doppelganger when they fight to the Western Paradise seeking Tathagata’s wisdom to distinguish one from the other (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 114). After the Bull Demon King is captured in chapter 61, the Great Sage gathers the “Four Great Vajras” (Si da jingang, 四大金剛) and a host of other gods to confront Princess Iron Fan (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 161). In chapter 77, the four warriors once again momentarily bar his way when he seeks an audience with the Buddha (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, pp. 27-28). In chapter 98, the four warriors welcome Tripitaka and his companions, including Monkey, upon their arrival to the Western Paradise (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, p. 347). Later in the same chapter, the Buddha charges the eight warriors with transporting the clerics on a cloud to hasten the completion of their mission and return to paradise (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, p. 357). But after being ordered to prematurely drop off the pilgrims, leading to Tripitaka’s 81st tribulation, the eight warriors reappear sometime later to complete the trip to China (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, p. 369). And finally, in chapter 100, the eight warriors spirit them back to the Western Paradise to receive their otherworldly reward (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, p. 380).
In addition, Sun Wukong and Vajrapani are associated with each other in Shaolin Monastery lore. The latter was historically worshiped as the progenitor of their famous staff method. A stele erected by Shaolin abbot Wenzai in 1517 CE shows that the deity’s vajra-club had been changed at some point to a Chinese staff (fig. 4) (Shahar, 2008, p. 84). Vajrapani’s yaksha-like Narayana (Naluoyan(tian), 那羅延(天)) form was eventually equated with one of the four staff-wielding “Kimnara Kings” (Jinnaluo wang, 緊那羅王) from the Lotus Sutra in 1575 CE. His name was thus changed from Narayana to Kimnara King (Shahar, 2008, p. 87). One version of the story about his creation of the staff method takes place during the Yuan Dynasty‘s Red Turban Rebellion (1351–1368 CE). Bandits lay siege to the monastery, but it is saved by a lowly kitchen worker wielding a long fire poker as a makeshift staff. He leaps into the oven and emerges as a monstrous giant tall enough to straddle both Mount Song and the imperial fort atop Mount Shaoshi, which are five miles (8.046 km) apart. The bandits flee when they behold this staff-wielding titan. The Shaolin monks later realize that the kitchen worker was none other than the Kimnara King in disguise (Shahar, 2008, pp. 87-88). Shahar (2008) suggests that mythical elements of the story were borrowed from the Monkey King’s adventures. He compares the worker’s transformation in the stove with Sun’s time in Laozi’s Eight Trigrams furnace (Bagua lu, 八卦爐), their use of the staff, and the fact that Monkey and his weapon can both grow to gigantic proportions (Shahar, 2008, p. 109). [3]
Therefore, given the above information, it’s not a stretch to have the two heroes meet in a fanfiction.
Fig. 4 – An ink rubbing of the 1517 CE Shaolin stele showing a titanic Vajrapani defending the monastery from rebels (larger version). From Shahar, 2008, p. 84.
2. Story Idea
I’ve added in-text notes in this section to provide readers with extra context. This way, you won’t have to scroll to the endnotes at the bottom.
Buddhist tradition describes Tathagata visiting the devas to preach the dharma (Buswell & Lopez, 2014, p. 235). With the presence of Greeks in Central and South Asia, I imagine he would also visit the Olympian gods who had gained some influence in the region. These friendly interactions would lead Zeus to assign Heracles to guard the Enlightened One (fig. 5), thereby forming a link between the Greek and Buddhist pantheons (and explaining the aforementioned art).
Here is where one of many changes to the standard 1592 CE JTTW story happens. In chapter six of the original, the bodhisattva Guanyin recommends that the demi-god Erlang battle the Monkey King after the latter had defeated many of heaven’s greatest warriors (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 178). In our tale, she instead endorses the demi-god-turned-deity Heracles-Vajrapani (“HV” hereafter). [A]
A) The Son of Zeus became a full-blown god upon his death. After being exposed to a tunic soaked with poisonous hydra blood, Heracles sought release from the immense pain by jumping into a funeral pyre. But the flaming structure was shortly thereafter struck by lightning, signaling his rise to godhood (Romero-Gonzalez, 2021, pp. 273-276). This, of course, takes place hundreds of years before he becomes the protector of the Buddha.
Fig. 5 – A lovely digital painting of Heracles traveling with the Buddha (larger version). By Jacob King (deviantart). Used with permission. Image found here.
(I don’t consider myself a competent story writer, so please look at the following events and dialogue as conceptual in nature. I’m sure a seasoned writer could do the narrative more justice.)
