Wu Cheng’en (attributed) · Complete work
Chapter 1
Chapter 1 of 100. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
Open the complete readerOriginal Traditional Chinese
第一回 靈根育孕源流出 心性修持大道生
詩曰：
混沌未分天地亂，茫茫渺渺無人見。自從盤古破鴻濛，開闢從茲清濁辨。覆載群生仰至仁，發明萬物皆成善。欲知造化會元功，須看《西遊釋厄傳》。
蓋聞天地之數，有十二萬九千六百歲為一元。將一元分為十二會，乃子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戌、亥之十二支也。每會該一萬八百歲。且就一日而論：子時得陽氣，而丑則雞鳴；寅不通光，而卯則日出；辰時食後，而巳則挨排；日午天中，而未則西蹉；申時晡，而日落酉，戌黃昏，而人定亥。譬於大數，若到戌會之終，則天地昏曚而萬物否矣。再去五千四百歲，交亥會之初，則當黑暗，而兩間人物俱無矣，故曰混沌。又五千四百歲，亥會將終，貞下起元，近子之會，而復逐漸開明。邵康節曰：「冬至子之半，天心無改移。一陽初動處，萬物未生時。」到此，天始有根。再五千四百歲，正當子會，輕清上騰，有日，有月，有星，有辰。日、月、星、辰，謂之四象。故曰，天開於子。又經五千四百歲，子會將終，近丑之會，而逐漸堅實。《易》曰：「大哉乾元！至哉坤元！萬物資生，乃順承天。」至此，地始凝結。再五千四百歲，正當丑會，重濁下凝，有水，有火，有山，有石，有土。水、火、山、石、土，謂之五形。故曰，地闢於丑。又經五千四百歲，丑會終而寅會之初，發生萬物。曆曰：「天氣下降，地氣上升；天地交合，群物皆生。」至此，天清地爽，陰陽交合。再五千四百歲，正當寅會，生人，生獸，生禽，正謂天地人，三才定位。故曰，人生於寅。
感盤古開闢，三皇治世，五帝定倫，世界之間，遂分為四大部洲：曰東勝神洲，曰西牛賀洲，曰南贍部洲，曰北俱蘆洲。這部書單表東勝神洲。海外有一國土，名曰傲來國。國近大海，海中有一座名山，喚為花果山。此山乃十洲之祖脈，三島之來龍，自開清濁而立，鴻濛判後而成。真個好山！有詞賦為證。賦曰：
勢鎮汪洋，威寧瑤海。勢鎮汪洋，潮湧銀山魚入穴；威寧瑤海，波翻雪浪蜃離淵。水火方隅高積上，東海之處聳崇巔。丹崖怪石，削壁奇峰。丹崖上，彩鳳雙鳴；削壁前，麒麟獨臥。峰頭時聽錦雞鳴，石窟每觀龍出入。林中有壽鹿仙狐，樹上有靈禽玄鶴。瑤草奇花不謝，青松翠柏長春。仙桃常結果，修竹每留雲。一條澗壑籐蘿密，四面原堤草色新。正是百川會處擎天柱，萬劫無移大地根。
那座山正當頂上，有一塊仙石。其石有三丈六尺五寸高，有二丈四尺圍圓。三丈六尺五寸高，按周天三百六十五度；二丈四尺圍圓，按政曆二十四氣。上有九竅八孔，按九宮八卦。四面更無樹木遮陰，左右倒有芝蘭相襯。蓋自開闢以來，每受天真地秀，日精月華，感之既久，遂有靈通之意。內育仙胞，一日迸裂，產一石卵，似圓毬樣大。因見風，化作一個石猴，五官俱備，四肢皆全。便就學爬學走，拜了四方。目運兩道金光，射沖斗府。驚動高天上聖大慈仁者玉皇大天尊玄穹高上帝，駕座金闕雲宮靈霄寶殿，聚集仙卿，見有金光燄燄，即命千里眼、順風耳開南天門觀看。二將果奉旨出門外，看的真，聽的明。須臾回報道：「臣奉旨觀聽金光之處，乃東勝神洲海東傲來小國之界，有一座花果山，山上有一仙石，石產一卵，見風化一石猴，在那裡拜四方，眼運金光，射沖斗府。如今服餌水食，金光將潛息矣。」玉帝垂賜恩慈曰：「下方之物，乃天地精華所生，不足為異。」
那猴在山中，卻會行走跳躍，食草木，飲澗泉，採山花，覓樹果；與狼蟲為伴，虎豹為群，獐鹿為友，獼猿為親；夜宿石崖之下，朝遊峰洞之中。真是：「山中無甲子，寒盡不知年。」
一朝天氣炎熱，與群猴避暑，都在松陰之下頑耍。你看他一個個：
跳樹攀枝，採花覓果；拋彈子，邷麼兒；跑沙窩，砌寶塔；趕蜻蜓，撲𧈢蜡；參老天，拜菩薩；扯葛籐，編草帓；捉虱子，咬又掐；理毛衣，剔指甲。挨的挨，擦的擦；推的推，壓的壓；扯的扯，拉的拉：青松林下任他頑，綠水澗邊隨洗濯。
一群猴子耍了一會，卻去那山澗中洗澡。見那股澗水奔流，真個似滾瓜湧濺。古云：「禽有禽言，獸有獸語。」眾猴都道：「這股水不知是那裡的水。我們今日趕閑無事，順澗邊往上溜頭尋看源流，耍子去耶！」喊一聲，都拖男挈女，呼弟呼兄，一齊跑來，順澗爬山，直至源流之處，乃是一股瀑布飛泉。但見那：
一派白虹起，千尋雪浪飛。海風吹不斷，江月照還依。冷氣分青嶂，餘流潤翠微。潺湲名瀑布，真似掛簾帷。
眾猴拍手稱揚道：「好水，好水！原來此處遠通山腳之下，直接大海之波。」又道：「那一個有本事的，鑽進去尋個源頭出來，不傷身體者，我等即拜他為王。」連呼了三聲，忽見叢雜中跳出一個石猴，應聲高叫道：「我進去，我進去。」好猴！也是他：
今日芳名顯，時來大運通。有緣居此地，王遣入仙宮。
你看他瞑目蹲身，將身一縱，徑跳入瀑布泉中，忽睜睛擡頭觀看，那裡邊卻無水無波，明明朗朗的一架橋梁。他住了身，定了神，仔細再看，原來是座鐵板橋。橋下之水，沖貫於石竅之間，倒掛流出去，遮閉了橋門。卻又欠身上橋頭，再走再看，卻似有人家住處一般，真個好所在。但見那：
翠蘚堆藍，白雲浮玉，光搖片片煙霞。虛窗靜室，滑凳板生花。乳窟龍珠倚掛，縈迴滿地奇葩。鍋灶傍崖存火跡，樽罍靠案見殽渣。石座石床真可愛，石盆石碗更堪誇。又見那一竿兩竿修竹，三點五點梅花。幾樹青松常帶雨，渾然像個人家。
看罷多時，跳過橋中間，左右觀看。只見正當中有一石碣，碣上有一行楷書大字，鐫著「花果山福地，水簾洞洞天」。
石猿喜不自勝，急抽身往外便走，復瞑目蹲身，跳出水外，打了兩個呵呵道：「大造化！大造化！」眾猴把他圍住，問道：「裡面怎麼樣？水有多深？」石猴道：「沒水！沒水！原來是一座鐵板橋，橋那邊是一座天造地設的家當。」眾猴道：「怎見得是個家當？」石猴笑道：「這股水乃是橋下沖貫石橋，倒掛下來遮閉門戶的。橋邊有花有樹，乃是一座石房。房內有石窩、石灶、石碗、石盆、石床、石凳。中間一塊石碣上，鐫著『花果山福地，水簾洞洞天』。真個是我們安身之處。裡面且是寬闊，容得千百口老小。我們都進去住，也省得受老天之氣。這裡邊：
刮風有處躲，下雨好存身。霜雪全無懼，雷聲永不聞。煙霞常照耀，祥瑞每蒸熏。松竹年年秀，奇花日日新。」
眾猴聽得，個個歡喜。都道：「你還先走，帶我們進去，進去。」石猴卻又瞑目蹲身，往裡一跳，叫道：「都隨我進來，進來。」那些猴有膽大的，都跳進去了；膽小的，一個個伸頭縮頸，抓耳撓腮，大聲叫喊，纏一會，也都進去了。跳過橋頭，一個個搶盆奪碗，佔灶爭床，搬過來，移過去，正是猴性頑劣，再無一個寧時，只搬得力倦神疲方止。石猿端坐上面道：「列位呵，『人而無信，不知其可。』你們才說有本事進得來，出得去，不傷身體者，就拜他為王。我如今進來又出去，出去又進來，尋了這一個洞天與列位安眠穩睡，各享成家之福，何不拜我為王？」眾猴聽說，即拱伏無違，一個個序齒排班，朝上禮拜，都稱「千歲大王」。自此，石猿高登王位，將「石」字兒隱了，遂稱「美猴王」。有詩為證。詩曰：
三陽交泰產群生，仙石胞含日月精。借卵化猴完大道，假他名姓配丹成。內觀不識因無相，外合明知作有形。歷代人人皆屬此，稱王稱聖任縱橫。
美猴王領一群猿猴、獼猴、馬猴等，分派了君臣佐使。朝遊花果山，暮宿水簾洞，合契同情，不入飛鳥之叢，不從走獸之類，獨自為王，不勝歡樂。是以：
春採百花為飲食，夏尋諸果作生涯。秋收芋栗延時節，冬覓黃精度歲華。
美猴王享樂天真，何期有三五百載。一日，與群猴喜宴之間，忽然憂惱，墮下淚來。眾猴慌忙羅拜道：「大王何為煩惱？」猴王道：「我雖在歡喜之時，卻有一點兒遠慮，故此煩惱。」眾猴又笑道：「大王好不知足。我等日日歡會，在仙山福地，古洞神洲，不伏麒麟轄，不伏鳳凰管，又不伏人間王位所拘束，自由自在，乃無量之福，為何遠慮而憂也？」猴王道：「今日雖不歸人王法律，不懼禽獸威嚴，將來年老血衰，暗中有閻王老子管著，一旦身亡，可不枉生世界之中，不得久注天人之內？」眾猴聞此言，一個個掩面悲啼，俱以無常為慮。
只見那班部中，忽跳出一個通背猿猴，厲聲高叫道：「大王若是這般遠慮，真所謂道心開發也。如今五蟲之內，惟有三等名色不伏閻王老子所管。」猴王道：「你知那三等人？」猿猴道：「乃是佛與仙與神聖三者，躲過輪迴，不生不滅，與天地山川齊壽。」猴王道：「此三者居於何所？」猿猴道：「他只在閻浮世界之中，古洞仙山之內。」猴王聞之，滿心歡喜道：「我明日就辭汝等下山，雲遊海角，遠涉天涯，務必訪此三者，學一個不老長生，常躲過閻君之難。」噫！這句話，頓教跳出輪迴網，致使齊天大聖成。眾猴鼓掌稱揚，都道：「善哉，善哉！我等明日越嶺登山，廣尋些果品，大設筵宴送大王也。」
