Category Story Ideas

Story Idea: Sun Wukong vs Heracles / Hercules

Jim R. McClanahan 2 Comments

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: 04-08-2026

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.

Table of Contents

1. Basis for the Story

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. Heracles as Vajrapani in Greco-Buddhist Art

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!

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:

Archive #50 – Heracles as Vajrapani

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. Historical Monkey King and Vajrapani Crossovers

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 changes his magic staff into the dharma warrior while facing a white tiger spirit:

Monkey Pilgrim [Hou xingzhe, 猴行者] 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]

被猴行者將金鐶杖變作一個夜叉，頭點天，腳踏地，手把降魔杵，身如藍靛青，發似硃沙，口吐百丈火光。

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 (文載) 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. The Main 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. (See the 03-28-26 update below for more info). 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). (See the 10-29-25 and 12-02-25 updates below for a detail from Greek myth that supports this idea.)

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 (refer to section 2.2. here) 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. (See the 02-19-26 update below for a visual.)

[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 (c. 500 BCE).

The pair first 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 respectively used in JTTW chapters 41 and 67 (here and here) to describe Wukong’s supreme mastery of the staff (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 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, etc. (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 egg.” (See the 02-28-26 update below for an interesting Greek parallel.)

“Oh, like the terrible 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.) (See the 02-20-26 update below for a new reason.)

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 for a detail from Greek myth that supports this idea). (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. [U] (Again, see the 10-26-25 update below). 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). And he reiterates this near-death experience to Zhu after escaping a few pages later (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 224). Having read that, I think a blood choke would be more dignified and less dangerous method for subduing 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: the Great Sage’s 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 anyone is 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 their 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. An Idea for a 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. Possible 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.

5. Updates

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: 02-19-26

In March 2023, Twitter user @LinJKai posted a lovely 18 x 24-inch (45.72 x 60.96 cm) digital painting titled “Hercules as Vajrapani” (fig. 17). It depicts HV, the 12 labors, and various Greek gods in Tibetan thangka style. I adore this so much! I’d love to commission a physical copy.

Fig. 17 – @LinJKai’s painting of HV (larger version).

Update: 02-20-26

I originally couldn’t think of a feat of strength for HV that would outdo Monkey, but something has come to mind. In JTTW chapter 33, a demon uses the “Magic of Moving Mountains and Pouring Out Oceans” (Yishan daohai fashu, 移山倒海法術) to drop two holy landmasses on Monkey in the hope of incapacitating him. This does nothing to slow him down, though, so the fiend drops a third peak. But since the last ridge, Mount Tai (Taishan, 泰山), is considered the heaviest concept in Chinese philosophy, it instantly overpowers the Great Sage’s strength and pins him to the earth (see this article).

Now, imagine that Wukong uses the same magic to call up a column of mountains, perhaps capped with Mt. Tai, overhead (fig. 18), but not even this is enough to stop the Buddha’s protector. The Greco-Buddhist hero would continue to fight as if nothing is pressing down on him. This would surely frighten Monkey.

I like this because the Great Sage’s defeat in chapter 33 would thus be a call back to the punishment that he tried and failed to dish out during his fight with HV.

Fig. 18 – Imagine that the column of mountains above HV’s head looks something like this pile of stones (larger version). Image found here.

Update: 02-25-26

While writing the original article, I feared that I mischaracterized Heracles as being jovial with Wukong in what should have been a tense situation. However, I’ve found info that supports this. Galinsky (1972) explains:

Being close to the people as he was, Hesiod also portrayed Herakles as the folksy, jolly good fellow. The few fragments that have been preserved of the Wedding of Ceyx give us some indication of this. One of the main subjects of the poem was the wedding-feast of Ceyx and Alcyone at which Herakles intervened. He crashed the party, justifying himself with jovial magnificence: ‘Of their own accord good men betake themselves to good men’s feasts.’ This phrase became so proverbial that it was quoted, among others, by Plato in the Symposium. The remark shows that Hesiod attributed to Herakles the quality, which he undoubtedly found in the folktales, of taking himself lightly, and it kept our hero from becoming too lofty and untouchable. Much of the rest of the poem seems to have been concerned with Herakles’ prodigious appetite, a theme on which the comic poets were to seize with so much glee. Having stilled his hunger, Herakles entertained the party by proposing several riddles (p. 16-17).

Update: 02-28-26

Regarding the original DEATH BATTLE! episode, it’s interesting to note that Heracles has previously fought and killed a monstrous opponent born from an egg, just like Sun Wukong. Ibycus (6th century BCE) records the Greek hero saying: “I slew the white-horsed lads, the children of Molione, of the same age, equal-headed, single-bodied, both born in a silver egg” (Bowra, 1961, p. 245).

Update: 03-28-26

Above, I wrote, “With the presence of Greeks in Central and South Asia, I imagine he [Buddha] would also visit the Olympian gods who had gained some influence in the region.” Well, I’ve thought of a way to connect the structures of the mythic Greek and JTTW universes:

I’ve previously discussed how the novel is set in the Buddhist disc-world system—i.e. a flat earth (see below). It’s interesting to note that the archaic Greeks also believed in a flat earth. The wonderful Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology explains:

As viewed from their perspective, as people who lived on the edge of a land mass, it might naturally have appeared to take the form of a circular disc, more or less level except were hills or mountains rose up from it, capped by the immense roof or dome of the sky. On the one side the sun and stars could be seen rising above the horizon, while on the other they disappeared at their setting; and since they always rose on the same side, in the east, they must presumably have made their way back again, either under the ground or by some other hidden route. It was imagined that the outermost boundary of this disc of the earth was formed by the stream of Ocean (Oceanos), which was not an ocean in the modern sense but a great river flowing in a circle around the edges of the earth. The sky was envisioned as a substantial roof or, later, dome sometimes said to be made of bronze or iron, which rose to a considerable, though not immeasurable, height above the earth. Zeus and the higher gods could be imagined as residing in the sky itself, or else on the summit of Mt Olympos in north-eastern Greece, hence their familiar name of Olympian gods. If one could pile three large mountains one above another, as the gigantic Aloadai set out to do when they revolted against the gods …, it would be sufficient to form a ladder to heaven (Hard, 2020, p. 17).

Heracles has a few connections to Ocean. [7]

Now, imagine that the purview of the Olympian gods and the borders of their disc-world (fig. 19) expand as Greeks traveling eastward bring their faith with them to Central and South Asia. This would allow the Greek cosmos to eventually overlap with the Buddhist realm (fig. 20). (The reverse would be true for westward-traveling Buddhists.) The result would look sort of like a Venn diagram, with the double-pointed oval in the middle indicating where the two realms intersect on our Earth.

Fig. 19 (Left) – A reconstruction of the Greek world based on the writings of Homer (larger version). The landmass is surrounded by the god Ocean. From Atlas of Ancient & Classical Geography (1928, plate 1). Fig. 20 (Right) – A diagram of the Buddhist cosmos (larger version). Mt. Sumeru is flanked by a continent and two islands on each of its four sides. The land is also surrounded by water; in this case, four great oceans. Adapted from Buswell & Lopez (2014, p. xxxii).

