Tag 水滸傳

The Past Life Biography of Zhu Bajie

Jim R. McClanahan Leave a comment

Last updated: 04-09-2025

A twitter user asked me in late 2024 where Zhu Bajie (豬八戒; fig. 1) learned his “36 transformations” (sanshiliu ban bianhua, 三十六般變化). I told them that chapters 19 and 85 of Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記; “JTTW” hereafter) contain biographical poems, one of which explains his internal alchemy (neidan, 内丹) training under an immortal and ascension to godhood. I suggested that his past human life learned the magic changes during this time, but after answering the question, it dawned on me that many people may not be aware of these verses. I have, therefore, decided to post and analyze said poems for the benefit of my readers.

This is the second of three articles where I will present info about the disciples’ lives prior to the main events of JTTW. My next article will follow with Sha Wujing‘s (沙悟净) poem. Click here to read the first post about the White Dragon Horse (Bai longma, 白龍馬). These are meant to compliment my previous essay about Sun Wukong (孫悟空).

(On a related note, see here for the oldest known depictions of Zhu Bajie. They come from 14th-century Korea!)

Fig. 1 – A novel accurate depiction of the Tang Monk’s disciples, including our hog hero (top left) (larger version). Artwork by @真·迪绝人 (see here and here).

1. The poems

The novel actually presents two contradictory verses on the origins of our beloved pig-monster. One (ch. 19) portrays him as a human-turned-immortal commander of heavenly forces, while the other (ch. 85) alludes to him being a powerful hog-spirit given celestial rank.

1.1. Chapter 19

This poem is chock-full of internal alchemical jargon, so I’m placing explanatory notes just below the blockquote to save readers from having to scroll to the very bottom of the article every time a new concept is mentioned.

My mind was dim since the time of youth;
Always I loved my indolence and sloth.
Neither nursing nature nor seeking the Real,
I passed my days deluded and confused.
I met a true immortal suddenly
Who sat and spoke to me of cold and heat. [A]
‘Repent,’ he said, ‘and cease your worldly way:
From taking life accrues a boundless curse.
One day when the Great Limit ends your lot,
For eight woes and three ways you’ll grieve too late!’ 
I listened and turned my will to mend my ways:
I heard, repented, and sought the wondrous rune.
By fate my teacher he became at once,
Pointing to the Heavenly and Earthly Passes. [B]
Taught to forge the Great Pill Nine Times Reversed, [C]
I worked without pause through day and night
To reach Mud-Pill Palace topping my skull [D]
And Jetting-Spring Points on soles of my feet. [E]
With kidney brine flooding the Floral Pool, [F]
My Cinnabar Field was thus warmly nursed. [G]
Baby and Fair Girl mated as yin and yang; [H]
Lead and mercury mixed as sun and moon. [I]
In concord Li-dragon and Kan-tiger used, [J]
The spirit turtle sucked dry the gold crow’s blood. [K]
‘Three flowers joined on top,’ the root reclaimed [L];
‘Five breaths faced their source’ and all freely flowed. [M]
My merit done, I ascended on high,
Met by pairs of immortals from the sky.
Radiant pink clouds arose beneath my feet;
With light, sound frame I faced the Golden Arch.
The Jade Emperor gave a banquet for gods
Who sat in rows according to their ranks.
Made a marshal of the Celestial Stream,
I took command of both sailors and ships.
Because Queen Mother gave the Peaches Feast
When she met her guests at the Jasper Pool
My mind turned hazy for I got dead drunk,
A shameless rowdy reeling left and right.
Boldly I barged into Vast Cold Palace
Where the charming fairy received me in.
When I saw her face that would snare one’s soul,
My carnal itch of old could not be stopped!
Without regard for manners or for rank,
I grabbed Miss Chang’e asking her to bed.
For three or four times she rejected me:
Hiding east and west, she was sore annoyed.
My passion sky-high I roared like thunder,
Almost toppling the arch of Heaven’s gate.
Inspector General told the Emperor Jade;
I was destined that day to meet my fate.
The Vast Cold completely enclosed airtight
Left me no way to run or to escape.
Then I was caught by the various gods,
Undaunted still, for wine was in my heart.
Bound and taken to see the Emperor Jade,
By law I should have been condemned to death.
It was Venus the Gold Star, Mr. Li,
Who left the ranks and knelt to beg for me.
My punishment changed to two thousand blows,
My flesh was torn; my bones did almost crack.
Alive! I was banished from Heaven’s gate
To make my home beneath the Fuling Mount.
An errant womb’s my sinful destination: Stiff-Bristle Hog’s my worldly appellation!” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 378-379).

自小生來心性拙，貪閑愛懶無休歇。
不曾養性與修真，混沌迷心熬日月。
忽然閑裡遇真仙，就把寒溫坐下說。
勸我回心莫墮凡，傷生造下無邊孽。
有朝大限命終時，八難三途悔不喋。
聽言意轉要修行，聞語心回求妙訣。
有緣立地拜為師，指示天關並地[關]闕。
得傳九轉大還丹，工夫晝夜無時輟。
上至頂門泥丸宮，下至腳板湧泉穴。
周流腎水入華池，丹田補得溫溫熱。
嬰兒姹女配陰陽，鉛汞相投分日月。
離龍坎虎用調和，靈龜吸盡金烏血。
三花聚頂得歸根，五氣朝元通透徹。
功圓行滿卻飛昇，天仙對對來迎接。
朗然足下彩雲生，身輕體健朝金闕。
玉皇設宴會群仙，各分品級排班列。
敕封元帥管天河，總督水兵稱憲節。
只因王母會蟠桃，開宴瑤池邀眾客。
那時酒醉意昏沉，東倒西歪亂撒潑。
逞雄撞入廣寒宮，風流仙子來相接。
見他容貌挾人魂，舊日凡心難得滅。
全無上下失尊卑，扯住嫦娥要陪歇。
再三再四不依從，東躲西藏心不悅。
色膽如天叫似雷，險些震倒天關闕。
糾察靈官奏玉皇，那日吾當命運拙。
廣寒圍困不通風，進退無門難得脫。
卻被諸神拿住我，酒在心頭還不怯。
押赴靈霄見玉皇，依律問成該處決。
多虧太白李金星，出班俯顖親言說。
改刑重責二千鎚，肉綻皮開骨將折。
放生遭貶出天關，福陵山下圖家業。
我因有罪錯投胎，俗名喚做豬剛鬣。(source)

Footnotes:

A) “[C]old and heat,” (riyue, 日月; lit: “sun and moon”) refers to respective yang and yin energies (Pregadio, 2025p; see also Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 527 n. 2).

B) The original Chinese, “天關並地闕” (tianguan bing dique, or “heavenly passes and earthly watchtowers(?)”), is a likely typo for “天關並地關” (tianguan bing diguan, or “heavenly and earthly passes”). These respectively refer to the head and feet (Pregadio, 2025d, 2025s). I’ve therefore altered Yu’s (Wu & Yu, 2012) translation.

C) The “Great Pill [i.e. Elixir] Nine Times Reversed” (jiuzhuan da huandan, 九轉大還丹) was originally an external alchemical process where a concoction of toxic elements was purified over successive firings in a crucible to create a drug of immortality (see section 3.1. of this article). However, the term was coopted by later proponents of internal alchemy, who associated the ingestion and circulation of immortality-bestowing cosmic energies within pathways between bodily organs with a complex five phases-influenced numerology (Pregadio, 2025b, 2025n). Needham (1954, as cited in Wu & Yu, 2012) adds that it refers “to a chhi [qi, pneumatic vitality, breath] or substance generated by techniques purposefully within the human body which would bring about a reversion of the tissues from an ageing state to an infantile state” (vo. 1, p. 527 n. 4).

D) The “Mud-Pill Palace” (niwan gong, 泥丸宮) is a name for the upper cinnabar field in the head (Pregadio, 2025m; Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 528 n. 6).

E) The “Jetting-Spring Points” (yongquan xue, 湧泉穴) are pressure points on the bottom of the feet (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 528 n. 7).

F) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) explains that spiritual energies contained in the kidneys (which are associated with the water element) can be directed to different parts of the practitioner’s body, including a spot under the tongue, the “Floral pool” (huachi, 華池) (vol. 1, p. 528 n. 8; see also Pregadio, 2025r). While this is no doubt the correct answer, it’s important to note that internal alchemy also uses the term Floral pool to refer to true yang energy inside yin (Pregadio, 2025h). The corresponding term is “spirit water” (shenshui, 神水), which denotes true yin energy inside yang—think of the white and black dots inside of the Taiji symbol (Pregadio, 2025h). Therefore, the poem’s original Chinese “腎水入華池” (shenshui ru huachi, or “kidney brine flooding the floral pool”) could also be a reference to the similarly-sounding phrase “神水入華池” (shenshui ru huachi, or “spirit water flooding the floral pool), or the mixture of yang and yin, respectively.

G) The “Cinnabar Field” (dantian, 丹田) is one of three spiritual centers in the body, which is located between 1.3 to 3.6 Chinese inches (cun, 寸; 1 = 1.25 in/3.18 cm) below (or behind) the belly button. The Cinnabar Field is believed to store cosmic/bodily energies, that when circulated and refined, produce an immortal alchemical embryo—i.e. a fledgling immortal spirit avatar (Pregadio, 2025c; see also Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 528 n. 9). And “warmly nursed” (bu de wenwen’re, 補得溫溫熱) may refer to “nourishing warmly” (wenyang, 溫養), or the process of “gestati[ng] the alchemical embryo” (Pregadio, 2025t).

H) The “Baby and Fair Girl” (ying’er chanu, 嬰兒姹女) are anthropomorphic personas of yang and yin energy, respectively (Pregadio, 2025a, 2025w; see also Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 528 n. 10).

I) The elemental and celestial imagery of “lead and mercury” (qian gong/hong, 鉛汞) and “sun and moon” (riyue, 日月) refer to yang and yin energies, respectively (Pregadio, 2025g, 2025o, 2025p).

J) The third eight trigram figure, Li (離/☲), is associated with dragons (long, 龍), and both symbolize yang energy. The sixth figure, Kan (坎/☵), is associated with tigers (hu, 虎), and both symbolize yin energy (fig. 2) (Pregadio, 2025j, 2025k, 2025l; see also Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 529 n. 11).

K) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) suggests that “turtle” (gui, 龜) “may be another name for the dark liquid of the kidneys” (vol. 1, p. 529 n. 12). He continues, “[T]he gold crow indicates the sun or the heart. The line refers to the union of yin and yang through the absorption of yang energy by yin” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 529 n. 12). While I agree that this refers to the mixing of said energies, it’s important to note, however, that turtles are usually paired with “snakes” (she, 蛇), both being anthropomorphic symbols of jing-essence and qi-breath (精氣), respectively (Pregadio, 2025f). Additionally, the “gold crow” (jinwu, 金烏), an anthropomorphic symbol of true yin inside yang energy, is normally paired with the “jade rabbit” (yutu, 玉兔), an anthropomorphic symbol of true yang inside yin (Pregadio, 2025i, 2025y). Similarly, “blood” (xue, 血) represents true yin inside of yang (Pregadio, 2025v).

L) The “Three flowers” (sanhua, 三花) is another name for jing-essence, qi-breath, and shen-spirit (精氣神), three important bio-spiritual substances/energies. These must be “joined on top” (juding, 聚頂), or concentrated in the head (the upper cinnabar field) during the internal alchemical process (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 529 n. 13; see also Pregadio, 2025q). This leads to the “root [being] reclaimed” (guigen, 歸根), which refers to “[g]oing back to the root and returning to the mandate” (guigen fuming, 歸根復命), or achieving immortality (Pregadio, 2025e).

M) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) explains, “Five breaths … wuqi chaoyuan 五氣朝元, refers to the pneumatic vitality, qi, of the five viscera (heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys) in harmonious balance” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 529 n. 14). A related view is that said viscera are synced with bio-spiritual substances or mental concepts—ie. hun/liver, jing-essence/kidneys, spirit/heart, po/lungs, intention/spleen—when a practitioner has learned to quiet their senses and still their body (Pregadio, 2025u).

Fig. 2 – An internal alchemy diagram of a Daoist cultivator circulating yang and yin energies, which are respectively represented by the eight trigrams figures ☲ (Li, 離) and ☵ (Kan, 坎) and the elements fire and water (larger version). Image found here. I believe it originally comes from the Anthology of Immortals of Complete Perfection (Quanzhen qunxian ji, 全真群仙集, 1483).

1.2. Explanation

Zhu was originally a lazy, aimless man, but he encountered a celestial who told him to mend his ways, or else he would be reborn in the lower three Buddhist realms of hell, hungry ghosts, or animals, making it impossible for him to hear the Buddha’s teachings (an example of the novel’s syncretic unity). Upon repenting, he studied under the immortal, learning the art of internal alchemy, which involved absorbing and circulating vital energies around his body. Once he had attained transcendence, he rose on clouds to be escorted by other celestials into the heavenly realm, where he was appointed marshal of the heavenly navy, which sailed the cosmic river of the Milky Way Galaxy.

But his great achievement was tainted when he got drunk at the Queen Mother’s peach banquet and, being aroused by Chang’e’s dazzling beauty (fig. 3), chased her to the moon palace. He propositioned the goddess for sex several times, but her refusals sent him into a powerful rage. The protector deity Wang Lingguan reported this to the Jade Emperor, who had the moon palace surrounded by heavenly soldiers. The Marshal was soon captured and sentenced to death, but the planet Venus asked for lenience, leading to Zhu’s past life being beaten 2,000 times and banished from the heavenly realm. His divine spirit sought reincarnation in the mortal realm below, but an accident of fate led to his rebirth as a pig-spirit. He later took the name “Stiff-Bristles Hog” (Zhu Ganglie, 豬剛鬣) based on his porcine appearance.

Zhu Bajie-Chang'e stamp

Fig. 3 – A Taiwanese stamp reading, “Drunkenly playing Chang’e” (Zuixi Change, 醉戲嫦娥) (larger version). It’s likely meant to serve as a visual reminder of Zhu’s early story arc involving the events leading to his banishment from heaven and rebirth as a hog-spirit.

1.3. Chapter 85

With huge mouth and fangs I’ve great magic might.
Emperor Jade made me Marshal Heavenly Reeds.
The boss of Heaven’s eighty-thousand marines,
Comforts and joys I had in the halls of light.
Because I mocked a palace maiden when I was drunk
And flaunted my strength at a wrongful hour
One shove of my snout toppled the Dipper–Ox Palace;
Queen Mother’s divine herbs I then devoured
Emperor Jade pounded me two thousand times
And banished me from the Three Heavens realm.
Though told to nourish my primal spirit,
I became again a monster down below.
About to marry at the Village Gao, I met Brother Sun—’twas my wretched fate!
Quite defeated by his golden-hooped rod,
I had to bow and take the Buddhist vow:
A coolie who bears luggage and leads the horse,
Who owes, in former life, the Tang Monk a debt!
This iron-legged Heavenly Reed‘s name is Zhu;
And my religious name is Zhu Eight Rules” (based on Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, pp. 149-150).

