Reading Notes: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung, Part B

 

Monkey King and Monk

Source: (Weibo)

Title: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung
Author: Wilhelm
Link: Here

 Lord of Heavens heard about Sun Wu Kung's mischievous ways. He was saved from punishment by the Evening Star's words. Called himself the "Venerable Sun." Pride seems to be his greatest fault, thinking tasks below him. He allowed himself to be manipulated by flattery. He defeated a prince of heaven. His power was something to be feared, so instead of challenging they decided to hit his weakness of pride again, allowing him the title of "Great Saint Who Is Heaven’s Equal."

There seemed to be a golden period for him after this.

Then he was handed the task of guarding the peaches of the Queen-Mother. He ate some, then after finding out he wasn't invited to the party threw a massive tantrum. He drank the wine, then escaped back down to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits. He committed many crimes because of his mischievousness and pride.

Yang Oerlang, the grandson of the Lord of the Heavens -- challenged Sun Wu Kung to a fight. The Monkey King finally met his match in a battle of shape shifting. When he was caught they couldn't kill him, so they sought to burn eternity from him in an oven. When he burst out of it and caused such chaos, Buddha was called. He finally was overcome and was trapped for five hundred years under a mountain of water, fire, wood, earth and metal.

The journey to the West is Sun Wu Kung's more famous part of the story. It's been retold in many versions but his origins are most interesting to me as the journey shows how much he's grown from his past. It's a 14 year journey of growth for the group. Sun Wu Kung finally achieves Buddhahood along with Xuanzang.