{"id":4139,"date":"2018-12-09T15:22:52","date_gmt":"2018-12-09T19:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/?p=4139"},"modified":"2019-01-02T14:22:37","modified_gmt":"2019-01-02T18:22:37","slug":"journey-to-the-west-an-eastern-magnum-opus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/2018\/12\/09\/journey-to-the-west-an-eastern-magnum-opus\/","title":{"rendered":"Journey to the West : Wu Cheng-en’s Magnum Opus, from the Ming era"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the spirit of winter cataloguing:\u00a0 Journey to the West<\/span>, an ancient novel by Wu Cheng-en, has some spectacular chapter titles, which give the sense of the work without spoiling its story.\u00a0 If you have read the work they remind you of it, but if you have not it is hard to know what to make of the couplets.<\/p>\n

The work has been translated and interpreted constantly over the past 4 centuries; most recently in a series of films; but the texture of the original and its chapter structure is my clearest memory of it.\u00a0 The poetry of the original has been hard to capture in translation; seen too in the title translations.\u00a0 This version is from Yu’s 2012 revised edition.<\/p>\n

Journey to the West\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Volume 1\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

1<\/strong> The divine root conceives, its source revealed;
\n\u00a0 Mind and nature nurtured, the Great Dao is born.<\/p>\n

2 Fully awoke to Bodhi\u2019s wondrous truths,
\n\u00a0 He cuts off M\u0101ra, returns to the root, and joins Primal Spirit.<\/code><\/code><\/p>\n

3 Four Seas and a Thousand Mountains all bow to submit;
\n\u00a0 From Ninefold Darkness ten species\u2019 names are removed.<\/code><\/code><\/p>\n

4 Appointed a BanHorse, could he be content?
\n\u00a0 Named Equal to Heaven, he\u2019s still not appeased.<\/p>\n

5 Disrupting the Peach Festival, the Great Sage steals elixir;
\n\u00a0 With revolt in Heaven, many gods would seize the fiend.<\/p>\n

6 Guanyin, attending the banquet, inquires into the cause;
\n\u00a0 The Little Sage, exerting his power, subdues the Great Sage.<\/p>\n

7 From the Eight Trigrams Brazier the Great Sage escapes;
\n\u00a0 Beneath the Five Phases Mountain, Mind Monkey is still.<\/p>\n

8 Our Buddha makes scriptures to impart ultimate bliss;
\n\u00a0 Guanyin receives the decree to go up to Chang\u2019an.<\/p>\n

9 Chen Guangrui, going to his post, meets disaster;<\/code>
\n\u00a0 Monk River Float, avenging his parents, repays his roots.<\/p>\n

10 The Old Dragon King\u2019s schemes transgress Heaven\u2019s decree;
\n\u00a0 Prime Minister Wei seeks help from an official of the dead.<\/p>\n

11 Having toured the Underworld, Taizong returns to life;
\n\u00a0 Having presented melons and fruits, Liu Quan marries again.<\/p>\n

12 The Tang emperor, firmly sincere, convenes a Grand Mass;
\n\u00a0 Guanyin, in epiphany, converts Gold Cicada.<\/p>\n

13 In the den of tigers, the Gold Star brings deliverance;
\n\u00a0 At Double-Fork Ridge, Boqin detains the monk.<\/p>\n

14 Mind Monkey returns to the Right;
\n\u00a0 The Six Robbers vanish from sight.<\/p>\n

15 At Serpent Coil Mountain, the gods give secret protection;
\n\u00a0 At Eagle Grief Stream, the Horse of the Will is reined.<\/p>\n

16 At Guanyin Hall the monks plot for the treasure;
\n\u00a0 At Black Wind Mountain a monster steals the cassock.<\/p>\n

17 Pilgrim Sun greatly disturbs Black Wind Mountain;
\n\u00a0 Guanshiyin brings to submission the bear monster.<\/p>\n

18 At Guanyin Hall the Tang Monk leaves his ordeal;
\n\u00a0 At Gao Village the Great Sage casts out the monster.<\/p>\n

19 At Cloudy Paths Cave, Wukong takes in Eight Rules;
\n\u00a0 At Pagoda Mountain, Tripitaka receives the Heart S\u016btra.<\/p>\n

20 At Yellow Wind Ridge the Tang Monk meets adversity;
\n\u00a0 In mid- mountain, Eight Rules strives to be first.<\/p>\n

21 The Vih\u0101rap\u0101las prepare lodging for the Great Sage;
\n\u00a0 Lingji of Sumeru crushes the wind demon.<\/p>\n

22 Eight Rules fights fiercely at Flowing-Sand River;
\n\u00a0 Mok\u1e63a by order receives Wujing\u2019s submission.<\/p>\n

23 Tripitaka does not forget his origin;
\n\u00a0 The Four Sages test the priestly mind.<\/p>\n

24 At Long Life Mountain the Great Immortal holds an old friend;
\n\u00a0 At Five Villages Abbey, Pilgrim steals the ginseng fruit.<\/p>\n

