We were telling you about the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven, who fled in defeat, empty-handed. He went to the back of the Golden Helmet Mountain, and as he sat down, big drops of tears fell from his eyes. “O Master!” he cried. “I had hopes that you and I,
Since Buddha’s grace had both kindness and peace,
Would find same youth, same life, as my lasting wish:
To live, to work, to seek the same release,
With same will, same mercy to show our spirits’ fruit;
To reason and think the same, our minds truly one;
To know and behold the same open way.
I knew not I would lose the staff of my will.1
How could I prosper with empty hands and feet?”
After lamenting like this for a long time, the Great Sage thought to himself, “That monster-spirit recognized me! When we were fighting just now, I remember him paying me the compliment: ‘Truly someone worthy to cause havoc in Heaven!’ Judging from this, I can’t imagine that he is a fiend of this mortal world; he has to be some evil star of Heaven who descended to Earth out of longing for the world. I wonder what sort of demon he really is and where he dropped down from. I’ll have to go to the Region Above to make an investigation.”
Thus it was that Pilgrim, using the mind to question the mind, deliberated with himself and thereby gained control of himself. Leaping up, he mounted the auspicious cloud and went straight before the South Heaven Gate. As he raised his head, he was suddenly met by the Devarāja Virūpākṣa, who bowed low and said to him, “Where is the Great Sage going?” “I must have an audience with the
Jade Emperor,” said Pilgrim. “What are you doing here?” Virūpāka said, “Today
it’s my turn to patrol the South Heaven Gate.” Hardly had he finished speaking when Ma, Zhao, Wen, and Guan, the four grand marshals, all appeared and greeted Pilgrim, saying, “Great Sage, we are sorry that we have not come to meet you. Please have some tea with us.” “But I’m busy,” said Pilgrim, whereupon he took leave of Virūpākṣa and the four grand marshals and went inside the South Heaven Gate. When he arrived before the Hall of Divine Mists, he ran into Zhang Daoling, Immortal Ge, Xu Jingyang, Qiu Hongzhi, the six officers of the Southern Dipper, and the seven heads of the Northern Dipper. Meeting Pilgrim before the hall, they all raised their heads to greet him, saying, “Why has the Great Sage come here?” Immediately thereafter, they asked again, “Have you perfected the merit of accompanying the Tang Monk?” “It’s still too early! It’s still too early!” said Pilgrim. “With so large a distance and so many demons, we have managed to accomplish only half the merit. Right now we are stranded in the Golden Helmet Cave of the Golden Helmet Mountain, where a bovine monster has Master Tang captured in the cave. Old Monkey found the way to his door and fought with him, but that fellow had such vast magic powers that he managed to rob old Monkey of his golden-hooped rod. That’s why it is so difficult to arrest that demon king. I suspect that he has to be some evil star from the Region Above who has descended to Earth out of longing for the world, but I really don’t know what sort of demon he is or where he comes from. For this reason old Monkey came to seek the Jade Emperor and to charge him with the offense of not keeping his household under control.” “This ape head,” chuckled Xu Jingyang, “is still so mischievous!” “I’m not being mischievous,” said Pilgrim. “It’s just that old Monkey has been inquisitive all his life, and that’s how he finds things out.” “No need to talk further,” said Zhang Daoling, “let’s announce his arrival for him.” “Thank you! Thank you!” said Pilgrim.
The four Celestial Masters indeed went into Divine Mists to make the announcement and led Pilgrim to have an audience with the Jade Emperor. Bowing deeply to the throne, Pilgrim said, “Venerable Sir, I’m sorry to have troubled you! I’m sorry to have troubled you. Since old Monkey began to accompany the Tang Monk to acquire scriptures in the Western Heaven, our journey has encountered more misfortune than good luck. But that goes without saying, I suppose! Right now a bovine monster has captured the Tang Monk in the Golden Helmet Cave of the Golden Helmet Mountain, and I don’t know whether my master will be steamed, cooked, or sun-dried. Old Monkey found the way to his door and fought with the fiend, who seemed to recognize old Monkey vaguely. His magic powers, however, are great indeed; he even managed to rob old Monkey of his golden-hooped rod, thus making it difficult for me to seize any monster. I have a suspicion that this monster is an evil star from Heaven, who descended to the Region Below out of longing for the world. For this reason old Monkey came especially to memorialize to you. I beg the Celestial Worthy in his compassion to grant me my request. Please issue a decree to find out the identity of the evil star and to send troops to arrest this demon. Old Monkey makes this request with the utmost fear and trembling.” Bowing deeply again, he said, “Such is my petition to be made known.”