I should point out that JTTW changes the traditional structure of the Buddhist cosmos by placing China in the Southern Continent and moving India to the Western Continent (refer back to this article). Therefore, the western portion of the expanding Greek cosmos would more easily line up with the Buddhist cosmos.

Update: 04-08-2026

There is an interesting indirect connection between Wukong and Heracles by way of literature and religious iconography. I’ve previously written about Monkey’s noncanonical daughter, Yuebei xing (月孛星, “Moon Comet Star”) from Journey to the South (Nanyou ji, 南遊記, c. 1570s-1580s), who carries a magic skull with the power to kill even immortals. The historical deity on which she is based has human female and yaksha-like male forms, both of which carry a sword and severed head. This male version has a striking similarity to Arabo-Persian depictions of al-Mirrīkh (Ares/Mars), and the iconography of the latter is believed to be based on a constellation of the Greek demi-god Perseus holding the severed head of Medusa. Perseus is the great-grandfather of Heracles. [8]

See my article on the literary Yuebei xing.

Yuebei xing, Daughter of the Monkey King

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) Heracles uses the Sun-God‘s goblet in order to sail Ocean to the destination of his tenth labor (Bibliotheca, 2.5.10). However, according to Pherecydes, “Ocean, to make trial of him, caused the goblet to heave wildly on the waves. Herakles was about to shoot him with an arrow; and the Ocean was afraid, and bade him give over” (Bibliotheca, 2.5.10, n. 7).

Also, the extent of his tenth labor set the limit for human travel:

[S]ince the Pillars or Columns of Heracles—the name usually associated with the twin rocks standing astride the Straits of Gibraltar—afforded the only known connection between the familiar Mediterranean and alien Ocean, they became a vivid symbol of the gateway or barrier between inner and outer worlds. For the most part they stood in the Greek imagination as a forbidding non plus ultra, a warning to mariners not to proceed any further. Pindar, for example, adopts this landmark as a paradigm of the limits to human daring, in his celebrations of victorious athletes:

Now Theron, approaching the outer limit in his feats of strength, touches the Pillars of Heracles. What lies beyond cannot be approached by wise men or unwise. I shall not try, or I would be a fool. (Ol. 3.4–5)

As a man of beauty, who accomplishes feats beautiful as himself, the son of Aristophanes may set forth on supreme, manly endeavors; but not easily across the untrodden sea, beyond the Pillars of Heracles, which that hero-god set in place, as a famed witness of the furthest limit of seafaring. (Nem. 3.20–23)

By the uttermost deeds of strength did these men touch the Pillars of Heracles, an achievement all their own; let none pursue valor any farther than that. (Isthm. 4.11–14)

In these passages Pindar measures the prowess of his athlete patrons in geographic terms, seeing their victories as journeys into distant space; but these journeys must end, he insists, before they enter the forbidden realm of Ocean. The Pillars have here come to stand for the boundary of the human condition itself: To pass beyond them is the prerogative of god alone, or of mythic figures like Heracles who manage to bridge the human and divine (Romm, 1992, pp. 17-18).

8) Perseus had several children, but I will only present the human line that leads to our hero: Perseus ⇒ Electryon (son) ⇒ Alcmena/Alcmene (granddaughter) ⇒ Heracles (great-grandson) (Bibliotheca, 2.4.5 & 2.4.8).

Sources:

Atlas of Ancient & Classical Geography. (1928). London & Toronto: J.M Dent & Sons, LTD.; New York: E. P. Dutton & Co.

Bowra, C. M. (1961). Greek Lyric Poetry from Alcman to Simonides. United Kingdom: Clarendon Press.

Buswell, R. E., & Lopez, D. S. (2014). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

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.

Galinsky, K. (1972). The Herakles Theme: The Adaptations of the Hero in Literature from Homer to the Twentieth Century. New Jersey: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

Hard, R. (2020). The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology (8th ed.). London & New York: Taylor & Francis.

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.

Romm, J. S. (1992). The Edges of the Earth in Ancient Thought: Geography, Exploration, and Fiction. Princeton 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.

Story Idea: Sun Wukong vs Juggernaut

Jim R. McClanahan Leave a comment

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 later.

Note: This is not about power scaling.

I. Background

In chapter 59 of Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記, 1592), Princess Iron Fan uses her magic fan to blast Sun Wukong into the heavens (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 126). The book provides two conflicting figures as to its effective range, stating that the fan can blow a target a total of 84,000 li (bawan siqian li, 八萬四千里; 26,097.59 mi/42,000 km) or 108,000 li (shiwan baqian li, 十萬八千里; 33,554 mi/54,000 km) (based on Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, pp. 127-128 and 148). To combat this weapon, the Bodhisattva Lingji (Lingji pusa, 靈吉菩薩) offers our hero a magical Buddha treasure:

Lingju said, “In years past when I received the instructions from Tathagata, [1] I was given a Flying-Dragon Staff and a Wind-Arresting Elixir [Dingfeng dan, 定風丹; fig. 1]. [2] The staff was used to subdue the wind demon [from ch. 21], but the elixir has never been used. I’ll give it to you now, and you can be certain that that fan will not be able to move you (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 128).

靈吉道：「我當年受如來教旨，賜我一粒定風丹、一柄飛龍杖。飛龍杖已降了風魔。這定風丹尚未曾見用，如今送了大聖，管教那廝搧你不動 … 」

Lingji then sews it into his robe collar, and the next time that he faces Princess Iron Fan, her weapon has no effect on him (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, pp. 128-129).

Fig. 1 – The Great Sage receives the Wind-Arresting Elixir (larger version). Image found here. I believe this comes from the circa 1999/2000 Monkey King cartoon.

But Sun accidentally swallows the treasure at some point, and it causes a physical change in his body. Chapter 61 reads:

He [the Bull Demon King] did not know, however, that when the Great Sage changed previously into a tiny mole cricket to enter the stomach of Raksasi [in ch. 59], [3] he still had in his mouth that Wind-Arresting Elixir, which he swallowed unwittingly. All his viscera had become firm; his skin and bones were wholly fortified (emphasis added). No matter how hard the Bull King fanned at him, he could not be moved (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 149).

不知那大聖先前變蟭蟟蟲入羅剎女腹中之時，將定風丹噙在口裡，不覺的嚥下肚裡，所以五臟皆牢，皮骨皆固，憑他怎麼搧，再也搧他不動。

Let me reiterate: the elixir makes the Great Sage’s organs lao (牢), or “solid” or “firm,” like a prison (dictionary), and it also makes his skin and bones gu (固), or “solid” or “firm” like a four-sided structure (dictionary). Therefore, the pill essentially fortifies his body to the point of becoming an immovable object, even in the face of divine wind capable of blasting someone tens of thousands of miles or kilometers away. This makes him a perfect component of the Irresistible Force Paradox. This power is forgotten in subsequent chapters—a consequence of the novel’s origin as a collection of piecemeal stories—but this would be an interesting element to explore in fanfiction.

The other half of the paradox could be filled by the Juggernaut (Ch: Hong tanke, 紅坦克, or “Red Tank”), a.k.a. Cain Marko (Ch: Kaiyin Make, 凱因·馬可) (fig. 2), a Marvel Comics villain created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first introduced in 1965. He was previously the human step-brother of the powerful mutant telepath Charles Xavier, but after finding a magic gem inside an ancient temple, he became the avatar of the extradimensional deity Cyttorak and was empowered with great physical strength, durability, and immortality. He is often portrayed as unstoppable when in motion. For example, in Uncanny X-Men #183, the Wolverine describes him as “the closest thing on Earth to an irresistible force” (Claremont, 1984, p. 19).