巨口獠牙神力大，玉皇陞我天蓬帥。
掌管天河八萬兵，天宮快樂多自在。
只因酒醉戲宮娥，那時就把英雄賣。
一嘴拱倒斗牛宮，吃了王母靈芝菜。
玉皇親打二千鎚，把吾貶下三天界。
教吾立志養元神，下方卻又為妖怪。
正在高莊喜結親，命低撞著孫兄在。
金箍棒下受他降，低頭才把沙門拜。
背馬挑包做夯工，前生少了唐僧債。
鐵腳天蓬本姓豬，法名喚作豬八戒。(source)

1.4. Explanation

He was originally a pig-spirit with sharp tusks and powerful magic (fig. 4) who was appointed Marshal Tianpeng, commander of the 80,000-strong celestial navy. He enjoyed his new life among the godly ranks but later got drunk (at the Queen Mother’s banquet) and performed a number of forbidden deeds: mistreating a moon goddess, knocking over the Dipper-Ox Palace, and eating the Queen mother’s magic mushrooms. This resulted in a punishment of 2,000 strokes and banishment from heaven, with the added instruction to cultivate his spirit while on earth. But he once again became a monster, and at some point,  he took a wife in Gao Village. He was subsequently defeated by Monkey and forced to take the Buddhist vows, serving as Tripitaka’s disciple and luggage handler. His discipleship may have been the karmic result of a good deed that his master performed for him in a past life.

Fig. 4 – Zhu’s giant boar form from the manhua Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記) (larger version).

2. Which is true?

Both poems provide certain information that is consistent with internal narrative details, such as:

  • Zhu originally serving as Marshal Heavenly Reed (Tianpeng yuanshuai, 天蓬元帥; lit: “Marshal of Heavenly Mugwort“), commander of the 80,000 soldiers of the celestial navy (and a historical deity) (fig. 5)
  • Getting drunk at the peach festival and harassing a moon goddess
  • Being beaten 2,000 times as punishment and exiled to the mortal world
  • Mistakenly being reborn as Stiff-Bristles Hog, a bloodthirsty pig-monster in Fuling Mountain (Fuling shan, 福陵山)
  • Eventually taking a wife in Gao Village (Gao zhuang, 高莊)
  • Being defeated by Sun Wukong
  • Becoming Zhu Bajie, a Buddhist disciple of Tripitaka
  • Acting as a coolie carrying the luggage

But the real question is: was Zhu originally human or a pig-spirit? I think the first poem is likely true (within the narrative) given the amount of detail that he provides about the alchemical processes that eventually led to his immortality and ascension to godhood. The second poem is cursory in comparison and seems like something that was made up on the spot to embellish his might—perhaps influenced by stories of Sun Wukong’s past havoc in heaven—or monstrous pedigree in the face of a demonic opponent (refer to the events in chapter 85). One detail pointing to this is his claim of knocking over the “Dipper-Ox Palace” (Douniu gong, 斗牛宮), which references the stars of the Southern Dipper and Ox mansions (Stephenson, 2008, p. 517). He’s therefore asserting that he can collapse entire constellations. That’s definitely nonsense as Zhu is often overpowered and defeated in battle, even by groups of little fiends (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, pp. 102-103, for example).

Fig. 5 – A historical painting of “Great Marshal Tianpeng” (Tianpeng da yuanshui, 天蓬大元帥) from the Ink Treasures of Wu Daozi (Daozi mobao, 道子墨寶, 13th-century), (larger version). Image altered for clarity.

3. Additional info

The poems actually leave out several details about Zhu’s past and current lives.

  1. The Chang’e (嫦娥) mentioned above is not the singular goddess but one of many such named divine maidens in the entourage of the “Star Lord of Supreme Yin” (Taiyin xingjun, 太陰星君), the aged devi of the moon. [1]
  2. He mauled his sow mother and piglet siblings to death sometime after his mistaken rebirth in Fuling Mountain (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 212).
  3. His first wife, “Second Elder Sister Mao” (Mao erjie, 夘二姐), [2] a likely rabbit spirit, [3] was the original owner of his Cloudy Paths Cave (Yunzhan dong, 雲棧洞) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 212). But sadly, she died less than a year after their marriage (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 212). Their tragic love story would be good fodder for fanfiction.
  4. He was invited by the Crow’s Nest Chan Master (Wuchao chanshi, 烏巢禪師), a Buddhist sage, to practice austerities, but he passed on the opportunity.
  5. Years prior to being called Zhu Bajie, he submitted to Buddhism at the behest of the bodhisattva Guanyin and was given the religious name “Zhu Wuneng” (豬悟能, “Pig Who Awakens to Power”) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 213).
  6. Sometime after adopting a vegetarian diet, [4] he magically transformed into a “stout, swarthy [human] fellow” (hei pang han, 黑胖漢) in order to fraudulently arrange a marriage with his second wife, “Green Orchid” (Cui’lan, 翠蘭), a maiden from Gao Village in Tibet (Wusizang, 烏斯藏) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 372). [5]
  7. The Gao family grew rich from his supernatural labors in the field (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 375 and 381).
  8. But he was abusive to his wife, locking her inside a back building and not allowing her to see her family for half a year (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 372).
  9. Monkey tricked Zhu by magically taking his wife’s form and hiding in a dark room (fig. 6), [6] but he later overpowered the hog-spirit in combat (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 380). Zhu eventually submitted when he learned Sun was escorting the scripture pilgrim to India (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 384).

Lastly, I would like to suggest that the immortal teacher of Zhu’s past life also taught him divine military arts—like Master Ghost Valley taught Sun Bin in vernacular fiction—because why else would a random person be given command of the entire heavenly navy? I headcanon that he was once a brilliant military strategist and commander, but his mistaken reincarnation as a hog made him very dim and lazy.

Fig. 6 – A woodblock print from the original 1592 edition of JTTW reading, “The fake Green Orchid outsmarts Stiff-Bristles Hog” (Jia Cui’lan zhinong Zhu Ganglie, 假翠蘭智㺯(弄)豬剛鬣) (larger version). See page 228 of the linked PDF. I’m intrigued by the pig-spirit’s failed human transformation.

Update: 03-04-25

Friend of the blog NingadudeXx has drawn a picture of Zhu Bajie as his past life, Marshal Tianpeng (fig. 7), based on the god’s historical iconography (refer back to fig. 5).

Fig. 7 – Zhu Bajie as Marshal Tianpeng (larger version).

Update: 04-09-25

I forgot to mention that Zhu has some medical knowledge. In chapter 41, for example, he performs life-saving massage to resuscitate a dead Sun Wukong:

With a chuckle, Eight Rules [Zhu Bajie] said, “Brother, stop crying. This ape is pretending to be dead, just to scare us. Feel him a little and see if there’s any warmth left in his breast.” “The whole body has turned cold,” said Sha Monk [Sha Wujing]. “Even if there were a little warmth left, how could you revive him?” Eight Rules said, “If he is capable of seventy-two transformations, he has seventy-two lives. Listen, you stretch out his legs while I take care of him.” Sha Monk indeed straightened Pilgrim’s legs while Eight Rules lifted his head and straightened his upper torso. They then pushed his legs up and folded them around the knees before raising him into a sitting position. Rubbing his hands together until they were warm, Eight Rules covered Pilgrim’s seven apertures and began to apply a Chan method [anmo chanfa, 按摩禪法] of massage on him (emphasis added). The cold water, you see, had had such a traumatic effect on Pilgrim that his breath was caught in his cinnabar field and he could not utter a sound. He was lucky, therefore, to have all that rubbing, squeezing, and kneading by Eight Rules, for in a moment his breath went through the three passes, invaded the bright hall, and burst through his apertures. and burst through his apertures. “O Master,” he [Monkey] began to say (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 232).

八戒笑道：「兄弟莫哭。這猴子佯推死，嚇我們哩。你摸他摸，胸前還有一點熱氣沒有？」沙僧道：「渾身都冷了，就有一點兒熱氣，怎的就得回生？」八戒道：「他有七十二般變化，就有七十二條性命。你扯著腳，等我擺佈他。」真個那沙僧扯著腳，八戒扶著頭，把他拽個直，推上腳來，盤膝坐定。八戒將兩手搓熱，仵住他的七竅，使一個按摩禪法。原來那行者被冷水逼了，氣阻丹田，不能出聲。卻幸得八戒按摸揉擦，須臾間，氣透三關，轉明堂，沖開孔竅，叫了一聲：「師父啊！」

Also, in chapter 69, he argues with Wukong about the attributes and usages of a medicinal ingredient:

“The flavour of badou [巴豆],” said Eight Rules, “is slightly acrid; its nature is hot and poisonous. Able to pare down the hard and the accumulated, it will therefore sweep out the submerged chills of one’s internal cavities. Able to bore through clottings and impediments, it will therefore facilitate the paths of water and grain. This is a warrior who can break down doors and passes, and it should be used lightly” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 274).

八戒道：「巴豆味辛，性熱有毒。削堅積，蕩肺腑之沉寒；通閉塞，利水穀之道路。乃斬關奪門之將，不可輕用。」

This might suggest that Bajie also learned these skills from his immortal master.

Endnotes:

1) Chapter 95 explains that the seemingly singular goddess Chang’e is actually a collective, and also that one of them was the maiden that Zhu’s former life had harassed in the past:

As they stared into the sky, they heard the Great Sage Sun crying out in a loud voice: “Your Majesty of India, please ask your queen and concubines to come out and look. Beneath this treasure canopy is the Star Lord of Supreme Yin of the Moon Palace, and the immortal sisters on both sides of her* are the Chang’e goddesses inside the moon (emphasis added). This little jade hare is the false princess of your household; she has now revealed her true form.”

The king hurriedly assembled the queen, his concubines, the palace maidens, and gaily-attired girls to bow to the sky and worship. He himself and the Tang Monk also expressed their thanks toward the sky by bowing low. All the households in the city also set up incense tables and kowtowed, chanting the name of Buddha.

As they looked up into the air, Zhu Eight Rules was moved to lust. Unable to contain himself, he leaped into the air and embraced a rainbow-skirted immortal, crying, “Sister, you and I are old acquaintances! Let’s go play!” (emphasis added) (based on Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 4, p. 303).

眾擡頭看處，又聞得孫大聖厲聲高叫道：「天竺陛下，請出你那皇后、嬪妃看者：這寶幢下乃月宮太陰星君，兩邊的仙妹是月裡嫦娥。這個玉兔兒卻是你家的假公主，今現真相也。」那國王急召皇后、嬪妃與宮娥、綵女等眾朝天禮拜，他和唐僧及多官亦俱望空拜謝。滿城中各家各戶，也無一人不設香案，叩頭念佛。正此觀看處，豬八戒動了慾心，忍不住，跳在空中，把霓裳仙子抱住道：「姐姐，我與你是舊相識，我和你耍子兒去也。」

* Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) calls the Star Lord of Supreme Yin “him” in his original translation (vol. 4, p. 303), but the deity has been portrayed as a woman for centuries. See, for instance, her depiction (2nd from the top left) in the Ink Treasures of Wu Daozi (Daozi mobao, 道子墨寶, 13th-century).

2) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates her name as “Second Elder Sister Egg” (Luan erjie, 卵二姐)” (vol. 1, p. 212). But this is based on a transcription error—i.e. 夘 (Mao; original edition) vs 卵 (Luan; modern edition).

3) The relationship of Zhu and Second Elder Sister Mao references the synergy between the elemental and animal aspects of the 12 earthly branches—i.e. Mao (夘; yin wood/rabbit) and Hai (亥; yang wood/pig) complete each other.

4) His vegetarian diet is mentioned in chapters 18 and 19 (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 372, 384, and 386).

5) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates “烏斯藏” (Wusizang), the location of Gao village, as the “Kingdom of Qoco” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 369). However, this phrase actually refers to Dbus-gtsang, or Tibet (Zhang, 2023, pp. 32-33; Wilkinson, 2000, p. 728).

6) I’ve previously suggested that this episode was influenced by a scene from chapter five of the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan, 水滸傳, c. 1400). Both feature:

  • Young, beautiful daughters in unwanted relationships (Green Orchid vs the unnamed maiden).
  • Elderly fathers worried for their child (Mr. Gao vs Mr. Liu).
  • Evil spirit-turned-inhumanly strong, hot-tempered, heavy metal staff-wielding martial monks who come to their aid (Sun Wukong vs Lu Zhishen).
  • The monk takes the place of the woman in a darkened room.
  • The villain is beaten (Zhu Bajie vs Zhou Tong) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 374-377; Shi & Luo, 1993/2021, pp. 109-113).

Sources:

Pregadio, F. (2025a). cha nü 姹女 (chanü). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 19-20). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025b). da huan dan 大還丹 (da huandan). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 32-33). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025c). dan tian 丹田 (dantian). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 38-39). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025d). di guan 地關 (diguan). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 45). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025e). gui gen fu ming 歸根復命 (guigen fuming). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 78). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025f). gui she 龜蛇 (guishe). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 78). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025g). hong 汞. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 86). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025h). hua chi shen shui 華池神水 (huachi shenshui). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 90). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025i). jin wu 金烏 (jinwu). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 124-125). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025j). kan 坎. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 134). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025k). li 離. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 142-143). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025l). long hu 龍虎 (longhu). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 154-156). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025m). ni wan gong 泥丸宮 (niwan gong). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 174). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025n). qi fan jiu huan 七返九還 (qifan jiuhuan). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 183-184). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025o). qian 鉛. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 188). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025p). ri yue 日月 (riyue). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 202-203). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025q). san hua ju ding 三花聚頂 (sanhua juding). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 214). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025r). shen 腎. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 230-231). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025s). tian guan 天關 (tianguan). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 262). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025t). wen yang 溫養 (wenyang). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 276). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025u). wu qi chao yuan 五氣朝元 (wuqi chaoyuan). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 282-283). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025v). xue 血. In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 321-322). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025w). ying er 嬰兒 (ying’er) (1). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (pp. 341-342). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025x). ying er 嬰兒 (ying’er) (2). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 342). Leiden: Brill.

Pregadio, F. (2025y). yu tu 玉兔 (yutu). In Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy (p. 346). Leiden: Brill.

Shi, N., & Luo, G. (2021). Outlaws of the Marsh (Vols. 1-4) (S. Shapiro, Trans.). Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. (Original work published 1993)

Stephenson, F. R. (2008). Lunar Mansions in Chinese Astronomy. In H. Selin (Ed.), Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures (pp. 516-518) (2nd ed.). Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Wilkinson, E. P. (2000). Chinese History: A Manual. United Kingdom: Harvard University Asia Center.

