"The superior student who hears about the Way practices it diligently. The middling student who hears about the Way now keeps it and now loses it. The inferior student who hears about the Way laughs at it loudly; If he did not laugh, it would have fallen short of the Way. "-Tao Te Ching, chapter 41
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Ere Chaos's divide, with Heaven and Earth a mess, No human appeared in this murkiness.
When Pan Gu broke the nebula apart, The dense and pure defined, did the clearing start to enfold all life.
supreme humaneness would and teach all things how become good they should.
To know cyclical time's work, if that's your quest, Read Tale of Woes Dispelled on Journey West.
We heard that, in the order of Heaven and Earth, a single period consisted of 129,600 years.
Dividing this period into twelve epochs were the twelve stems of Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, Yu, Xu and Hai. with each epoch having 10,800 years.
Considered as the horary circle, the sequence would be thus: the first sign of dawn appears in the hour of Zi, while at Chou the cock crows; daybreak occurs at Yin, and the sun rises at Mao; Chen comes after breakfast, and by Si everything is planned; at Wu the sun arrives at its meridian, and it declines westward by Wei; the evening meal comes during the hour of Shen, and the sun sinks completely at Yu; twilight sets in at Xu, and people rest by the hour of Hai. This sequence may also be understood macrocosmically.
At the end of the epoch of Xu, Heaven and Earth were obscure and all things were indistinct. With the passing of 5,400 years, the beginning of Hai was the epoch of darkness.
This moment was named Chaos, because there were neither human beings nor the two spheres.
After another 5,400 years Hai ended, and as the creative force began to work after great perseverance, the epoch of Zi drew near and again brought gradual development.
Shao Kangjie said: When to the middle of Zi winter moved, No change by Heaven's mind had been approved. The male principle had but barely stirred, But the birth of all things was still deferred.
At this point, the firmament first acquired its foundation. With another 5,400 years came the Zi epoch; the ethereal and the light rose up to form the four phenomena of the sun, the moon, the stars, and the Heavenly bodies.
Hence it is said, the Heaven was created at Zi. This epoch came to its end in another 5,400 years and the sky began to harden as the Chou epoch approached.
The Classic of Change said: Great was the male principle; Supreme, the female! They made all things, In obedience to Heaven. At this point, the Earth became solidified. In another 5,400 years after the arrival of the Chou epoch, the heavy and the turbid condensed below and formed the five elements of water, fire, mountain, stone, and earth.
Hence it is said, the Earth was created at Chou. With the passing of another 5,400 years, the Chou epoch came to its end and all things began to grow at the beginning of the Yin epoch. The Book of Calendar said: The Heavenly aura descended; The earthly aura rose up. Heaven and Earth copulated, And all things were born.
At this point, Heaven and Earth were bright and fair; the yin had intercourse with the yang.
In another 5,400 years, during the Yin epoch, humans, beasts, and fowls came into being, and thus the so-called three forces of Heaven, Earth, and life were established.
Hence it is said, life was born at Yin. Following Pan Gu's construction of the universe, the rule of the Three August Ones, and the ordering of the relations by the Five Thearchs, the world was divided into four great continents.
They were:
the East Pūrvavideha Continent
the West Aparagodānīya Continent
the South Jambūdvīpa Continent
and the North Uttarakuru Continent.
This book is solely concerned with the East Pūrvavideha Continent.
Beyond the ocean there was a country named Aolai. It was near a great ocean, in the midst of which was located the famous Flower-Fruit Mountain.
This mountain, which constituted the chief range of the Ten Islets and formed the origin of the Three Islands, came into being after the creation of the world.
As a testimonial to its magnificence, there is the following poetic rhapsody:
Its majesty commands the wide ocean;
Its splendor rules the jasper sea;
Its majesty commands the wide ocean When, like silver mountains, the tide sweeps fishes into caves;
Its splendor rules the jasper sea When snow-like billows send forth serpents from the deep. On the southwest side pile up tall plateaus;
From the Eastern Sea arise soaring peaks. There are crimson ridges and portentous rocks, Precipitous cliffs and prodigious peaks.