Fig. 2 – The Juggernaut advances on the viewer (larger version). Image found here.

II. Similarities

Both Sun and the Juggernaut are:

  1. Fierce
  2. Super strong
  3. Super durable
  4. Immortal
  5. Empowered by divine beings, Buddha and Cyttorak, respectively (see here for cited examples of all of Monkey’s powers and skills)

The only difference between them—beyond size and origins—is that the powers under discussion are polar opposites, making one an immovable object and the other an unstoppable force. So, what do you think would happen if they ever came to blows?

III. Scenario

The only way I can think of that the Great Sage and Juggernaut could meet would involve borrowing story elements from the “Fear Itself” cross-over event in which both characters make appearances. In Iron Man 2.0 #5-7, Marvel’s Sun Wukong is introduced as a divinely empowered crime boss who’s released from hell when one of the magic hammers of Serpent, the Asgardian god of fear and the deposed brother of Odin, punches through Beijing, China and opens the dimensional barrier separating the underworld from earth. He attempts to lift the enchanted weapon on his way out but fails since he’s not the fated owner (figs. 3a,b,c & 4) (Spencer, 2011a; 2011b; 2011c). In Fear Itself #2, another hammer impacts Juggernaut’s island prison (on New York’s East River), and upon touching it, he becomes Serpent’s new warrior, “Kuurth, Breaker of Stone” (figs. 5a,b,c) (Fraction, 2011). Now, for the purposes of our story, instead of the weapon breaking into hell, imagine it opens a rift to the Buddho-Daoist cosmos of Journey to the West during the quest to India. This would allow a novel accurate Monkey King (fig. 6) to eventually battle Juggernaut, as well as meet modern day superheroes. This change would, of course, require widescale alterations to the rest of the “Fear Itself” storyline. [4] I’m open to suggestions.

How the battle goes would depend on the writer. I’m biased, so I would naturally root for Sun Wukong.

Fig. 3(a) – After beating up some demonic thugs, Sun Wukong sees the hammer falling (here); (b) it makes impact (here); and (c) he first touches it (here) (Spencer, 2011a). Fig. 4 – He fails to lift the enchanted weapon (larger version) (Spencer, 2011b). Fig. 5(a) – A separate hammer impacts the Juggernaut’s prison (here); (b) he first touches it (here); and (c) he is transformed into Serpent’s new warrior (here) (Fraction, 2011). Copyright Marvel comics. Fig. 6 – A nearly novel accurate Monkey King (larger version). A photomanipulation by me.

Notes:

1) This refers to the Buddha’s previous instructions to defeat “Great King Yellow Wind” (Huangfeng dawang, 黃風大王), a demon with a mastery of powerful, divine wind (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 413 and 419).

2) Lingji twice reveals (ch. 21 and 59) that the Wind-Arresting Elixir (Dingfeng dan, 定風丹) is a treasure bestowed by the Buddha (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 419; vol. 3, p. 128). Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates this magic pill as the “wind-stopping pearl” in chapter 21 (vol. 1, p. 419). And It’s interesting to note that a “wind-stopping pearl” (dingfeng zhu, 定風珠) is said to be one of many heavenly jewels decorating Tripitaka’s cassock in chapter 12 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 282).

3) This refers to Monkey’s plan to procure the magic fan by beating up Princess Iron Fan from inside her stomach (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 129).

4) The changes to the comic book storyline wouldn’t affect the original novel. Monkey would eventually return to his universe and continue the journey to India.

Sources:

Claremont, C. (1984, July). Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 1, No. 183 [Comic book]. New York, YK: Marvel. Retrieved from https://readallcomics.com/uncanny-x-men-v1-183/

Fraction, M. (2011). Fear Itself (No. 2) [Comic book]. New York, NY: Marvel. Retrieved from https://readallcomics.com/fear-itself-002-2011/

Spencer, N. (2011a). Iron Man 2.0 (No. 5) [Comic book]. New York, NY: Marvel Comics. Retrieved from https://readallcomics.com/iron-man-2-0-05/

Spencer, N. (2011b). Iron Man 2.0 (No. 6) [Comic book]. New York, NY: Marvel Comics. Retrieved from https://readallcomics.com/iron-man-2-0-06/

Spencer, N. (2011c). Iron Man 2.0 (No. 7) [Comic book]. New York, NY: Marvel Comics. Retrieved from https://readallcomics.com/iron-man-2-0-07/

Wu, C., & Yu, A. C. (2012). The Journey to the West (Vols. 1-4) (Rev. ed.). Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press.

Story Idea: Firearms and the Journey to the West Universe

Jim R. McClanahan 4 Comments

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: 12-03-2024

I am currently reading Gunpowder Technology in the Fifteenth Century: A Study, Edition and Translation of the Firework Book (2024), and this got me thinking: what would the Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記, 1592) cosmos be like if there were guns? In this photo essay, I will briefly explore guns in Chinese folk religion, types of historical (mainly handheld) firearms used in ancient China, and, finally, ways that such weapons could be inserted into the narrative.

I. Folk Religion

I first set out to see if firearms play any part in Chinese folk religion. I found a few examples from Taiwan. The first is “Lord Red Flag” (Hongqi gong, 紅旗公; a.k.a. “Marshal of Sacred Righteousness,” Shengyi yuanshuai, 聖義元帥), a relatively recent martial god. He and his marshals are depicted holding rifles.

(Click on the pictures to enlarge them.)

Here’s a version without the cloak.

Even his tangki (spirit-medium) gets a chance to fire off some rounds.

Three more involve Prince Nezha. The first of two (from the same temple) is a traditional statue adorned with an M4 assault rifle and other modern weaponry.

Here’s a closeup of the rifle. Also, take note of the holstered revolver (i.e. the black pouch) on his waist.

The profile view shows clips on his belt (again, in black pouches), as well as a grenade on top of an ammo case at his feet.

The second is a three-headed and eight-armed Nezha with an anti-tank rocket launcher, a rocket round, and a grenade at his feet.

A third statue (my personal favorite) portrays the prince with an MP 40 submachine gun and modern military gear. The carving on the water is amazing. I first learned of it here.

I learned here and here that cannons are sometimes worshiped in East and Southeast Asia as fertility gods. (See the 09-29-24 update below for more info about cannons.)

I also learned that ritual guns sometimes appear in Chinese folk temples of Vietnam.

If present, the guns number among ritual weapons that are commonly found in martial god temples of Chinese folk religion. (But I’ve never personally seen a gun among said armaments in Taiwanese temples.) This Vietnamese article briefly mentions that the weapons are based on the eighteen arms of Chinese martial arts. And it’s interesting to note that a “hand canon” (chong, 銃) does appear among the eighteen arms listed in the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan, 水滸傳, c. 1400):

Shi Jin daily sought Drill Instructor Wang’s tutelage in the eighteen (weapons of) martial arts. He taught him from the very beginning. Which eighteen martial arts?