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

Zhang, F. (2023). The Eastern Land and the Western Heaven: Qing Cosmopolitanism and Its Translation in Tibet in the Eighteenth Century. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.

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.

 

Archive #43: The 72 and 36 Taoist Skills of the Lidai Shenxian Tongjian

Jim R. McClanahan 3 Comments

Last updated: 08-18-2023

Fans of Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記, 1592 CE; hereafter JTTW) sometimes debate whether Sun Wukong’s 72 “Multitude of Terrestrial Killers” (Disha shu, 地煞數; a.k.a. “… Earthly Fiends”) and Zhu Bajie’s 36 “Multitude of Heavenly Rectifiers” (Tiangang shu, 天罡數; a.k.a. “… the Heavenly Ladle or Northern Dipper”) [1] are just transformations or actual lists of individual magical skills. For example, in March of 2023, a reddit user claimed in one post that “72 transformations” was a mistranslation for “72 different spells.” And then they asked if there existed a list of the 36 spells. I responded by saying:

There is no official list of the 72 or 36 transformations. This is because they are never mentioned in the novel. Any attempt at making a list is a guesstimate at best or completely made up at worst.

[…]

But I was recently contacted by a different reddit user who linked me to a dynastic source, The Comprehensive Mirror of Successive Divine Immortals (Lidai shenxian tongjian, 歷代神仙通鑑, c. 1700; hereafter The Comprehensive Mirror), [2] which does include respective lists for the “Thirty-Six Methods of the Heavenly Rectifiers” (Tiangang sanshiliu fa, 天罡三十六法) and the “Seventy-Two Arts of the Terrestrial Killers” (Disha qishier shu, 地煞七十二術) (said redditor translates the list of 72 abilities in video game terms here). The skills range from creating earthquakes to resurrecting the dead.

However, there are three reasons why these lists should not be associated with Sun and Zhu: 1) They do not appear in JTTW; 2) They postdate the novel by nearly a century; and 3) The JTTW narrative firmly establishes that the numbers of the 72 Terrestrial Killers and 36 Heavenly rectifiers are symbolic of the many ways that Monkey and Pigsy can change their shape. I will discuss this in more detail in section I.

But for the sake of posterity, I would like to translate both lists so that anyone interested can see them for themselves. The info might serve as good fodder for fanfiction or D&D character development. Having said that, I don’t consider myself a translator or an expert on esoteric Taoist jargon. So, if you know of a better rendering for a given phrase, please let me know in the comments below or by email (see the “contact” button).

Also, I will be archiving the section of The Comprehensive Mirror containing the lists of the 72 and 36 skills. See section IV below for the PDF link. It was downloaded from Google Books.

The title page of The Comprehensive Mirror (larger version) (PDF p. 6).

I. Arguments Against the Lists

First, they are not canonical as they don’t appear in JTTW. I’m sure someone could comb through the novel and find parallels, but this wouldn’t necessarily constitute proof of direct influence. This is because immortals have displayed similar powers in Taoist hagiography since at least Ge Hong‘s Book of the Master Who Embraces Simplicity (Baopuzi, 抱樸子, 4th-century CE). For example, just like Sun Wukong, the late-Han alchemist Zuo Ci (左慈) was known for enraging enemies, in this case the warlord Cao Cao (曹操), by using magic clones of himself in hilarious ways to escape trouble (see the 11-24-19 update here for a full translation of his shenanigans). Campany & Ge (2002), especially part II, is a treasure trove of such hagiographic tales.

Second, the lists postdate JTTW by almost a century. Whose to say that the popularity of the novel didn’t influence the creation of said lists? Even The Comprehensive Mirror refers at one point to the skills as the “thirty-six changes and seventy-two transformations” (sanshiliu bian, qishier hua, 三十六變，七十二化) (PDF p. 295). This mimics the metamorphic abilities of Monkey and Zhu discussed below. All one would need to do to create the lists is gather skills from Taoist hagiography and then assign them a place and number among the 72 Terrestrial Killers (Disha, 地煞) or 36 Heavenly Rectifiers (Tiangang, 天罡).

(I should note that the names of these numbered groups are based on malevolent and benevolent stellar deities that appear throughout Chinese culture and literature. See, for instance, the 108 stars of the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan, 水滸傳, c. 14th-century CE) (Meulenbeld, 2019).) [4]

A folk print of the “72 Killer Gods” (Qishier Shashen, 七十二煞神) from the Anne S. Goodrich Collection (larger version). Image found here.

And third, most importantly, JTTW specifically states that Monkey has “seventy-two kinds of transformations” (qishier ban bianhua, 七十二般變化) and Zhu “thirty-six kinds of transformations” (sanshiliu ban bianhua, 三十六般變化). Therefore, the numbers of the 72 Terrestrial Killers and 36 Heavenly rectifiers are symbolic of the many ways that our heroes can change their shape. This is made clear in several places throughout the novel. Here, I will list a few examples.

In chapter 2, the Patriarch Subodhi teaches the 72 changes to Sun Wukong with the expressed purpose of helping him “hide” (duobi, 躲避) from the Three Calamities (sanzai lihai, 三災利害) of cosmic lightning, fire, and wind sent by heaven every 500 respective years to destroy immortals for defying fate and achieving eternal life:

“Very well, then,” said the Patriarch, “what method of hiding would you like to learn? There is the “Multitude of the Heavenly Rectifiers,” which numbers thirty-six transformations, and there is the “Multitude of Terrestrial Killers,” which numbers seventy-two transformations.” Wukong said, “Your pupil is always eager to catch more fishes, so I’ll learn the “Multitude of Terrestrial Killers.” “In that case,” said the Patriarch, “come up here, and I’ll pass on the oral formulas to you.” He then whispered something into his ear, though we do not know what sort of wondrous secrets he spoke of. But this Monkey King was someone who, knowing one thing, could understand a hundred! He immediately learned the oral formulas and, after working at them and practicing them himself, he mastered all seventy-two transformations (based on Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, 122).

祖師說：「也罷，你要學那一般？有一般天罡數，該三十六般變化；有一般地煞數，該七十二般變化。」悟空道：「弟子願多裡撈摸，學一個地煞變化罷。」祖師道：「既如此，上前來，傳與你口訣。」遂附耳低言，不知說了些甚麼妙法。這猴王也是他一竅通時百竅通，當時習了口訣，自修自煉，將七十二般變化都學成了。

In chapter 18, Zhu states, “I have the transformations of the Heavenly Rectifiers” (我有天罡數的變化). [3] And later in chapter 67, he reveals that the 36 changes have their shortcomings:

I, old Hog, after all, am capable of thirty-six kinds of transformation. If you want me to change into something delicate, elegant, and agile, I simply can’t do it. But if it’s a mountain, a tree, a boulder, an earth mound, a scabby elephant, a graded hog, a water buffalo, or a camel, I can change into all these things (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 253).

我老豬本來有三十六般變化，若說變輕巧華麗飛騰之物，委實不能；若說變山，變樹，變石塊，變土墩，變賴象、科豬、水牛、駱駝，真個全會。

II. The 36 Methods of the Heavenly Rectifiers

I have included reference numbers when certain skills are similar or related.

Take note that several of these skills appear in Investiture of the Gods (Fengshen yanyi, 封神演義, c. 1620), a famous vernacular novel containing the mythos of many gods still worshiped today in Chinese folk religion.

  1. Woxuan zaohua (斡旋造化, lit: “mediate good luck”) – Creating good fortune.
  2. Diandao yinyang (顛倒陰陽, lit: “reverse yin and yang”) – Disturbing the natural flow of the cosmos (switching the sun and moon, reversing right and wrong, confusing black and white, etc.).
  3. Yixing huandou (移星換斗, lit: “shift the stars and switch the Big Dipper) – Altering the position of the stars. Perhaps this is a metaphor for changing someone’s fate.
  4. Huitian fanri (迴天返日, lit: “turn around heaven to bring back the sun) – Rewinding the day to raise the setting sun into the sky.
  5. Huanyu hufeng (喚雨呼風, Lit: “call the rain and summon the wind) – Summoning storms (see sec. II, nos. 5-8 & 28).
  6. Zhenshan handi (振山撼地, lit: “shake mountains and earth”) – Making earthquakes.
  7. Jiawu tengyun (駕霧騰雲) – Flying on the mist and clouds (see sec. II, no. 12).
  8. Huajiang chenglu (劃江成陸) – Parting water to make new land.
  9. Zongde jinguang (縱地金光, lit: “releasing golden light”) – Transforming into light, thus allowing one to travel thousands of Chinese miles in a single day (see sec. II, no. 55).
  10. Fanjiang jiaohai (翻江攪海, lit: “overturn rivers and disturb oceans) – Creating turbulent rapids and violent tsunamis.
  11. Zhidi chenggang (指地成鋼) – Transforming earth into steel with just a point of the finger (see no. 23).
  12. Wuxing dadun (五行大遁, lit: “five elements great escape”) – Escaping a place or situation through any of the five Chinese elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water) (see no. 32 and sec. II, nos. 40, 54, & 59).
  13. Liujia jimen (六甲奇門, lit: “Strang Door of the Six Jia Spirits) – A computational divination system used to foretell fate.
  14. Nizhi weilai (逆知未來) – Foreknowledge of the future.
  15. Bianshan yishi (鞭山移石, lit: “whipping mountains and shifting stones”) – A kind of earth bending where one can change the landscape at will (see sec. II, no. 47).
  16. Qisi huisheng (起死回生) – Bringing the dead back to life.
  17. Feishen tuoji (飛身托跡, lit: “flying body trace”) – Traveling heaven and earth without leaving a trace.
  18. Jiuqi fuqi (九息服炁, lit: “nine breaths air swallowing) – A kind of Taoist “embryonic breathing” thought to bring about immortality.
  19. Daochu yuanyang (導出元陽) – Extracting someone’s primal yang energy (see no. 36).
  20. Xianglong fuhu (降龍伏虎) – Subduing dragons and tigers. Apart from the literal reading, this could also be a metaphor for mastery of yin and yang energy.
  21. Butian yuri (補天浴日) – Mending the heavens and bathing in the sun. Is this perhaps some kind of power of purification?
  22. Tuishan tianhai (推山填海) – Pushing mountains and filling oceans.
  23. Zhishi chengjin (指石成金) – Turning stone into gold with just a point of the finger (see no. 11).
  24. Zhengli wuying (正立無影) – Standing in broad daylight without casting a shadow.
  25. Taihua yixing (胎化易形, lit: “changing form into a fetus”) – Regressing one’s form to a youthful appearance (see sec. II, no. 43). Could this be a reference to the “spirit embryo” from Taoist internal alchemy?
  26. Daxiao ruyi (大小如意) – Enlarging or shrinking things to meet one’s desires (see sec. II, no. 16).
  27. Huakai qingke (花開頃刻) – Making flowers bloom and plants grow instantly.
  28. Youshen yuqi (遊神御氣) – Traveling in spirit and riding the wind (see sec. 1, no. 17).
  29. Geyuan dongjian (隔垣洞見) – Seeing through walls and partitions.
  30. Huifeng fanhuo (迴風返火) – Repelling wind and fire (see sec. II, no. 4).
  31. Zhangwo wulei (掌握五雷, lit: “controlling the five thunders”) – Controlling divine, often wrathful beings to expel evil.
  32. Qianyuan suodi (潛淵縮地, lit: “diving into the abyss and contracting earth”) – Traveling deep within the water and earth unimpeded (see no. 12 and sec. II, nos. 40, 54, & 59). This likely also refers to immortals contracting the landscape in order to travel quickly or stay out of reach of those pursuing them.
  33. Feisha zoushi (飛砂走石, lit: “flying sand and moving rocks”) – Calling forth a mighty wind (see no. 5 and sec. II, nos. 5 & 12).
  34. Jiashan chaohai (挾山超海) – Carrying mountains under arm while crossing oceans (see sec. II, no. 3). This could also just mean the ability to do impossible things.
  35. Sadou chengbing (撒豆成兵) – Transforming scattered beans into an army of soldiers.
  36. Ding touqi jian (釘頭七箭, lit: “fixing the seventh posthumous day arrow”) – An arcane ritual involving killing someone from afar by stealing their spirit, attaching it to a straw effigy, and shooting it with an arrow (see no. 19).

The 36 Methods of the Heavenly Rectifiers (larger version) (PDF pp. 297-298).

III. The 72 Arts of the Terrestrial Killers

I have again included reference numbers.