Similar to the standard narrative, the monkey-soldiers of Wukong’s army notify him that heaven has sent another challenger. He emerges from his cave fully armored to see HV for the first time. Like the original, this might be followed by a poem describing the enemy; in this case, a large, muscular, bearded warrior wearing a lion skin and wielding a flaming vajra-club.
[Insert insults from both sides, including the Son of Zeus calling Monkey a “young rogue,” which naturally pisses him off. [B] HV also describes his godly heritage, which is alien to Monkey since he’s not familiar with the Greek pantheon.]
B) The Great Sage has a habit of claiming to be older than the various gods, immortals, spirits, and humans he meets—whether it’s true or not in the first three cases (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 413, for example). This is exemplified by his self-given nickname “(Maternal/Paternal) Grandpa Sun” (Sun waigong, 孫外公; Sun Yeye, 孫爺爺). But within the story’s timeline, Heracles is indeed hundreds of years older. Writing around 430 BCE, the Greek historian Herodotus claimed that the Son of Zeus lived roughly 900 years before him, placing the demi-god’s life sometime around 1330 BCE. The Greek hero would, therefore, be active around 830 or more years prior to the birth of Wukong.
The pair take part in a battle of weapons, with Wukong wielding his magic staff and HV his vajra-club. (The earth quakes, gods tremble, etc.). HV’s powerful strikes push our hero back, causing his staff to painfully vibrate in his hands [C] and create a deafening ringing noise with each hit. Monkey would have a running internal monologue noting the great force of his opponent’s attacks. But despite this, the Great Sage continues driving forward, his weapon hardly leaving the area around HV’s head. [D] At one point, though, a glancing strike from the Greco-Buddhist hero redirects the staff, creating an opening. HV brings his vajra-club down hard on Monkey, but instead of dodging, the latter jerks his head upwards, butting away his opponent’s holy weapon with a loud, metallic bang. [E] The combined forces from the attack and defense might cause destruction to the surrounding area.
C) It may seem impossible for the staff to painfully vibrate in Wukong’s hands, but this indeed happens once in the novel. In JTTW chapter 20, he attempts to bludgeon a tiger-spirit, but when “the rod bounce[s] back up and his hands [a]re stung by the impact” (… 轉震得自己手疼), he learns it was just a big stone covered with the fiend’s sloughed off skin (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 403).
D) The phrase “hardly leaving the monster’s head” is twice used (here and here) to describe Wukong’s supreme mastery of the staff in JTTW chapters 41 and 67 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 224; vol. 3, p. 249).
E) The feat of headbutting the weapon serves two purposes. First, it’s a response to this 2020 DEATH BATTLE! fanon wiki fan script that sees Hercules win by smashing the primate immortal’s head to a pulp with his club. (This attack carried over into the official episode, too.) The ending betrays the author’s extremely limited knowledge of JTTW. In the original, the Great Sage’s head is one of the hardest parts of his body, giving him the confidence to voluntarily take blows to the scalp from even magic, bladed weapons with no harm (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 314, 383-384, and 408; vol. 2, p. 128; vol. 3, pp. 125 and 373). And two, it highlights the correlation between the invulnerability of Monkey and the Nemean Lion, the first labor of Heracles (March, 2021). Regarding the ending of the fan script, one version of the original mythology sees the Son of Zeus break his olive club over the lion’s head because of how tough its hide is (March, 2021, p. 34).
The novel gives at least three reasons for the Great Sage’s invulnerability. After heaven fails to execute him with bladed weapons and fire and lightning in JTTW chapter 7, Laozi suggests that all of the immortal foodstuff previously consumed by our hero had been refined by his own samadhi fire (sanmei huo, 三昧火), a spiritual flame in the lower abdomen, thus giving him a “diamond body” (jingang zhi qu, 金鋼之軀) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 188). Wukong himself later attributes his adamantine nature to his time in the high god’s furnace. In JTTW chapter 34, for example, he claims to have developed a heart of gold, viscera of silver, a head of bronze, and a back of iron (among other things) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 131). This is refuted in JTTW chapter 75 when he claims to have been born with a head of bronze and iron that was further refined by the furnace (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 374).
Stunned from the powerful blow, [F] Monkey stumbles around holding his head for a moment but raises his weapon in defense when he sees HV approaching. However, instead of attacking, the Greco-Buddhist warrior pauses combat by raising a hand in front of him. “What a skull!” he exclaims while clapping. “And no hint of blood! I reckon your hide is as tough as a monstrous beast I once fought. [G] Truly impressive! And your staff technique is masterful! Who trained you?”