Atop the crimson ridges Phoenixes sing in pairs: Before precipitous cliffs The unicorn singly rests. At the summit is heard the cry of golden pheasants; In and out of stony caves are seen the strides of dragons: In the forest are long-lived deer and immortal foxes.
On the trees are divine fowls and black cranes. Strange grass and flowers that never wither: Green pines and cypresses always keep their spring. Immortal peaches are ever fruit-bearing; Lofty bamboos often detain the clouds.
Within a single gorge the creeping vines are dense; The grass color of meadows all around is fresh. This is indeed the pillar of Heaven, where a hundred rivers meet— The Earth's great axis, in ten thousand kalpas unchanged.
There was on top of that very mountain an immortal stone, which measured thirty-six feet and five inches in height and twenty-four feet in circumference.
The height of thirty-six feet and five inches corresponded to the three hundred and sixty-five cyclical degrees, while the circumference of twenty-four feet corresponded to the twenty-four solar terms of the calendar.
On the stone were also nine perforations and eight holes, which corresponded to the Palaces of the Nine Constellations and the Eight Trigrams.
Though it lacked the shade of trees on all sides, it was set off by epidendrums on the left and right.
Since the creation of the world, it had been nourished for a long period by the seeds of Heaven and Earth and by the essences of the sun and the moon, until, quickened by divine inspiration, it became pregnant with a divine embryo.
One day, it split open, giving birth to a stone egg about the size of a playing ball. Exposed to the wind, it was transformed into a stone monkey endowed with fully developed features and limbs.
Having learned at once to climb and run, this monkey also bowed to the four quarters, while two beams of golden light flashed from his eyes to reach even the Palace of the Polestar.
The light disturbed the Great Benevolent Sage of Heaven, the Celestial Jade Emperor of the Most Venerable Deva, who, attended by his divine ministers, was sitting in the Cloud Palace of the Golden Arches, in the Treasure Hall of the Divine Mists.
Upon seeing the glimmer of the golden beams, he ordered Thousand-Mile Eye and Fair-Wind Ear to open the South Heaven Gate and to look out.
At this command the two captains went out to the gate, and, having looked intently and listened clearly, they returned presently to report, "Your subjects, obeying your command to locate the beams, discovered that they came from the Flower-Fruit Mountain at the border of the small Aolai Country, which lies to the east of the East Pūrvavideha Continent. On this mountain is an immortal stone that has given birth to an egg. Exposed to the wind, it has been transformed into a monkey, who, when bowing to the four quarters, has flashed from his eyes those golden beams that reached the Palace of the Polestar. Now that he is taking some food and drink, the light is about to grow dim."
With compassionate mercy the Jade Emperor declared, "These creatures from the world below are born of the essences of Heaven and Earth, and they need not surprise us."
That monkey in the mountain was able to walk, run, and leap about; he fed on grass and shrubs, drank from the brooks and streams, gathered mountain flowers, and searched out fruits from trees.
He made his companions the tiger and the lizard, the wolf and the leopard; he befriended the civet and the deer, and he called the gibbon and the baboon his kin. At night he slept beneath stony ridges, and in the morning he sauntered about the caves and the peaks.
Truly, In the mountain there is no passing of time; The cold recedes, but one knows not the year. One very hot morning, he was playing with a group of monkeys under the shade of some pine trees to escape the heat.
Look at them, each amusing himself in his own way by Swinging from branches to branches, Searching for flowers and fruits; They played two games or three With pebbles and with pellets; They circled sandy pits; They built rare pagodas; They chased the dragonflies; They ran down small lizards; Bowing low to the sky, They worshiped Bodhisattvas; They pulled the creeping vines; They plaited mats with grass; They searched to catch the louse That they bit or sqeezed to death; They dressed their furry coats; They scraped their fingernails; Those leaning leaned; Those rubbing rubbed; Those pushing pushed; Those pressing pressed; Those pulling pulled; Those tugging tugged. Beneath the pine forest and free to play, They washed themselves in the green-water stream. So, after the monkeys had frolicked for a while, they went to bathe in the mountain stream and saw that its currents bounced and splashed like tumbling melons.
As the old saying goes, Fowls have their fowl speech, And beasts have their beast language. The monkeys said to each other, "We don't know where this water comes from. Since we have nothing to do today, let us follow the stream up to its source to have some fun."