  1. Tongyou (通幽) – Traveling through the underworld.
  2. Qushen (驅神) – Expelling spirits.
  3. Danshan (擔山) – Carrying mountains (see sec. I, no. 34).
  4. Jinshui (禁水) – Repelling water (see sec. II, no. 30).
  5. Jiefeng (借風) – Controlling wind (see sec. 1, no. 5)
  6. Buwu (佈霧) – Spreading fog (see sec. 1, no. 5).
  7. Qiqing (祈晴) – Summoning good weather (see sec. 1, no. 5).
  8. Daoyu (禱雨) – Summoning rain (see sec. 1, no. 5).
  9. Zuohuo (坐火, lit: “sit in fire”) – Resisting flame.
  10. Rushui (入水, lit: “entering water”) – Parting water.
  11. Yanri (掩日) – Eclipsing the sun (see no. 65).
  12. Yufeng (御風) – Riding the wind (see sec. I, no. 7).
  13. Zhushi (煮石, Lit: “cooking stones”) – Cooking immortality elixir (see no. 37).
  14. Tuyan (吐焰) – Breathing fire.
  15. Tundao (吞刀) – Swallowing swords.
  16. Hutian (壺天, lit: “pot heaven”) – Creating one’s own immortal land (pocket universe) within a pot or gourd (see sec. 1, no. 26).
  17. Shenxing (神行) – Traveling in spirit (see sec. I, no. 28).
  18. Lushui (履水) – Treading on water.
  19. Zhangjie (杖解, lit: “staff liberation”) – Magically turning an object into a fake corpse in order to escape and take on a new identity (see no. 46).
  20. Fenshen (分身) – Dividing the body into clones.
  21. Yinxing (隱形) – Invisibility (see no. 56).
  22. Xutou (續頭, lit: “continue head”) – Living without a head after decapitation (see no. 61).
  23. Dingshen (定身) – Fixing someone or something in place.
  24. Zhanyao (斬妖) – Beheading (or slaying) monsters.
  25. Qingxian (請仙) – Summoning divine beings.
  26. Zhuihun (追魂, lit: “chase a soul”) – Reaping a soul.
  27. Shehun (攝魂, lit: “take in a soul”) – Summoning or resurrecting a soul.
  28. Zhaoyun (招雲) – Summoning clouds (see nos. 5-8 and sec. 1, no. 5).
  29. Quyue (取月) – Fetching the moon.
  30. Banyun (搬運) – Transporting people or things to or away from you.
  31. Jiameng (嫁夢) – Manipulating dreams (see no. 72).
  32. Zhili (支離) – Fragmenting or destroying objects.
  33. Jizhang (寄杖, lit: “transmit the rod”) – Sending the pain of a beating to another person or thing.
  34. Duanliu (斷流) – Halting the flow of water.
  35. Rangzai (禳災) – Averting calamity.
  36. Jie’e (解厄) – Liberating someone from calamity.
  37. Huangbai (黃白, lit: “The (Art of) Yellow and White”) – Producing immortal elixirs via external alchemy (see no. 13).
  38. Jianshu (劍術, lit: “sword art”) – Mastery of swordplay and possibly the ability to direct the weapon like a drone.
  39. Shefu (射覆) – Divining hidden objects.
  40. Tuxing (土行) – Traveling through earth (see no. 54 & 59 and sec. I, nos. 12 & 32).
  41. Xingshu (星數, “star enumeration”) – Divining fate.
  42. Buzhen (布陣, lit: “spread troops”) – Knowledge of military battle arrays.
  43. Jiaxing (假形, lit: “artificial shape”) – Changing shape (see sec. I, no. 25).
  44. Penhua (噴化, “spray transformation”) – Changing the shape of a person or thing by spitting magic water or blood on them.
  45. Zhihua (指化, lit: “finger transformation”) – Changing something’s shape by pointing at it.
  46. Shijie (屍解) – Corpse liberation (see no. 19).
  47. Yijing (移景) –  Magically shifting the landscape (see sec. I, no. 15).
  48. Zhaolai (招來) – Beckoning a person or thing to you.
  49. Zhuqu (逐去) – Sending said person or thing back.
  50. Jushou (聚獸, lit: “assemble beasts”) – Controlling animals.
  51. Diaoqin (調禽, lit:  “move birds”) – Controlling birds.
  52. Qijin (炁禁, lit: “qi restraint”) – A method to affect reality with one’s internal energy (e.g. heal disease, restrain ghosts or animals, reverse the flow of rivers, etc.).
  53. Dali (大力) – Increasing strength.
  54. Toushi (透石) – Passing through solid rock (see no. 40 & 59 and sec. I, nos. 12 & 32).
  55. Shengguang (生光) – Producing a splendid light (see sec. 1, no. 9).
  56. Zhangyan (障眼, lit: “Obstruct vision”) –  Creating a blind spot in someone or something’s eyesight (see no. 21).
  57. Daoyin (導引) – Taoist breathing and stretching exercises.
  58. Fushi (服食) – Consuming alchemical medicine (see no. 68).
  59. Kaibi (開壁, lit: “open ramparts”) – Walking through walls (see nos. 40 & 54 and sec. I, nos. 12 & 32).
  60. Yueyan (躍岩, lit: “jump cliffs”) – Supernatural jumping?
  61. Mengtou (萌頭) – Sprouting a new head after decapitation (see no. 22).
  62. Dengchao (登抄) – I’m not sure what this is. A few online sources point to this skill increasing the course of something, such as making a fire burn faster and hotter. But someone  has also suggested to me that it involves theft. I’m open to other suggestions
  63. Heshui (喝水) – Imbibing supernatural amounts of water.
  64. Woxue (臥雪, lit: “lie in snow”) – Warding off the cold of snow and ice.
  65. Baori (暴日) – Exposing the sun (see no. 11).
  66. Nongwan (弄丸, lit: “manage pellets”) – Skill with projectiles, like pellets and rocks.
  67. Fushui (符水, lit: “talisman water”) – Creating disease-curing talismans meant to be burnt and swallowed with water.
  68. Yiyao (醫藥) – Making medicinal remedies.
  69. Zhishi (知時) – Knowledge of time and the seasons.
  70. Shidi (識地) – Knowledge of the earth and all places.
  71. Pigu (辟穀, lit: “grain law”) – Abstaining from the five grains in order to attain immortality. This may also refer to the common trope of immortals subsisting on wind and dew. [5]
  72. Yandao (魘禱, lit: “nightmare prayer”) – Assuaging nightmares (see no. 32).

The 72 Arts of the Terrestrial Killers (larger version) (PDF pp. 298-299).

IV. Lidai Shenxian Tongjiang PDF File

Lidai Shenxian Tongjian – 歷代神仙通鑑 – 1

Update: 08-18-23

The Saṃyutta Nikāya (Sk: संयुक्त निकाया; Ch: Xiang ying bu, 相應部, c. 250 BCE) notes that Buddhist cultivators develop a host of supernatural powers once they master the four mental qualities (Pali: Iddhipāda). Notice how similar they are to those discussed above:

  1. Multiplying the body
  2. Vanishing and reappearing
  3. Passing through solid objects (walls, ramparts, mountains, etc.)
  4. Diving into the earth like water
  5. Walking on water like earth
  6. Traveling through space
  7. Touching the sun and moon
  8. Hearing all sounds, both human and divine
  9. Knowing the minds of others
  10. Having memories of all of one’s past lives
  11. Knowing the future rebirths (and their causes) of all beings
  12. Liberation from the filth of the world through supreme wisdom (Bodhi, 2000, pp. 1727-1728)

Notes:

1) Anthony C. Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates these as the “Art of the Heavenly Ladle” and the “Art of the Earthly Multitude” (vol. 1, p. 122). I instead follow the translation used by Meulenbeld (2019). In regards to Tiangang (天罡), he explains: “In its exorcist manifestation, the Northern Dipper is known as gang 罡, which I translate here as ‘rectifier’ due to the ritual function it has in righting wrong” (Meulenbeld, p. 7). “Terrestrial Killers” is a direct translation of Disha (地煞).

2) This work is a collection of Taoist hagiographic material from ancient times to the Ming.

3) Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates this sentence as, “I know as many transformations as the number of stars in the Heavenly Ladle” (vol. 1, p. 376).

4) For religious views on the 72 Terrestrial Killers (Disha, 地煞), see the cited quotes here.

5) This is funny considering that Monkey is punished to eat hot iron pellets and drink molten copper during his time under Five Elements Mountain.

Sources:

Bodhi, B. (2000). The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Saṃyutta Nikāya; Translated from the Pāli by Bhikkhu Bodhi (Vols. 1-2). Boston: Wisdom Publications.

Campany, R. F., & Ge, H. (2002). To Live as Long as Heaven and Earth: A Translation and Study of Ge Hong’s Traditions of Divine Transcendents. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Meulenbeld, M. (2019). Vernacular “Fiction” and Celestial Script: A Daoist Manual for the Use of Water Margin. Religions, 10(9), 518. MDPI AG. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel10090518.

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

 

Is Sun Wukong FTM Trans?

Jim R. McClanahan 4 Comments

Note #1: Unless cited here, all information is cited in the respective linked articles below.

Note #2: Please see the 05-19-23 update for an important message.

Last updated: 03-27-2025

Warning: This article contains adult language and content.

The notion that Sun Wukong (孫悟空) is transgender (fig. 1) became popular on English-speaking social media sometime around 2022. The central idea appears to be that the Monkey King, or I should say “Monkey Queen,” was originally born a woman but magically changes to a trans-man sometime after learning the art of transformation. Whether this is true or not has two possible answers:

1) If you or a loved one are trans, identify with Monkey’s ability to transform his body, and choose to personally interpret the character or portions of his story as an allegory for transness, then yes Sun Wukong is trans. 

2) Historically and canonically speaking? No.

In this article, I will present common arguments (A) in favor of a trans Monkey King that I’ve seen on social media. I will also introduce counterarguments (CA) supported by historical oral, published, and pictorial evidence that calls any claims of canonical proof into question. If I don’t have a particular counterargument in mind, I will simply post a comment (C).

Before continuing, I want to expressly state that this piece was written for two kinds of people: 1) Those who might openly claim that Sun Wukong is canonically trans; and 2) Those who don’t know enough about the character’s history or Journey to the West (Xiyouji, 西遊記; “JTTW” hereafter) in general and might be swayed by seemingly knowledgeable online comments. It does not pertain to those who already personally interpret Monkey as trans and/or don’t care about canon because they were first exposed to him via movies, TV shows, video games, comic books, etc.

General readers will certainly find this article interesting as it features a lot of lesser-known historical information about the simian immortal.

Fig. 1 – An accurate Sun Wukong standing in front of the trans flag (larger version). The base drawing is by my friend Alexandre Palheta Coelho (instagram and deviantart). It was originally posted on this article.

1. An Important Statement

If someone claims that the Monkey King appearing in the 1592 edition of JTTW is canonically female-to-male (FTM) trans, or they state the novel hints that he is without openly admitting that this is their own personal interpretation, that person, whether they realize it or not, is not telling you the whole truth. I don’t think they are doing this maliciously, though. It’s perfectly natural for people to want to see some of themselves in their favorite heroes. After all, who wouldn’t want to be an immortal rage wizard who can fly around the cosmos, transform into anything, lift mountains, and beat up gods and devils? I can see how it might be attractive to a trans youth to have the power to push back against authorities that wrongly vilify and strip them of their human rights. Therefore, in that sense, I think I understand why the idea of a trans Sun Wukong is so popular. But having said that, I should highlight that anyone who goes beyond an allegorical reading of the novel by touting the reality of Monkey’s transness is either unaware of the character’s historical development or is willfully ignoring it.

2. Arguments and Counterarguments

2.1. Gender Neutral Terms 

A: Ta (他; commonly “him”) and wang (王, commonly “king”) [1] are historically “gender neutral terms” and therefore can be used to refer to Sun Wukong as a woman.

C: These are indeed gender neutral terms in dynastic material. Here are two examples from the 1592 JTTW: 1) Wang (王) appears in the royal title of the “Queen Mother” (Wangmu niangniang, 王母娘娘), the high-ranking Daoist goddess who owns the immortal peach groves; and 2) Ta (他) is used to refer to the female Bodhisattva Guanyin (觀音). Part of a descriptive poem in chapter eight reads: “She is the merciful lord of the Potalaka Mountain” (Ta shi Luojiashan shang Cibei zhu, 他是落伽山上慈悲主) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 206).

However, the gender neutral status of these terms do not by themselves constitute evidence that the Monkey King is a woman.

2.2. Matriarchal Primate Society

A: Real world monkey troupes are matriarchal, so it would make more sense for Sun Wukong to be a woman.

CA: Real world biological concepts don’t mesh well with religious mythology. For example, Monkey is born from stone, and he later attains his authority through a test of bravery by jumping through a waterfall. So where does the primate matriarchy fit into this? Also, in chapter 11 of the 13th-century oral version of JTTW (see here and here), Sun’s antecedent, the “Monkey Pilgrim” (Hou xingzhe, 猴行者), explains that, prior to becoming the primate monarch, he had been exiled to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit in the distant past for stealing immortal peaches from the Queen Mother’s heavenly garden (Wivell, 1994, p. 1195). It’s important to note that the tale presents him as a supremely ancient immortal, one who has seen the Yellow River dry up nine times (Wivell, 1994, pp. 1182-1183). Therefore, it’s not a stretch to suggest that his position as the Monkey King is related to his divinity. So I ask again: Where does the primate matriarchy fit into this?

Most importantly, mythic stories about male monkey monarchs do exist. Two such characters are Vali/Bali (Sk: वाली) and Sugrīva (Sk: सुग्रीव) from the Hindu epic Rāmāyaṇa (Sk: रामायणम्, c. 5th-century BCE). Another is the Mahākapi (Sk: महाकपि; lit: “Great Monkey,” c. 2nd-century BCE), an Indian Buddhist jataka tale about the Buddha’s past life as a king of monkeys. One 2,000-year-old carving even depicts him with testicles (fig. 2). These few examples alone challenge the idea that monkey troupes have to be matriarchal in a mythic setting.

In fact, I suggest in this article that the Mahākapi tale influenced the 13th-century oral JTTW in several ways: 1) The Great Monkey is described as the chief of his tribe, and one 3rd-century Chinese version of the story even refers to him as the “Monkey King” (Mihou wang, 獼猴王). This is a likely source for the Monkey Pilgrim’s position as the primate monarch; 2) The Great Monkey leads 80,000 monkeys. The 3rd-century Chinese version changes this number to 500 (wubai, 五百), while the later Monkey Pilgrim leads 84,000 (bawan siqian, 八萬四千). But all three numbers are used in Buddhism to refer to large numbers of things. In the case of the respective Indian and Chinese versions, the 80,000/500 monkeys are said to be the past lives of Buddhist monks. But most importantly, the Chinese term for 80,000 (bawan, 八萬) is considered shorthand for 84,000 (bawan siqian, 八萬四千), showing a possible connection between the numbers of monkeys in the Indian original and the 13th-century oral JTTW; 3) The Great Monkey and his tribe live in or around a mountainous, fruit-bearing tree. This could be one of several sources for the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit (see note #4 below for another); and 4) The 3rd-century Chinese version sees the Great Monkey steal from the imperial fruit garden of a human monarch. This could be one of several sources for the Monkey Pilgrim stealing immortal peaches from the Queen Mother’s heavenly garden.

(On a related note, see this article for the many parallels shared between the 1592 Sun Wukong and the historical Buddha.)

Fig. 2 – The “Great Monkey” carving from the western torana at Sanchi (c. 1st-century BCE/CE) (larger version). He is the uppermost yellow figure reaching for the green tree. Take note of his testicles. The colored and labeled elements are used in my article to describe this “continuous narrative” scene.

2.3. Feminine Title

A: Sun Wukong calls himself the “Handsome Monkey King” (Meihou wang, 美猴王), but the character for handsome, “mei (美),” traditionally means “beautiful.” Therefore, it would make more sense for Monkey to call themself beautiful if they were a woman.

CA: I think that there is a much better explanation. Recall that the 1592 JTTW depicts our hero as an ugly creature. For instance, part of a descriptive poem in chapter 44 reads:

A bumpy brow, and golden eyes flashing;
A round head and a hairy face jowl-less;
Gaping teeth, pointed mouth, a character most sly;
He looks more strange than thunder god
[…] (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 276).

磕額金睛晃亮，圓頭毛臉無腮。咨牙尖嘴性情乖。貌比雷公古怪。…

In fact, Sun’s association with being ugly goes back centuries. For example, writing in the 1250s, the Song-era poet Liu Kezhuang (劉克莊, 1187-1269) used Monkey as a metaphor to describe his own failing appearance:

A back bent like a water-buffalo in the Zi stream,
Hair as white as the silk thread issued by the “ice silkworms”,
A face even uglier than Hou xingzhe [“Monkey Pilgrim”] (emphasis added),
Verse more scanty than even He Heshi (Dudbridge, 1970, p. 46).

背傴水牛泅磵髪白氷蠶吐絲貌醜似猴行者詩痩於鶴何師

Therefore, the primate monarch definitely is not “handsome” or “beautiful.”