次日，眾猴果去採仙桃，摘異果，刨山藥，斸黃精。芝蘭香蕙，瑤草奇花，般般件件，整整齊齊，擺開石凳石桌，排列仙酒仙餚。但見那：
金丸珠彈，紅綻黃肥。金丸珠彈臘櫻桃，色真甘美；紅綻黃肥熟梅子，味果香酸。鮮龍眼，肉甜皮薄；火荔枝，核小囊紅。林檎碧實連枝獻，枇杷緗苞帶葉擎。兔頭梨子雞心棗，消渴除煩更解酲。香桃爛杏，美甘甘似玉液瓊漿；脆李楊梅，酸蔭蔭如脂酥膏酪。紅囊黑子熟西瓜，四瓣黃皮大柿子。石榴裂破，丹砂粒現火晶珠；芋栗剖開，堅硬肉團金瑪瑙。胡桃銀杏可傳茶，椰子葡萄能做酒。榛松榧柰滿盤盛，橘蔗柑橙盈案擺。熟煨山藥，爛煮黃精。搗碎茯苓並薏苡，石鍋微火漫炊羹。人間縱有珍饈味，怎比山猴樂更寧。
群猴尊美猴王上坐，各依齒肩排於下邊，一個個輪流上前奉酒、奉花、奉果，痛飲了一日。
次日，美猴王早起，教：「小的們，替我折些枯松，編作栰子，取個竹竿作篙，收拾些果品之類，我將去也。」果獨自登栰，儘力撐開，飄飄蕩蕩，徑向大海波中，趁天風，來渡南贍部洲地界。這一去，正是那：
天產仙猴道行隆，離山駕栰趁天風。飄洋過海尋仙道，立志潛心建大功。有分有緣休俗願，無憂無慮會元龍。料應必遇知音者，說破源流萬法通。
也是他運至時來，自登木栰之後，連日東南風緊，將他送到西北岸前，乃是南贍部洲地界。持篙試水，偶得淺水，棄了栰子，跳上岸來。只見海邊有人捕魚、打雁、穵蛤、淘鹽。他走近前，弄個把戲，妝個𡤫虎，嚇得那些人丟筐棄網，四散奔跑。將那跑不動的拿住一個，剝了他的衣裳，也學人穿在身上。搖搖擺擺，穿州過府，在市廛中學人禮，學人話。朝餐夜宿，一心裡訪問佛、仙、神聖之道，覓個長生不老之方。見世人都是為名為利之徒，更無一個為身命者。正是那：
爭名奪利幾時休？早起遲眠不自由！騎著驢騾思駿馬，官居宰相望王侯。只愁衣食耽勞碌，何怕閻君就取勾。繼子蔭孫圖富貴，更無一個肯回頭。
猴王參訪仙道，無緣得遇。在於南贍部洲，串長城，遊小縣，不覺八九年餘。忽行至西洋大海，他想著海外必有神仙。獨自個依前作栰，又飄過西海，直至西牛賀洲地界。登岸遍訪多時，忽見一座高山秀麗，林麓幽深。他也不怕狼蟲，不懼虎豹，登在山頂上觀看。果是好山：
千峰排戟，萬仞開屏。日映嵐光輕鎖翠，雨收黛色冷含青。瘦籐纏老樹，古渡界幽程。奇花瑞草，修竹喬松。修竹喬松，萬載常青欺福地；奇花瑞草，四時不謝賽蓬瀛。幽鳥啼聲近，源泉響溜清。重重谷壑芝蘭繞，處處巉崖苔蘚生。起伏巒頭龍脈好，必有高人隱姓名。
正觀看間，忽聞得林深之處有人言語。急忙趨步，穿入林中，側耳而聽，原來是歌唱之聲。歌曰：
「觀棋柯爛，伐木丁丁，雲邊谷口徐行。賣薪沽酒，狂笑自陶情。蒼逕秋高對月，枕松根、一覺天明。認舊林，登崖過嶺，持斧斷枯籐。收來成一擔，行歌市上，易米三升。更無些子爭競，時價平平。不會機謀巧算，沒榮辱、恬淡延生。相逢處，非仙即道，靜坐講《黃庭》。」
美猴王聽得此言，滿心歡喜道：「神仙原來藏在這裡！」即忙跳入裡面，仔細再看，乃是一個樵子，在那裡舉斧砍柴。但看他打扮非常：
頭上戴箬笠，乃是新筍初脫之籜。身上穿布衣，乃是木綿撚就之紗。腰間繫環絛，乃是老蠶口吐之絲。足下踏草履，乃是枯莎槎就之爽。手執衠鋼斧，擔挽火麻繩。扳松劈枯樹，爭似此樵能。
猴王近前叫道：「老神仙，弟子起手。」那樵漢慌忙丟了斧，轉身答禮道：「不當人，不當人。我拙漢衣食不全，怎敢當『神仙』二字？」猴王道：「你不是神仙，如何說出神仙的話來？」樵夫道：「我說甚麼神仙話？」猴王道：「我才來至林邊，只聽的你說：『相逢處，非仙即道，靜坐講《黃庭》。』《黃庭》乃道德真言，非神仙而何？」樵夫笑道：「實不瞞你說，這個詞名做《滿庭芳》，乃一神仙教我的。那神仙與我舍下相鄰，他見我家事勞苦，日常煩惱，教我遇煩惱時，即把這詞兒念念，一則散心，二則解困。我才有些不足處思慮，故此念念，不期被你聽了。」猴王道：「你家既與神仙相鄰，何不從他修行？學得個不老之方，卻不是好？」樵夫道：「我一生命苦：自幼蒙父母養育至八九歲，才知人事，不幸父喪，母親居孀。再無兄弟姊妹，只我一人，沒奈何，早晚侍奉。如今母老，一發不敢拋離。卻又田園荒蕪，衣食不足，只得斫兩束柴薪，挑向市廛之間，貨幾文錢，糴幾升米，自炊自造，安排些茶飯，供養老母。所以不能修行。」
猴王道：「據你說起來，乃是一個行孝的君子，向後必有好處。但望你指與我那神仙住處，卻好拜訪去也。」樵夫道：「不遠，不遠。此山叫做靈臺方寸山，山中有座斜月三星洞，那洞中有一個神仙，稱名須菩提祖師。那祖師出去的徒弟，也不計其數，見今還有三四十人從他修行。你順那條小路兒，向南行七八里遠近，即是他家了。」猴王用手扯住樵夫道：「老兄，你便同我去去，若還得了好處，決不忘你指引之恩。」樵夫道：「你這漢子甚不通變，我方才這般與你說了，你還不省？假若我與你去了，卻不誤了我的生意？老母何人奉養？我要斫柴，你自去，自去。」
猴王聽說，只得相辭。出深林，找上路徑，過一山坡，約有七八里遠，果然望見一座洞府。挺身觀看，真好去處！但見：
煙霞散彩，日月搖光。千株老柏，萬節修篁。千株老柏，帶雨半空青冉冉；萬節修篁，含煙一壑色蒼蒼。門外奇花佈錦，橋邊瑤草噴香。石崖突兀青苔潤，懸壁高張翠蘚長。時聞仙鶴唳，每見鳳凰翔。仙鶴唳時，聲振九皋霄漢遠；鳳凰翔起，翎毛五色彩雲光。玄猿白鹿隨隱見，金獅玉象任行藏。細觀靈福地，真個賽天堂。
又見那洞門緊閉，靜悄悄杳無人跡。忽回頭，見崖頭立一石碑，約有三丈餘高，八尺餘闊，上有一行十個大字，乃是「靈臺方寸山，斜月三星洞」。美猴王十分歡喜道：「此間人果是樸實，果有此山此洞。」看夠多時，不敢敲門。且去跳上松枝梢頭，摘松子吃了頑耍。
少頃間，只聽得呀的一聲，洞門開處，裡面走出一個仙童，真個丰姿英偉，像貌清奇，比尋常俗子不同。但見他：
髽髻雙絲綰，寬袍兩袖風。貌和身自別，心與相俱空。物外長年客，山中永壽童。一塵全不染，甲子任翻騰。
那童子出得門來，高叫道：「甚麼人在此搔擾？」猴王撲的跳下樹來，上前躬身道：「仙童，我是個訪道學仙之弟子，更不敢在此搔擾。」仙童笑道：「你是個訪道的麼？」猴王道：「是。」童子道：「我家師父正才下榻，登壇講道，還未說出原由，就教我出來開門。說：『外面有個修行的來了，可去接待接待。』想必就是你了？」猴王笑道：「是我，是我。」童子道：「你跟我進來。」
這猴王整衣端肅，隨童子徑入洞天深處觀看：一層層深閣瓊樓，一進進珠宮貝闕，說不盡那靜室幽居。直至瑤臺之下，見那菩提祖師端坐在臺上，兩邊有三十個小仙侍立臺下。果然是：
大覺金仙沒垢姿，西方妙相祖菩提。不生不滅三三行，全氣全神萬萬慈。空寂自然隨變化，真如本性任為之。與天同壽莊嚴體，歷劫明心大法師。
美猴王一見，倒身下拜，磕頭不計其數，口中只道：「師父，師父，我弟子志心朝禮，志心朝禮。」祖師道：「你是那方人氏？且說個鄉貫、姓名明白，再拜。」猴王道：「弟子乃東勝神洲傲來國花果山水簾洞人氏。」祖師喝令：「趕出去！他本是個撒詐搗虛之徒，那裡修甚麼道果！」猴王慌忙磕頭不住道：「弟子是老實之言，決無虛詐。」祖師道：「你既老實，怎麼說東勝神洲？那去處到我這裡隔兩重大海，一座南贍部洲，如何就得到此？」猴王叩頭道：「弟子飄洋過海，登界遊方，有十數個年頭，方才訪到此處。」
祖師道：「既是逐漸行來的也罷。你姓甚麼？」猴王又道：「我無性。人若罵我，我也不惱；若打我，我也不嗔。只是陪個禮兒就罷了。一生無性。」祖師道：「不是這個性。你父母原來姓甚麼？」猴王道：「我也無父母。」祖師道：「既無父母，想是樹上生的？」猴王道：「我雖不是樹上生，卻是石裡長的。我只記得花果山上有一塊仙石，其年石破，我便生也。」祖師聞言暗喜，道：「這等說，卻是個天地生成的。你起來走走我看。」猴王縱身跳起，拐呀拐的走了兩遍。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。」猴王聽說，滿心歡喜，朝上叩頭道：「好！好！好！今日方知姓也。萬望師父慈悲，既然有姓，再乞賜個名字，卻好呼喚。」祖師道：「我門中有十二個字，分派起名，到你乃第十輩之小徒矣。」猴王道：「那十二個字？」祖師道：「乃廣、大、智、慧、真、如、性、海、穎、悟、圓、覺十二字。排到你，正當『悟』字。與你起個法名叫做『孫悟空』，好麼？」猴王笑道：「好！好！好！自今就叫做孫悟空也。」正是：
鴻濛初闢原無姓，打破頑空須悟空。
畢竟不知向後修些甚麼道果，且聽下回分解。
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the Chinese, passage for passage, covering all 100 chapters and 3,782 source paragraphs of the Traditional Chinese text.