With a shriek of joy, they dragged along males and females, calling out to brothers and sisters, and scrambled up the mountain alongside the stream. Reaching its source, they found a great waterfall. What they saw was A column of white rainbows rising, A thousand yards of snow-caps flying. The sea wind blows but cannot sever What a river moon lights up forever. Its cold breath divides the green glades; Its branches wet the verdant shades. This torrent named a waterfall Seems like a curtain hanging tall.
All the monkeys clapped their hands in acclaim: "Marvelous water! Marvelous water! So this waterfall is distantly connected with the stream at the base of the mountain, and flows directly out, even to the great ocean."
They said also, "If any of us had the ability to penetrate the curtain and find out where the water comes from without hurting himself, we would honor him as king."
They gave the call three times, when suddenly the stone monkey leaped out from the crowd. He answered the challenge with a loud voice, "I'll go in! I'll go in!" What a monkey! For Today his fame will spread wide. His fortune the time does provide.
He's fated to live in this place, Sent by a king to god's palace. Look at him! He closed his eyes, crouched low, and with one leap he jumped straight through the waterfall.
Opening his eyes at once and raising his head to look around, he saw that there was neither water nor waves inside, only a gleaming, shining bridge. He paused to collect himself and looked more carefully again: it was a bridge made of sheet iron.
The water beneath it surged through a hole in the rock to reach the outside, filling in all the space under the arch. With bent body he climbed on the bridge, looking about as he walked, and discovered a beautiful place that seemed to be some kind of residence.
Then he saw Fresh mosses piling up indigo, White clouds like jade afloat, And luminous sheens of mist and smoke; Empty windows, quiet rooms, And carved flowers growing smoothly on benches; Stalactites suspended in milky caves; Rare blossoms voluminous over the ground. Pans and stoves near the wall show traces of fire; Bottles and cups on the table contain left overs. The stone seats and beds were truly lovable; The stone pots and bowls were more praiseworthy.
There were, furthermore, a stalk or two of tall bamboos, And three or five sprigs of plum flowers. With a few green pines always draped in rain, This whole place indeed resembled a home.
After staring at the place for a long time, he jumped across the middle of the bridge and looked left and right.
There in the middle was a stone tablet on which was inscribed in regular, large letters: The Blessed Land of Flower- Fruit Mountain, The Cave Heaven of Water-Curtain Cave.
Beside himself with delight, the stone monkey quickly turned around to go back out and, closing his eyes and crouching again, leaped out of the water. "A great stroke of luck," he exclaimed with two loud guffaws, "a great stroke of luck!"
The other monkeys surrounded him and asked, "How is it inside? How deep is the water?" The stone monkey replied, "There isn't any water at all. There's a sheet iron bridge, and beyond it is a piece of Heaven-sent property."
"What do you mean that there's property in there?" asked the monkeys. Laughing, the stone monkey said, "This water splashes through a hole in the rock and fills the space under the bridge. Beside the bridge there is a stone mansion with trees and flowers. Inside are stone ovens and stoves, stone pots and pans, stone beds and benches. A stone tablet in the middle has the inscription, The Blessed Land of the Flower- Fruit Mountain, The Cave Heaven of the Water-Curtain Cave.
This is truly the place for us to settle in. It is, moreover, very spacious inside and can hold thousands of the young and old. Let's all go live in there, and spare ourselves from being subject to the whims of Heaven.
For we have in there a retreat from the wind, A shelter from the rain. You fear no frost or snow; You hear no thunderclap. Mist and smoke are brightened, Warmed by a holy light— The pines are evergreen: Rare flowers, daily new."
When the monkeys heard that, they were delighted, saying, "You go in first and lead the way." The stone monkey closed his eyes again, crouched low, and jumped inside. "All of you," he cried, "Follow me in! Follow me in!"
The braver of the monkeys leaped in at once, but the more timid ones stuck out their heads and then drew them back, scratched their ears, rubbed their jaws, and chattered noisily. After milling around for some time, they too bounded inside.