25<\/strong> The Zhenyuan Immortal gives chase to catch the scripture monk;
\n\u00a0 Pilgrim Sun greatly disturbs Five Villages Abbey.<\/code><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Volume 2<\/strong><\/h3>\n
26<\/strong> Amid the Three Islands Sun Wukong seeks a cure;
\nWith sweet dew Guanshiyin revives a tree.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
27 The cadaver demon three times mocks Tripitaka Tang;
\nThe holy monk in spite banishes Handsome Monkey King.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
28 At Flower-Fruit Mountain a pack of fiends hold assembly;
\nAt Black Pine Forest Tripitaka meets demons.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
29 Free of his peril, River Float arrives at the kingdom;
\nReceiving favor, Eight Rules invades the forest.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
30 A deviant demon attacks the true Dharma;
\nThe Horse of the Will recalls Mind Monkey.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
31 Zhu Eight Rules provokes Monkey King to chivalry;
\nPilgrim Sun with wisdom defeats the monster.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
32 On Level-Top Mountain the sentinel brings a message;
\nAt Lotus-Flower Cave Wood Mother meets disaster.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
33 Heresy deludes the True Nature;
\nPrimal Spirit helps the Native Mind.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
34 The demon king\u2019s plotting entraps Mind Monkey;
\nThe Great Sage, ever adroit, wangles the treasures.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
35 Heresy uses power to oppress the proper Nature;
\nMind Monkey, bagging treasures, conquers deviate demons.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
36 When Mind Monkey is rectified, the nid\u0101nas cease;
\nSmash through the side door to view the bright moon.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
37 The ghost king visits Tripitaka Tang at night;
\nWukong, through wondrous transformation, leads the child.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
38 The child queries his mother to learn of deviancy and truth;
\nMetal and Wood, reaching the deep, see the false and the real.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
39 One pellet of cinnabar elixir found in Heaven;
\nA king, dead three years, lives again on Earth.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
40 The child\u2019s playful transformations confuse the Chan Mind;
\nApe, Horse, Spatula gone, Wood Mother, too, is lost.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
41 Mind Monkey is defeated by fire;
\nWood Mother is captured by demons.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
42 The Great Sage diligently calls at South Sea;
\nGuanyin with compassion binds the Red Boy.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
43 An evil demon at Black River captures the monk;
\nThe Western Ocean\u2019s dragon prince catches the iguana.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
44 The dharma-body in primal cycle meets the force of the cart;
\nThe mind, righting monstrous deviates, crosses the spine-ridge pass.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
45 At the Three Pure Ones Abbey the Great Sage leaves his name;
\nAt the Cart Slow Kingdom the Monkey King shows his power.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
46 Heresy flaunts its strength to mock orthodoxy;
\nMind Monkey in epiphany slays the deviates.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
47 The holy monk\u2019s blocked at night at Heaven-Reaching River;
\nMetal and Wood, in compassion, rescue little children.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
48 The demon, raising a cold wind, sends a great snow fall;
\nThe monk, intent on seeing Buddha, walks on layered ice.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
49 Tripitaka meets disaster and sinks to a water home;
\nTo bring salvation, Guanyin reveals a fish basket.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
50<\/strong> Nature follows confused feelings through lust and desire;
\nSpirit faints, mind moves\u2014he meets a demon chief.<\/code><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Volume 3<\/strong><\/h3>\n
51<\/strong> Mind Monkey in vain uses a thousand tricks;
\nFutile water and fire makes it hard to smelt demons.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
52 Wukong greatly disturbs the Golden Helmet Cave;
\nTath\u0101gata reveals in secret the true master.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
53 Imbibing, the Chan Lord conceives a ghostly child;
\nYellow Dame brings water to end the weird fetus.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
54 Dharma-nature, going west, reaches the Women's State;
\nMind Monkey makes a plan to flee the fair sex.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
55 Deviant form makes lustful play for Tripitaka Tang;
\nUpright nature safeguards the untainted self.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
56 Wild Spirit slays brutish bandits;
\nWayward Way sets Mind Monkey loose.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
57 True Pilgrim lays bare his woes at Mount Potalaka;
\nFalse Monkey King transcribes texts at Water-Curtain Cave.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
58 Two Minds cause disorder in the great cosmos;
\nIt\u2019s hard for one body to realize true\u00a0Nirv\u0101\u1e47a.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
59 Tripitaka Tang\u2019s path is blocked at Mountain of Flames;
\nPilgrim Sun baits for the first time the palm-leaf fan.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
60 Bull Demon King stops fighting to attend a lavish feast;
\nPilgrim Sun baits for the second time the palm-leaf fan.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
61 Zhu Eight Rules assists in defeating the demon king;
\n<\/code><\/div>\n
Pilgrim Sun baits for the third time the palm-leaf fan.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
62 To wash off filth, to bathe the mind, just sweep a pagoda;
\n<\/code><\/div>\n
To bind demons and return to the lord is self-cultivation.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
63 Two monks, quelling fiends, disturb the dragon palace;
\nThe sages, destroying deviates, acquire the treasures.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
64 At Bramble Ridge Wuneng exerted great effort;
\nAt Shrine of Sylvan Immortals Tripitaka discusses poetry.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
65 Fiends set up falsely the Small Thunderclap;
\nThe four pilgrims all meet a great ordeal.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
66 Many gods meet injury;
\nMaitreya binds a fiend.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
67 Having rescued Tuoluo, Chan Nature is secure;
\nEscaping filthiness, the Mind of Dao is pure.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
68 In the Scarlet-Purple Kingdom the Tang monk speaks of past eras;
\nPilgrim Sun performs on an arm broken in three places.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
69 At night the Lord of the Mind refines medicines;
\nAt a banquet the king speaks of the perverse fiend.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
70 The monstrous demon\u2019s treasures release smoke, sand, and fire;
\nWukong uses a trick to steal the purple-gold bells.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
71 By a false name Pilgrim defeats the fiendish wolf;
\nIn epiphany Guanyin subdues the monster-king.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
72 At Cobweb Cave Seven Passions delude the Origin;
\nAt Purgation Spring Eight Rules forgets all manners.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
73 Passions, because of old enmity, beget calamity ;
\nDemon-trapped, the Mind Lord with luck breaks the light.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
74 Long Life reports how vicious the demons are;
\nPilgrim displays his transformation power.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
75<\/strong> Mind Monkey drills through the yin-yang body;
\nDemon lords return to the true great Way.<\/i><\/code><\/div>\n