I suggest instead that Sun refers to himself as mei (美) because of his egotistical personality. He is after all an allegory for the Monkey Mind. This same overinflated sense of self eventually leads him to challenge the primacy of the Jade Emperor (Yuhuang dadi, 玉皇大帝). Monkey’s self-conceit is best illustrated by the rebellious poem that he recites to the Buddha in chapter seven. The latter part reads:

[…]
In Divine Mists Hall none should long reside,
For king may follow king in the reign of man.
If might is honor, let them yield to me.
He only is hero who dares to fight and win!”(Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 193).

[…]
靈霄寶殿非他久，歷代人王有分傳。
強者為尊該讓我，英雄只此敢爭先。

See the 08-09-2023 and 09-27-23 updates below for another reason why he might have been called Meihou wang (美猴王).

2.4. Etymology of Surname

A: In chapter one, the Patriarch Subodhi (Puti zushi, 菩提祖師) relies on Monkey’s appearance to derive a surname for them. Some of the etymology mentions feminine concepts, adding support to the idea that Sun Wukong was originally a woman:

The Patriarch laughed and said, “Though your features are not the most attractive, you do resemble a pignolia-eating monkey (husun [猢猻]). This gives me the idea of taking a surname for you from your appearance. I intended to call you by the name Hu [猢]. If I drop the animal radical [犭] from this word, what’s left is a compound made up of the two characters, gu [古] and yue [月]. Gu means aged and yue [“moon”] denotes feminine yin energy [陰], but aged yin cannot reproduce (emphasis added). Therefore, it is better to give you the surname of Sun [猻]. If I drop the animal radical from this word, what we have left is the compound of zi [子] and xi [系]. Zi means a boy and xi means a baby, and that name exactly accords with the fundamental Doctrine of the Baby Boy. So your surname will be ‘Sun’” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 115).

祖師笑道：「你身軀雖是鄙陋，卻像個食松果的猢猻。我與你就身上取個姓氏，意思教你姓『猢』。猢字去了個獸傍，乃是個古月。古者，老也；月者，陰也。老陰不能化育，教你姓『猻』倒好。猻字去了獸傍，乃是個子系。子者，兒男也；系者，嬰細也，正合嬰兒之本論。教你姓『孫』罷。」

CA: Our hero’s association with the surname Sun predates the 1592 JTTW by centuries, appearing as early as an early-Ming JTTW zaju play. Therefore, Subodhi’s etymological breakdown is just an excuse to change husun (猢猻), one of the historical terms for the macaque, into Sun. It’s also an excuse to tie the surname to historical Daoist longevity practices.

Also, Sun (孫) has been used since at least the Tang Dynasty (618-907) as a surname for monkeys associated with Buddhist monks. According to the Tang poet Li Shen (李紳, d. 846):

There are many monkeys in the [Lingyin and Tianzhu] monasteries. They are called the Sun group (or the group of Sun, “Sun tuan” [孫團]). They have been reared there for a long time (Shahar, 1992, pp. 202-203).

2.5. Stable Monkeys

A: It was a common historical practice to place female monkeys in horse stables because their menstruation was believed to ward off equine sickness (see my past article for a source). Hence, Sun’s time as the heavenly stable master supports the idea that they were originally a woman.

CA: Just because something influenced a character in a story doesn’t mean that thing and all of its traits become the character. That’s like saying Son Goku is Superman just because Dragon Ball Z-era Akira Toriyama borrowed the “alien sent to earth” element from the Man of Steel’s mythos. But that isn’t the case since each character and their respective stories have definable differences. And it’s the same for the female stable monkeys and Sun Wukong.

After becoming the Bimawen (弼馬溫) (fig. 3), Sun dotingly cares for nearly 1,000 horses day and night, making sure that they are all well-fed, exercised, and rested. At no point does the 1592 JTTW even hint that their health is in any way tied to menstruation. But having said that, I suggest the reason that Monkey gets so upset when people call him Bimawen, what Yu (Wu & Yu, 2012) translates as “BanHorsePlague” (vol. 1, p. 354), is because it references the homophonous term for the historical practice, Bimawen (避馬瘟, lit: “avoid the horse plague”). Surprisingly, the latter phrase does not appear in the novel.

Fig. 3 – A 2014 stamp featuring a scene from the classic 1960s animation Havoc in Heaven in which Sun Wukong serves as the Bimawen (larger version). Image found here.

3. Final Counterarguments

3.1. Historical Male Depictions

I don’t know of any historical oral, published, or pictorial sources that portray or describe Sun as a woman in their regular form. To my knowledge, he has always been depicted as a man.

I won’t pretend to know the full extent of our hero’s history, but I always strive to learn more about the subject. Just look at the following as a brief survey.

3.1A. Art

The earliest art depicting the aforementioned Monkey Pilgrim shows him as either a simian cleric or soldier accompanying the monk Tripitaka. But I think the best example to present for this discussion is the 13th-century Kaiyuan Temple stone pagoda carving (fig. 4), which portrays him as a muscular, sword-wielding protector deity.

Fig. 4 – The Kaiyuan Temple stone pagoda carving of the Monkey Pilgrim (1237) (larger version).

3.1B. Oral literature

The Story of How Tripitaka of the Great Tang Procures the Scriptures (Da Tang Sanzang qujing shihua, 大唐三藏取經詩話), the aforementioned 13th-century oral version of JTTW, first introduces the Monkey Pilgrim as a “scholar dressed in a white robe” (Baiyi xiucai, 白衣秀才) (Wivell, 1994, p. 1182). The word translated here as scholar, “xiucai“ (秀才; lit: “cultivated talent”), was “[f]rom antiquity a categorical rubric under which talented men were nominated to be considered for official appointments” (Hucker, 1985, p. 284). During the Song dynasty (960-1279), when this tale was first recorded, the xiucai was an informal term for candidates of the metropolitan-level exams (Hucker, 1985, p. 284). That is to say they were educated commoners who had yet to receive an official office. Dudbridge (1970) suggests that disguising oneself as a traveling, white-robed scholar would have then “conferr[ed] anonymity on the wearer” (p. 32). [2] This means that Monkey is likely using the disguise to walk among mortals without them realizing his divine nature.

Dudbridge (1970) also notes that this disguise was used by male characters in later published media (p. 32 n. 1). These examples instead use “xiushi” (秀士; lit: “cultivated scholar”). For instance, in chapter 81 of the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan, 水滸傳, c. 1400), a literary version of Song Emperor Huizong (宋徽宗) dresses this way in order to meet in secret with his favorite sex worker: 

Accompanied by a young eunuch, the sovereign arrived through the secret tunnel at the rear door of the courtesan’s house. He was dressed in the white garb of a scholar (emphasis added) (Shi & Luo, 1993/2021b, p.1715).

只見道君皇帝引着一個小黃門，扮做白衣秀士，從地道中逕到李師師家後門來。(Shi & Luo, 1975/2021b, p. 1104)

This male disguise even carried over into the 1592 JTTW. For example, in chapter ten, the Dragon King of the Jing River (Jinghe Longwang, 涇河龍王) takes on such a form to investigate a fortune teller with dangerously accurate predictions that threaten the fish of his kingdom: 

[H]e abandoned his sword and dismissed the clouds and the rains. Reaching the river bank, he shook his body and changed into a white-robed scholar (emphasis added) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 239).

龍王 … 遂棄寶劍，也不興雲雨，出岸上，搖身一變，變作一個白衣秀士)

3.1C. Zaju play

The early-Ming Journey to the West zaju play (Xiyou ji zaju, 西遊記雜劇) contains many familiar episodes that would come to appear in the 1592 JTTW. [3] But despite these parallels, there are many interesting differences. For example, in act nine (of 24), Sun Wukong is said to be the brother of several divine siblings:

We are five brothers and sisters: my older sister is the Venerable Mother of Mount Li, my younger sister is the Holy Mother Wuzhiqi, my older brother is the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, I myself am the Great Sage Reaching Heaven (emphasis added), and my younger brother is the Third Son Shuashua (based on Dudbridge, 1970, p. 110).

小聖弟兄、姊妹五人，大姊驪山老母，二妹巫枝祗聖母，大兄齊天大聖，小聖通天大聖，三弟耍耍三郎。

(That’s right! The play refers to Monkey as the “Great Sage Reaching Heaven” instead of “… Equaling Heaven.”)

He also has a wife, a princess whom he had kidnapped from the “Country of the Golden Cauldron” (Jinding guo, 金鼎國) (Ning, 1986, pp. 63-66). This portion of the play draws directly from a genre of Han to Song-era tales in which magic apes kidnap young maidens in order to rape and impregnate them. [4]

The most apparent differences are the addition of bawdy elements like sex, cursing, and dirty jokes by the author, the 15th-century Mongol playwright Yang Jingxian (杨景賢). For instance, act 18 sees the pilgrims travel through the famous Woman Kingdom, where Sun, Zhu, and Sha all fall prey to temptations of the flesh. But whereas the latter two are successful in their sexual ventures, poor Monkey is struck by a bout of erectile dysfunction caused by the painful constricting of his headband:

Master, listen and I’ll tell you. There I was pinned down by a woman. My lustful nature was about to come forth, when suddenly the iron hoop on my head tightened, and the joints and bones up and down my whole body began to ache. The throbbing conjured up a bunch of vegetable names in my brain.

My head hurt so my hair stood up like radish-tops, my face turned as green as smartweed sprouts, my sweat beaded up like the moisture on an eggplant soaked in sauce, and my cock fell as limp as a salted cucumber (emphasis added). When she saw me looking for all the world like chives sizzling in hot oil, she came around, suppressed her itch and set me free (Ning, 1986, pp. 138-139).

聽行者告訴一遍：小行被一個婆娘按倒，凡心卻待起。不想頭上金箍兒緊將起來，渾身上下骨節疼痛，疼出幾般兒蔬菜名來：頭疼得髮蓬如韭菜，面色青似蓼牙，汗珠一似醬透的茄子，雞巴一似醃軟的黃瓜。他見我恰似燒蔥，恰甫能忍住了胡麻。他放了我 …

(Notice that ta (他) is used in the quote above to refer to the girl. Refer back to section 2.1 for a reminder of the significance.)

Later in act 19, Monkey attempts to seduce Princess Iron Fan (Tieshan gongzhu, 鐵扇公主) in order to gain access to her magic Banana leaf fan. Sun does this by reciting a poem in which he makes a veiled allusion to his penis being the right size for her vagina:

The disciple’s not too shallow,
the woman’s not too deep (emphasis added).
You and I, let’s each put forth an item,
and make a little demon
(Ning, 1986, p. 141).

弟子不淺，娘子不深。我與你大家各出一件，湊成一對妖精。

When this plan fails and the Princess threatens him with her sword, Sun angrily explains that the supernatural durability of his body and penis renders him impervious to physical harm:

Why this lowdown wench has no manners at all! I am the Lord of the Crimson Cloud Cavern, the Great Sage [Reaching Heaven]! I plundered Laozi’s gold Pill of Immortality, and have endured so many alchemical transformations that my muscles are brass, my bones iron, my eyes fire, my pupils gold, my asshole lead and my prick is pewter. Why should I fear a steel [sword] slicing off my pizzle? (emphasis added) (Ning, 1986, p. 142).

這賊賤人好無禮。我是紫雲羅洞主，通天大聖。我盜了老子金丹，煉得銅筋鐵骨，火眼金睛，金俞石屁眼，擺錫雞巴。我怕甚剛刀剁下我鳥來？

I want to highlight that this play did not influence the story cycle; it only reflects characters and episodes that were common to the cycle at that time. The bawdy elements were solely added to spice up the tale, making it more entertaining for zaju audiences. Therefore, this sex-crazed, dirty-mouthed version of the Monkey King should be considered a separate entity from his literary counterpart in the 1592 JTTW. However, I have included him here because the play clearly establishes that the character is a man.

3.1D. Other Published Literature

A Supplement to the Journey to the West (Xiyoubu, 西遊補, 1640) is an unofficial sequel to the 1592 JTTW with a trippy, time-jumping story that mentions Sun Wukong fathering children with a woman. The first reference to his offspring appears in chapter 13 when actors in a royal play describe an alternate timeline where our hero had settled down:

His wife is so beautiful, his five sons so dashing. He started out as a monk, but came to such a good end! Such a very good end! (Dong, Lin, & Schulz, 2000, p. 114).

你看他的夫人這等標致，五個兒子這等風華。當初也是個和尚出身，後來好結局，好結局!

Later, in chapter 15, Monkey meets one of these sons, King Pāramitā (Boluomi wang, 波羅蜜王), on the battlefield. This general recounts his family history to the stranger, revealing that, although he’s never met his father (jiafu, 家父), he’s the son of the Great Sage and the Rakshasi (Luocha nu, 羅剎女), Princess Iron Fan (Dong, Lin, & Schulz, 2000, pp. 123-124). In addition, he suggests that he was conceived during an event from chapter 59 of the original novel: 

[Sun Wukong] changed into a tiny insect and entered my mother’s belly. He stayed there a while and caused her no end of agony. When my mother could no longer bear the pain, she had no choice but to give the Banana-leaf Fan to my father, Monkey. [5] When my father, Monkey, got the Banana-leaf Fan, he cooled the inferno at Flaming Mountain and left. In the fifth month of the next year, my mother suddenly gave birth to me, King Pāramitā. Day by day I grew older and more intelligent. If you think about it, since my uncle [the Bull Demon King] and mother had never been together, and I was born after my father, Monkey, had been inside my mother’s belly, the fact that I am his direct descendant is beyond dispute (Dong, Lin, & Schulz, 2000, p. 124).

後來又變作小蟲兒鑽入家母腹中，住了半日，無限攪炒。當時家母認痛不過，只得將芭蕉扇遞與家父行者。家父行者得了芭蕉扇，扇涼了火焰山，竟自去了。到明年五月，家母忽然產下我蜜王。我一日長大一日，智慧越高。想將起來，家伯與家母從來不合，惟家父行者曾走到家母腹中一番，便生了我，其為家父行者之嫡系正派，不言而可知也。」

The novel doesn’t elaborate on how the other four sons are conceived. But in the case of Pāramitā, Sun’s presence in Iron Fan’s stomach acts as sperm fertilizing an egg.

Anyways, it should be evident from the examples presented above that the Monkey King was portrayed or described in his regular form as a man throughout the long course of his character development.

This by itself should put the idea of a canonically trans Sun Wukong to rest, but there is one more counterargument that I think is even stronger.