F) This references how the Nemean Lion was blinded by pain after the blow (March, 2021, p. 34).
G) This reference is obvious.
“I have no teacher. [H] I alone trained my mind and body for three years.” [I]
H) This refers to Wukong’s promise to never reveal the Buddho-Daoist sage, Patriarch Subodhi, as his teacher under threat of karmic torture in the underworld (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 125).
I) This is the length of time that he spends as an indoor disciple of Subodhi (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 121).
“A prodigy!” exclaims HV. “But how good is your boxing and wrestling?”
“Ol’ Monkey can handle himself.”
“Let’s see if that’s true. How about we have a friendly sparring match, a test of heroic strength and skill? No weapons and no pesky magic tricks. Agreed?”
Wukong quickly agrees and inserts his shrunken staff into his ear before stripping off his armor from the waist up to match HV’s exposed muscles. (HV somehow magically stores his holy vajra-club.) The two then square up and launch forward, locking hands and pushing against the other, causing the ground beneath them to tremble and split.
“Extraordinary!” says HV. “How can such a small creature be so powerful?! [J] Were you born of the gods?
J) Many people often forget that Monkey’s normal form is less than 4-Chinese feet (121.92 cm) tall (see here).
“No, I was born from a stone.”
“Oh, like the stone titan and stone goddess! [K] No wonder you achieved this level of strength in such a short time. You have so much raw potential. Why cause trouble for such petty reasons?” [L]
K) These are Ullikumi and Agdistis, two powerful, rebellious, stone-born deities from Western myth (see sections 2.1 & 2.4 here). Referencing the former shows that HV is aware of the Near Eastern pantheon.
It’s interesting to note that lithic births are at least common enough in world myth to have earned a category in Stith Thompson’s Motif-Index of Folk-Literature: “Birth from rock” (T544.1).
L) This refers to Wukong’s rebellion over being given the lowest-ranking position in the Daoist heaven.
[Insert Wukong’s reply. They continue to converse during the battle.]
(This might be a good place to introduce some comedy. HV keeps referencing gods and monsters from other pantheons, making Monkey more and more frustrated:
“What the hell is wrong with you?! I … DON’T … KNOW … THESE … PEOPLE!!! [said in a slow, patronizing voice])
The Great Sage’s internal monologue comments on HV’s diamond grip and the great pressure of his punches. But our hero’s keen eyes notice openings in HV’s defense, allowing him to land blow after blow. However, with each successful attack comes praises from HV. Stinging rib shot. “Good, good!” Cutting elbow strike to the face. “Excellent!” Crushing body slam. “Amazing!”
“Why do you keep lauding me? I’m winning!”
“That would certainly be the case … if we were equals.”
“What do you mean?!”
Smiling, HV explains, “I’ve been testing you. [M] You found all of the openings I offered you, even some that I didn’t intend to because I was apparently too focused on judging your technique! [N] You are a talent the likes of which I’ve never seen before. Thank Father Zeus [or Buddha]! The student I’ve been looking for has finally appeared! Forsake this frivolous rebellion and return with me to the Western Paradise. I promise with my tutelage, you will become one of the greatest warriors of any pantheon!”
M) Perhaps HV decides to test the Great Sage when he sees how well the small primate responds to his opening strikes.
N) It just occurred to me that since the Subodhi appearing in this more realistic version of the story is the historical figure he’s based on, Subhuti, one of the Buddha’s ten principal disciples, the patriarch had to have trained under someone during Tathagata’s lifetime. And considering that HV was the Enlightened One’s bodyguard, perhaps Subhuti learned a little from the Greco-Buddhist hero—apart from other deities, holy men, and warriors, including the Buddha, a member of the Kshatriya class. An interesting implication is that HV would recognize (his or an ally’s) techniques among Wukong’s armed and unarmed attacks or defenses, thereby alerting him that Monkey’s claim of having no master is false. Yet, he would still be supremely impressed that the Great Sage became such a powerful, competent fighter in just three short years.
Fun fact: according to Theocritus, Heracles learned boxing and wrestling from the grim-looking demi-god Harpalycus, son of Hermes (Pache, 2021, p. 10). Apollodorus instead claims his teacher was Autolycus (2.4.9), also a son of Hermes.
“I think you’re full of shit! Ol’ Monkey is whittling away at you, and you’re just trying to talk your way out of it.”
“Well, my offer stands,” HV replies calmly, “but now that I’ve had my fun, it’s time to finish this.”