Jumping across the bridge, they were all soon snatching dishes, clutching bowls, or fighting for stoves and beds—shoving and pushing things hither and thither. Befitting their stubbornly prankish nature, the monkeys could not keep still for a moment and stopped only when they were utterly exhausted.
The stone monkey then solemnly took a seat above and spoke to them: "Gentlemen! If a man lacks trustworthiness, it is difficult to know what he can accomplish! You yourselves promised just now that whoever could get in here and leave again without hurting himself would be honored as king.
Now that I have come in and gone out, gone out and come in, and have found for all of you this Heavenly grotto in which you may reside securely and enjoy the privilege of raising a family, why don't you honor me as your king?"
When the monkeys heard this, they all folded their hands on their breasts and obediently prostrated themselves. Each one of them then lined up according to rank and age, and, bowing reverently, they intoned, "Long live our great king!"
From that moment, the stone monkey ascended the throne of kingship. He did away with the word "stone" in his name and assumed the title, Handsome Monkey King.
There is a testimonial poem that says:
Triple spring mated to beget all things.
A divine stone quickened by the sun and moon Changed from egg to ape to reach the Great Way.
Loanname and surname matched elixir made.
Formless inside he yields no image known; His outward guise coheres in action shown. In every age all persons will yield to him: Hailed a king, a sage, he is free to roam.
The Handsome Monkey King thus led a flock of gibbons and baboons, some of whom were appointed by him as his officers and ministers. They toured the FlowerFruit Mountain in the morning, and they lived in the Water-Curtain Cave by night.
Living in concord and sympathy, they did not mingle with bird or beast but enjoyed their independence in perfect happiness. For such were their activities: In the spring they gathered flowers for food and drink.
In the summer they went in quest of fruits for sustenance. In the autumn they amassed taros and chestnuts to ward off time. In the winter they searched for yellow-sperms to live out the year.
The Handsome Monkey King had enjoyed this insouciant existence for three or four hundred years when one day, while feasting with the rest of the monkeys, he suddenly grew sad and shed a few tears.
Alarmed, the monkeys surrounding him bowed down and asked, "What is disturbing the Great King?" The Monkey King replied, "Though I am very happy at the moment, I am a little concerned about the future. Hence I'm distressed."
The monkeys all laughed and said, "The Great King indeed does not know contentment! Here we daily have a banquet on an immortal mountain in a blessed land, in an ancient cave on a divine continent. We are not subject to the unicorn or the phoenix, nor are we governed by the rulers of mankind. Such independence and comfort are immeasurable blessings. Why, then, does he worry about the future?"
The Monkey King said, "Though we are not subject to the laws of man today, nor need we be threatened by the rule of any bird or beast, old age and physical decay in the future will disclose the secret sovereignty of Yama, King of the Underworld. If we die, shall we not have lived in vain, not being able to rank forever among the Heavenly beings?"
When the monkeys heard this, they all covered their faces and wept mournfully, each one troubled by his own impermanence.
But look! From among the ranks a bareback monkey suddenly leaped forth and cried aloud, "If the Great King is so farsighted, it may well indicate the sprouting of his religious inclination. There are, among the five major divisions of all living creatures, only three species that are not subject to Yama, King of the Underworld."
The Monkey King said, "Do you know who they are?" The monkey said, "They are the Buddhas, the immortals, and the holy sages; these three alone can avoid the Wheel of Transmigration as well as the process of birth and destruction, and live as long as Heaven and Earth, the mountains and the streams."
"Where do they live?" asked the Monkey King. The monkey said, "They do not live beyond the world of the Jambūdvīpa, for they dwell within ancient caves on immortal mountains."
When the Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight, saying, "Tomorrow I shall take leave of you all and go down the mountain. Even if I have to wander with the clouds to the corners of the sea or journey to the distant edges of Heaven, I intend to find these three kinds of people. I will learn from them how to be young forever and escape the calamity inflicted by King Yama. Lo, this utterance at once led him To leap free of the Transmigration Net, And be the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven.
All the monkeys clapped their hands in acclamation, saying, "Wonderful! Wonderful! Tomorrow we shall scour the mountain ranges to gather plenty of fruits, so that we may send the Great King off with a great banquet."