The Divine Root Conceives and Its Source Flows Forth; Mind and Nature Are Cultivated and the Great Way Arises
The poem says:
Before chaos parted, heaven and earth lay confused; boundless and dim, no one was there to see.Since Pangu broke the primal mist, creation divided clear from turbid.Heaven covers and earth bears all living things with utmost kindness; all creatures come to light and grow good.To learn the work of creation through the great cycles, read The Journey West to Resolve Calamities.
It is said that heaven and earth count 129,600 years to a cycle. Divide the cycle into twelve periods, named for the twelve branches: zi, chou, yin, mao, chen, si, wu, wei, shen, you, xu, and hai. Each lasts 10,800 years. Consider a single day: at zi the yang breath stirs; at chou the cock crows; at yin light has not yet spread, while at mao the sun rises; at chen breakfast is over, and at si the day presses on; at wu the sun stands at the zenith, and at wei it inclines westward; at shen comes the afternoon meal, and at you sunset; at xu dusk, and at hai people retire. In the larger reckoning, by the end of xu heaven and earth grow dark, and all things cease to flourish. Another 5,400 years brings the start of hai, when darkness reigns and no people or creatures remain between heaven and earth: this is chaos. After another 5,400 years, as hai ends, a new beginning rises from the depths and zi draws near; brightness gradually returns. Shao Kangjie said: “At winter solstice, halfway through zi, heaven's heart has never changed. One yang first begins to stir when no living thing has yet been born.” Here heaven first takes root. Another 5,400 years brings zi itself: the light and clear ascend, and sun, moon, stars, and constellations appear. These are the four celestial forms. Thus heaven opens at zi. Another 5,400 years brings the end of zi and the approach of chou, and substance gradually grows firm. The Book of Changes says: “Great is the originating power of the Creative! Supreme is the originating power of the Receptive! All things draw on it for life, and thus it obediently follows heaven.” Here earth begins to solidify. Another 5,400 years brings chou: the heavy and turbid condense below, and water, fire, mountains, stone, and soil appear. These are the five earthly forms. Thus earth opens at chou. Another 5,400 years brings the end of chou and the start of yin, when all things arise. The calendar says: “Heaven's breath descends, earth's breath ascends; heaven and earth join and all creatures are born.” Heaven is now clear, earth fresh, and yin and yang united. Another 5,400 years brings yin itself, when human beings, beasts, and birds are born: heaven, earth, and humanity, the three powers, assume their places. Thus humanity is born at yin.
After Pangu opened creation, the Three Sovereigns governed the world, and the Five Emperors established its order, the world came to be divided into four great continents: Eastern Superior Divine Continent, Western Cattle-Gift Continent, Southern Jambu Continent, and Northern Kuru Continent. This book speaks only of Eastern Superior Divine Continent. Beyond the sea lies a country called Aolai. Beside it is the great sea, and in that sea a celebrated mountain, Mount Flower-Fruit. It is the ancestral vein of the ten continents, the originating dragon of the three islands; it rose when clear and turbid first parted, and took shape after the primal mist divided. What a splendid mountain! A rhapsody bears witness:
Its mass commands the ocean, its majesty calms the jade sea. Its mass commands the ocean: the tide piles silver mountains and fish retreat to their caves; its majesty calms the jade sea: snow-white waves roll and sea monsters leave their depths. High over the borders of water and fire, its lofty summit rises in the Eastern Sea. Red cliffs, fantastic stones; sheer walls, marvelous peaks. On the red cliffs two brilliant phoenixes call; before the sheer walls a solitary qilin lies. At the peak one often hears golden pheasants; in the rock caves one often sees dragons come and go. In the woods live long-lived deer and immortal foxes, in the trees numinous birds and dark cranes. Jade grasses and strange flowers never fade; green pines and emerald cypresses remain in spring. Immortal peaches continually bear fruit; slender bamboo often holds the clouds. A ravine is thick with vines, and fresh grass covers the slopes on every side. Truly, a pillar propping up heaven where a hundred streams meet, the unmoving root of earth through ten thousand ages.
At the very summit stood an immortal stone. It was three zhang, six feet, five inches tall and two zhang, four feet around. Its height corresponded to the 365 degrees of heaven; its circumference to the twenty-four solar terms. It had nine openings and eight holes, matching the nine palaces and eight trigrams. No trees shaded it on any side, but fragrant orchids grew beside it. Since the beginning of creation it had received heaven's pure breath and earth's finest essence, the sun's vital force and the moon's splendor; after long exposure it grew aware. It nurtured an immortal embryo, and one day split open and produced a stone egg as large as a ball. Touched by the wind, this became a stone monkey, with all five features and four limbs complete. He learned at once to crawl and walk, and bowed to the four directions. Two golden beams shot from his eyes into the palace of the Dipper. They startled the holy, merciful Jade Emperor, Supreme Celestial Sovereign of the High Dark Vault, who sat in the Hall of Divine Mists in his Golden Cloud Palace. He assembled his immortal ministers and, seeing the flaming golden light, ordered Far-Seeing Eyes and Wind-Hearing Ears to open the Southern Gate of Heaven and investigate. The two generals obeyed, went out, looked carefully, and listened closely. Soon they reported: “At your command we investigated the golden light. In the territory of little Aolai, east of the sea in Eastern Superior Divine Continent, stands Mount Flower-Fruit. An immortal stone on that mountain produced an egg, which turned into a stone monkey on touching the wind. He bows to the four directions, and his eyes send golden light up to the Dipper's palace. Now that he eats and drinks, the golden light is subsiding.” The Jade Emperor graciously replied: “This creature below was born of the essence of heaven and earth. It is nothing extraordinary.”
The monkey could walk and leap through the mountains. He ate plants, drank from streams, gathered mountain flowers and sought fruit in the trees; wolves and insects were his companions, tigers and leopards his fellows, deer his friends, and other monkeys his kin. At night he slept beneath stone cliffs; by day he roamed peaks and caves. Truly: “In the mountains there is no calendar; winter passes and no one knows the year.”
One day in the summer heat, he and the monkeys were playing in the shade of the pines. See how they behaved:
Leaping among trees, climbing branches, plucking flowers and hunting fruit; tossing pebbles, playing their games; racing through sand hollows, building little towers; chasing dragonflies, pouncing on insects; saluting heaven, bowing to bodhisattvas; pulling vines and weaving grass mats; catching lice, biting and pinching them; grooming their coats, picking their nails. One jostled, another rubbed; one pushed, another pressed; one tugged, another pulled. Free to play beneath the green pines, free to wash beside the clear stream.
After playing awhile, the monkeys went to bathe in the mountain stream. It rushed and splashed like gourds tumbling down a slope. As the old saying goes: “Birds have their speech, beasts their language.” The monkeys said: “Where does this stream come from? We've nothing to do today. Let's follow it upstream and look for its source, for the fun of it!” With a shout they brought sons and daughters, called brothers and sisters, and ran together up the mountainside beside the water. At its source they found a waterfall. And this is what they saw:
A white rainbow rises in a stream; snowy waves fly a thousand fathoms.Sea winds cannot break it; the river moon shines and it remains.Its cold breath parts the blue cliffs; its remaining flow moistens the green hills.They call its murmuring a waterfall; it truly hangs like a curtain.
The monkeys clapped and cried: “Wonderful water! Wonderful! So this stream runs from here beneath the mountain's foot, straight into the sea.” Then they said: “Whoever can go inside, find the source, and come out unharmed—we'll make him king.” They called three times, and suddenly a stone monkey leaped from the undergrowth, shouting: “I'll go in! I'll go in!” A fine monkey! For him it was written:
Today his glorious name emerges; his destined fortune comes.Fated to dwell in this place, he enters an immortal palace by royal command.