Lance, hammer, bow, crossbow, hand cannon, whip, metal tablet, long sword, chain, truncheon, fu-axe, yue-axe, ge-halberd, ji-halberd, shield, staff and spear, and toothless rake. [1]

史進每日求王教頭點撥十八般武藝，一一從頭指教。 那十八般武藝？

矛錘弓弩銃，鞭簡(鐧)劍鏈撾，斧鉞並戈戟，牌棒與槍杈。

Perhaps this list influenced the ritual weapons in Vietnam.

II. Historical Firearms in Ancient China

Here is an example of a Yuan-era hand canon, minus the shaft.

Here is a “Three-Eyed Hand Canon” (Sanyan chong, 三眼銃), a three-barreled stick gun used during the Ming Dynasty.

You can see that they were attached to bladed polearms, which could be used offensively or defensively between reloading.

There were even five-barreled and shielded firearms called “Rapid-Thunder Hand Cannons” (Xunlei chong, 迅雷銃). So cool!

Here’s a Chinese video demonstrating the one and three-barreled versions:

III. Story Idea

This brings me back to Journey to the West. How could firearms be inserted into a religious allegory? Well, for starters, a 950 CE wall mural in Dunhuang shows one of Mara‘s demons attacking the awakening Buddha with a “fire lance” (huoqiang, 火槍; upper right), a precursor of hand cannons. This is a clear example of a centuries-old association between firearms and spiritual warfare.

Here’s the full mural.

Now imagine that these weapons are wielded by celestial gunner-soldiers under the command of the “Star of Fiery Virtue” (Huode xingjun, 火德星君), the god of fire. In JTTW chapter 51, his literary troops utilize fire scimitars, fire bows, fire arrows, fire crows, fire horses, red (fire) rats, fire dragons, fire carts, fire gourds, fire banners, and fire rods in battle (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 9). These are just a short step from firearms.

Given that the novel projects Ming-era concepts backwards to the Tang Dynasty, having gods wield such weapons hundreds of years before they were even invented wouldn’t be out of place in the JTTW universe. A writer could just say that the weapons were created in the realm above and eventually trickled down to mankind. Admittedly, I like the real history better because it shows the ingenuity of our predecessors, but the story requires a little tinkering.

Writers wanting to expand on the idea of firearms in heaven could take Ming gunners, their uniforms, and their strategies as models to work from. This page features a lovely figurine of such soldiers, including lots of juicy historical info. And the fact that the historical troops were part of the “Divine Machine Battalion” (Shenji ying, 神機營), which specialized in firearms, really solidifies their connection to the heavenly realm.

Who would make such weapons? There’s a fun answer for that: Laozi! The novel twice describes him forging mystical weapons belonging to our main characters. For example, Zhu Bajie mentions in chapter 19 that the high god made his rake: “This is divine ice steel greatly refined, / Polished so highly that it glows and shines. / Laozi wielded the large hammer and tong …” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 382). And Monkey claims in chapter 75 that the Daoist Patriarch created his staff: “The rod of steel nine cyclic times refined / Was forged in the stove by Laozi himself” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 375). So, on top of making alchemical medicines, Laozi could be heaven’s celestial gunsmith.

How could demons get ahold of celestial guns? Well, referring back to chapter 51, a buffalo-spirit uses the “diamond cutter” (jingang zhuo, 金鋼琢), an uber powerful, bracelet-like treasure-weapon also created by Laozi, to twice suck away all of the aforementioned fire weapons (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, pp. 9 and 23). Devil craftsmen would then have time to analyze the heavenly technology, which would allow them to eventually make their own (inferior?) copies.

Recall that the Great Peng demon is said in chapter 74 to have taken over a human kingdom by eating all of the inhabitants some 500 years ago, and the former population was replaced by spirits (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 360). Firearms would definitely make a human-to-monster kingdom transition for less powerful demon kings a lot easier.

Another possibility is that a fiend could simply sneak into heaven to steal some. This may seem like an impossible task, but JTTW chapter 63 mentions something similar happening. The dragon-spirit “Princess All Saints” (Wansheng gongzhu, 萬聖宮(公)主) is said to have “[snuck] into heaven and stole[n] from before the Hall of Divine Mists the nine-leaf divine agaric planted by the Lady Queen Mother of the West” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 192). So, if someone can secretly infiltrate the realm above and steal divine vegetation, they could certainly steal heavenly armaments.

Perhaps the simplest way that demons could attain celestial firearms is by ambushing heavenly troops and commandeering their equipment.

I could see Red Boy (Honghai’er, 紅孩兒) using his powerful Samadhi flame to forge his own hand cannons, at least with the help of devil craftsmen. His association with fire only makes it natural that his own troops would carry firearms.

The only thing I can’t think of is how heavenly hand cannons would differ from their real world counterparts. Would they just use gunpowder and metal shot, or would it be more magical in nature, like shooting meteors? I’m open to suggestions from readers.

Update: 09-29-2024

The film Enoken no Songoku: Zenpen (エノケンの孫悟空 前編; a.k.a. “Enoken’s Songoku,” 1940) features the Monkey King mowing down demons with his staff-turned-machine gun.

There are at least two toys depicting the Great Sage with a gun. The first I learned about via a Facebook group post. I love how his sniper rifle is modeled on his magic staff. You can see the original packaging here.

And here is a Black Myth: Wukong-inspired figure with a powerful-looking rifle/shot gun combo. I saw it here.

Regarding cannons, I learned that a giant Western cannon was worshiped by court officials during the Ming. The History of the Ming (Mingshi, 明史, 1739) explains:

At this time, a ship arriving from the Great Western Ocean [i.e. the West] brought an enormous cannon, which got the name of the “Red Barbarian” [Hongyi, 紅夷]. It measured over two-zhang [20.86 ft/6.358 m] long, and weighed as much as 3,000 catties [3,902.18 lbs/1,770 kg]. It could demolish any stone city-walls, and its earthquake-like roar could be heard for several dozen li around. During the Tianqi [天啟] reign, the name of “Great General” [Da jiangjun, 大將軍] was given to it, and officials were sent to offer libations [si, 祀] to it (based on Needham, 1986, p. 392).

其後，大西洋船至，復得巨砲，曰紅夷。長二丈馀，重者至三千斤，能洞裂石城，震數十里。天啟中，錫以大將軍號，遣官祀之。

Needham (1986) suggests the cannon’s worship is connected to folk beliefs: “In Taoist folk-religion any device or machine of almost miraculous potency was something which should receive veneration” (p. 392 n. b).

Update: 10-05-24

I forgot to mention the “Gatling Gun Bodhisattva” (Jia-te-lin pusa, 加特林菩薩) from Chinese social media and Japanese manga. The following clip expounds the Heart Sutra of the Honored Gatling Gun Bodhisattva (Namo Jia-te-lin pusa Xinjing, 南無加特林菩薩心經).

Update: 11-23-24

Reader Danna Zhang left a wonderful comment about how Investiture of the Gods (Fengshen yanyi, 封神演義, c. 1620 CE), a sort of prequel to Journey to the West, also includes gunpowder weaponry:

Late comment, but FSYY also puts Ming dynasty gunpowder weapons into the 11th BCE Shang dynasty setting. Apart from the numerous mentions of “cannons go boom”, In Chapter 56, they broke Deng Jiugong’s ambush-disguised-as-wedding by hiding a cannon in the gift casket and using it to make a surprise attack, and in Chapter 88, Jiang Ziya suggests to King Wu that they need the “Sky-blasting Cannon” (轰天大炮) to breach the walls of Mianchi City.