Next day the monkeys duly went to gather immortal peaches, to pick rare fruits, to dig out mountain herbs, and to chop yellowsperms. They brought in an orderly manner every variety of orchids and epidendrums, exotic plants and strange flowers.
They set out the stone chairs and stone tables, covering the tables with immortal wines and food. Look at the Golden balls and pearly pellets, Red ripeness and yellow plumpness.
Golden balls and pearly pellets are the cherries, Their colors truly luscious. Red ripeness and yellow plumpness are the plums, Their taste—a fragrant tartness.
Fresh lungans Of sweet pulps and thin skins. Fiery lychees Of small pits and red sacks. Green fruits of the Pyrus are presented by the branches. The loquats yellow with buds are held with their leaves. Pears like rabbit heads and dates like chicken hearts Dispel your thirst, your sorrow, and the effects of wine. Fragrant peaches and soft almonds Are sweet as the elixir of life: Crisply fresh plums and strawberries Are sour like cheese and buttermilk. Red pulps and black seeds compose the ripe watermelons. Four cloves of yellow rind enfold the big persimmons. When the pomegranates are split wide, Cinnabar grains glisten like specks of ruby: When the chestnuts are cracked open, Their tough brawns are hard like cornelian. Walnut and silver almonds fare well with tea. Coconuts and grapes may be pressed into wine. Hazelnuts, yews, and crabapples overfill the dishes. Kumquats, sugarcanes, tangerines, and oranges crowd the tables. Sweet yams are baked, Yellow-sperms overboiled, The tubers minced with seeds of waterlily, And soup in stone pots simmers on a gentle fire.
Mankind may boast its delicious dainties, But what can best the pleasure of mountain monkeys. The monkeys honored the Monkey King with the seat at the head of the table, while they sat below according to their age and rank. They drank for a whole day, each of the monkeys taking a turn to go forward and present the Monkey King with wine, flowers, and fruits. The next day the Monkey King rose early and gave the instruction, "Little ones, cut me some pinewood and make me a raft. Then find me a bamboo for the pole, and gather some fruits and the like. I'm about to leave."
When all was ready, he got onto the raft by himself. Pushing off with all his might, he drifted out toward the great ocean and, taking advantage of the wind, set sail for the border of South Jambūdvīpa Continent.
Here is the consequence of this journey: The Heaven-born monkey, strong in magic might, He left the mount and rode the raft to catch fair wind: He drifted across the sea to seek immortals way, Determined in heart and mind to achieve great things. It's his lot, his portion, to quit earthly zeals: Calm and carefree, he'll face a lofty sage. He'd meet, I think, a true, discerning friend: The source disclosed, all dharma will be known.
It was indeed his fortune that, after he boarded the wooden raft, a strong southeast wind (which lasted for days) sent him to the northwestern coast, the border of the South Jambūdvīpa Continent.
He took the pole to test the water, and, finding it shallow one day, he abandoned the raft and jumped ashore. On the beach there were people fishing, hunting wild geese, digging clams, and draining salt.
He approached them and making a weird face and some strange antics, he scared them into dropping their baskets and nets and scattering in all directions.
One of them could not run and was caught by the Monkey King, who stripped him of his clothes and put them on himself, aping the way humans wore them.
With a swagger he walked through counties and prefectures, imitating human speech and human manners in the marketplaces. He rested by night and dined in the morning, but he was bent on finding the way of the Buddhas, immortals, and holy sages, on discovering the formula for eternal youth.
He saw, however, that the people of the world were all seekers after profit and fame; there was not one who showed concern for his appointed end.
This is their condition: When will end this quest for fortune and fame, This tyrant of early rising and retiring late? Riding on mules they long for noble steeds; By now prime ministers, they hope to be kings. For food and raiment they suffer stress and strain, Never fearing Yama's call to reckoning. Seeking wealth and power to give to sons of sons, There's not one ever willing to turn back. The Monkey King searched diligently for the way of immortality, but he had no chance of meeting it.
Going through big cities and visiting small towns, he unwittingly spent eight or nine years on the South Jambūdvīpa Continent before he suddenly came upon the Great Western Ocean.
He thought that there would certainly be immortals living beyond the ocean; so, having built himself a raft like the previous one, he once again drifted across the Western Ocean until he reached the West Aparagodānīya Continent.