He shut his eyes, crouched, and sprang straight into the waterfall. Opening his eyes, he looked up: within was neither wave nor water, but a bright, clear bridge. He stood still, gathered his wits, and looked again: it was an iron bridge. Water surged beneath it through a gap in the rock and fell outward like a hanging curtain, concealing the entrance. He stepped onto the bridge and explored. It looked like a dwelling, and a splendid one. This is what he saw:
Emerald moss piled against blue, white clouds floated over jade, and light shimmered through banks of mist. Open windows and quiet rooms; flowers patterned the smooth stone stools. Cave pearls hung like dragon's milk, wondrous flowers curled across the floor. By the cliff stood a stove with traces of fire; beside the table wine jars held remnants of food. Stone seats and stone beds were lovely indeed; stone basins and stone bowls deserved still higher praise. There were a stalk or two of slender bamboo, three or five plum blossoms. Several green pines always glistened with rain. Altogether, it looked like a home.
After gazing a long while, he leaped across the middle of the bridge and looked around. At the center stood a stone tablet with a line of large characters in regular script engraved on it: “Blessed Land of Mount Flower-Fruit; Immortal Grotto of Water Curtain Cave.”
Overjoyed, the stone monkey hurried back, crouched with eyes closed, and leaped out through the water. He laughed twice: “What luck! What luck!” The others crowded around him: “What is it like inside? How deep is the water?” “No water! No water! There's an iron bridge, and beyond it a home fashioned by heaven and earth.” “What makes it a home?” they asked. The stone monkey laughed: “The water surges beneath the stone bridge and drops down to hide its entrance. Beside the bridge are flowers and trees, and there's a stone house, with stone hearths, a stone stove, stone bowls, basins, beds, and stools. A stone tablet in the middle reads, ‘Blessed Land of Mount Flower-Fruit; Immortal Grotto of Water Curtain Cave.’ We can truly live there. It's spacious enough for a thousand old and young. We can all move in and be free of the weather. Inside:
When wind blows there is shelter; when rain falls there is a refuge.No fear at all of frost and snow, no sound of thunder ever heard.Radiant mist shines always; auspicious vapors rise continually.Pines and bamboos bloom year after year; strange flowers are fresh each day.”
The monkeys rejoiced: “You lead us in, then! Take us inside!” The stone monkey crouched, closed his eyes, and jumped in again, calling, “Follow me in! Come in!” The bold monkeys all leaped through; the timid ones craned and shrank back, scratched their ears and cheeks, cried aloud and hesitated, but eventually went in too. Once over the bridge, they seized basins and bowls, claimed stoves and beds, and moved everything back and forth. Such was their unruly monkey nature that none rested until exhaustion stopped them. The stone monkey seated himself above them and said: “Friends, ‘A man who cannot keep his word is good for nothing.’ You said that whoever could go in and come out unharmed would be king. I've gone in and out, and out and in; I've found this immortal cave where you can sleep safely and enjoy a home of your own. Why not make me king?” The monkeys bowed in submission, ranked themselves by age, and saluted him as “Your Majesty, King of a Thousand Years.” Thus the stone monkey ascended the throne, dropped the word “stone,” and became the Handsome Monkey King. There is a poem to prove it:
Three yang powers join in peace and give life to all; an immortal stone's womb holds the sun's and moon's essence.Through an egg it takes the form of a monkey and fulfills the Way; by borrowing a name and surname it completes the elixir.Looking within, one cannot know it, for it has no form; joined to the outer world, one sees it clearly as a shape.All people in every age belong to this: free to be called king or sage and roam where they will.
The Handsome Monkey King assigned ranks of ruler, ministers, assistants, and attendants among the apes and monkeys. They roamed Mount Flower-Fruit each morning and slept in Water Curtain Cave each night, united in fellowship. They belonged neither to the birds nor to the beasts, but ruled themselves alone, in boundless delight. And so:
In spring they picked a hundred flowers for food; in summer they lived on every fruit.In autumn they stored yams and chestnuts to last the season; in winter they found Solomon's seal to see the year through.
The Handsome Monkey King enjoyed this innocent pleasure for some three or five hundred years. One day, as he feasted with the monkeys, he suddenly grew troubled and began to weep. They bowed in alarm: “Why are you troubled, Your Majesty?” “Even in my joy I have a concern for the future,” he said. The monkeys laughed: “Your Majesty, how can you be dissatisfied? Every day we feast together on this blessed immortal mountain, in this ancient cave on the divine continent. Neither qilins nor phoenixes command us, nor are we subject to human kings. We are free: what greater fortune could there be? Why worry about the future?” The Monkey King said: “Though today we are beyond human law and have no fear of birds and beasts, when we grow old and our blood weakens, King Yama will secretly claim us. Once dead, will we not have lived in vain, unable to remain forever among heaven's immortals?” At this the monkeys covered their faces and wept, all distressed by mortality.
Then a long-armed ape sprang from their ranks and cried: “Your Majesty, such concern for the future means the heart seeking the Way has awakened in you. Of the five kinds of creatures, only three orders escape King Yama's authority.” “Which three?” the Monkey King asked. “Buddhas, immortals, and holy spirits: they escape rebirth, are neither born nor destroyed, and live as long as heaven, earth, mountains, and rivers.” “Where do they live?” “In the world of Jambudvipa, among ancient caves and immortal mountains.” The Monkey King rejoiced: “Tomorrow I'll take my leave of you and descend the mountain. I'll roam to the far shores and cross to the ends of the earth until I find these three and learn eternal life, forever escaping King Yama.” Ah! Those words set him free from the net of rebirth and brought the Great Sage Equal to Heaven into being. The monkeys applauded: “Wonderful! Tomorrow we'll cross hills and mountains to gather fruits, and hold a great feast to see Your Majesty off.”
The next day the monkeys gathered immortal peaches and strange fruits, dug mountain yams and Solomon's seal. They laid out aromatic orchids and herbs, jade grasses and marvelous flowers, everything neatly arranged on stone tables and stools, with immortal wine and dishes. See what they had:
Golden pellets and pearly beads, red bursting fruit and plump yellow fruit. Wax cherries like golden pellets and pearly beads, sweet and lovely to behold; ripe plums red and bursting, yellow and plump, fragrant and tart. Fresh longans, sweet-fleshed and thin-skinned; fiery lychees, small-pitted in their red husks. Green apples offered on their branches, loquats held up with their leaves. Rabbit-head pears and chicken-heart dates quenched thirst, soothed care, and relieved drunkenness. Fragrant peaches and soft apricots tasted as sweet as jade nectar; crisp plums and bayberries as pleasantly tart as creamy delicacies. Ripe watermelons had red flesh and black seeds; large persimmons had four lobes of yellow skin. Split pomegranates showed cinnabar seeds like fiery crystal beads; split yams and chestnuts showed firm golden and agate flesh. Walnuts and ginkgo nuts accompanied tea; coconuts and grapes could be made into wine. Hazelnuts, pine nuts, torreya nuts, and crab apples filled the plates; mandarins, cane, citrus, and oranges covered the tables. Yams roasted until done, Solomon's seal boiled tender. Poria and Job's tears were crushed and simmered slowly in a stone pot into soup. Even the finest human feast could not rival the mountain monkeys' peaceful joy.
The monkeys seated the Handsome Monkey King in the place of honor and arranged themselves below him by age. Each in turn offered wine, flowers, and fruit. They drank heartily all day.
Early the next morning the Handsome Monkey King instructed them: “Little ones, break off some dead pine branches for a raft, find a bamboo pole to steer it, and gather some fruit. I am leaving.” He boarded the raft alone, pushed hard away from shore, and drifted into the sea. Riding the heavenly wind, he crossed toward Southern Jambu Continent. Thus he went:
The heaven-born immortal monkey, rich in power of the Way, leaves the mountain on a raft borne by heaven's wind.Across the ocean he seeks the immortal Way, bent on cultivating his mind and doing a great deed.Blessed by fate, he abandons worldly desires; free from care, he will meet the primal dragon.Surely he will find a kindred spirit to explain the source from which all teachings flow.
Fortune favored him. For days after he embarked, a strong southeast wind carried him to the northwestern shore of Southern Jambu Continent. Finding shallow water with his pole, he abandoned the raft and leaped ashore. People there were fishing, hunting wild geese, digging clams, and harvesting salt. He approached them making strange gestures and a fierce face, and they dropped their baskets and nets and scattered. He caught one who could not run, stripped off his clothes, and imitated the way people wore them. He wandered through districts and prefectures, learning human manners and speech in the markets. He ate by day and lodged by night, intent on finding the way of Buddhas, immortals, and holy spirits and the means of eternal life. But everyone he met pursued fame and profit; none cared to preserve their lives. Just as the verse says:
When will the contest for fame and profit end? Up early and late to bed, no one is free!Riding a mule or donkey, you dream of a fine horse; made prime minister, you covet a prince's rank.Anxious over food and clothing, you toil away; why not fear King Yama's summons?You seek wealth to pass to sons and grandsons, yet not one of you will turn back.
The Monkey King searched for the immortal Way but met no master. He crossed great cities and toured small counties in Southern Jambu Continent for eight or nine years. Then he reached the western ocean and thought there must be immortals across the sea. He built another raft and crossed the western waters alone, reaching Western Cattle-Gift Continent. After landing and searching far and wide, he came upon a beautiful mountain with deep forest at its foot. Fearing neither wolves nor tigers and leopards, he climbed to its summit and looked out. It was indeed a splendid mountain:
A thousand peaks stood like spears, ten thousand cliffs spread like screens. Sunlight through the mist softly veiled the green; after rain the dark hills held a chill blue. Thin vines twined ancient trees, and an old ferry marked a hidden path. Strange flowers, auspicious grasses, tall bamboos and lofty pines. Tall bamboos and lofty pines stayed green ten thousand years and surpassed blessed lands; strange flowers and auspicious grasses never faded in any season, and rivaled Penglai's immortal islands. Hidden birds called nearby; a spring rang clearly as it flowed. Orchids circled valley after valley; moss grew on every steep cliff. The rising and falling hills had an excellent dragon vein: surely a great recluse concealed his name here.