3.2. Spiritual Gender Transitions in Buddhism

Buddhist literature actually includes instances of girls or women transforming into men upon enlightenment or rebirth. [6] The former is best exemplified by the “Dragon Girl” (Longnu, 龍女) from chapter 12 of the Lotus Sutra (Miaofa lianhua jing, 妙法蓮華經; a.k.a. Fahua jing, 法華經, c. 3rd-century) (fig. 5), a work mentioned in the 1592 JTTW six times. She is first introduced to an assembly of Buddhist deities as the eight-year old daughter of the Dragon King Sāgara (Suojieluo longwang, 娑竭羅龍王) and one of an unfathomable number of dragonfolk enlightened by the Bodhisattva Mañjuśrī’s (Wenshu shili, 文殊師利) lessons on the Lotus Sutra. Her teacher describes her as a great student prodigy with a deep knowledge of Buddhist Law, as well as having many advanced spiritual achievements. But this upsets some among the assembly because the notion of a young girl approaching Buddhahood so quickly flies in the face of convention, which normally calls for untold aeons of severe austerities before one can achieve awakening. Her accomplishments are called into question at first, but everyone is appeased when she offers a priceless jewel to the Buddha, and he quickly accepts it as a symbolic gesture. Then:

The girl said [to the assembly], “Employ your supernatural powers and watch me attain Buddhahood. It will be even quicker than that!” 

At that time the members of the assembly all saw the dragon girl in the space of an instant change into a man (emphasis added) and carry out all the practices of a bodhisattva, immediately proceeding to the spotless World of the south, taking a seat on a jeweled lotus, and attaining impartial and correct enlightenment. With the thirty-two features and the eighty characteristics [of a Buddha], he expounded the wonderful Law for all living beings everywhere in the ten directions (Watson, 1993, p. 188). [7]

女言：「以汝神力，觀我成佛，復速於此。」

當時眾會，皆見龍女忽然之間變成男子，具菩薩行，即往南方無垢世界，坐寶蓮華，成等正覺，三十二相、八十種好，普為十方一切眾生演說妙法。

This kind of spiritual gender transition was certainly known to the host of historical oral storytellers and author-compilers who contributed to the formation of the novel due to their vast shared knowledge of Buddhist and Daoist religion and lore. This is especially true given that the Lotus Sutra is even touted in the 13th-century oral version of JTTW. [8]

Therefore, if the Sun Wukong from the 1592 JTTW was originally intended to be trans, they would have been OPENLY portrayed as such, without the need for subtle hints, due to scriptural precedent. And the fact that he wasn’t makes this what I consider to be the most damning argument against a canonically trans Sun Wukong.

Fig. 5 – A frontispiece to a Song-era edition of the Lotus Sutra (larger version). Image found here.

4. Final Thoughts

I hope that anyone unfamiliar with the Monkey King’s history can now make an informed judgement about online comments making claims about his gender.

And for those who still might want to go beyond an allegorical reading of the novel, you need to answer two questions:

  1. Why did the 1592 JTTW hint that Sun Wukong is FTM trans despite him being depicted as a man for centuries?
  2. Why were said hints used in place of scriptural examples of spiritual gender transition?

Answering these questions will require evidence, not an interpretation. I’m honestly not sure what that evidence would be since the evidence against it is so overwhelming. 

I would be willing to accept the “possibility” of a trans Sun Wukong, though, if anyone can find an analysis of the character by a pre-20th-century Chinese literary critic expounding the same view. Please do not misinterpret this as me saying that there were no trans people prior to the 20th-century. I’m sure there have been many throughout history, and I’m sure the terms applied to or used by them in the past were wildly different from the ones used today. But without some kind of historical support, the reality of a canonically trans Monkey King, beyond a personal interpretation, is nothing more than a wish. 

Update: 05-19-2023

It’s recently come to my attention that this article has upset some people, namely those who are aware of the Monkey King’s worship and those who disagree with the concept of transgender people. The first group needs to understand that, while a religious figure, Sun Wukong is far more widely known around the world as a literary figure. And since people primarily view him as a fictional character—one who is in the public domain, in fact—they are free to interpret the simian immortal however they see fit. This means that both the Monkey God and the literary Monkey King should be viewed as two separate entities.

For the second group, the trans identity is outside my area of research and personal experience. Therefore, I can’t really say anything about the subject that would affect your point of view. My advice would be to ignore political pundits and instead start a dialogue with someone in the trans community to understand their thoughts, feelings, and motivations.

I’ve also learned that my article has apparently been weaponized by some on discord in an attempt to invalidate the views of trans individuals who identify with Sun Wukong. I don’t like that my work is being used to harass people. I want to make it clear that this article was not written to attack the trans community. It was solely made to place Monkey in his correct historical context. My first concern as a student of JTTW is that the history of the novel and its characters are presented accurately. But I am fully aware that perceptions of popular characters can and do evolve over time. That’s why I mentioned in the opening that viewing Sun as trans is perfectly fine as long as it’s clear that this is a personal interpretation. Therefore, if you are a trans person and some troll presents my article as proof that your personal allegory is wrong, please have the confidence to tell them, “off you fuck.”

Update: 05-27-23

I found this lovely drawing of the Dragon Girl online (fig. 6). The image depicts her at the moment when she hands the Buddha the priceless jewel, just prior to transforming into a man.

Fig. 6 – A drawing of the Dragon Girl and the priceless jewel (larger version). Image found here.

Update: 08-09-23

It just occurred to me that another reason why Sun Wukong might be called Meihou wang (美猴王), or “Handsome or Beautiful Monkey King,” is because it’s a pun on mihou (獼猴), another word for macaque. The 1592 JTTW already includes a separate character named Mihou wang (獼猴王) in chapters three, four, and 41. And most importantly, even the Buddha’s past life as a king of monkeys is called Mihou wang (獼猴王). See the article below for more info.

A Brief Study of the Term Mihou (獼猴) in Journey to the West

Update: 09-27-23

It just dawned on me that Sun Wukong’s precursor, the Monkey Pilgrim” from the 13th-century JTTW, is also called Mihou wang (獼猴王). Chapter two refers to him as Huaguo shan ziyun dong bawan siqian tongtou tie’e Mihou wang (花果山紫雲洞八萬四千銅頭鐵額獼猴王, the “Bronze-Headed, Iron-Browed King of the Eighty-Four Thousand Monkeys of the Purple Cloud Grotto on the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits”) (Wivell, 1994, p. 1182).

This might lend support to the suggestion in my 08-09-23 update above.

Update: 01-03-2024

Apart from the Lotus Sutra, there is another way to make Sun Wukong a woman. The idea is a byproduct of my recent “How to Kill Sun Wukong” article. It details a ritual (from another famous vernacular novel) that secretly steals an immortal’s spirit, tethers it to a straw effigy, and then kills the target by shooting it with arrows. In that article, I introduced a story idea where Zhu Bajie and/or Sha Wujing could race to stop the ritual. But what if they failed and the Monkey King was killed?

The rite only terminates the immortal’s physical body. It doesn’t destroy the spirit. And since Wukong hasn’t yet achieved Buddha-Nature, meaning he is still subject to the wheel of rebirth, his spirit would report to the underworld for processing. He could definitely be transferred to a new reincarnation; however, considering the journey would still be ongoing, and the Tang Monk is always in trouble, heaven might rush to find our hero a new body. This actually happens to a minor character in the 1592 JTTW.

The ledgers of hell show that the deceased wife of a Tang official was fated to live a long life (i.e. she wasn’t supposed to be dead). Therefore, the underworld bureaucracy takes the timely passing of the Tang Emperor’s sister as an opportunity to force the soul of the official’s wife into the princess’ body. The best part is that she still retains her memories from her past life (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 268-269)!

Heaven might find the only suitable body that can contain Monkey’s soul is a recently deceased demoness (fox, yaksha, tree, etc.). [9] I imagine this would result in Sun Wukong being weaker, not because she’s now a woman, but because few beings can match Monkey’s original physical and magical might. This would naturally lead to her coming to terms with a loss of power. She could still be a very strong fighter, just not as strong as her past life. This might cause her to use more cunning when dealing with especially powerful evils encountered along the journey.

The choice is yours if you want to keep her a woman or have her become a male Buddha, like the Dragon Girl.

Update: 03-27-25

Another thing to point out is that Monkey’s physical body only changes when he turns into animals. When he mimics a humanoid figure, only his face changes, not his body. This is revealed when Sun is captured in chapter 75:

“Elder Brother,” said the third fiend,” didn’t you see him? He [Wukong disguised as a small demon] was giggling just now with his face half turned, and I saw for a moment a thunder god beak on him. When I grabbed him, he changed back immediately into his present looks.” He then called out: “Little ones, bring me some ropes.” The captains took out ropes immediately. Wrestling Pilgrim to the ground, the third fiend had him hog-tied before they hitched up his clothes to examine him. It became apparent at once that he was the BanHorsePlague all right! Pilgrim, you see, was capable of seventy-two kinds of transformation. If it was a matter of changing into a fowl, a beast, a plant, a utensil, or an insect, his entire body could be transformed. But when he had to change into another person, only his face but not his body could be transformed (emphasis added). When they lifted up his clothes, therefore, they saw a body full of brown fur, two red buttocks, and a tail (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 367).

三怪道：「哥哥，你不曾看見他？他才子閃著身笑了一聲，我見他就露出個雷公嘴來。見我扯住時，他又變作個這等模樣。」叫：「小的們，拿繩來。」眾頭目即取繩索。

三怪把行者扳翻倒，四馬攢蹄綑住。揭起衣裳看時，足足是個弼馬溫。原來行者有七十二般變化，若是變飛禽、走獸、花木、器皿、昆蟲之類，卻就連身子滾去了；但變人物，卻只是頭臉變了，身子變不過來。果然一身黃毛，兩塊紅股，一條尾巴。

Since his body does not change, this would imply that his sex does not change either.

Again, I’m not trying to anger anyone; I’m just presenting information from the novel to make sure that it is depicted accurately.

On that note, I was told by a friend that some young trans folk were/had been upset with this article. Please write me (see “contact” above) if something about this piece bothers you. I’d like to get your perspective.

Notes:

1) One of the suggested earliest meanings for wang (王) is “big man,” and it was used as a title by the tribal chieftains that would evolve into Chinese emperors (Qi, 1991). 

2) Yes, I am aware that Dudbridge (1970) also associates white robes with female demons (p. 32 n. 3). However, the Monkey Pilgrim is expressly associated with the white clothing of the historically male xiucai scholar candidates.

3) These similar episodes include the reincarnation of a heavenly being as Tripitaka, the murder of his father, Sun Wukong stealing immortal peaches from heaven and eventually being imprisoned under a mountain, his punishment with the restricting headband, the subjugation of Zhu Bajie (here and here) and Sha Wujing, the addition of a royal dragon-turned-white horse, the ordeal at Fire Mountain, the Country of Women, etc. This shows that the centuries-old story cycle was starting to become standardized by the 14th or 15th-century.

4) One example is “A Supplement to Jiang Zong’s Biography of a White Ape” (Bu Jiang Zong Baiyuan Zhuan, 補江總白猿傳, c. late-7th-century). In the story, a general’s young wife is kidnapped by a mysterious force, but he and his soldiers later find her living among a large harem of women in a mountain paradise. They tell the commander that their captor is a magic white ape who uses them night after night to fuel his Daoist sexual alchemy. The women also warn him and his men that they are no match for the beast’s great power, so the captives devise a plan that eventually leads to the primate’s death. In the end, the general learns that his wife is pregnant with the spirit’s child.

What’s interesting for the purposes of this blog is that the titular white ape shares many surprising parallels with the Sun Wukong from the 1592 JTTW. Both:

  • Are supernatural primates possessed of human speech. 
  • Are one thousand-year-old practitioners of longevity arts. 
  • Are masters of Daoist magic with the ability to fly and change their appearance. 
  • Are warriors capable of single-handedly defeating an army. 
  • Have a fondness for armed martial arts. 
  • Have an iron-hard, nigh-invulnerable body immune to most efforts to harm them. 
  • Have eyes that flash like lightning. 
  • Live in verdant mountain paradises (like the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit). 
  • Reside in caves with stone furniture (like the Water Curtain Cave). 

5) See Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 129.

6) An example of the latter appears in Chapter 23 of the Lotus Sutra. Women are promised a male rebirth in paradise for having heard and practiced the scripture (Watson, 1993, pp. 287-288).

7) For the Dragon Girl’s story, see Watson, 1993, pp. 187-189.

8) The Lotus Sutra, which contains the story of the Dragon Girl, is given prominence in the 13th-century oral JTTW. It is painted as an important scripture, one even hailed in heaven. Chapter three sees the monk Tripitaka (referred to here by his historical name Xuanzang) give a detailed lecture on the sacred text:

The arhats said: “We thank the Master for coming to the [heavenly] palace today. Does the master excel in explaining sutras?” Xuanzang replied: “If it is a sutra, I can explain it. If it is not, I do not.” “Can you explain the Lotus Sutra?” the arhat asked. Xuanzang replied: “That’s easy.” (emphasis added)

Thereupon the five hundred arhats, the [king of heaven] Mahabrahma Devaraja, and in all a company of over a thousand gathered to listen to the sutra. Xuanzang recited flawlessly without pausing for breath. Like pouring water from a vase, he clarified the obscurities of the text (emphasis added). Everyone praised his marvelous delivery (Wivell, 1994, p. 1184).

羅漢問曰：「今日謝師入宮。師善講經否？」玄奘曰：「是經講得，無經不講。」羅漢曰：「會講《法華經》否？」玄奘：「此是小事。」當時五百尊者、大梵王，一千餘人，咸集聽經。玄奘一氣講說，如瓶注水，大開玄妙。眾皆稱贊不可思議。

9) I even considered Princess Iron Fan as the receptacle. However, she is said to having a positive fate in the novel: “In the end she, too, attained the right fruit [i.e. Buddhist merit] and a lasting reputation in the sutras” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 3, p. 163). I think choosing her would muddy our Lady’s accomplishments.

Sources:

Dong, Y., Lin, S. F., & Schulz, L. J. (2000). The Tower of Myriad Mirrors: A Supplement to Journey to the West. Ann Arbor: Center for Chinese Studies, The University of Michigan.

Dudbridge, G. (1970). The Hsi-yu chi: A Study of Antecedents to the Sixteenth-Century Chinese Novel. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hucker, C. O. (1985). A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China. Taipei: SMC Publishing Inc.

Ning, C. Y. (1986). Comic Elements in the Xiyouji Zaju (UMI No. 8612591) [Doctoral Dissertation, University of Michigan]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Qi, W. (1991). An Inquiry into the Original Meaning of the Chinese Character for King (wang). Chinese Studies in History, 25(2), 3-16, DOI: 10.2753/CSH0009-463325023

Shahar, M. (1992). The Lingyin Si Monkey Disciples and The Origins of Sun Wukong. Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 52(1), 193-224. https://doi.org/10.2307/2719331

Shi, N., & Luo, G. (2021a). Shuihu zhuan (shang, zhong, xia) [Tale of the Water Margin (Vols. 1-3)]. Beijing: Renmin wenxue chubanshe. (Original work published 1975)

Shi, N., & Luo, G. (2021b). Outlaws of the Marsh (Vols. 1-4) (S. Shapiro, Trans.). Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. (Original work published 1993)

Watson, B. (Trans.) (1993). The Lotus Sutra. New York: Columbia 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.