<\/h3>\n

Volume 4<\/strong><\/h3>\n
76<\/strong> Mind-Spirit dwells at home, and demons revert to nature;
\nWood Mother together subdues the fiend\u2019s true self.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
77 A horde of demons affront native Nature;
\nThe One Body bows to True Suchness.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
78 At Bhik\u1e63u he pities the infants and summons the night gods;
\nIn the golden hall he knows the demon speaking on the way and virtue.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
79 Searching the cave for the fiend he meets Long Life;
\nThe proper lord of the court sees the babies.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
80 The fair girl, nursing the yang, seeks a mate;
\nMind Monkey, guarding his master, knows a monster.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
81 At Sea-Pacifying Monastery Mind Monkey knows the fiend;
\nIn the black pine forest three pupils search for their master.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
82 The fair girl seeks the yang;
\nPrimal spirit guards the Way.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
83 Mind Monkey knows the elixir source;
\nFair girl returns to her true nature.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
84 \u201cPriests are hard to destroy\u201d completes great awakening;
\nThe Dharma- king attains the right, his body\u2019s naturalized.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
85 Mind Monkey envies Wood Mother;
\nThe demon lord plots to devour Chan.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
86 Wood Mother, lending power, conquers the fiendish creature;
\nMetal Squire, using his magic, extirpates the deviates.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
87 The Phoenix-Immortal Prefecture offends Heaven and suffers drought;
\nThe Great Sage Sun advocates virtue and provides rain.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
88 Reaching Jade-Flower, Chan convenes an assembly;
\nMind Monkey, Wood, and Earth instruct disciples.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
89 The yellow lion- spirit in vain gives the Muckrake Feast;
\nGold, Wood, and Earth disturb with a scheme Mount Leopard\u2019s-Head.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
90 Masters and lions, teachers and pupils, all return to the One;
\nThieves and the Dao, snares and Buddhism, quiet Ninefold-Numina.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
91 At Gold-Level Prefecture they watch lanterns on the fifteenth night;
\nIn Mysterious Flower Cave the Tang Monk makes a deposition.
\n<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
92 Three priests fight fiercely at Green Dragon Mountain;
\nFour Stars help to capture rhinoceros fiends.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
93 At Jetavana Park he asks the aged about the cause;
\nAt the Kingdom of India he sees the king and meets his mate.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
94 Four priests are feted at the royal garden;
\nOne fiend vainly longs for sensual joys.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
95 Falsely assuming true form, the jade hare\u2019s caught;
\nTrue Yin returns to the right to join Numinous Source.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
96 Squire Kou gladly receives a noble priest;
\nThe elder Tang does not covet riches.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
97 Gold-dispensing external aid meets demonic harm;
\nThe sage reveals his soul to bring restoration.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
98 Only when ape and horse are tamed will shells be cast;
\nWith merit and work perfected, they see the Real.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
99 Nine times nine ends the count and M\u0101ra\u2019s all destroyed;
\nThe work of three times three done, the Dao reverts to its root.<\/code><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/code><\/div>\n
100<\/strong> They return to the Land of the East;
\nFive sages become perfected.<\/code><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the spirit of winter cataloguing:\u00a0 Journey to the West, an ancient novel by Wu Cheng-en, has some spectacular chapter titles, which give the sense of the work without spoiling its story.\u00a0 If you have read the work they remind you of it, but if you have not it is hard to know what to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1202,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iVvB-14L","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1202"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4139"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4139\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4167,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4139\/revisions\/4167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/sj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}