As he watched, he heard someone speaking deep in the woods. He hurried into the forest and listened closely. It was a song:
“Watching a chess game till my ax handle rots, chopping wood with ringing strokes, I walk slowly by the cloud-bound valley mouth. I sell firewood to buy wine and laugh wildly in contentment. On the pale autumn path I face the moon; with my head on pine roots I sleep till dawn. I know the old woods; over cliffs and ridges I take my ax to cut dead vines.I gather a load and sing as I enter town, exchanging it for three measures of rice. I have no quarrels; the going price is fair. I know no cunning schemes or clever calculations; beyond honor and shame, I live peacefully on. Whoever I meet is either an immortal or a follower of the Way; we sit quietly and discuss the Yellow Court.”
The Handsome Monkey King was delighted. “So immortals hide here!” He leaped into the woods and looked closer. It was a woodcutter raising his ax to chop wood. Yet his clothes were extraordinary:
His two coiled topknots were tied with the husks of young bamboo shoots. His loose robe was woven of cotton yarn. The knotted cord at his waist was spun by old silkworms. His grass shoes were made of dried sedge. He held an all-steel ax and carried a hemp rope. Who could match this woodcutter, bending pine branches and splitting dead trees?
The Monkey King approached and bowed. “Venerable immortal, your disciple salutes you.” Startled, the woodcutter dropped his ax and returned the bow. “I am not worthy! I am a poor man who can barely feed and clothe himself; how could I be called an immortal?” “If you aren't one, why do you speak an immortal's words?” “What immortal words?” “I heard you singing, ‘Whoever I meet is either an immortal or a follower of the Way; we sit quietly and discuss the Yellow Court.’ The Yellow Court holds the true teachings of the Way. How could you not be an immortal?” The woodcutter laughed. “To tell you the truth, the song is called ‘Fragrance Filling the Courtyard.’ An immortal taught it to me. He lives near my house and saw my hard labor and daily cares. He taught me to recite it when troubled, to ease my mind and lift my weariness. I was worried just now and sang it, never expecting you to hear.” “Since an immortal lives near you, why not study under him and learn to live forever?” “I've had a hard life. My parents raised me until I was eight or nine, just old enough to understand things, when my father died, leaving my mother a widow. I have no brothers or sisters; I alone must attend her morning and evening. Now that she's old I cannot possibly leave. Our fields lie barren and we have too little food and clothing. I cut a couple of bundles of firewood to sell in the market for a few coins, buy a few measures of rice, cook our meals, and support my old mother. That is why I cannot study the Way.”
“You are a dutiful son,” said the Monkey King, “and surely good will come to you. Please show me where the immortal lives, so that I can visit him.” “It's not far. This is Mount Spirit-Tower Heart. On it stands the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars, home to an immortal called the Patriarch Subodhi. Countless disciples have left his school, and even now thirty or forty study under him. Take that little path south for seven or eight li, and you'll reach his home.” The Monkey King took his arm. “Friend, come with me. If I gain anything, I will never forget your help.” The woodcutter replied: “You really don't understand! Haven't I explained? If I go with you, how can I earn my living? Who will care for my mother? I must cut wood. Go on by yourself!”
The Monkey King took his leave. Emerging from the forest, he found the path and crossed a hillside. About seven or eight li farther, he saw a cave dwelling. Standing tall, he examined it. What a beautiful place! He saw:
Radiant mists scattered colors; sun and moon shed shifting light. A thousand ancient cypresses and ten thousand joints of slender bamboo. The thousand cypresses rose through the rain, softly green against the sky; the bamboo filled the valley with mist and deep green shadow. Strange flowers spread brocade outside the gate, and jade grasses breathed fragrance beside the bridge. Moss gleamed on projecting cliffs and grew across high hanging walls. Immortal cranes often cried and phoenixes soared. The cranes' cries rang far through the nine marshes to the heavens; the phoenixes' five-colored feathers glowed like bright clouds. Dark apes and white deer appeared and vanished; golden lions and jade elephants roamed as they pleased. Look closely at this holy, blessed land: truly it surpassed heaven.
The cave gate was shut; all was silent and no one was about. Turning, he saw a stone monument on the cliff, more than three zhang tall and eight feet wide. Ten large characters read: “Mount Spirit-Tower Heart; the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars.” Delighted, the Handsome Monkey King said: “The people here speak truthfully: the mountain and cave are real.” He watched for a long time, afraid to knock, then leaped into a pine tree to eat nuts and play.
Soon the door creaked open and an immortal boy emerged. His bearing was remarkable, his face refined and unlike any ordinary person's. See him:
Two coils of hair bound up with twin cords; a loose robe whose sleeves catch the wind.His gentle face sets him apart; mind and appearance alike are empty.An ageless guest beyond the world, a child of eternal life among the hills.Not touched by a speck of dust, though the years roll endlessly by.
The boy called: “Who's making a disturbance here?” The Monkey King dropped from the tree and bowed: “Immortal boy, I'm a disciple seeking the Way and immortality. I would never dare disturb you.” “Are you seeking the Way?” “Yes.” “My master has just risen and mounted the teaching platform. Before he began he sent me to open the gate, saying, ‘Someone seeking to practice has come. Go and welcome him.’ That must be you.” “It is! It is!” the Monkey King laughed. “Follow me inside,” said the boy.
The Monkey King straightened his clothes and solemnly followed him deep into the immortal cave. They passed tier upon tier of lofty jeweled buildings, courtyard after courtyard of splendid palaces, and countless quiet chambers. Beneath a jade terrace, they found the Patriarch Bodhi seated above, with thirty young immortals standing on either side below him. Indeed:
Golden immortal of great awakening, unstained in form; the Patriarch Bodhi wears the wondrous aspect of the West.Neither born nor dying, he practices the threefold way; complete in breath and spirit, he holds boundless mercy.From empty stillness he naturally follows every change; his true nature acts freely as it wills.Majestic body living as long as heaven, great master whose enlightened mind endures through ages.
The Handsome Monkey King fell to the ground and knocked his head countless times. “Master, Master! With all my heart your disciple pays homage!” The Patriarch said: “Where are you from? State your birthplace and name clearly before bowing again.” “Your disciple comes from Water Curtain Cave on Mount Flower-Fruit in Aolai, Eastern Superior Divine Continent.” “Throw him out!” the Patriarch shouted. “He's a lying fraud. How could he cultivate the Way?” The Monkey King desperately knocked his head. “Your disciple speaks truthfully, without a word of deceit!” “If that's true, why claim you're from Eastern Superior Divine Continent? Two great seas and the whole Southern Jambu Continent lie between there and here. How did you get here?” “Your disciple crossed the seas and traveled the world for more than ten years before finding this place.”
“If you came by stages, then that's different. What is your surname?” “I have no temper,” said the Monkey King, confusing two words that sound alike. “If someone curses me, I don't get angry; if they strike me, I don't take offense. I only apologize. I've never had a temper.” “Not that kind of nature! What was your parents' surname?” “I have no parents either.” “Were you born in a tree, then?” “Not in a tree, but from stone. I remember an immortal stone on Mount Flower-Fruit. One year it split and I was born.” Secretly delighted, the Patriarch said: “Then you were born of heaven and earth. Get up and walk so I can see you.” The Monkey King sprang up and strutted around twice. The Patriarch laughed: “Your body is rough, but you look like a macaque that feeds on pine nuts. I'll give you a surname based on your form. Hu, ‘macaque,’ without its animal radical leaves ‘ancient moon.’ Ancient signifies old, and moon signifies yin; old yin cannot bring forth life. Better to use sun, ‘monkey’: without its animal radical it leaves ‘child’ and ‘thread.’ Child means a young boy and thread means something small and delicate, fitting the original nature of an infant. Let your surname be Sun.” Overjoyed, the Monkey King bowed: “Wonderful! Today I finally have a surname. Please be merciful, Master, and give me a personal name as well, so people can call me by it.” “My school has twelve generational characters assigned to names. You belong to the tenth generation.” “What twelve characters?” “Broad, Great, Wisdom, Insight, True, Suchness, Nature, Sea, Keen, Awakening, Perfect, and Enlightenment. Yours is ‘Awakening,’ wu. What do you say to the religious name Sun Wukong, ‘Awakened to Emptiness’?” “Wonderful! Wonderful! From today I am Sun Wukong!” And so:
When the primal mist first parted, he had no name; to break stubborn emptiness he must awaken to emptiness.
What fruit of the Way would he cultivate thereafter? Listen to the next chapter to find out.
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the Chinese, covering all 100 chapters and 3,782 source paragraphs of the Traditional Chinese text.
The Divine Root Conceives and the Source Flows Forth; The Mind and Nature Are Cultivated and the Great Way Arises
The poem says:
Before chaos split, heaven and earth were one dark stir; the blurred vast waste was seen by no one.Since Pangu broke through the primal fog, creation began, and the clear parted from the murky.Living things rest on what bears them and look up to perfect goodness; when the myriad things were brought to light, all turned to good.If you want to know the power that turns the ages and joins their sums, you must read the story of the Journey to the West, the record of escape from trouble.