Interesting Facts about the Monkey King

Jim R. McClanahan Leave a comment

Last updated: 08-28-2022

I recently posted a list of facts about Sun Wukong (孫悟空) to reddit. I am presenting an elongated version of it here, which serves as a summation of everything that I’ve learned over the years. It is by no means comprehensive. I’ll add more facts in the future as I learn of them. Enjoy.

Current count: 108

  1. He was likely influenced by the Hindu monkey god Hanuman (Ch: Ha nu man, 哈奴曼) in different waves, one possibly from the north (via Tibet) and another from the south (via Southeast Asia). But the parallels are most apparent from the standard 1592 edition of JTTW, suggesting that the author-compiler had access to some form of the Indian epic Rāmāyana (7th-c. BCE to 3rd-c. CE). The novel even includes material from the epic Mahābhārata (4th-c. BCE to 4th-c. CE).
  2. In my opinion, however, the greatest influence on his 1592 persona is a white ape antagonist from a Tang-era story. Similarities include: 1) both are supernatural primates possessed of human speech; 2) one thousand-year-old practitioners of longevity arts; 3) masters of Daoist magic with the ability to fly and change their appearance; 4) warriors capable of single-handedly defeating an army; 5) have a fondness for armed martial arts; 6) have an iron-hard, nigh-invulnerable body immune to most efforts to harm them; 7) have eyes that flash like lightning; 8) live in verdant mountain paradises (like Flower Fruit Mountain); and 9) reside in caves with stone furniture (like the Water Curtain Cave).
  3. He has the second longest association with the JTTW story cycle, appearing as the “Monkey Pilgrim” (Hou xingzhe, 猴行者) circa 1000 (or before). Sha Wujing’s earliest antecedent appeared during the 8th-century, while Zhu Bajie didn’t appear until the 14th-century.
  4. The oldest published mention of the Monkey Pilgrim is a eulogy appearing in a tale from Zhang Shinan’s (張世南) Memoirs of a Traveling Official (Youhuan jiwen, 遊宦紀聞, 13th-century). One scholar dates the story to around 1127.
  5. The oldest depictions of this character (late-11th to late-13th-century) appear in Buddhist cave art along the Silk Road in Northern China. He is almost always portrayed in a scene worshiping the Bodhisattva Guanyin.

  6. A 13th-century version of JTTW describes the Monkey Pilgrim as a white-clad scholar who is an ancient immortal from the very beginning of the tale. He was beaten with an iron rod as a young immortal after he stole magic peaches and was subsequently banished to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit. He actively searches out the monk to protect him as the cleric’s two previous incarnations were eaten by a monster (Sha Wujing’s antecedent) in the past.

  7. This immortal fights with two staves (at different times), a golden-ringed monk’s staff and an iron staff (both borrowed from heaven). The monk’s staff can create destructive blasts of light, as well as transform into titanic creatures, including a club-wielding yaksha and an iron dragon. The iron staff isn’t shown to have any special powers. These weapons were later combined by storytellers, the rings from the former being added to the ends of the latter.

  8. He is called the “Monkey King” (Houwang, 猴王) as far back as the 13th-century version. This position is likely based on a jataka tale about the Buddha’s past life as a king of monkeys.
  9. The immortal is bestowed the title “Great Sage Steel Muscles and Iron Bones” (Gangjin tiegu dasheng, 鋼筋鐵骨大聖) at the end of the story by Tang Taizong.
  10. This immortal was heavily influenced by the Buddhist Saint Mulian (目連; Sk: Maudgalyayana).
  11. He was popular even in Korea and appeared in a set of carvings from a 14th-century stone pagoda.
  12. The earliest mention of the name “Sun Wukong” that I’m aware of appears in an early-15th-century zaju play. It depicts the character as a sex-crazed maniac who kidnaps a princess to be his wife, tries to seduce Princess Iron Fan, and later gets erectile disfunction when his golden headband tightens while trying to have sex with a young maiden in the Kingdom of Women.

  13. The dharma name “Wukong” (悟空) was likely influenced by a historical monk of that name who traveled to India during the 8th-century. The name means “Awakened to Emptiness”, thus referencing Buddhist enlightenment. I think the corresponding Sanskrit name would be something like “Bodhiśūnyatā” (but don’t quote me on this).

  14. The surname “Sun” (孫) means “grandson” but is an open reference to husun (猢猻, lit: “grandson of the barbarian”), the Chinese word for “macaque“. It was also a popular surname for supernatural primates in stories associated with the Lingyin Temple (靈隱寺), which also likely influenced the Monkey King.

  15. The 1592 edition of the novel associates the components of Sun (孫 = zi, 子 & xi, 系) (ch. 1 – see section 4.2 here) with the formation of a “holy embryo” (shengtai, 聖胎), an immortal spirit that lives on after the adherent dies.

  16. So taking all of the Buddhist and Daoist references into account, another translation for Sun Wukong would be “Immortal Awakened to Enlightenment”. This is a reference to the Buddho-Daoist philosophy of Zhang Boduan (張伯端, mid- to late-980s-1082), who believed that in order to become a true transcendent (xian, 仙), one had to achieve both the Daoist elixir of immortality and Buddha-nature (i.e. Buddhahood).

  17. The aforementioned zaju play calls him the “Great Sage Reaching Heaven” (Tongtian dasheng, 通天大聖).

  18. Said play also states that he has two sisters and two brothers. The sisters are respectively named the “Venerable Mother of Mount Li” (Lishan laomu, 驪山老母) and “Holy Mother Wuzhiqi” (Wuzhiqi shengmu, 巫支祇聖母). His older brother is called “Great Sage Equaling Heaven” (Qitian dasheng, 齊天大聖) and the younger the “Third Son Shuashua” (Shuashua sanlang, 耍耍三郎).

  19. His story in the 1592 version takes place not in our world but in one modeled after ancient Hindo-Buddhist cosmic geography, which features four island-like continents floating in a great ocean around the four respective faces of a cosmic mountain. And yet the novel was published during a time coinciding with the late Renaissance period in Europe, precisely 49 years after Copernicus suggested that the Earth orbits the sun.
  20. His home, the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit (Huaguo shan, 花果山), is located near the easternmost continent, while China is associated with the southernmost continent. This means that Monkey, within the novel, is not Chinese!
  21. He has had past lives (see the 11-24-20 update here).

  22. He’s not the only figure from world myth born from stone. In fact, “Birth from rock” (T544.1) is a mythic category appearing in Stith Thompson’s Motif-Index of Folk-Literature.

  23. While his stone birth (ch. 1) is likely based on that of Yu the Great (Dayu, 大禹), a legendary King of the Xia dynasty (more on this below), it may ultimately be linked to Tibetan stories of stone-born monkey deities.
  24. He was likely born during the late-Zhou Dynasty (circa 1046-256 BCE).
  25. He serves as a physical manifestation of the “Mind Monkey” (xinyuan, 心猿), a Buddho-Daoist philosophy denoting the disquieted thoughts that keep Man trapped in the illusory world of Saṃsāra (see the material below figure three here). This phrase is also surprisingly associated with sexual desire.
  26. Despite the association above, Monkey shows no interest in sex throughout the entire novel. This may be a response to the highly sexualized Sun Wukong from the zaju play.
  27. The novel also gives him the alchemical title “Squire of Metal/Gold” (Jingong, 金公), a possible “anagrammatic reading of the Chinese graph for lead or qian 鉛, which may be broken up into the two graphs of jin and gong” (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 532 n. 3). Lead is an ingredient in external alchemy (see the material after figure two here). The title might also be referring to the earthly branch shen (申), which is associated with both metal and monkeys (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. 532 n. 3).

  28. The overall arc of his birth and early life were likely based on that of the historical Buddha to make his tale more familiar to readers. Similarities include: A) supernatural births that split open their respective mothers (Queen Maya vs stone egg); B) producing a radiant splendor in all directions upon their birth; C) being talented students that quickly master concepts taught to them; D) early lives as royals (Indian prince vs king of monkeys); E) shock at the impermanence of life; F) questing for a spiritual solution to said impermanence; and G) finding said solution via spiritual practices (Indic meditation vs Daoist elixir arts).

  29. His “Water Curtain Cave” (Shuilian dong, 水簾洞), the grotto-heaven where he and his people live in the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, is associated with a different immortal in older religious literature. For instance, the Song-era text Master Ghost Valley’s Numinous Writ of the Essence of Heaven (Guigu zi tiansui lingwen, 鬼谷子天隨靈文) calls the titular character the “Master of the Waterfall Cave” (Shuilian dong zhu, 水濂洞主). In this case, the source uses a different lian (濂) in place of the lian (簾) associated with Monkey’s cave. But they both mean the same thing: a waterfall hiding a cave mouth (see the 12-11-21 update here). One 17th-century novel influenced by JTTW states that Master Ghost Valley lives in the Water Curtain Cave (Shuilian dong, 水簾洞; i.e. the same as Monkey’s home) with his student, the Warring States strategist Sun Bin (孫臏, d. 316 BCE). This means that two characters surnamed Sun (孫) live there in Chinese literature (see section II here).
  30. Despite modern media portraying him as an adult-sized humanoid character that is sometimes handsome and/or very muscular, the 1592 version describes him as an ugly, bald, and skinny Rhesus macaque that is less than four feet tall. This means that one of the most powerful warriors in the Buddho-Daoist cosmos is the size of a child.
  31. While commonly portrayed as a Daoist immortal, his first master, the Patriarch Subodhi (Xuputi zushi, 須菩提祖師) (ch. 1 & 2), is shown to live in India and have a strong connection to Buddhism, possibly even being a Bodhisattva.
  32. The breathing and energy circulation methods that Monkey uses to achieve immortality (ch. 2) are based on real Daoist elixir practices.
  33. The actual name for his famous 72 Transformations is “Multitude of Terrestrial Killers” (Disha shu, 地煞數), which is based on a popular set of malevolent stellar gods.
  34. This skill not only allows Monkey to transform into whatever he wants but also gives him a store of extra heads and possibly even extra lives like a video game (see section 4.4 # 3 here).
  35. He specifically learns the 72 Transformations (ch. 3) in order to hide from a trio of elemental calamities sent by heaven to punish cultivators for defying their fate and achieving immortality. This is the origin of the “Heavenly Tribulation” (tianjie, 天劫; zhongjie, 重劫) trope from modern Xianxia literature.
  36. But, surprisingly, he is not a true immortal, just long-lived and really hard to kill. The novel refers to him as a “bogus immortal” (yaoxian, 妖仙). This references Zhang Boduan’s aforementioned philosophy where one must obtain both the Daoist elixir (which Monkey did) and Buddha-Nature (which he hadn’t yet achieved) in order to be a true transcendent.
  37. While training under Subodhi (ch. 3), he expressly passes on learning the bureaucratic-style magic rites normally used by earthly priests to request something from heaven because the skills involved won’t result in eternal life. Instead, after achieving immortality, Monkey just commands the gods to do his bidding (see section II here).
  38. He can grow 100,000 feet (30,480 m) tall (ch. 1, 6, 61, and 97). This skill is called the “Method of Modeling Heaven on Earth” (Fatian xiangdi, 法天像地), and it is related to ancient Pre-Qin and Han concepts of astral-geography later used in the construction of imperial Chinese cities.
  39. His magic “immortal breath” (xianqi, 仙氣) can transform his hairs, his staff, and objects not in direct contact with his body into anything he desires. It can also change disembodied souls into “ether” for ease of transport, and evidence suggests that it can even grant some form of immortality.
  40. Monkey has 84,000 hairs on his body, and he can transform them into hundreds of thousands, millions, and even billions of hair clones (see the 03-19-22 update here).
  41. The novel only mentions him learning martial arts in passing (ch. 67 – see section 4.5 here), but one episode (ch. 51) features a battle between Monkey and a demon king in which they use a host of real world fighting techniques that are still known and practiced today.
  42. His favorite style of boxing is “Short Fist” (duanquan, 短拳) (see the 05-02-18 update here).
  43. His skill with the staff is so great that the novel compares it to techniques from two manuals listed among the Seven Military Classics of China (see the 08-07-18 update here).
  44. The bureaucratic mix-up that resulted in his soul being dragged to hell (ch. 3) is based on “mistaken summons” to the underworld and “return-from-death” narratives present in early Chinese “miraculous tales” (Zhiguai xiaoshuo, 志怪小説) (Campany, 1990).
  45. When he looks at his entry in the ledgers of hell, he learns that: 1) his soul number is “1,350”; 2) his real name is “Heaven-Born Stone Monkey” (Tianchan shihou, 天產石猴); and 3) he was fated to have a “good end” at the ripe old age of 342. This refers to a person’s pre-allotted lifespan (ming, 命) (Campany, 2005; Campany & Ge, 2002, pp. 47-52).
  46. The distance that his cloud-somersault can travel, 108,000 li (33,554 mi / 54,000 km), is based on a metaphor for instantaneous enlightenment. It comes from the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Chan Patriarch Huineng (惠能). The Chan Master explains that the common trope of the Buddha’s paradise being separated from the world of man by 108,000 li is based on a combination of the “Ten Evils” (Shi’e, 十惡) and “Eight Wrongs” (Baxie, 八邪) of Buddhism. Those who rid themselves of these spiritual flaws will achieve enlightenment and thus arrive instantly at the Buddha’s paradise.
  47. The initial depiction of his magic staff as a great iron pillar kept in the dragon kingdom treasury (ch. 3) is based on a metal column that the immortal Xu Xun (許遜) chained a demonic dragon to and then imprisoned in the aquatic realm in Chinese mythology.

  48. It’s a common misconception that his staff weighed down the Milky Way galaxy. This is based on a mistranslation. The W. J. F. Jenner edition claims that the weapon anchored said star cluster. However, the original Chinese states that it was used as a means to measure and set the depths of the Heavenly River (Tianhe, 天河; a.k.a. Milky Way).

  49. The weight of his staff is likely an embellishment on the weight of a heavy stone block lifted by the bandit-hero Wu Song (武松) in the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan, 水滸傳, c. 1400). This episode and the JTTW episode where Monkey acquires his staff both involve a hero (Wu Song vs Sun Wukong) asking someone (a friend vs the Dragon King) to take them to a seemingly immovable object (stone block vs iron pillar). They then adjust their clothing before lifting the object with ease. Most importantly, the Chinese characters for the respective weights are visually similar. Sun’s staff is 13,500 catties (yiwan sanqian wubai jin, 一萬三千五百斤; 17,5560 lbs. / 7965.08 kg), while the stone block is 300 to 500 catties (sanwubai jin, 三五百斤; 390-650 lbs. / 177-295 kg). The characters in bold indicate the similarities between the two weights, where as those in red indicate the embellishments: 一萬三千五百斤.