“Finish what, you bastard?!” Wukong screams in anger. He then unleashes a tornado of powerful punches, kicks, and knee and elbow strikes. But this time they have no effect on the Son of Zeus because he’s no longer playing along.
I’m not quite sure what the next sequence of events would be since I have zero experience choreographing fight scenes, especially between celestial warriors. Perhaps HV displays his true power by running Monkey headfirst through the side of a mountain with an outstretched arm, similar to how the comic book character Omni-Man uses his son, Invincible, like a wedge to slice through an oncoming subway train [warning: gore]. This feat alone would surely cause the primate immortal to question how his opponent’s strength has seemingly increased exponentially. [O] (But upon reflection, this deed seems lacking considering that Wukong himself is shown capable of carrying two mountains while running with great speed. Hopefully someone can suggest a feat for HV that would amaze even the Great Sage.)
O) This, of course, proves that HV was holding back. It’s important to note that in Buddhist literature, the original Vajrapani is considered the “physical manifestation of the … power … of all the Buddhas” (Buswell & Lopez, 2014, p. 955). Now imagine how much stronger HV would be than Monkey! Apart from his own godly heritage, I guess in my version of JTTW, HV would gain an unfathomable boost in power from serving as the protector and disciple of the Buddha, exposing him to the dharma for centuries—during Tathagata’s lifetime and afterlife following his parinirvana (figs. 6 & 7). This is similar to how the scorpion-demoness becomes so strong in JTTW chapter 55 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 72). But HV would be well beyond even her.
I guess the Great Sage would hold off on using magic up to this point as a matter of pride, but maybe his hand is forced when faced with such oppressive strength. Like in the original, he might resort to his magic hairs, summoning hundreds of tiny clones in the hopes of overwhelming the Son of Zeus. [P] However, the Greco-Buddhist warrior quickly neutralizes these—possibly by clapping his hands together and creating a shockwave that blows them away [Q] and destroys the surrounding area—pressuring our hero to take other measures. Maybe Monkey frantically cycles through one trick after another but ultimately fails to best his opponent (see the 10-26-25 update below). (It would be fascinating to see how HV deals with Wukong’s three-headed, six-armed war form—surely eliciting comparisons to Geryon [R].)
To these breaches of their agreement, HV responds with something like, “Magic? You disappoint me.”
[Insert Monkey’s response.]
P) Monkey competes in hand-to-hand combat in JTTW chapters two and 51, and each time he resorts to hair clones when things get out of hand (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 128-129; vol. 3, pp. 12-13).
Q) The hair clones can indeed be blown away, as shown by the Yellow Wind Demon in JTTW chapter 21 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 409-410).
R) Thank you to a beta reader of this article for reminding me about Geryon. He is sometimes described as having or depicted with three conjoined bodies, complete with three heads and six arms like Monkey (fig. 8) (Finglass, 2021).
Fig. 6 (Top) – A degraded stone carving depicting the parinirvana of the Buddha, Gandhara, 2nd to 3rd-century CE, Schist (larger version). HV is the first person from the left on the bottom row. He holds his vajra-club in one hand and upraises the other in lamentation. He has an exposed torso, showing off his muscles, in place of his signature lionskin. Housed in the British Museum. Adapted from an image found on Wikimedia Commons. Copyright Marie-Lan Nguyen. Fig. 7 (Bottom Left) – Detail of HV (larger version). Fig. 8 (Bottom Right) – Heracles vs Geryon, Attic black figure on Amphora vase, mid-6th century BCE (larger version). Housed in the Musée du Louvre, Paris. This is an upscaled version of an image found here. Copyright www.theoi.com.
Ideally, given the parallels between Wukong and the Nemean lion—both are fierce mythological animals, have invulnerable hides, can change shape, [S] and fight someone who is/was a demi-god (Erlang vs Heracles)—I would like to see HV maneuver to Monkey’s back and get him in a chokehold, thereby mimicking how the big cat was originally defeated. [T] But instead of killing the Great Sage, he only intends to choke him to unconsciousness (see the 10-26-25 update below). [U] And to make matters worse, as the primate immortal fades towards blacking out, he by chance witnesses his beloved monkey army being routed and captured by celestial forces, like the standard version (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 182). This causes him to lose heart and flee HV’s powerful arms by changing into an intangible ball of light or gust of wind. [V]
S) Matyszak (2015) states that the lion would sometimes take the form of kidnapped women (that it had presumably already eaten) in order to lure unsuspecting heroes into its cave (pp. 46-47). Dr. Matyszak tells me that “it’s not part of the core myth” but “later Roman and Byzantine authors do mention it” (personal communication, October 17, 2025).