We are told that the count of heaven and earth runs to one yuan of 129,600 years. One yuan is divided into twelve hui, the twelve branches: Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, and Hai. Each hui takes 10,800 years. Take one day as a small picture of it: at the zi hour the warm yang breath arrives; at chou the roosters crow; at yin no light yet comes, and at mao the sun rises; at chen the meal is eaten, and at si the sun draws near its height; at wu the sun stands at the middle of the sky, and at wei it slips west; at shen comes the late meal, the sun sets at you, dusk falls at xu, and at hai people go to rest. Now set this against the great count. When the xu hui reaches its end, heaven and earth grow dim, and every living thing is thrown down. After another 5,400 years, at the start of the hai hui, darkness settles in, and between heaven and earth there are no people and no things left. That is called chaos. After another 5,400 years the hai hui nears its end; under the end of the old a new round begins, the zi hui draws near, and light slowly opens again. Shao Kangjie said: "At the winter solstice, at the middle of the zi hour, the heart of heaven does not shift or move. It is where the first yang first stirs, while no living thing has yet been born." At this point heaven first takes root. After another 5,400 years comes the zi hui itself: the light and the clear rise upward, and there is a sun, a moon, stars, and the star-stations. Sun, moon, stars, and stations are called the four images. So it is said: heaven opened at zi. After another 5,400 years the zi hui ends and the chou hui draws near, and all grows firm and solid. The Book of Changes says: "Great is the first power of heaven! Perfect is the first power of earth! All things owe their life to them, and earth follows heaven and carries them." At this point earth first congeals. After another 5,400 years comes the chou hui itself: the heavy and the murky settle below, and there is water, fire, mountains, stones, and earth. Water, fire, mountain, stone, and earth are called the five forms. So it is said: earth opened at chou. After another 5,400 years, at the end of the chou hui and the start of the yin hui, the myriad things come to life. The calendar says: "The breath of heaven sinks down, the breath of earth rises up; heaven and earth join, and all creatures are born." At this point heaven is clean, earth is fresh, and yin and yang have joined. After another 5,400 years comes the yin hui itself: people are born, beasts are born, birds are born. This is heaven, earth, and man, the three powers each taking its place. So it is said: man was born at yin.
After Pangu's work of opening, the rule of the Three Sovereigns, and the setting of order by the Five Emperors, the world was divided into four great continents: the East Victory Divine Continent, the West Ox-Gift Continent, the South Jambu Continent, and the North Reed Continent. This book tells only of the East Victory Divine Continent. Overseas there was a country called Aolai. It lay beside the great sea, and in the sea stood a famous mountain called Mount Flower-Fruit. This mountain is the ancestral vein of the ten isles, the source-line of the three islands; it stood when the clear and the murky first parted, and took shape when the primal fog was cut. It is truly a fine mountain! There is a verse to prove it. The verse says:
Its might holds down the great ocean; its power quiets the jade sea. Its might holds down the great ocean: the tide surges like silver mountains, and the fish slip into their holes; its power quiets the jade sea: the waves fling up snowy crests, and the clam-spirit leaves its deep. Water and fire have piled high in this corner, and in the eastern sea a lofty peak stands up. Red cliffs and strange rocks, sheer walls and remarkable peaks. On the red cliffs a pair of bright phoenixes calls; before the sheer walls a qilin lies alone. From the summits you hear golden pheasants cry; at the stone caves you watch dragons go in and out. In the woods are long-lived deer and immortal foxes; in the trees are wondrous birds and dark cranes. Jade grasses and strange flowers never fade; green pines and emerald cypresses keep spring always. The immortal peaches are always in fruit, and the tall bamboo keeps hold of the clouds. One ravine is thick with vines and wisteria; on the banks on every side the grass is new. Truly it is the pillar that props the sky where a hundred rivers meet, the root of the great earth that ten thousand ages cannot move.
At the very top of that mountain stood a piece of immortal stone. It was three zhang, six chi, and five cun high, and two zhang and four chi around. Three zhang six chi five cun high matched the 365 degrees of the circle of heaven; two zhang four chi around matched the 24 seasons of the calendar. On it were nine openings and eight holes, matching the Nine Palaces and the Eight Trigrams. No trees stood near to shade it, but on either side magic fungus and orchids set it off. From the time of creation it had taken in the truth of heaven and the beauty of earth, the essence of the sun and the flower of the moon. After feeling them so long, it gained a living, sensing spirit. Inside it grew an immortal embryo. One day the stone split open and produced a stone egg, as big as a round ball. Met by the wind, it turned into a stone monkey, with every feature in place and all four limbs whole. It learned to crawl and learned to walk, and bowed to the four quarters. Two beams of golden light shot from its eyes and struck upward at the palace of the Dipper. The light disturbed the Jade Emperor, the great holy and merciful one, the August Sovereign of the High Heavens, the High Lord of the Dark Vault, who sat in the Golden Gate and Cloud Palace, in the Hall of Divine Mist. He gathered his immortal ministers, and seeing the blaze of golden light, he ordered the Eyes of a Thousand Li and the Ears that Ride the Wind to open the South Gate of Heaven and look. The two officers went out through the gate as commanded, saw clearly and heard distinctly, and soon reported: "Your servants went out as ordered and watched where the golden light came from. It is at the border of the small country of Aolai, east of the sea, in the East Victory Divine Continent. There is a mountain there, Mount Flower-Fruit, and on the mountain an immortal stone. The stone produced an egg, and the wind turned it into a stone monkey. It is bowing to the four quarters there, shooting golden light from its eyes up at the palace of the Dipper. Now that it has begun to eat and drink ordinary food and water, the golden light is dying away." The Jade Emperor looked down and said in kindness: "That thing below was born of the essence of heaven and earth. It is nothing to wonder at."
So the monkey lived in the mountains. It could walk and leap. It ate plants, drank from the ravine springs, picked mountain flowers, and searched for tree fruit. It kept company with wolves and serpents, ran with tigers and leopards, was friends with the river deer, and was kin to the macaques. It slept at night under stone cliffs and roamed at morning among peaks and caves. Truly: "In the mountains there is no calendar; when the cold is over, no one knows the year."
One day the weather turned very hot, and the monkeys went to escape the heat, all playing in the shade of the pines. Look at them, one and all:
They leap through trees and climb branches; they pick flowers and hunt for fruit. They throw pebbles for marbles; they play at knucklebones; they run in the sand pits and build little pagodas; they chase dragonflies and pounce on crickets; they worship old heaven above and bow to the Bodhisattva; they pull down vines and plait grass headbands; they catch lice, biting some and pinching some; they groom their fur and clean their nails. Some jostle, some rub; some push, some press; some tug, some haul. Under the green pines they play as they please; by the green water of the ravine they wash when they like.
After playing a while, the troop of monkeys went to bathe in that mountain stream. They saw the stream water rushing along, truly like tumbling gourds, surging and splashing. The old saying goes: "Birds have bird speech, and beasts have beast talk." All the monkeys said: "Where does this water come from? We are free today and have nothing to do. Let us follow the edge of the ravine up to the top and find where the water rises. Let us go and have some fun!" With a shout, all of them came running together, dragging their sons and leading their daughters, calling little brother and calling big brother, climbing along the ravine until they reached the source. There it was: a flying waterfall. Look at it:
A white rainbow rises out of one long stream; snowy waves fly down a thousand fathoms.The sea wind cannot blow it apart; the river moon shines on it, and it still holds.Its cool air splits the green ridges; its leftover flow moistens the emerald slopes.This murmuring water is named a waterfall; truly it hangs like a curtain over a doorway.
The monkeys clapped their hands and praised it: "Good water! Good water! So this place runs far back under the mountain and joins straight onto the waves of the great sea." Then they said: "Whoever has the skill to go in through it, find where the water begins, and come out again with his body unharmed, we will bow to and make our king." They called out three times. Suddenly a stone monkey leaped out from the crowd and answered at the top of his voice: "I will go in! I will go in!" What a monkey! And so it was:
Today his fine name is made known; his time has come and his great luck runs strong.Fate had set him to possess this place; the king-to-be enters the immortal hall.
Look at him: he shut his eyes and crouched low, gathered his body, and with one leap jumped straight into the waterfall. Suddenly he opened his eyes and looked up. Inside there was no water and no waves, only a bright, clear bridge. He stood still and let his heart settle, then looked again with care. It was a bridge of iron plates. The water under it rushed through holes in the rock, hung upside down, and flowed out, hiding the bridge gate. He leaned forward and stepped up onto the bridge, then walked on and looked about. It was as if someone lived there. Truly a fine place! Look at it:
Green moss heaped blue; white clouds floated like jade; the light swayed in flakes of mist and rosy haze. Empty windows and quiet rooms; smooth benches and boards patterned like flowers. In the crystal grotto dragon pearls hung leaning; all around lay strange flowers in winding beds. Pots and stoves by the cliff kept the marks of fire; cups and jars by the table still held scraps of food. Stone seats and stone beds were truly lovely; stone basins and stone bowls were finer still. Then he saw one stalk or two of tall bamboo, three sprays or five of plum blossom. A few green pines always carried the rain. It looked for all the world like someone's home.
After looking a long time, he jumped to the middle of the bridge and looked left and right. Right in the center stood a stone tablet, with one line of large regular-script characters cut into it: "Mount Flower-Fruit, a blessed land; Water Curtain Cave, a heaven of caves."
The stone ape could not hold back his joy. He hurried back out, shut his eyes and crouched, jumped out past the water, laughed aloud twice, and cried: "Great luck! Great luck!" The monkeys crowded around him and asked: "What is it like inside? How deep is the water?" The stone monkey said: "No water! No water! There is a bridge of iron plates, and beyond the bridge is a home made ready by heaven and earth." The monkeys said: "How do you know it is a home?" The stone monkey laughed: "This water rushes under the bridge through holes in the rock and hangs down over the door, closing it off. By the bridge are flowers and trees, and there is a house of stone. Inside are stone hollows, a stone stove, stone bowls, stone basins, stone beds, and stone benches. In the middle stands a stone tablet cut with the words 'Mount Flower-Fruit, a blessed land; Water Curtain Cave, a heaven of caves.' It is truly a place for us to live. Inside it is wide; it can hold hundreds and thousands of us, old and young. Let us all go in and live there, and we need not suffer the weather any longer. Inside it:
When the wind blows, there is a place to hide; when the rain falls, there is room to stay.We fear no frost and no snow; the sound of thunder never reaches us.Mist and glow shine on us always; lucky airs steam around us every day.Pines and bamboo are fine year after year; strange flowers are new day after day."