  50. He singlehandedly defeats the “Nine Planets” (Sk: Navagraha; Ch: Jiuyao, 九曜, “Nine Luminaries”), personifications of the sun and planets from Hindu astrology (Gansten, 2009), during his rebellion (ch. 4) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, pp. 170-172).

  51. His time as the Bimawen (弼馬溫, “To assist horse temperament”), a minor post overseeing the heavenly horse stables (ch. 4), is based on an ancient Chinese practice of placing monkeys in horse stables to ward off equine sicknesses. The belief was that the menstrual blood of female monkeys mixed with horse food somehow guarded against diseases. This is hilarious as the position links Sun Wukong to menstruation!

  52. His title “Great Sage Equaling Heaven” (Qitian dasheng, 齊天大聖) (ch. 4) was actually borrowed from the “Eastern Marchmount” (Dongyue, 東嶽; a.k.a. “Eastern Peak”), the god of Mt. Tai. This suggests that the older brother from the aforementioned zaju play is really the Eastern Marchmount.
  53. His time as the Guardian of the Immortal Peach Groves (ch. 5) is likely based on a Song-era Daoist scripture in which the aforementioned Sun Bin is tasked by his teacher, Master Ghost Valley, with protecting a tree laden with special fruit. He later captures a magic white ape stealing said produce (see section III here). The simian thief saves his life by offering Sun a set of secret religious texts. Both stories include: 1) a character surnamed Sun (孫) protecting special fruit (Sun Bin vs Sun Wukong); and 2) supernatural primates that steal and eat the fruit. Therefore, Monkey’s 1592 persona serves as both the guard and the thief!
  54. The elixir pills that he drunkenly eats in Laozi’s laboratory (ch. 5) likely influenced the senzu beans from the world famous Dragon Ball (Jp: Doragon Bōru,ドラゴンボール; Ch: Qilongzhu, 七龍珠) franchise.
  55. His conflict with Erlang (ch. 6) can be traced to ancient Han-era funerary rituals, and their battle of magic transformations shares parallels with ancient Greek tales and can ultimately be traced to even older stories from the Near East.
  56. His time in Laozi‘s furnace (ch. 7) is based on an episode from the aforementioned 13th-century version of JTTW. It may also be connected to a story of Laozi magically surviving a foreign king’s attempt to boil him in a cauldron.
  57. He is shown to be weak against spiritual fire and smoke (see the 06-28-22 update here).
  58. Smoke from the furnace irritates his eyes, giving him his famous “Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils” (Huoyan jinjing, 火眼金睛). The former is likely based on the “actual red-rimmed eyes of [the Rhesus macaque]” (Burton, 2005, p. 148). The latter is likely based on the golden pupils of macaques (see section 2.1 here).
  59. The message that he leaves on the Buddha’s finger (ch. 7) is a popular form of graffiti in East Asia.
  60. His time under Five Elements Mountain (Wuxing shan, 五行山) (ch. 7) is based on stories of the aforementioned Wuzhiqi (無支奇/巫支祇) being imprisoned under a mountain by Yu the Great.
  61. He was pressed under the mountain during the late-Han Dynasty (202 BCE-220CE – see section II here).
  62. A religious precious scroll predating the 1592 edition states that Erlang instead traps Monkey beneath Mount Tai, and the aforementioned 15th-century zaju play states it was Guanyin and the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit.
  63. This punishment links him to a broader list of mythic baddies imprisoned in earth, including Lucifer, Loki, and the Titans of Tartarus. I plan to write a later article about “earth prisons” in world myth.
  64. One scholar suggests that being trapped under Five Elements Mountain is a symbolic death (remember that Monkey claims to be free of the Five Elements after attaining immortality), meaning that the hellish diet is his karmic punishment in the afterlife, and his later release is a symbolic reincarnation.
  65. Monkey’s mountain imprisonment was only part of his punishment. The other half was a hellish diet of hot iron pellets and molten copper, punishments straight from Buddhist canon.
  66. His golden headband (ch. 13) has three influences: 1) a historical ritual circlet worn as a physical reminder of right speech and action by Esoteric Buddhist yogins in ancient India; 2) adornments, likely based on stylized lingzhi mushrooms, worn by Daoist protector deities; and 3) an Iranic triple-crescent crown.
  67. The oldest depiction of Monkey with his headband that I know of appears in a late-Xixia (late-12th to early-13th-century) Buddhist cave grotto in Northwestern China.
  68. The earliest depiction of his double “curlicue-style” headband that I’m aware of is a 13th-century stone carving in Fujian.
  69. The secret spell that tightens his headband is likely the Akshobhya Buddha mantra.

  70. Along with the headband, his tiger skin kilt (ch. 13) can be traced to a list of ritual items prescribed for worshiping wrathful protector deities in Esoteric Indian Buddhism. These same ritual items came to be worn by the very protector deities that the yogins revered. This explains why some deities in Chinese folk religion (including Sun Wukong) are portrayed with the golden headband and tiger skin.

  71. Modern artists sometimes depict him with two long feathers protruding from the front of his golden headband, giving him the appearance of an insect. But the feathers (lingzi, 翎子) are actually associated with a different headdress called the “Purple Gold Cap” (zijin guan, 紫金冠), which is worn on top of the head. It was a military headdress later associated with heroes in Chinese opera (see section 2.2 here).
  72. Monkey is also shown to be weaker in water. For instance, he enlists Zhu Bajie to combat the water demon who turns out to be Sha Wujing (ch. 22) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 1, p. pp. 422-423).
  73. The baby-shaped fruit that he eats (ch. 24) comes from a tree based on Indo-Persian lore.
  74. He claims to have eaten people when he was a monster in his youth (ch. 27) (Wu & Yu, 2012, vol. 2, p. 20).
  75. His greatest feat of strength is carrying two mountains while running at meteoric speeds (ch. 33). One is the axis mundi of the Hindo-Buddhist cosmos, while the other is the place from which (according to legend) Buddhism spread upon entering China. This episode is based on an older tale in which Erlang does the lifting.
  76. His doppelganger, the Six-Eared Macaque (ch. 56-58), is actually an aspect of his troubled mind. Once he kills him, Monkey takes one step closer to Buddhahood.
  77. He fights and is defeated by an ancient bird demon who is a spiritual uncle of the Buddha (ch. 77). This monster is based on the Hindu bird god Garuda.
  78. He and his religious brothers take human disciples in India (ch. 88), and Monkey later performs an arcane ritual in which he grants them superhuman strength (and possibly some form of immortality).
  79. His title, “Victorious Fighting Buddha” (Douzhan sheng fo, 鬥戰勝佛) (ch. 100), is based on a real world deity numbering among the “Thirty-Five Confession Buddhas“.
  80. The novel ranks him higher than Guanyin after his ascension (see the third quote here).
  81. As an enlightened Buddha, Monkey is eligible for his own “Buddha-Field” (Sk: Buddhakṣetra; Ch: Focha, 佛刹), essentially his own universe in which he will lead the inhabitants to enlightenment (Buswell & Lopez, 2014, p. 153).
  82. Despite his association with the Victorious Fighting Buddha, he is primarily worshiped as the Great Sage Equaling Heaven in East and Southeast Asian Chinese folk religion.
  83. Fighters of the Boxer Rebellion (Yihetuan yundong, 義和團運動, 1899-1901) believed that they could channel the Monkey King to gain his great combat skills.
  84. Modern ritual specialists known as “spirit-mediums” (Hokkien: Tangki, 童乩; Ch: Jitong, 乩童; lit: “Divining Child”) also channel the Great Sage, allowing his worshipers to have direct access to the divine. While they may use a staff to enhance the theater of their performance, the weapon surprisingly doesn’t serve a ritual function. They instead use a set of bladed or spiked weapons to draw blood intended to create evil-warding paper talismans (see the material below figure six here).
  85. Chinese folk religion recognizes more than one Great Sage, usually between three and five individuals.
  86. Monkey’s faith started in Fujian province, China and spread via boat to other countries within the Chinese diaspora. When he first started being worshiped is unknown. The first concrete references to his worship come from the 17th-century (see section III here). But the aforementioned 13th-century stone carving depicts him as a wrathful guardian, alongside other protector deities, Bodhisattvas, patriarchs, and eminent monks. This suggests that he might have been revered at an earlier time.
  87. He was even worshiped in 19th-century America!
  88. The iconic pose where he shades his eyes to search the horizon is likely based on a common motif associated with Chinese sea gods.
  89. He has a number of religious birthdays, one of which is the 16th day of the 8th lunar month (the day after the Mid Autumn Festival).
  90. There is a style of Chinese boxing named after him, “Great Sage Boxing” (Cantonese: Taishing kyun; Mandarin: Dasheng quan, 大聖拳). Another closely associated style is “Great Sage Axe Boxing” (Can: Taishing pek kwar kyun; Man: Dasheng pigua quan, 劈掛拳). These arts also have staff styles associated with the Monkey King.
  91. His time in Laozi’s furnace and ability to grow 100,000 feet tall influenced a Shaolin Monastery myth related to the founding of their famous staff fighting method. The story describes how a lowly kitchen worker jumped into an oven and remerged as a staff-wielding titan to battle mountain brigands attacking the monastery (see section 3 here).
  92. Mao Zedong, the leader of the Chinese Communist Party, was a fan of the Monkey King, even associating himself with the character in his poetry. Also, a CCP propaganda play of the 1960s associates the scripture pilgrims with members of the Communist Party, with Monkey referencing Mao.
  93. He shares several connections with Yu the Great (here and here). These include: A) both have stone births; B) Monkey’s staff was originally used by Yu as a drill and as a ruler to set the depths of the fabled world flood; C) Sun’s demonic sister Wuzhiqi was conquered by Yu in some stories; and D) both are legendary hero-kings.

  94. He shares a number of similarities with Wu Song. These include: A) both are reformed supernatural spirits originally trapped under the pressing weight of a mountain; B) slayers of tigers; C) Buddhist monks nicknamed “Pilgrim” (xingzhe, 行者), a title noting junior and traveling monks, as well as untrained riffraff that became clerics to avoid trouble with the law or taxes and military service (Wu Song is the latter and Monkey the former); D) martial arts monks who fight with staves; E) have moralistic golden headbands; and F) weapons made from bin steel (bin tie, 鑌鐵) (Wu Song’s Buddhist sabers vs Monkey’s magic staff).

  95. He shares a surprising number of similarities with the Greek hero Heracles (a.k.a. Hercules). These include: A) supernatural births via masculine heavenly forces (son of Zeus vs the stone seeded by heaven); B) quick to anger; C) big cat skins (Nemean lion vs mountain tiger); D) fight with blunt weapons (olive wood club vs magic iron staff); E) great strength; F) knocked out by a god during a fit of rage (Athena with a rock vs Laozi and his Diamond-Cutter bracelet); G) given punishment to atone for past transgressions (12 labors for killing family vs protecting the monk for rebelling against heaven); H) constantly helped by goddesses (Athena vs Guanyin); I) similar enemies (there’s a long list); tamer of supernatural horses (Mares of Diomedes vs Heavenly Horses); J) travel to lands peopled by women (Amazons vs Kingdom of Women); K) theft of fruit from the gardens of queenly goddesses (Hera’s golden apples of the Hesperides vs the Queen Mother’s immortal peaches); L) travel to the underworld; M) take part in a heavenly war (Gigantomachy vs rebellion in heaven); N) become gods at the end of their stories (god of heroes and strength vs Victorious Fighting Buddha); and O) worshiped in the real world (Greece and Rome vs East and Southeast Asia).

  96. He time travels to different points in Chinese history in an unofficial 17th-century sequel to JTTW.

  97. He has a total of eight children between two 17th-century novels. He has five sons in A Supplement to the Journey to the West (Xiyoubu, 西遊補, 1640), but only one of them is mentioned by name. “King Pāramitā” (Boluomi wang, 波羅蜜王) is portrayed as a sword-wielding general capable of fighting Sun for several rounds. His name is based on a set of virtues learned by Bodhisattvas on their path to Buddhahood. In Journey to the South (Nanyouji, 南遊記) he has two sons named “Jidu” (奇都) and “Luohou” (羅猴), who respectively represent the lunar eclipse demons Ketu and Rahu from Indian astrology. He also has a giant, monstrous daughter, “Yuebei Xing” (月孛星, “Moon Comet Star”), who is named after a shadowy planet representing the lunar apogee (or the furthest spot in the moon’s orbit) in East Asian astrology. Only the daughter plays a part in the story. She uses a magic skull, which can kill immortals three days after their name is called.

  98. He influenced the manga/anime hero Son Goku (a Japanese transliteration of 孫悟空) from the Dragon Ball Franchise.
  99. He almost appeared in an Indiana Jones movie!
  100. He has appeared in both Marvel and DC comic book series.
  101. The world’s tallest statue of Monkey is 40 ft (12.192 m) tall and resides at the Broga Sak Dato Temple (武來岸玉封石哪督廟) in Malaysia.
  102. He is the mascot of several entities in Taiwan, including the HCT delivery company, the Hang Yuan FC football team, and the Taipei Water Department.
  103. He has appeared in nearly 65 video games.
  104. He is the namesake for a Chinese satellite designed to search for dark matter.
  105. He is the namesake of a fossa on Pluto. This plays on his association with the underworld.

  106. He is the namesake of the Wukongopterus (Wukong yilong shu, 悟空翼龍屬), a genus of Chinese pterosaur.

  107. He is the namesake of Syntelia sunwukong, a Synteliid beetle from mid-Cretaceous Burma.
  108. A Covid-19 lab in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China adopted the name “Fire Eyes” (Huoyan, 火眼) in honor of Monkey’s ability to discern evil spirits.

Sources:

Burton, F. D. (2005). Monkey King in China: Basis for a Conservation Policy? In A. Fuentes & L. D. Wolfe (Eds.), Primates Face to Face: Conservation Implications of Human-Nonhuman Primate Interconnections (pp. 137-162). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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

Campany, R. F. (1990). Return-from-Death Narratives in Early Medieval China. Journal of Chinese Religions, 18, pp. 91-125.

Campany, R. F., & Ge, H. (2002). To Live as Long as Heaven and Earth: A Translation and Study of Ge Hong’s Traditions of Divine Transcendents. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Campany, R. F. (2005). Living off the Books: Fifty Ways to Dodge Ming in Early Medieval China. In C. Lupke (Ed.), The Magnitude of Ming: Command, Allotment, and Fate in Chinese Culture (pp. 129-150), University of Hawaii Press.

Gansten, M. (2009). Navagrahas. In K. A. Jacobsen (Ed.), Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism (Vol. 1) (pp. 647-653). Leiden: Brill.

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