At this point, I think the bronze age gunpowder weapon isn’t a bug, it'[s] a feature.

Update: 12-03-24

The Japanese Scroll of Battle Between Generations (異代同戱図巻, 17th-century) includes a depiction of Guanyin aiming a flintlock rifle, with the Dragon Girl waiting in attendance behind her.

Note:

1) The narration is based on my translation, while the weapons list is based on that from Lorge (2012). See page 147.

Source:

Lorge, P. A. (2012). Chinese Martial Arts: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.

Needham, J. (1986). Science and Civilization in China. Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology; part 7, Military Technology: The Gunpowder Epic. Assisted by Ho Ping-yü et al. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Wu, C., & Yu, A. C. (2012). The Journey to the West (Vols. 1-4) (Rev. ed.). Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press.

 

How to Kill Sun Wukong

Jim R. McClanahan 8 Comments

Last updated: 01-07-2024

The Monkey King is famed for his multiple categories of immortality in Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記, 1592; “JTTW” hereafter). These are acquired through spiritual cultivation, redacting underworld ledgers, partaking in celestial foodstuffs, and (at the journey’s end) attaining Buddhahood. But “immortality” in Chinese vernacular literature doesn’t mean “invulnerable to harm.” Despite his great durability, during the journey, Wukong is a “bogus immortal” (yaoxian, 妖仙) who is still susceptible to injury and death because he hasn’t yet achieved Buddha-nature and broken free of the wheel of rebirth. [1] For instance, he briefly dies from thermal shock after being overwhelmed by Red Boy‘s (Honghai’er, 紅孩兒) true samadhi fire (sanmei zhenhuo, 三昧真火) in chapter 41:

His whole body covered by flame and smoke, the Great Sage found the intense heat unbearable and he dove straight into the mountain stream to try to put out the fire. Little did he anticipate that the shock of the cold water was so great that the heat caused by the fire was forced inward into his body and his three hun spirits left his vessel. Alas!

His breath caught in his chest, his tongue and throat grew cold;
His hun spirits fled, his po souls left, and his life was gone! (based on Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 231)

這大聖一身煙火，炮燥難禁，徑投於澗水內救火。怎知被冷水一逼，弄得火氣攻心，三魂出舍。可憐氣塞胸堂喉舌冷，魂飛魄散喪殘生。

Luckily, Zhu Bajie resuscitates him by performing a life-saving massage that forces qi from his cinnabar field and circulates it throughout his body (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 232). [2]

This episode was an accident. But what if someone wanted to kill Monkey for good? How would they do it? Killing him in a one-on-one match would be nearly impossible, for few characters surpass Wukong in strength or fighting ability. I think it’s best that we draw on methods from another famous god and demon novel, Investiture of the Gods (Fengshen yanyi, 封神演義, c. 1620; “Investiture” hereafter), a sort of prequel to JTTW. It centers on a great battle between the falling Shang (c. 1600-1046 BCE) and the rising Zhou (c. 1046–256 BCE) dynasties, both of which are aided by factions of powerful immortals. The story is famous for a number of weapons, traps, and rituals designed to kill divine cultivators.

In this article, I would like to describe ten magical array traps (zhen, 陣) and one magic ritual that could possibly kill the Monkey King. The latter is, in my opinion, the best option for ending his life (fig. 1). And the best part is that it can be done from a distance! That way a villain doesn’t have to worry about getting smashed into hamburger or ripped to shreds by an angry monkey immortal. In addition, I will detail this method’s potential for great fanfiction.

Before continuing, I must point out that none of the information from Investiture can be considered JTTW canon. While it contains a host of similar characters (Laozi, Buddha, Nezha, Muzha, Li Jing, Ao Guang, Erlang and his hound, etc.), the novel is a separate work that was published nearly 30 years after JTTW. Look at this piece as a fun “What if?”

Fig. 1 – Monkey’s headstone (larger version).

I. Possible Ways

Ch. 44 of Investiture mentions ten magical array traps that rely on primordial energies, destructive elements like wind, thunder, fire, sand, ice, and water, and spiritual attacks to terminate immortals:

  1. Heavenly Destruction (Tianjue zhen, 天絕陣) – This trap contains primordial energies (xiantian zhi qi, 先天之氣) and the mechanisms of chaos (hundun zhi ji, 混沌之機). It uses three magic pennants (fan, 旛), representing the respective energies of Heaven, Earth, and Man, to turn humans into dust and shatter the limbs of immortals with rolls of thunder.
  2. Earthly Fury (Dilie zhen, 地烈陣) – This trap uses a magic red pennant that kills intruders with rolls of thunder from above and fire below. It is also said to cut them off from reincarnation.
  3. Roaring Typhoon (Fenghou zhen, 風吼陣) – This trap uses wind, true samadhi fire, and countless swirling blades formed from primordial energies to kill intruders and render their bodies into a fragrant powder (jifen, 虀粉).
  4. Frigid Ice (Hanbing zhen, 寒冰陣) – This trap uses jagged, wolf fang-like ice mountains above, sword-like ice blocks below, and wind and thunder in the middle to grind intruders into a fragrant powder.
  5. Golden Light (Jinguang zhen, 金光陣) – This trap contains the essences of the sun and moon (riyue zhi jing, 日月之精) and the energies of heaven and earth (tiandi zhi qi, 天地之氣). It uses 21 treasure mirrors (baojing, 寶鏡) affixed to wooden polls to kill intruders with golden light that renders (melts?) their bodies into pus and blood.
  6. Bleeding Blood (Huaxue zhen, 化血陣) – This trap uses thunder and wind powered by primordial energies to blast black sand that kills intruders by rendering their bodies into a bloody mess.
  7. Vehement Flame (Lieyan zhen, 烈焰陣) – This trap uses true samadhi fire, fire from the sky (meteorites?), and fire from stone (lava?) to kill intruders by turning them into ash.
  8. Soul-Snatching (Luohun zhen, 落魂陣) – This trap contains the fierce energies of heaven and earth (tiandi liqi, 天地厲氣). It uses a white paper pennant stamped with a talisman seal (fuyin, 符印) to kill intruders by dispersing and eliminating their po and hun spirits.
  9. Red Water (Hongshui zhen, 紅水陣) – This trap controls the essences of the ninth and tenth heavenly stems (rengui zhi jing, 壬癸之精) (representing water), as well as contains the wonder of the Grand Monad (Tianyi zhi miao, 天乙之妙). It uses three bottle gourds resting on an eight trigrams platform (bagua tai, 八卦臺) to kill intruders by gushing forth an ocean of dangerous, red water, a single drop of which can render their bodies into a bloody mess.
  10. Red Sand (Hongsha zhen, 紅砂陣/紅沙陣) – This trap controls the energies of Heaven, Earth, and Man. It uses thunder and wind to blast three buckets of red, sword-like sand to kill intruders by rendering their bones into a fragrant powder (fig. 2) (cf. Gu, 2000, vol. 2, pp. 869-873).