All the monkeys heard and were glad. They cried: "You go in first and take us with you. In! In!" The stone monkey shut his eyes and crouched once more, jumped inside, and called: "All of you come in with me! Come in!" The bold monkeys jumped straight in. The timid ones put their heads out, drew them back, scratched their ears, rubbed their cheeks, and shouted loudly; after fussing a while, they too went in. Over the bridge they grabbed basins and snatched bowls, claimed stoves and fought over beds, hauling things over and moving things about. Such is the unruly monkey nature: there was not one quiet moment, and they stopped only when they were tired in body and worn in spirit. The stone ape sat upright above them and said: "Friends, 'if a man does not stand by his word, who knows what he is good for.' You just said that whoever could come in and go out with his body unharmed should be made king. Now I have come in and gone out, gone out and come in, and found this cave-heaven for you all, where you can sleep in peace and each enjoy the blessing of a settled home. Why not bow to me as your king?" Hearing this, the monkeys bowed and gave in without a word. They lined up in order of age, faced him, and bowed low, calling him "King of a Thousand Years." From that time the stone ape took the royal seat high above them, dropped the word "stone" from his style, and was called the Handsome Monkey King. There is a poem to prove it. The poem says:
The three yang meet in peace and living things are born; the immortal stone held an embryo filled with the essence of sun and moon.An egg was borrowed and turned into a monkey to carry out the great Way; a name and a surname were lent him, paired like the making of the elixir.Looked at from within, he could not be known, because he had no form; joined with what is outside, he clearly took a shape.In every age, every person belongs to this; made king or made saint, he roams wherever he will.
The Handsome Monkey King led a troop of apes, macaques, and horse-monkeys, and set them in their places: ruler, ministers, aides, and runners. Morning he roamed Mount Flower-Fruit; evening he slept in Water Curtain Cave. All were one in heart and feeling. He went into no flocks of birds and joined no herds of beasts; he was a king on his own, and his joy had no end. So it was:
In spring he picked the hundred flowers for food and drink; in summer he looked for fruit of every kind to live on.In autumn he gathered taro and chestnuts to carry through the season; in winter he dug yellowroot to pass the year.
The Handsome Monkey King lived out his innocent joys for three hundred, five hundred years. One day, in the middle of a happy feast with the troop, he suddenly grew sad, and tears fell. The monkeys hurried to bow around him and asked: "Great King, why are you troubled?" The Monkey King said: "Even in the midst of joy I have one far-off worry, and that is why I am troubled." The monkeys laughed again: "Great King, how little you are satisfied! Day after day we meet in happiness, in an immortal mountain, a blessed land, an old cave, a sacred continent. We are not governed by the qilin, not ruled by the phoenix, and not held in check by any throne among men. We are free and at ease; this is fortune without measure. Why let a far-off thought make you sad?" The Monkey King said: "Today we are not under the laws of kings among men, and we do not fear the might of birds and beasts. But the day will come when we are old and our blood is weak. Secretly, King Yama holds power over us. If one day we die, shall we not have lived in this world for nothing, never written long in the rolls of heaven?" When the monkeys heard this, they covered their faces and wept aloud, every one of them dreading death.
Then out of the ranks leaped a gibbon, who called out in a loud voice: "If the Great King worries about what lies far ahead, this is truly what is called the mind of the Way awakening. Now, among the five kinds of living creatures, only three sorts escape the rule of King Yama." The Monkey King said: "Do you know which three?" The gibbon said: "They are the Buddhas, the immortals, and the sages. These three escape the wheel of rebirth; they are not born and do not die, and they live as long as heaven, earth, mountains, and rivers." The Monkey King asked: "Where do these three dwell?" The gibbon said: "They dwell only in this world of ours, inside old caves and on immortal mountains." The Monkey King heard, and his heart was filled with joy: "Tomorrow I will take leave of you and go down the mountain. I will drift on the clouds to the corners of the sea and travel far to the edge of the sky. I must find these three and learn from them the way of never growing old, of long life, so that I always escape the hands of King Yama." Ah! That one sentence at once taught him to leap free of the net of rebirth, and so the Great Sage Equal to Heaven came to be. The monkeys clapped and praised him, crying: "Good! Good! Tomorrow we will cross the ridges and climb the hills and gather fruit of every kind. We will spread a great feast to send off the Great King."
The next day the monkeys went out as promised and picked immortal peaches, gathered rare fruit, dug mountain yams, and cut yellowroot. Magic fungus, fragrant orchids, jade grasses, strange flowers — every kind, all neat and in order. They set out stone benches and stone tables and arranged immortal wine and immortal dishes. Look at the spread:
Golden balls and pearl pellets, red ones burst open and yellow ones plump. Golden balls and pearl pellets: winter cherries, truly sweet and fine. Red-burst and yellow-plump: ripe plums, tart and fragrant. Fresh longans, sweet of flesh and thin of skin; fire lychees, small of pit and red of meat. Crabapples with green fruit offered branch by branch; loquats in yellow husks held up leaf and all. Rabbit-head pears and chicken-heart dates quench thirst, drive off worry, and cure a hangover. Sweet peaches and soft apricots, honey-fine as jade liquid and nectar; crisp plums and waxberries, cool and sharp as cream and cheese. Ripe melons with red flesh and black seeds; great persimmons with yellow skins split in four. Pomegranates crack open: grains of cinnabar like beads of fire crystal. Taro and chestnuts cut apart: hard knobs of flesh like gold agate. Walnuts and ginkgoes go round with the tea; coconuts and grapes make wine. Hazelnuts, pine nuts, mastic nuts, and crabapples fill the plates; oranges, sugarcane, mandarins, and citrons cover the stands. Mountain yams roasted soft; yellowroot boiled to a mash. Poria and job's tears pounded fine, simmered slow over a low fire in a stone pot. Even if the world of men has its rare delicacies, how can they match the joy and quiet of the mountain monkeys?
The troop of monkeys seated the Handsome Monkey King in the place of honor. The rest lined up below him shoulder by shoulder in order of age. One by one they came forward in turn, offering wine, offering flowers, offering fruit. They drank deep for a whole day.
The next day the Handsome Monkey King rose early and gave his orders: "Little ones, break off some dry pine wood for me and tie it into a raft. Get a bamboo pole for a punt. Pack up fruit and other stores. I am going away." Alone he stepped onto the raft and pushed off with all his strength. Drifting and swaying, he went straight out into the waves of the great sea, riding the wind of heaven, to cross over into the land of the South Jambu Continent. This departure was exactly this:
A heaven-born immortal monkey, deep in the practice of the Way, left the mountain and rode a raft on the wind of heaven.Over ocean and across sea he searched for the way of the immortals, setting his will and his heart on building a great work.With destiny and with fate he put by worldly wishes; free of care and free of worry, he would meet the primal dragon.Surely he was bound to meet one who knew his heart, to lay bare the source and open every way to him.
His luck had turned and his time had come. After he boarded the wooden raft, strong southeast winds blew day after day and carried him to the northwest shore: the land of the South Jambu Continent. He probed the water with his pole, found it shallow, left the raft, and jumped ashore. On the beach he saw people catching fish, shooting wild geese, digging clams, and boiling salt. He walked up close, played a trick, and pulled the face of a goblin tiger, frightening those people so badly that they dropped their baskets and nets and ran in every direction. He caught one of the slower runners, stripped off his clothes, and put them on himself, learning to dress like a man. Swaying as he went, he crossed districts and passed through towns, learning men's manners and men's speech in the marketplaces. He ate in the morning and slept at night, and with all his heart he asked after the way of the Buddhas, the immortals, and the sages, hunting for some method of unending life. He saw that the people of the world were all runners after fame and profit, and not one of them cared for his own life and soul. It was exactly this:
When will the scramble for name and gain ever end? Rising early, sleeping late, and never free!Riding a donkey or a mule, they dream of a fine horse; seated as a minister, they long to be a lord.They fret over food and clothes and toil away; they do not fear the day King Yama comes to call them.They raise sons and shelter grandsons to chase riches and rank; not one of them will turn his head.
The Monkey King called on the immortals and searched for the Way, but fate brought him no meeting. In the South Jambu Continent he wandered along the Great Wall and through small counties, and eight or nine years passed without his noticing. Suddenly he came to the Western Ocean. He thought that beyond the sea there must be immortals. Alone, as before, he built a raft, floated across the Western Sea, and came at last into the land of the West Ox-Gift Continent. He went ashore and searched widely for a long time. Suddenly he saw a high and lovely mountain, its woods and slopes deep and still. He feared neither wolves nor serpents, neither tigers nor leopards, and climbed to the summit to look out. Truly a fine mountain:
A thousand peaks ranked like spears; ten thousand fathoms opened like a screen. Sunlight on the mountain mist lightly locked in the green; the rain cleared, and the dark color held a cold blue. Thin vines wrapped old trees; an old crossing marked the quiet road. Strange flowers and lucky grasses; tall bamboo and lofty pines. Tall bamboo and lofty pines, green for ten thousand years, put blessed lands to shame; strange flowers and lucky grasses, unfading in every season, rivaled Penglai and Yingzhou. Hidden birds called near at hand; living springs rang clear as they slid. Valley after valley was ringed with magic fungus and orchids; on every sharp cliff moss was growing. The ridges rose and fell on a fine dragon vein; surely some lofty one hid his name here.
While he stood looking, he suddenly heard voices deep in the woods. He hurried forward, pushed into the trees, and bent his ear to listen. It was the sound of singing. The song said:
"Watching a chess game until my axe handle rots, cutting wood, tok, tok, I walk slowly past the valley mouth at the edge of the clouds. I sell my firewood and buy wine; I laugh out loud and please myself. Facing the moon on the high gray path of autumn, I pillow on a pine root and sleep till daybreak. I know my old woods, climb the cliffs and cross the ridges, carrying my axe, cutting through withered vines.I gather a full load, sing as I walk to market, and trade it for three pints of rice. I have no quarrel with anyone; the going price is fair. I do not know how to scheme or calculate; without honor and without disgrace, I live out my days in peace. Wherever I meet a man, he is an immortal or a man of the Way, and we sit in quiet and talk of the Scripture of the Yellow Court."