T) I really like the ending of Theocritus’ description of the fight:
[After hitting him over the head with a club,] I threw my bow and stitched quiver to the ground, and before he could recover and turn on me again, I grabbed him by the scruff of his powerful neck. Gripping him firmly, I strangled him with my strong hands, tackling him from behind to stop him scratching me with his claws. Standing on his hind paws, I pressed them hard to the ground with my heels and controlled his flanks with my thighs, until I could lift him up lifeless in my arms and lay him out. And mighty Hades took his spirit (March, 2021, p. 34).
U) Someone might claim that it would be impossible to choke out Monkey since he’s a spiritual being, but it’s important to remember that the novel humanizes supernatural figures in order to make them more relatable. For instance, in JTTW chapter 65, Wukong claims that he will die from the lack of air inside of a sealed Buddhist treasure-weapon if he isn’t soon released (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 217). However, I think a blood choke would be more dignified and less dangerous for our hero.
V) Wukong escapes in the form of a ball of light in JTTW chapters 34 and 42 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, pp. 126 and 241). And he turns into a gust of wind to follow a foe in JTTW chapter 60 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 140). This could easily be used to escape as well.
A beta reader suggested that I work Erlang and his sworn brothers back into the story. They could track down and capture Monkey. But however the situation is resolved, this would lead to the events of the original story: his failed execution, his sentence to Laozi’s furnace, his escape and wager with Buddha, his imprisonment beneath Five Elements Mountain, and his eventual release to go on the journey. And since Wukong comes into contact with Erlang once more and the Vajra warriors several times in the standard version, [W] he would likely meet HV again during the pilgrimage. The Son of Zeus might even comment on his positive change in character as Tripitaka’s disciple and protector.
W) The Great Sage meets Erlang again in chapter 63 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, pp. 187-191). Regarding Vajra warriors, refer back to section 1.2.
Two beta readers were disappointed by the ending because they didn’t think HV could defeat the Great Sage. As a longtime uberfan of Monkey myself, I understand that sentiment, but they should remember that this is not just the Heracles of Greco-Roman myth, who’s immensely powerful in his own right, able to support the sky on his shoulders in one myth (Salapata, 2021, p. 152). He’s an amalgam of the Greek hero and the Buddha’s protector. Recall that Vajrapani is considered the embodiment of all the Tathagatas’ power (refer back to note O). And If the dharma of one Buddha can easily defeat Monkey (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 195 and 199), a being endowed with the power of ALL of them should have no problem subduing our favorite primate immortal.
I feel like this idea has so much potential, but I lack the experience or talent to do it justice here. Hopefully, readers will see through the lackluster description to understand the promise of greatness that it holds. Please let me know if any of you are interested in fleshing out this tale.
Lastly, while finishing this section, I came upon a fun coincidence: ancient Greco-Buddhist stone carvings with HV, the Buddha, and … a monkey (figs. 9 & 10)! They depict “The Monkey Offering Honey (to the Buddha)” (Ch: Mihou xianmi, 獼猴獻蜜; Mihou fengmi, 獼猴奉蜜), a tale from the Tathagata’s lifetime where a primate selflessly offered him honey but shortly thereafter fell and died via drowning or impalement. Thankfully, though, the primate was reborn into the deva realm (Van der Geer, 2022, pp. 439-440). [W] The carvings depict HV watching over the Enlightened One during this event.
Perhaps, based on these images, HV tells Wukong at some point during the confrontation that he reminds him of someone from the past. (Fanfic theory: could the Great Sage be a reincarnation?)
W) The historical Xuanzang mentions a version of this story where the primate is later reborn as a human (Li, 1996/2017, p. 106). He adds that the area where the offering originally happened hosts images of monkeys (mihou xingxiang, 獼猴形像) next to a water tank or pond supposedly dug by a group of them for the Enlightened One (Li, 1996/2017, p. 184). [4]
Fig. 9 (Left) – Detail of a stone doorway fragment with two stacked carvings illustrating “The Monkey Offering Honey (to the Buddha)” story, Gandhara, 1st to 3rd-century CE, Schist (larger version). The upper scene portrays the primate asking for a bowl, while the lower depicts the offering of honey. HV is present in both: first from the left on the top and first from the right on the bottom. He lacks his beard and lionskin but wields his signature weapon. The extra person photobombing the lower scene may be Ananda. Fig. 10 (Right) – The full stone doorway fragment portraying various events from the Tathagata’s life (larger version). Housed in the Guimet Museum, Paris, France. Adapted from an image found on Wikimedia Commons. Copyright Marie-Lan Nguyen.