I think that Sun Wukong would easily survive many of these traps due to the adamantine nature of his body. [3] But numbers three, seven, and eight might give him some problems. As mentioned in the introduction, his encounter with Red Boy in chapter 41 shows that he is weak against true samadhi fire (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 231). And of course, having his souls scattered and destroyed would certainly finish him off. Recall in JTTW chapter three how Monkey’s spirit (魂靈兒) is easily reaped by two underworld officers in his heavenly wine-induced slumber (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 139). This might point to a weakness against spiritual attacks (at least while drunk, anyway).

However, I think it would be hard to trick Wukong into going inside of these array traps. His “fiery eyes and gold Irises” (huoyan jinjing, 火眼金睛) would certainly notice the dark auras hovering above each one (Gu, 2000, vol. 2, p. 925 and 989, for example).

No, there’s only one sure fire way to kill our hero.

Fig. 2 – A Shang camp immortal working the Red Sand array trap (larger version). The woodblock print omits the three buckets. Image from The Newly Printed, Zhong Bojing Annotated, Investiture of the Gods (Xinke Zhong Bojing xiansheng piping Fengshen yanyi, 新刻鍾伯敬先生批評封神演義, c. 1620). See page 42 of this PDF.

II. The Best Way

Overcoming Monkey’s great power, durability, and speed would require an indirect approach, something that he wouldn’t even be aware of. A secret, spiritual assault from afar is, therefore, the only method that would work, in my opinion. Something like this is described in chapters 48 and 49 of Investiture. But I first need to give some background information as to why the rite is used in the first place.

Grand Preceptor Wen (Wen Taishi, 聞太師) recruits his old friend, the ancient immortal Zhao Gongming (趙公明), in chapter 46 after many of their divine comrades die in battle against Zhou allies (Gu, 2000, vol. 2, p. 935). Zhao is powerful in his own right, claiming to be able to flip Mount Sumeru (Xumi, 須彌) and reverse the course of the sun and moon (cf. Gu, 2000, vol. 2, pp. 945-947). But it’s his command of three holy treasures, namely the “Dragon-Binding Rope” (Fulong suo, 縛龍索), the “Sea-Fixing Mala Beads” (Dinghai zhu, 定海珠), and the “Golden-Scaled Dragon Scissors” (Jinjiao jian, 金蛟剪), [4] that make him a supremely dangerous opponent. The latter two treasures prove in chapter 47 to be especially difficult weapons for Zhou allies to counter.

Therefore, in chapter 48, the immortal Lu Ya (陸壓) devises a plan to secretly attack Zhao’s spirit from a distance. He enlists the help of Jiang Ziya (姜子牙), a Taoist disciple and commander of the Zhou forces, and instructs him how to perform a sympathetic magic ritual from the Book of Fixing the Seventh Posthumous Day Arrow (Ding touqi jianshu, 釘頭七箭書):

Lu Ya opened his flower basket and took out a book stamped with talisman seals and oral formulas. “Using these, you can set up camp and erect a platform on Mount Qi. Make a straw effigy and post a document with the three characters “Zhao Gongming” on its body. Place one lamp above its head and another beneath its feet. Then pray to it three times a day, burning the talismans and pacing the dipper. At noon on the twenty-first day, this poor Taoist (Lu Ya) will come and help you cut his life short.”

Before going to Mount Qi, Ziya secretly sent 3,000 troops, along with Nangong Kuo [南宮适] and Wu Ji [武吉] to find a suitable place to set up camp. After Ziya arrived at camp, Nangong built a platform, arranging it properly and making a straw effigy. He did everything strictly as instructed. Finally Ziya loosened his hair, took a sword, and paced the dipper, reciting charms, burning spells, and praying over and over again before the straw effigy (based on Gu, 2000, vol. 2, p. 967).

陸壓揭開花籃，取出一幅書，書寫明白，上有符印口訣，「……依此而用，可往岐山立一營；營內築一臺。紮一草人；人身上書『趙公明』三字，頭上一盞燈，足下一盞燈。自步罡斗，書符結印焚化，一日三次拜禮，至二十一日之時，貧道自來午時助你，公明自然絕也。」

子牙領命，前往岐山，暗出三千人馬，又令南宮适、武吉前去安置。子牙後隨軍至岐山，南宮适築起將臺，安排停當，紮一草人，依方製度。子牙披髮仗劍，腳步罡斗，書符結印…

[Three to five days later, Zhao Gongming feels frantic, with a strange burning in his heart.]

[…]

Now let’s speak of Ziya, who prayed until he had expelled the primal spirit [yuanshen, 元神] of Zhao Gongming. The primal spirit was of major importance to an immortal, enabling him to tour freely throughout the eight extremes (the universe). But now that Zhao Gongming had lost his primal spirit, he became drowsy and wanted to sleep all of the time (based on Gu, 2000, p. 973).

且說子牙拜掉了趙公明元神散而不歸，──但神仙以元神為主，遊八極，任逍遙，今一旦被子牙拜去，不覺昏沉，只是要睡。

[Sleeping is said to be uncharacteristic of immortals. This alerts Zhao Gongming’s comrades that he is being spiritually assaulted. After divining the effigy’s location, Wen sends Shang allies to steal it. They are initially successful, but the straw man is eventually recaptured by Zhou forces.]

[…]

[Lu Ya finally arrives as promised to finish the ritual.]

With a smile, Lu Ya opened his flower basket and took out a small mulberry bow and three short peach arrows, which he handed to Ziya. “At noon today, you must shoot the effigy with these arrows,” Lu Ya said. Ziya replied: “Order received!” The two waited in a tent until the astrological official came to report: “Noon time has arrived!” Ziya cleaned his hands, picked up the bow, and then nocked the first arrow. “Shoot his left eye first,” instructed Lu Ya. Ziya did as ordered. As the first arrow hit the left eye of the effigy, Zhao Gongming, lying in the Shang camp, roared in agony and closed his left eye. Grand Preceptor Wen held him in his arms, sobbing as the tears poured down his cheeks. Back at Mount Qi, the second arrow hit the right eye of the effigy, and the third penetrated its heart [fig. 3]. Zhao Gongming died in the Shang camp (based on Gu, 2000, vol. 2, pp. 985-987). [5]

陸壓笑吟吟揭開花籃，取出小小一張桑枝弓，三隻桃枝箭，遞與子牙，「今日午時初刻，用此箭射之。」子牙曰：「領命。」二人在帳中等至午時，不覺陰陽官來報：「午時牌！」子牙淨手，拈弓，搭箭。陸壓曰：「先中左目。」子牙依命，先中左目。──這西岐山發箭射草人，成湯營裏趙公明大叫一聲，把左眼閉了。聞太師心如刀割，一把抱住公明，淚流滿面，哭聲甚慘。──子牙在岐山，二箭射右目，三箭劈心一箭，三箭射了草人。──公明死于成湯營裏。

Like Ziya, a bad guy could perform the same ritual to secretly steal Monkey’s primal spirit, tether it to a straw effigy marked “Sun Wukong” (孫悟空), and finally kill our hero with three well-placed peach arrows to the eyes and chest.