After landing, he searched for a long time, when all at once he came upon a tall and beautiful mountain with thick forests at its base. Since he was afraid neither of wolves and lizards nor of tigers and leopards, he went straight to the top to look around.
It was indeed a magnificent mountain: A thousand peaks stand like rows of spears, Like ten thousand cubits of screen widespread. The sun's beams lightly enclose the azure mist; In darkening rain, the mountains color turns cool and green.
Dry creepers entwine old trees; Ancient fords edge secluded paths. Rare flowers and luxuriant grass. Tall bamboos and lofty pines. Tall bamboos and lofty pines For ten thousand years grow green in this blessed land.
Rare flowers and luxuriant grass In all seasons bloom as in the Isles of the Blest. The calls of birds hidden are near. The sounds of streams rushing are clear. Deep inside deep canyons the orchids interweave. On every ridge and crag sprout lichens and mosses. Rising and falling, the ranges show a fine dragon's pulse.
Here in reclusion must an eminent man reside. As he was looking about, he suddenly heard the sound of a man speaking deep within the woods. Hurriedly he dashed into the forest and cocked his ear to listen.
It was someone singing, and the song went thus: I watch chess games, my ax handle's rotted. I chop at wood, zheng zheng the sound. I walk slowly by the cloud's fringe at the valley's entrance. Selling my firewood to buy some wine, I am happy and laugh without restraint. When the path is frosted in autumn's height, I face the moon, my pillow the pine root. Sleeping till dawn I find my familiar woods. I climb the plateaus and scale the peaks To cut dry creepers with my ax.
When I gather enough to make a load, I stroll singing through the marketplace And trade it for three pints of rice, With nary the slightest bickering Over a price so modest. Plots and schemes I do not know; Without vainglory or attaint My life's prolonged in simplicity. Those I meet, If not immortals, would be Daoists, Seated quietly to expound the Yellow Court.
When the Handsome Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight, saying, "So the immortals are hiding in this place." He leaped at once into the forest. Looking again carefully, he found a woodcutter chopping firewood with his axe. The man he saw was very strangely attired. On his head he wore a wide splint hat Of seed-leaves freshly cast from new bamboos. On his body he wore a cloth garment Of gauze woven from the native cotton. Around his waist he tied a winding sash Of silk spun from an old silkworm.
On his feet he had a pair of straw sandals, With laces rolled from withered sedge. In his hands he held a fine steel ax; A sturdy rope coiled round and round his load. In breaking pines or chopping trees Where's the man to equal him? The Monkey King drew near and called out: "Reverend immortal! Your disciple raises his hands."
The woodcutter was so flustered that he dropped his ax as he turned to return the salutation. "Blasphemy! Blasphemy!" he said. "I, a foolish fellow with hardly enough clothes or food! How can I bear the title of immortal?"
The Monkey King said, "If you are not an immortal, how is it that you speak their language?"
The woodcutter asked, "What did I say that sounded like the language of an immortal?" The Monkey King explained, "When I came just now to the forest's edge, I heard you singing, Those I meet, if not immortals, would be Daoists, seated quietly to expound the Yellow Court. The Yellow Court contains the perfected words of the Way and Virtue. What can you be but an immortal?"
Laughing, the woodcutter said, "I can tell you this much: the tune of that lyric is named a Court Full of Blossoms, and it was taught to me by an immortal, a neighbor of mine. He saw that I had to struggle to make a living and that my days were full of worries, so he told me to recite the poem whenever I was troubled. This, he said, would both comfort me and rid me of my difficulties. It happened that I was anxious about something just now, so I sang the song. It didn't occur to me that I would be overheard."
The Monkey King said, "If you are a neighbor of the immortal, why don't you follow him in the cultivation of the Way? Wouldn't it be nice to learn from him the formula for eternal youth?"