3. Sequel
A continuation of the story would open where the original leaves off: after the scripture-pilgrims are elevated in spiritual rank, Tathagata charges HV with escorting the Victorious Fighting Buddha (i.e. Sun Wukong; fig. 11) through the Greek world-system. Imagine the kind of adventures Monkey would have as a Buddha interacting with Classical gods and monsters! It would definitely be a great way of introducing East Asian people to the wonders of Greek myth.
I really like the idea of HV visiting his old pantheon as his vajra is analogous to Zeus’ thunderbolt. Seeing a father-son lightning competition would be great!
Also, as I’ve discussed elsewhere, Wukong and Poseidon could bond over their shared love of horses.
Fig. 11 – Wukong as the Victorious Fighting Buddha (larger version). Imagery based on the iconography of the historical Yuddhajaya Buddha. Art by NingadudeXx.
3.1. Commissioned Art
I have commissioned some illustrators to draw Monkey in ancient Greek style as an experiment to see what he might look like through the lens of Hellenistic artisans.
Fig. 12 – The Victorious Fighting Buddha (larger version). Pencil, fineliners, and alcohol markers on paper. Art by tr0chanter (Instagram and Twitter).
Fig. 13 – Heracles vs Monkey (larger version). Pencil and markers on paper. Art by Dario Virga (Onibotokemaru on Instagram), a friend of the blog. Each character is labeled with their name in Greek. Heracles is “Ἡρακλῆς,” while the Great Sage is “Pithekos” (πῐ́θηκος), meaning “ape, monkey, trickster, or dwarf.” Wukong’s Greek name is very fitting. It’s also part of the modern scientific name for Old world monkeys (Cercopithecoidea).
Fig. 14 – Heracles vs Sun Wukong (larger version). Digital. Art by Jacob King (Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr). I love the cracks.
4. Fanfiction
I can already predict fanfiction set in an alternate timeline where Monkey accepts HV’s offer to become his teacher. The Son of Zeus would spend time instructing Wukong on advanced techniques of boxing, wrestling, and weapons. This, of course, would be taught in tandem with spiritual cultivation. The training might be in preparation for a fighting tournament between the disciples of gods from all pantheons, kind of like Record of Ragnarok (Jp: Shūmatsu no Warukyūre, 終末のワルキューレ; lit. “Doomsday Valkyrie”; fig. 15). The contestants could be fighting for permission to start their own pantheon, thereby becoming a “Sky Father” (Sk: Dyaus-pitr, द्यौष्पितृ; Ch: Tianshang fuqin, 天上父親). (Maybe the long-established Sky Fathers share some of their divine spark to kickstart the new world-system.) I REALLY like this idea, but it wouldn’t work for my own purposes since, as stated above, Wukong would still need to go on the journey.
Perhaps the prize could be the chance to help mankind since one of the reasons that Tripitaka is asked to quest for sutras is because they will help free untold numbers of orphaned souls from the torments of hell (see JTTW chapters 11 and 12). Therefore, the tournament would essentially be a contest to see who will be the Tang Monk’s protector. I don’t really like this idea, but it at least supports the original narrative. The Great Sage would win, of course, but he has to agree to have his extraordinary powers (and memories of the tournament) sealed as a test of his resolve or devotion. And his subsequent enlightenment would be the reward for his great deeds performed on the journey.
Fig. 15 – Promotional art for Record of Ragnarok (larger version). Image found here.
Update: 10-11-25
I’ve seen people claim online that Sun Wukong would easily defeat Heracles because the latter’s feats are not as grand as the former. To this, I counter that the deeds of both heroes shouldn’t be compared, for they serve difference purposes. I don’t know of any feats of speed for Heracles, but Monkey’s famous ability to fly 108,000 li (33,554 mi / 54,000 km) in a single cloud somersault is an allegory for instant enlightenment (as explained in section III here). [5] And his feat of carrying two Buddhist mountains on his shoulders is likely an allegory for the Great Sage “supporting” the religion by protecting his master on the quest for sutras (as I suggest here). The deeds of Heracles, however, were probably meant as actual displays of brute strength. For instance, ancient Greek men on lion hunts may have drawn inspiration and courage from the demi-god’s defeat of the Nemean Lion. [6]
Update: 10-26-25
Above, I wrote that “[m]aybe Monkey frantically cycles through one trick after another” in a failed bid to win, and I later added, “I would like to see HV maneuver to Monkey’s back and get him in a chokehold.” Well, I’m happy to report that I’ve found a mythic way to combine these. The Bibliotheca of Pseudo-Apollodorus describes Heracles’s grip tiring out a shape-shifting sea god:
And going on foot through Illyria and hastening to the river Eridanus he came to the nymphs, the daughters of Zeus and Themis. They revealed Nereus to him, and Hercules seized him while he slept, and though the god turned himself into all kinds of shapes, the hero bound him [with his arms (fig. 16)] and did not release him till he had learned from him where were the apples and the Hesperides (2.5.11).
