Who Is the Hero: Tripitaka, Monkey, or the Group - Essay Example

Who is the hero? Tripitaka, Monkey, or the Group Introduction The story, ‘Monkey’, by Wu Ch’eng-en entails a Stone Monkey King or the Monkey. At the beginning of the story, rock worked upon by the earth and the heaven gave birth to Stone Monkey. Stone Monkey lived with other monkeys in the forest. One day they decided to go and find the source of the mountain spring and came across a veil of water flowing over the side of the mountain. Any of them that was brave enough had to go through the veil of the flowing water. Therefore, the story covers the relationship between Hsuan Tsang and fellows to acquire scrolls from Buddha Empire in India return them to China. The group had to fight immortals, demons and save the innocent ones along the way. They followed every detail of Buddha traditions (Wu and Waley 88). The Hero The hero in the story is the Monkey. The Stone Monkey, from a stone egg worked upon by the Heaven and the Earth. His teacher, Subhuti, gave him the name Sun Wukong. He first differentiates himself from others by a brave enter to the Water Curtain Cave found on the mountain. According to the feat, other monkeys describe the Monkey as “Handsome Monkey King” (Wu and Waley 321). The Monkey is a mischievous animal that focuses on religion in gaining immortality. The story covers his journey to enlightenment and troubles as the Monkey gets along the way. Stone Monkey is childish in his manner and always focused on self. His childish character emanates a problem as he gains power. For instance, the Monkey fails to control himself leading to a number of troubles with Jade Empire. To solve the situation, they assign him a minor position in the emperor as worth keeping of horses as they kept an eye on him. The job was an inferior position (Wu and Waley 103). The Monkey recognizes of his subordinate position rather than a complete god he longed. He after that went back to the mountain and kept a flag on it declaring himself as “Great Sage Identical to Heaven.” The empire then dispatched celestial soldiers in his arrest in vain. The Jade Empire had no option but to appoint him as the custodian of the heavenly peach orchard. The peaches knew to bear fruits in 3,000 years, and its flesh once eaten bestows immortality. He eats one and grows supplementary mighty and matchless (Wu and Waley 300). His quest for power is something mischievous. He first wants to lead all the monkeys. He after that makes himself the king of the monkeys. Happy being a king, he thinks of own mortality and seeks religion with an intention of cheating death. Lucky enough, the Monkey finds a patriarch who assists him to learn many kinds of magic. Found boasting for other students, the Monkey banished back to his home. He goes back home with great power and exercises his power by killing a demon at home to save other monkeys. In the process, he gets himself into mischief and out that, the King of Heaven, Jade Emperor, declared a war on him (Wu and Waley122). The Stone Monkey becomes unbeaten. The body became as hard as diamond upon seizure. From all the magic stolen, he ends up not killed. Buddha comes in offer assistance for Jade Monarch. In the process, he traps the Monkey under the mountain where he had to stay until someone came in to help him. He could not escape because of a magic charm put on the mountain. Years later, the Bodhisattva named Kuan-yin pursues a scripture seeker to take the scripture to a far place and save several souls in the process. The scriptures were to enlighten the Chinese of the behavior they may accord with the tenets of Buddhism. The monk called Hsuan Tsang, given the name, “Tripitaka,” agreed to take the scripture. During his journey, he finds the Stone Monkey trapped beneath mountain for a period of five hundred years. He then frees the Stone Monkey (Wu and Waley 137). Tripitaka takes the Stone Monkey with him as a follower of the Buddha. The two also encounters others during the way and join up in the journey to India recaim back the sacred scrolls, comprising of, Sandy, Pigsy and dragon king’s son. They liberated the captive princess and punished the abductor, who murdered her father. The monkey then uses his power to resurrect the princess’s father and reinstalls him as the king. The journey lasted for over seven years. They faced many calamities on their way and forced to battle the monsters, Immortals, and the ogres. At the end of the story, the Stone Monkey, Tripitaka managed to get the scriptures and took them to China. They then got rewarded enlightenment and a life in the paradise of Buddha (Wu and Waley 597). The monkey is the hero as he saved many souls. The monkey had a lot to do with sins of other characters in the text and the journey; they had to undertake to save their souls. The search for the way leads them to dangerous land and situations as they went to retrieve the holy scriptures. The monkey had made himself a nuisance in the haven and had to atone the trouble he caused. For example, the son of dragon king, Sandy, and Pigsy had to atone for their sin as well. Tripitaka also had to atone for the past sins in his past life. The primary weapon that made the journey possible was his staff called “Ruyi Jingu Bang.” He could shrink the staff down to the dimension of a needle and preserve in his ear. He could expand it also to a gigantic proportion. The Dragon King promised him of the staff on the condition of lifting the rod, weighing 17,550 pounds. The rod was originally a pillar that supported the undersea fortress of the East Sea King. Surprisingly, the Monkey pulled the rod out with ease and swung it around. The king got angered and accused him of a thief. The Monkey then demanded a suit of golden armor for the insult (Wu and Waley 600). The Monkey acquired materials that made him robust. For example, he obtained the three jars of elixir, devouring of the peaches, steel hard body, and the fiery golden eyes that enabled him to see far into the long distance and any disguise. He, therefore, could notice a demon in disguise although another pilgrimage could not. He could also blow the hair on his body and pluck them to whatever shape he wished. Mostly becomes necessary to him in the battle. He was the master of 72 approaches of transformation and could transform into a bird, having the ability to fly. He could also use “somersault cloud” making him travel massive distances in a solitary leap (Wu and Waley 266). Conclusion The novel is an epic fantasy. The greater part of the story rests on the journey of the Buddhist monk Sunzang towards collecting sacred scriptures from the Buddha in the Western Paradise. The Monkey and other magical creatures aid the journey. Therefore, the bravery of the Stone Monkey is evident in the story. The monkey led Tripitaka and the others into the long and dangerous unknown trip. The Monkey, Sun Wukong’s childlike character is an enormous distinction to his scheming mind. His cunning mind makes him make several bold decisions. Together with his great power, his antics marks him a trickster hero. Works Cited Wu, Chengen, and Waley, A,. Monkey. New York: Grove Press, 1984. Internet resource. Read More