The woodcutter replied, "My lot has been a hard one all my life. When I was young, I was indebted to my parents nurture until I was eight or nine. As soon as I began to have some understanding of human affairs, my father unfortunately died, and my mother remained a widow. I had no brothers or sisters, so there was no alternative but for me alone to support and care for my mother. Now that my mother is growing old, all the more I dare not leave her. Moreover, my fields are rather barren and desolate, and we havent enough food or clothing. I can't do more than chop two bundles of firewood to take to the market in exchange for a few pennies to buy a few pints of rice. I cook that myself, serving it to my mother with the tea that I make. That's why I can't practice austerities."
The Monkey King said, "According to what you have said, you are indeed a gentleman of filial piety, and you will certainly be rewarded in the future. I hope, however, that you will show me the way to the immortal's abode, so that I may reverently call upon him."
"It's not far," the woodcutter said. "This mountain is called the Mountain of Mind and Heart, and in it is the Cave of Slanting Moon and Three Stars. Inside the cave is an immortal by the name of the Patriarch Subodhi, who has already sent out innumerable disciples. Even now there are thirty or forty persons who are practicing austerities with him. Follow this narrow path and travel south for about seven or eight miles, and you will come to his home."
Grabbing the woodcutter, the Monkey King said, "Honored brother, go with me. If I receive any benefit, I will not forget the favor of your guidance."
"What a boneheaded fellow you are!" the woodcutter said. "I have just finished telling you these things, and you still don't understand. If I go with you, won't I be neglecting my livelihood? And who will take care of my mother? I must chop my firewood. You go on by yourself!" When the Monkey King heard this, he had to take his leave.
Emerging from the deep forest, he found the path and went past the slope of a hill. After he had traveled seven or eight miles, a cave dwelling indeed came into sight. He stood up straight to take a better look at this splendid place, and this was what he saw: Mist and smoke in diffusive brilliance, Flashing lights from the sun and moon, A thousand stalks of old cypress, Ten thousand stems of tall bamboo.
A thousand stalks of old cypress Draped in rain half fill the air with tender green; Ten thousand stems of tall bamboo Held in smoke will paint the glen chartreuse. Strange flowers spread brocades before the door. Jadelike grass emits fragrance beside the bridge.
On ridges protruding grow moist green lichens; On hanging cliffs cling the long blue mosses. The cries of immortal cranes are often heard. Once in a while a phoenix soars overhead.
When the cranes cry, Their sounds reach through the marsh to the distant sky. When the phoenix soars up, Its plume with five bright colors embroiders the clouds. Black apes and white deer may come or hide; Gold lions and jade elephants may leave or bide. Look with care at this blessed, holy place: It has the true semblance of Paradise.
He noticed that the door of the cave was tightly shut; all was quiet, and there was no sign of any human inhabitant. He turned around and suddenly perceived, at the top of the cliff, a stone slab approximately eight feet wide and over thirty feet tall.
On it was written in large letters: The Mountain of Mind and Heart; The Cave of Slanting Moon and Three Stars. Immensely pleased, the Handsome Monkey King exclaimed, "People here are truly honest. This mountain and this cave really do exist!"
He stared at the place for a long time but dared not knock. Instead, he jumped onto the branch of a pine tree, picked a few pine seeds and ate them, and began to play. After a moment he heard the door of the cave open with a squeak, and an immortal youth walked out. His bearing was exceedingly graceful; his features were highly refined.
This was certainly no ordinary young mortal, for he had His hair bound with two cords of silk, A wide robe with two sleeves of wind. His body and face seemed most distinct, For visage and mind were both detached. Long a stranger to all worldly things He was the mountain's ageless boy. Untainted even with a speck of dust, He feared no havoc by the seasons wrought. After coming through the door, the boy shouted,
"Who is causing disturbance here?" With a bound the Monkey King leaped down from the tree, and went up to him bowing.
"Immortal boy," he said, "I am a seeker of the way of immortality. I would never dare cause any disturbance." With a chuckle, the immortal youth asked, "Are you a seeker of the Way?"
"I am indeed," answered the Monkey King. "My master at the house," the boy said, "has just left his couch to give a lecture on the platform. Before even announcing his theme, however, he told me to go out and open the door, saying,There is someone outside who wants to practice austerities. You may go and receive him. It must be you, I suppose."
The Monkey King said, smiling, "It is I, most assuredly!"