Matyszak (2015) calls this binding a “Herculean head-lock” (p. 150). Therefore, in our story, Wukong cycles through all manner of transformations but can’t break free from HV’s grip! Then he loses heart and flees when he sees his children captured (as mentioned previously).
Fig. 16 – Heracles wrestling Nereus/Triton (larger version). From an 1894 drawing of a circa 550 BCE Attic Black-figure Kylix. Image found on Wikimedia Commons. For the original, see here.
Update: 10-29-25
I’ve also found a mythic reason for why Heracles would be sent away from Olympus to protect Buddha. Matyszak (2015) explains that the Son of Zeus didn’t want to become an official member of the Twelve Olympians because this would have forced someone out of the group:
Some felt that the mighty deeds of Hercules entitled him to the status of a full Olympian God. However, the number of Olympians was limited to the sacred number of twelve, and in a rare moment of diplomacy Hercules declined to take an honour that would have first to be stripped from someone else. (Dionysus, the God of Wine was less bashful. He bumped Hestia, Goddess of the Home, off the Olympian high table when his time came to be made divine.) (p. 200)
So instead of taking an Olympian’s spot, Heracles decides to accept a position within the Buddhist pantheon as the Tathagata’s protector.
Update: 12-02-25
I have found the specific passage alluded to by Matyszak (2015) in the previous update. In book four of his Library of History (c. 60 to 30 BCE), Diodorus Siculus writes:
[4.39.4] They report of Heracles further that Zeus enrolled him among the twelve gods but that he would not accept this honour; for it was impossible for him thus to be enrolled unless one of the twelve gods were first cast out; hence in his eyes it would be monstrous for him to accept an honour which involved depriving another god of his honour (source).
Update: 12-28-25
Above in section 1.1, I mentioned that Heracles appeared in Greco-Buddhist art alongside the Buddha. Well, this is not the demi-god’s only tie to the region. Writing in his Indica, Megasthenes (d. 290 BCE), a Greek diplomat to South Asia, claims a local tradition states that Heracles was a home-born son of India who made his seven year old daughter queen of a southern region named after her (i.e. the Pandya Dynasty). And because no suitor could even be his equal, the Son of Zeus is said to have … impregnated the child (ewwwwwwwwwwww) in order to spawn a line of kings. All of this supposedly happened just prior to his death. [7]
Barring the incest, it would be neat to add the daughter into the story somewhere. She could be tied to the three Indian princess from JTTW chapter 88 (as discussed here).
Notes:
1) Translation changed slightly. Although the English reads “a hundred yards,” the original Chinese says “100 zhang” (bai zhang, 百丈). One zhang is ten Chinese feet, or roughly 10.43 ft (3.18 m) (Jiang, 2005, p. xxxi). Therefore, 100 zhang would be 1,043 ft (314 m).
2) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates jingang (金剛) as “Diamond Guardians” (vol. 3, p. 24, for example). I’m changing it to just Vajra since the term can mean both “lightning” and “diamond.” I don’t want to confuse anyone.
3) Yes, this information comes from Wikipedia, but I’m the one who originally added it under the screenname “Ghostexorcist.” See this edit history, for example.
4) The English translation just says “tank” (Li, 1996/2017, p. 184), but the original Chinese word chi (池) can also mean “pond.”
5) The li (里) is a Chinese measurement of distance. English works usually translate it as “mile.” However, it equals roughly 1/3rd of a mile or 1/2 of a kilometer.
6) Herodotus mentions mountain lions attacking the caravan camels of Xerxes on his route through Greece (The Histories, 7.125–126). If such thing routinely happened to local travelers, this would have affected regular lion hunts. And this 16th-century BCE Minoan blade suggests that lion hunts go back centuries.
