Journey to the West and a Luciferian Monkey...

"Far across the Eastern Sea, on the island called the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, a magic boulder had sat on the mountain’s peak since the creation of the world. Bathed in the energies of Earth and Heaven, quickened by the light of Sun and Moon, the stone became fertile, and at last cracked open to release its young.

From this stone egg emerged a full-grown monkey. As it gazed about and above, golden light shot from its eyes to the farthest reaches of Heaven and Earth."-The Monkey King,retold by Aaron Shepard.

The story of Journey to the West is based on the true story of the Buddhist monk Huanzang (602 – 664) who went to India in search of the scriptures of Buddha.Chinese fables, fairy tales, legends, superstitions, popular beliefs, monster stories, and whatever the author could find in the Taoist, Buddhist,and shamanic works.Wu Cheng`en (1500 -1582) published the story anonymously and is now accepted as the author,But I believe the story had many unknown authors that contributed to it. According to Liu Yiming, the 11th-generation master of the Dragon Gate Sect, who lived in the Qing Dynasty, the author was Qiu Chuji, also called Chang Chun (1148--1227), the founder of the Dragon Gate Sect, a Taoist school. The most likely explanation is that Wu Cheng`en received the manuscript from Taoist adepts, who didn`t want the origin of the book to fall into the wrong hands.

The monkey is the Archetype of the fallen rebel,and we can see a number of parallels to the fall of Lucifer in this tale.

"An egg was turned into a monkey to complete the Great Way. -- Journey to the West, chapter 1"

"My birth was not like that of an ordinary being. My body was formed when sun and moon mated.
-- Journey to the West, chapter 86"

So Monkey was born from an egg,and he was a motherfucker from day one,extremely intelligent, he has learned all his magic and Ti Chi from an immortal Taoist master.It is said he could transform himself into seventy-two different images such as a tree, a bird, a beast of prey, or an insect that can sneak into an enemy's body to fight him or her inside out. Using clouds as a vehicle, he can travel 108,000 miles at a single bound.Feeling like his balls are huge,he calls himself
The King in defiance of the only authority over the heaven, the seas, the earth and the subterranean world -- Yù Huáng Dà Dì, or "The Great Emperor of Jade." This pisses the Emperor off,and when the masters of the four seas and the Hells come to complain,The God has no choice but to call in heavens army to kick some monkey ass.But,things did not go as planed for heaven,and with his gold-banded Iron rod that he stole from the Dragon King,Monkey walked right into Hell,and threatened the Hadean king into sparing his and his followers mortal life so that they all could enjoy eternity.As an Immortal,The Monkey King started wiping the floor with the Heavenly army The celestial monarch had no choice but to offer the monkey an official title in heaven with little authority. When he has learned the truth that he is nothing but an object of ridicule, the enraged monkey revolts, fighting all his way back to earth to resume his original claim as The King.

Eventually, the heavenly army, enlisting the help of all the god warriors with diverse tricks, manages to capture the barely invincible monkey. He is sentenced to capital punishment. However, all methods of execution fail. Having a bronze head and iron shoulders, the monkey dulls many a sword inflicted upon him. As the last resort, the emperor commands that he be incinerated in the furnace where his Taoist minister Tai Shang Lao Jun refines his pills of immortality. Instead of killing the monkey, the fire and smoke therein sharpened his eyes so that he now can see through things that others can not. He fights his way back to earth again.

At his wit's end, the celestial emperor asks Buddha for help. Buddha imprisons the monkey under a great mountain known as Wu Zhi Shan (The Mount of Five Fingers). The tenacious monkey survives the enormous weight and pressure. Five hundred years later, there comes to his rescue the Tang Monk, Xuan Zang, whom we mentioned at the beginning of the story.

To make sure that the monk can make for the West to get the Sutras, Buddha has arranged for Monkey King to become the monk's escort in the capacity of his disciple. soon on their way to the west, two more disciples, also at the will of the Buddha, join their company. One is the humorous and not uncourageous pig transgressed from an inebrious celestial general for his assault against a fairy; the other a sea monster who also used to be a celestial general now in exile for a misdemeanor.

The party of four was further reenforced by a horse, an incarnation of a dragon's son, start their stormy journey to the West -- a journey packed with actions and adventures that brought into full play the puissance of the monks' disciples, Monkey King in particular.A delightful Tale that any Sinister Mago or Maga can find inspiration from,The Hat,and I, endorse it highly!

 Sources include :The Monkey King,retold by Aaron Shepard,

http://innerjourneytothewest.com run by;Walther Sell

,The Magic Lotus Lantern and Other Tales from the Han Chinese (World Folklore Series),By:Haiwang Yuan

Copyright 2015 Vincent Piazza