When the Handsome Monkey King heard these words, his heart filled with joy: "So this is where an immortal is hiding!" At once he jumped in closer and looked carefully. It was a woodcutter, raising his axe to chop firewood. His dress was far from common:
On his head he wore a bamboo hat, the sheath newly shed by a young bamboo shoot. On his body he wore a cloth gown, yarn spun from cotton fiber. At his waist hung a looped sash, silk spun from the mouths of old silkworms. On his feet he wore straw sandals, plaited dry from withered sedge. In his hand he carried an axe of pure steel; on his rope of hemp hung his load. Bending pines and splitting dead trees, who could match this woodcutter?
The Monkey King came near and called: "Old immortal, your disciple makes his bow." The woodcutter hastily dropped his axe, turned, and returned the bow: "I am not worthy, not worthy! I am a poor fellow who lacks food and clothes. How dare I take the word 'immortal'?" The Monkey King said: "If you are not an immortal, how do you speak the words of immortals?" The woodcutter said: "What immortal words did I say?" The Monkey King said: "Just now, at the edge of the woods, I heard you singing: 'Wherever I meet a man, he is an immortal or a man of the Way, and we sit in quiet and talk of the Scripture of the Yellow Court.' The Yellow Court is true scripture of the Way. If you are not an immortal, what are you?" The woodcutter laughed: "To tell you the truth, that song is called 'A Court Full of Fragrance,' and an immortal taught it to me. That immortal lives next door to my house. He saw how hard my life is and how much trouble I have day to day, and he told me: when trouble comes, sing these lines. That first puts my heart at rest, and second lifts me out of my low spirits. I was short of something just now and worrying over it, so I was singing. I never expected you to hear me." The Monkey King said: "If an immortal lives next door to you, why not follow him and cultivate? Would it not be a fine thing to learn the way of never growing old?" The woodcutter said: "My life has been hard from the start. My parents raised me till I was eight or nine and just beginning to understand; then my father died, and my mother was left a widow. I have no brothers and no sisters, only me, so morning and night I must wait on her. Now that she is old, all the more I dare not leave her. Our fields have run to weeds, and we lack food and clothes, so I cut a couple of bundles of firewood, carry them to market, sell them for a few coins, buy a few pints of rice, cook with my own hands, set out some tea and food, and keep my old mother alive. That is why I cannot cultivate."
The Monkey King said: "From what you tell me, you are a gentleman who does his duty to his mother; good will come to you hereafter. But I beg you to point out where that immortal lives, so that I may go and pay my respects." The woodcutter said: "Not far, not far. This mountain is called Mount Spirit-Tower Heart, and in it is the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars. In that cave lives an immortal called the Patriarch Subodhi. The disciples who have gone out from him are past counting; even now thirty or forty cultivate under him. Follow that little path, walk south some seven or eight li, and you will be at his gate." The Monkey King took hold of the woodcutter with his hand: "Old brother, come along with me. If I come to any good, I will never forget what I owe to your guidance." The woodcutter said: "Friend, how slow you are to take a hint! I have told you all this plainly, and still you do not understand. If I went with you, would it not spoil my work? Who would feed my old mother? I have firewood to cut. Go on, go on alone."
Hearing this, the Monkey King could only take his leave. He came out of the deep woods, found the path, went over a hillside, and after some seven or eight li he saw, sure enough, a cave home ahead. He drew himself up and looked. What a fine place! Look:
Mist and glow scattered their colors; sun and moon swayed their light. A thousand old cypresses, ten thousand joints of tall bamboo. The thousand old cypresses, holding rain, floated half-way up the air in slow green; the ten thousand joints of bamboo, wrapped in mist, filled one ravine with deep gray-green. Outside the gate strange flowers spread like brocade; by the bridge jade grasses breathed out scent. Rock cliffs stood out bare, moist with moss; on hanging walls high overhead the emerald growth ran long. Now and then came the cry of immortal cranes; often you saw phoenixes on the wing. When the immortal cranes cried, the sound shook the nine marshes and the far heavens; when the phoenixes rose, their feathers gave back the five-colored light of clouds. Dark apes and white deer showed themselves and slipped away; gold lions and jade elephants came and went as they pleased. Look close at this wondrous blessed ground: truly it rivals heaven.
The gate of the cave was shut tight, and all was quiet, with no sign of anyone. Suddenly he turned his head and saw a stone slab standing on the cliff top, a little over three zhang high and over eight chi wide. On it was one line of ten great characters: "Mount Spirit-Tower Heart, the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars." The Handsome Monkey King was overjoyed: "The people of this place are honest indeed. Here truly is the mountain and the cave." He looked his fill for a long while but did not dare knock on the door. For the time being he jumped up to the top of a pine branch, picked pine nuts, ate them, and played.
Before long he heard a creak: the door of the cave opened, and out came an immortal page, truly striking in bearing, with clear and uncommon looks, not at all like an ordinary person. Look at him:
Two hair-knots tied with twin silk cords; a wide robe, its two sleeves full of wind.His face and body are set apart; his mind and his looks are both empty.A guest of long years beyond the world of things; an everlasting child of the mountains.Not one grain of dust has ever stained him; the years may roll as they please.
When the page came out the door he called loudly: "Who is out here making a disturbance?" The Monkey King dropped from the tree with a bound, came up, and bowed: "Immortal page, I am a disciple seeking the Way and learning to become an immortal. I would never make a disturbance here." The page laughed: "So you are one who seeks the Way?" The Monkey King said: "I am." The page said: "My master had just risen from his couch and gone up to the platform to preach. Before he had told me the reason, he sent me out to open the gate. He said: 'There is one who seeks cultivation outside. Go and welcome him.' I suppose that is you?" The Monkey King laughed: "It is I, it is I." The page said: "Follow me in."
The Monkey King straightened his clothes and, grave and respectful, followed the page straight into the deep places of the cave. He saw story upon story of deep galleries and jade towers, court upon court of pearl palaces and shell gates, and past counting, quiet rooms and hidden dwellings. At last they came below the jade terrace. The Patriarch Bodhi sat upright upon it, and on the steps on either side stood thirty small immortals in attendance. Truly:
A great awakened golden immortal, without one mark of stain; the Patriarch Bodhi, of the wondrous marks of the West.Not born, not destroyed, he walks the way of threes and threes; whole in breath, whole in spirit, ten thousand times ten thousand mercies.Silent and empty, at one with nature, he shifts with every change; true suchness, his own nature, does whatever it would.A body of solemn splendor that lives the span of heaven; through age after age a master of the Law, whose heart is clear.
At the sight the Handsome Monkey King threw himself down and knocked his head past counting, saying only: "Master, Master! Your disciple worships you with his whole heart, with his whole heart!" The Patriarch said: "Where are you from? First tell your country and your name plainly; then bow." The Monkey King said: "Your disciple is from Water Curtain Cave on Mount Flower-Fruit, in the country of Aolai, in the East Victory Divine Continent." The Patriarch snapped: "Drive him out! He is a liar and a teller of empty tales. What fruit of the Way can such a one cultivate?" The Monkey King, knocking his head without stopping, said in haste: "Your disciple speaks the plain truth, without a word of deceit." The Patriarch said: "If you speak the truth, how do you come from the East Victory Divine Continent? That place is two great seas and a whole continent away from here. How could you get here?" The Monkey King knocked his head on the ground and said: "Your disciple floated across oceans and crossed borders and wandered for more than ten years before he found this place."
The Patriarch said: "If you came along step by step, that is well enough. What is your surname?" The Monkey King said: "I have no temper. If people curse me, I do not take offense; if they beat me, I do not grow angry. I only make a bow, and it is over. All my life I have had no temper." The Patriarch said: "I do not mean that. What surname did your father and mother bear?" The Monkey King said: "I have no father and mother either." The Patriarch said: "No father and mother? Then perhaps you grew from a tree?" The Monkey King said: "I did not grow from a tree, but I grew out of a stone. I only remember that on Mount Flower-Fruit there was a piece of immortal stone. That year the stone broke, and I was born." The Patriarch heard this and was secretly pleased: "In that case you were made by heaven and earth. Stand up and walk a turn or two; let me see you." The Monkey King sprang up and pranced about, skipping through two turns. The Patriarch laughed: "Your body is plain enough, but you look like a little monkey that feeds on pine cones. I will take a surname for you out of your own shape. I might have you surnamed Hu. Take the beast sign away from hu and what is left is 'old moon.' Old means aged; moon means the yin. But old yin cannot give birth and nurture, so it would be better to surname you Sun. Take the beast sign away from sun and what is left is 'son and line.' Son means a male child; line means a small infant, which fits the old teaching about the infant exactly. So let your surname be Sun." The Monkey King heard and was glad with all his heart. He bowed up toward the Patriarch and said: "Good! Good! Good! Today for the first time I know my surname. I beg you, Master, in your mercy: since I have a surname, give me a name as well, so that I can be called by it." The Patriarch said: "In our school there are twelve characters by which disciples are named. You are a little disciple of the tenth generation." The Monkey King asked: "Which twelve characters?" The Patriarch said: "They are Wide, Great, Wisdom, Insight, True, Suchness, Nature, Sea, Clever, Awake, Complete, and Aware. It falls to your turn at 'Awake.' I will give you the religious name Sun Wukong, Sun Awake-of-Emptiness. How does that please you?" The Monkey King laughed: "Good! Good! Good! From today I am called Sun Wukong." And so it was:
When the primal fog first broke, he was born without a name; to shatter the stubborn void, one must wake to emptiness.
What fruits of the Way would he cultivate after this? Listen to the next chapter to find out.