Fig. 3 – Jiang Ziya aiming the ritual bow at the straw effigy (larger version). Zhao Gongming can be seen sleeping in the Shang camp below. Woodblock print from The Newly Printed, Zhong Bojing Annotated, Investiture of the Gods (Xinke Zhong Bojing xiansheng piping Fengshen yanyi, 新刻鍾伯敬先生批評封神演義, c. 1620). See page 42 of this PDF.

III. Story Potential

If anyone decided to write their own fanfiction using the method described above, I could see this being a great opportunity for Zhu Bajie (豬八戒) and/or Sha Wujing (沙悟淨) to shine. He/they could be the one(s) searching the cosmos for answers, and upon learning of the rite, desperately racing to find the straw effigy before the ritual is complete. All of this would of course take place while Monkey is sleeping.

I can definitely see Zhu and/or Sha seeking the aid of Guanyin (觀音), who could easily break the ritual. I imagine she would reveal that, “The Great Sage is destined to experience this tribulation…” (or something like that), but she would surely provide them with the location in the end.

Reasons for the villain performing the ritual could include:

  • Eliminating Wukong so that they can more easily catch and eat the Tang Monk, thus gaining immortality.
  • Absorbing Monkey’s primal spirit in order to gain his immortality and skills.

The latter is my favorite, but the former would work better for the story since the whole point of the ritual is to kill the target. And besides, Monkey’s disembodied spirit is powerful enough to kill the psychopomps sent to reap his soul, as well as bully the judges and officers of hell (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 139-141). Now, imagine what it could do to some random demon king and/or cultivator who tried to absorb it!

IV. Conclusion

Sun Wukong is famed for his multiple categories of immortality, but he is still susceptible to death and the wheel of rebirth since during the journey, he hasn’t yet achieved Buddha-nature. Killing him in one-on-one combat would be nearly impossible, though, given his great durability and power. However, using methods borrowed from Investiture of the Gods (c. 1620) might work. For instance, chapter 44 mentions ten magical array traps that rely on primordial energies, destructive elements like wind, thunder, fire, sand, ice, and water, and spiritual attacks to terminate immortals. Three of the traps, numbers three, seven, and eight, respectively use true samadhi fire or soul-scattering and destruction to kill divine cultivators. These might give Monkey problems as his soul is easily reaped in his heavenly wine-induced slumber in JTTW chapter three, suggesting that it may be weak against spiritual attacks (at least while drunk), and he is shown to be weak against Red Boy’s true samadhi fire in chapter 41. But I think it would be hard to trick him into entering the traps since his magic eyes would no doubt see the dark auras above them.

The best way to overcome his great power, durability, and speed requires an indirect approach, a secret, spiritual assault from afar. A ritual used in chapters 48 and 49 of Investiture does exactly that. In order to defeat the immortal Zhao Gongming and circumvent his powerful holy treasures, the immortal Lu Ya instructs Zhou army commander Jiang Ziya how to perform a rite from the Book of Fixing the Seventh Posthumous Day Arrow. This involves a bureaucratic ceremony (praying, talisman-burning, and dipper-walking) that slowly steals the immortal’s primal spirit over a 21 day period, tethers it to a straw effigy marked with Zhao’s name, and then kills him by shooting the icon with three peach arrows: two to the eyes and a third to the heart.

A villain wanting to kidnap and eat the Tang Monk for immortality could perform this ritual in order to get Monkey out of the way. This would make for a great story centered on Zhu Bajie and/or Sha Wujing. He/they could frantically search the universe for answers, before racing to find the straw effigy before the rite is complete.

Update: 12-28-23

I found two neat drawings portraying Jiang Ziya performing the rite (fig. 4 & 5).

Fig. 4 (top) – Jiang Ziya performing the procedural side of the ritual (larger version). Image found here. Fig. 5 (bottom) – Ziya fires the last arrow, killing Zhao Gongming (larger version). Image found here. They appear to be from the same anonymous lianhuanhua comic book.

Update: 12-29-23

A reader’s comment (below) has prompted me to add more context. Zhao Gongming’s disembodied spirit is not destroyed by the ritual. It is pulled towards the “Terrace of Creation” (Fengshen tai, 封神臺), a magic receptacle of souls, to await his apotheosis at the end of the novel. He is enfeoffed as the “Golden Dragon, Wish-Fulfilling and Righteously Unifying, Dragon-Tiger Mysterious Altar Perfected Lord” (Jinlong ruyi zhengyi longhu xuantan zhenjun, 金龍如意正一龍虎玄壇真君), a god of wealth (cf. Gu, 2000, vol. 4, pp. 2119-2121).

This then raises the question, “What would happen to Wukong’s soul if the ritual was successful? After the death of his body, it would naturally report to the underworld for processing. Remember, Monkey has yet to attain Buddha-Nature, so he is still subject to the wheel of rebirth. I can see him causing trouble down there like he had done in the past, but perhaps Kṣitigarbha (Ch: Dizang, 地藏) would calm his rage and convince him that reincarnation is the right choice. This would lead to a new adventure.

Or, considering that the journey to India would still be underway, and Tripitaka is constantly in danger, heaven might rush to find a new body for Wukong’s spirit to inhabit. This actually happens to a minor character in chapters 11 and 12 of JTTW. The soul of an official’s wife is forced into the body of a recently dead princess to live out the remainder of her allotted lifespan (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 268-269).

Another reader suggested a second method from Investiture to kill Monkey (see the comment below):

The Immortal-slaying Flying Knife, also a treasure of Lu Ya’s, might be a good second-contender here. It’s a strange weapon with head and eyes and wings, stored inside a gourd: when released, its eyes shoot out white light that “nails down” an enemy’s true form, and, upon recitation of “Turn around please, precious” (请宝贝转身), will spin and instantly decapitate the target.

Sure, there is the matter of getting it out and saying the magical words before you were reduced to a meat patty, but if the target is already immobilized——like Yuan Hong, FSYY’s own staff-wielding ape with 72 transformations——the Immortal-Slaying Flying Knife will be that final nail in the coffin.

I’ll look into this more and update the page at a later date.

Update: 01-07-24

Lu Ya’s ritual reminds me of a two-step process used in Chinese Folk Religion to activate a religious statue (shenxiang, 神像). Part one is the “entering-spirit” (rushen, 入神) ceremony, which invites a deity’s essence inside. Lin (2020) explains:

When the carving is complete, the carver chooses an auspicious day to hold the spirit-entering ritual. A cavity at the back of the image is carved out for this rite. The objects placed in this hole include incense ashes (xianghui) or talismans from the root temple, a live hornet, five precious materials (gold, silver, bronze, iron, and tin), five crops (rice, wheat, sesame, and different kinds of beans), and a bundle of five-color threads (red, yellow, blue, black, and white) [fig. 6 & 7] … The worshippers have to prepare fruit and flowers and burn incense to invite the deity to come.

When the auspicious moment arrives, the carver inserts the previously listed items into the cavity and plugs it with a piece of wood. The objects placed in the cavity are important clues regarding how people conceptualize deities. Local inhabitants explained to me that the ashes or talisman symbolizes the spirit of the deity, and the living hornet is to increase the deity’s power. Some people said the five forms of treasure represent the five organs of the deity, whereas others just said they are symbols of the deity’s grandeur. The five crops represent the harvest and the bunch of five-color threads is related to the five spirit-soldier camps (p. 38).