7) Here is a translation of the relevant passages:
B9. Flavius Arrianus: Indika VIII: 4-IX: 12
Heracles, however, who is currently reported to have come [as a stranger] into the country, is said to have been in reality a native of India. This Heracles is held in especial honour by the Sourasenoi, an Indian tribe who possess two large cities, Methora and Cleisobora, and through whose country flows a navigable river called the Iobares. But the dress which this Heracles wore, Megasthenés tells us, resembled that of the Theban Heracles, as the Indians themselves admit. It is further said that he had a very numerous progeny of male children born to him in India (for, [like his Theban namesake,] he married many wives), but that he had only one daughter. The name of this child was Pandaia, and the land in which she was born, and with the sovereignty of which Heracles entrusted her, was called after her name, Pandaia, and she received from the hands of her father 500 elephants, a force of cavalry 4000 strong, and another of infantry consisting of about 130,000 men. Some Indian [writers] say further of Heracles that when he was going over the world and ridding land and sea of whatever evil monsters infested them, he found in the sea an ornament for women, [(which even to this day the Indian traders who bring us their wares eagerly buy up and carry away to foreign markets, while it is even more eagerly bought up by the wealthy Romans of to-day, as it was wont to be by the wealthy Greeks long ago)]. This article is the sea-pearl, called in the Indian tongue margarita. But Heracles, it is said, appreciating its beauty as a wearing ornament, caused it to be brought from all the sea into India, that he might adorn with it the person of his daughter.
[…]
IX. Now in that part of the country where the daughter of Heracles reigned as a queen, it is said that the women when seven years old are of marriageable age, and that the men live at most forty years, and that on this subject there is a tradition current among the Indians to the effect that Heracles, whose daughter was born to him late in life, when he saw that his end was near, and he knew no man his equal in rank to whom he could give her in marriage, had incestuous intercourse with the girl when she was seven years of age, in order that a race of kings sprung from their common blood might be left to rule over India; that Heracles therefore made her of suitable age for marriage, and that in consequence the whole nation over which Pandaia reigned obtained this same privilege from her father (pp. 63 and 65).
[…]
B 12. Polyænus: Strateg. I: 3: 4
Heracles begot a daughter in India whom he called Pandaia. To her he assigned that portion of India which lies to southward and extends to the sea, while he distributed the people subject to her rule into 365 villages, giving orders that one village should each day bring to the treasury the royal tribute, so that the queen might always have the assistance of those men whose turn it was to pay the tribute in coercing those who for the time being were defaulters in their payments (Dahlquist, 1962, p. 67).
Sources:
Buswell, R. E., & Lopez, D. S. (2014). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Dahlquist, A. (1962). Megasthenes and Indian Religion: A Study in Motives and Types. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell.
Finglass, P. J. (2021). LABOR X: The Cattle of Geryon and the Return from Tartessus. In D. Ogden (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Heracles (pp. 135-148). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Jiang, Y. (2005). The Great Ming Code / Da Ming Lu. Vancouver, Wa: University of Washington Press.
Li, R. (Trans.) (2017). The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western Regions. Berkeley, CA: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research. (Original work published 1996) Retrieved from https://www.bdkamerica.org/product/the-great-tang-dynasty-record-of-the-western-regions/
March, J. (2021). LABOR I: The Nemean Lion. In D. Ogden (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Heracles (pp. 29-44). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Matyszak, P. (2015). Hercules: The First Superhero (An Unauthorized Biography). Canada: Monashee Mountain Publishing.
Pache, C. (2021). Birth and Childhood. In D. Ogden (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Heracles (pp. 3-12). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Romero-Gonzalez, D. (2021). Deianeira, Death, and Apotheosis. In D. Ogden (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Heracles (pp. 266-280). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Salapata, G. (2021). LABOR XI: The Apples of Hesperides. In D. Ogden (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Heracles (pp. 149-164). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Shahar, M. (2008). The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press.
Van der Geer, A. A. E. (2022). The Great Monkey King: Carvings of Primates in Indian Religious Architecture (pp. 431-455). In B. Urbani, D. Youlatos, & A. Antczak (Eds.), World Archaeoprimatology: Interconnections of Humans and Nonhuman Primates in the Past. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.
Wivell, C.S. (1994). The Story of How the Monk Tripitaka of the Great Country of T’ang Brought Back the Sūtras. In V. Mair (Ed.), The Columbia Anthology of Traditional Chinese Literature (pp. 1181-1207). New York: Columbia University Press.
Wu, C., & Yu, A. C. (2012). The Journey to the West (Vols. 1-4) (Rev. ed.). Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press.
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