"Follow me in then," said the boy. With solemnity the Monkey King set his clothes in order and followed the boy into the depths of the cave. They passed rows and rows of lofty towers and huge alcoves, of pearly chambers and carved arches. After walking through innumerable quiet chambers and empty studios, they finally reached the base of the green jade platform.
Patriarch Subodhi was seen seated solemnly on the platform, with thirty lesser immortals standing below in rows. He was truly An immortal of great ken and purest mien, Master Subodhi, whose wondrous form of the West Had no end or birth by work of the Double Three.
His whole spirit and breath were with mercy filled. Empty, spontaneous, it could change at will, His Buddha-nature able to do all things. The same age as Heaven had his majestic frame. Fully tried and enlightened was this grand priest. As soon as the Handsome Monkey King saw him, he prostrated himself and kowtowed times without number, saying, "Master! Master! I, your pupil, pay you my sincere homage."
The Patriarch said, "Where do you come from? Let s hear you state clearly your name and country before you kowtow again."
The Monkey King said, "Your pupil came from the Water-Curtain Cave of the Flower- Fruit Mountain, in the Aolai Country of the East Pūrvavideha Continent."
"Chase him out of here!" the Patriarch shouted. "He is nothing but a liar and a fabricator of falsehood. How can he possibly be interested in attaining enlightenment?"
The Monkey King hastened to kowtow unceasingly and to say, "Your pupil's word is an honest one, without any deceit."
The Patriarch said, "If you are telling the truth, how is it that you mention the East Pūrvavideha Continent? Separating that place and mine are two great oceans and the entire region of the South Jambūdvīpa Continent. How could you possibly get here?"
Again kowtowing, the Monkey King said, "Your pupil drifted across the oceans and trudged through many regions for more than ten years before finding this place."
The Patriarch said, "If you have come on a long journey in many stages, I'll let that pass. What is your surname (xing)?"
The Monkey King again replied, "I have no temper (xing). If a man rebukes me, I am not offended; if he hits me, I am not angered. In fact, I simply repay him with a ceremonial greeting and that's all. My whole life's without ill temper."
"I'm not speaking of your temper," the Patriarch said. "I'm asking after the name of your parents."
"I have no parents either," said the Monkey King. The Patriarch said, "If you have no parents, you must have been born from a tree."
"Not from a tree," said the Monkey King, "but from a rock. I recall that there used to be an immortal stone on the Flower-Fruit Mountain. I was born the year the stone split open."
When the Patriarch heard this, he was secretly pleased, and said, "Well, evidently you have been created by Heaven and Earth. Get up and show me how you walk."
Snapping erect, the Monkey King scurried around a couple of times. The Patriarch laughed and said, "Though your features are not the most attractive, you do resemble a pignolia-eating monkey (husun). This gives me the idea of taking a surname for you from your appearance.
I intended to call you by the name Hu. If I drop the animal radical from this word, what's left is a compound made up of the two characters, gu and yue.
Gu means aged and yue means female, but an aged female cannot reproduce. Therefore, it is better to give you the surname of Sun. If I drop the animal radical from this word, what we have left is the compound of zi and xi.
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."
When the Monkey King heard this, he was filled with delight. "Splendid! Splendid!" he cried, kowtowing, "At last I know my surname. May the master be even more gracious! Since I have received the surname, let me be given also a personal name, so that it may facilitate your calling and commanding me."
The Patriarch said, "Within my tradition are twelve characters that have been used to name the pupils according to their divisions. You are one who belongs to the tenth generation."
"Which twelve characters are they?" asked the Monkey King. The Patriarch replied, "They are: wide (guang), great (da), wise (zhi), intelligence (hui), true (zhen), conforming (ru), nature (xing), sea (hai), sharp (ying), wake- to (wu), complete (yuan) and awakening (jue).
Your rank falls precisely on the word 'wake-to (wu). You will hence be given the religious name 'Wake-to-the-Void' (wukong). All right?"
"Splendid! Splendid!" said the Monkey King, laughing. "Henceforth I shall be called Sun Wukong." So it was that, At nebula's parting he had no name.
Then he was named Wake-to-the- Void.
We do not know what fruit of Daoist cultivation he succeeded in attaining afterward; let's listen to the explanation in the next chapter.