Lu Ya’s ritual essentially treats the straw effigy like an idol that will house a god’s essence. This might explain how the primal spirit of Zhao Gongming (and therefore Sun Wukong) is called to enter the icon.

Fig. 6 (top) – A collection of the talisman, grains, treasures, and colored-threads used in the entering-spirit ceremony (larger version). Fig. 7 (bottom) – A live wasp is retrieved to be added to the necessary ritual items (larger version). Images found here. 

Part two is the “eye-opening and dotting” (kaiguang dianyan, 開光點眼) ceremony, which brings the idol to life. Again, I refer to Lin (2020):

For this ceremony, the carver prepares flowers, fruit, a round mirror, a red brush pen, and a white cock. When the auspicious moment arrives, the mirror is taken outside where the light is sufficient to reflect it into the statue’s eyes. Next, the carver goes back to the altar and uses a knife to cut the cockscomb and smear the blood with the red brush pen. He then starts to chant and to dot the deity with the brush pen. There are many different kinds of chants … but their contents are not very different. The process of dotting usually begins at the center of the forehead and proceeds to the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, heart, navel, feet, toes, fingers, and back [fig. 8-10], as the following chant demonstrates:

First dot the sacred head, second dot the sacred hat,
Third dot the sacred body, then the true and righteous god will occupy the body.
Open the left eye to see heaven.
Open the right eye to see into the earth.
Open the left ear to listen to sounds from all directions.
Open the right ear to hear sounds from far away.
Open the divine nose, to smell fragrant scents.
Open the divine mouth, but not to eat house hold foods.
Open the left hand and the disciples will be prosperous year after year.
Open the right hand and the god will capture ghosts without being asked.
Open the sacred belly and great divine power will come forth.
Open the left foot to step upon the correct path.
Open the right foot to step into the divine carriage.
Open the back so that all people may be enlightened.

It can be inferred that in this ceremony, the carver at first draws the natural energy into the statue to enliven it. Then, he uses the blood of a white cock, symbolizing purity, to dot and connect the important parts of the body. This makes the statue like a living person with veins in which blood flows without obstruction (pp. 38-39).

Although Investiture doesn’t mention any of this, I think performing the eye-opening and dotting ceremony would be the final step in making the straw effigy a separate, living embodiment of the Monkey King. The ritual would open the eyes of Wukong’s spiritual double to the cosmos and fill his chest with divine energies in preparation for shooting said targets. This would explain why Zhao Gongming closes his eyes upon each arrow strike (refer back to section II).

Writers wanting to add a certain level of religious authenticity to the fictional Monkey King-killing ritual could have the villain place the talisman, grains, treasures, live wasp, and five colored-threads inside the straw effigy. And then he could chant while simultaneously reflecting sunlight on the face and dotting the eyes and body with a rooster blood-soaked brush. The only major difference between the fictional and religious ceremonies would be that the former’s first step, the entering-spirit ritual, lasts three weeks.

Fig. 8 (top L) – An entering-spirit and eye-opening and dotting kit commonly sold in Taiwan (larger version). Notice how the mirror is rectangular instead of circular. Image found here. Fig. 9 (top R) – A white temple rooster kept as a supply of pure blood (larger version). Don’t worry, nowadays they are only nicked on the comb with a knife. Image found here. Fig. 10 (bottom) – A ritual master uses a circular mirror to shine sunlight into an idol’s eyes while dotting the figure with a blood-soaked brush (larger version). Image found here.

Notes:

1) Monkey is called a “bogus immortal” by the Jade Emperor (ch. 4), the Buddha (ch. 7), and the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea in (ch. 14) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 147-148, p. 193, and p. 318). This alludes to the fact that he is not yet a true transcendent.

The idea that Wukong is still susceptible to death is based on the Buddho-Taoist philosophy of Southern Quanzhen School Patriarch Zhang Boduan (張伯端, mid to late-980s-1082), which heavily influenced JTTW. Zhang believed that one had to attain both the Taoist elixir and Buddha-Nature in order to be truly immortal. Only then could one rise above death and the endless rounds of rebirth to live forever (Shao, 1997, pp. 80-84). This is why JTTW starts with Monkey achieving immortality in chapter two and ends with him attaining Buddhahood in chapter 100, thereby fulfilling Zhang’s two-step process to true transcendence.

Zhang’s philosophy is reflected in his Writings on Understanding Reality (Wuzhen pian, 悟真篇, 1075). One poem reads:

The elixir is the most precious treasure of the physical body; when cultivated to perfection, the transmutations are endless. One can go on to investigate the true source in the realm of essence, and ascertain the ineffable function of the birthless. Without awaiting another body in the next life, one attains the spiritual capacities of a Buddha in the present; after the Naga Girl achieved this, who since then has been able to follow in her footsteps? (Zhang, Liu, & Cleary, 1987, p. 1481; cf. Shao, 1997, p. 83)

丹是色身至寶，煉成變化無窮。更能性上究真宗，决了無生妙用。不待他身後世，見前獲佛神通。自從龍女著斯功，爾後誰能繼踵。

2) It’s interesting to note that Pigsy suggests that Wukong dying isn’t a problem because his 72 changes give him 72 lives (qishi’er tiao xingming, 七十二條性命) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 232).

3) For instance, heaven fails to execute Monkey in chapter seven because of his adamantine hide:

They then slashed him with a scimitar, hewed him with an ax, stabbed him with a spear, and hacked him with a sword, but they could not hurt his body in any way. Next, the Star Spirit of the South Pole ordered the various deities of the Fire Department to burn him with fire, but that, too, had little effect. The gods of the Thunder Department were then ordered to strike him with thunderbolts, but not a single one of his hairs was destroyed (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 188).

… 刀砍斧剁，槍刺劍刳，莫想傷及其身。南斗星奮令火部眾神放火煨燒，亦不能燒著。又著雷部眾神以雷屑釘打，越發不能傷損一毫。

4) Apart from these treasures, Zhao Gongming fights with a hard whip (bian, 鞭), a sword-like metal club with stacked ridges and a pointed end. Gu (2000) incorrectly translates this as “staff” (vol. 2, p. 941).

5) Given the ritual’s association with the number seven (i.e. “Fixing the Seventh Posthumous Day Arrow”), and the fact that it takes 21 days to execute, it seems that one arrow is used for every week that the rite is performed. Remember that there are a total of three: two for the eyes and a third one for the heart.

6) These are the holes in the head: eyes, nose, ears, and mouth.

Sources:

Gu, Z. (2000). Creation of the Gods (Vols. 1-4). Beijing: New World Press.

Lin, W. (2020). Materializing Magic Power: Chinese Popular Religion in Villages and Cities. Netherlands: Brill.

Shao, P. (1997). Monkey and Chinese Scriptural Tradition: A Rereading of the Novel Xiyouji (UMI No. 9818173) [Doctoral dissertation, Washington University]. Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database.

Wu, C., & Yu, A. C. (2012). The Journey to the West (Vols. 1-4) (Rev. ed.). Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press.

Zhang, B., Liu, Y., & Cleary, T. (1987). Understanding Reality: A Taoist Alchemical Classic. Honululu Univ. of Hawaii Press.