On one side, Immortal Ge chuckled and said, “How is it that our ape behaves so haughtily at first and so humbly afterwards?” “How should I dare?” asked Pilgrim. “I’m not acting haughtily at first and humbly afterwards, but right now I’m a monkey who has no rod to play with.”2
When the Jade Emperor heard this memorial, he at once gave a decree to the Kehan Bureau,3 saying, “In accordance with the memorial of Wukong, conduct an investigation among all the stars and planets of various Heavens and among all the divine kings of the various galaxies to see if anyone has been led to leave the Region Above out of longing for the world. Return to make your report as soon as you have fulfilled the decree. Such is our statement to be made known.”
The adept Perfected Lord Kehan received the decree and went at once with the Great Sage to conduct this investigation. They first examined the various officials under the command of the devarājas of the four Heaven Gates; next, they examined the various realized immortals, young and old, among the Three Forbidden Enclosures;4 then they checked through Tao, Zhang, Xin, Deng, Gou, Bi, Pang, and Liu, the thunder deities; and finally, they searched through all thirty-three Heavens, but no disturbance was found in any of them. They then examined the twenty-eight lunar mansions: the seven mansions of the East containing the constellations Citrā, Niṣṭyā, Viśākhā, Anurādhā, Bāhu,5 Mūlabarhaṇī, and Pūrva-Aṣādhā; the seven mansions of the West6 containing the constellations Uttara-Aṣādhā, Abhijit, Śravaṇā, Śraviṣṭha, Śatabhiṣā, PūrvaProsṭḥapada, and Uttara-Proṣṭhapada. What they found was that all of these mansions, including those of the North seven mansions and South seven mansions, were peaceful and quiet. They then examined the Sun, the Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn—the Seven Regulators—together with Rahu, Ketu, Qi, and Bo, the four Stars of Excesses. Of all the stars and planets in Heaven, there was not a single one who left for the Region Below out of longing for the world. “Since this is the case,” said Pilgrim, “old Monkey has no need to return to the Hall of Divine Mists. After all, it’s not good to disturb the Jade Emperor once again. You may go back to make your report, and I’ll wait here to see if there is any further message for me.” The adept Perfected Lord Kehan agreed. As Pilgrim Sun waited there, he composed a poem to record his impressions. The poem says:
Clear wind and fair clouds make felicity;
Quiet gods and bright stars show propitious signs.
The cosmos at peace, Earth and Heaven prosper.
At all five quarters arms and banners recline.
After having made a thorough search everywhere, the adept Perfected Lord and Master of the Kehan Bureau returned to report to the Jade Emperor with this memorial: “None is missing among the stars and mansions of Heaven; the divine warriors of all quarters are present. There is no one who has left for the Region Below out of longing for the world.” When the Jade Emperor heard this, he gave the order: “Let Wukong select a few celestial warriors to help him to capture the demon in the Region Below.”
The four Celestial Masters, having received this decree, went out of the Treasure Hall of Divine Mists and said to Pilgrim, “O Great Sage, since there is no god in the Celestial Palace who longs for the world, the Jade Emperor in his great mercy has asked you to select a few divine warriors instead to help you capture the demon.” Bowing his head, Pilgrim thought to himself, “Those warriors in Heaven whose abilities are not as good as old Monkey’s are plentiful, but those just as good are few. Remember when I caused great havoc in the Celestial Palace: the Jade Emperor sent out one hundred thousand Heaven soldiers with cosmic nets, but there is not a single person who could stand up to me. They found my match only when they called up the Little Sage Erlang. Now this fiend has abilities as strong as old Monkey’s. How could we prevail against him?”
Perceiving the meaning of his silence, Xu Jingyang said, “This time is not quite the same as last time! As the proverb says, ‘One thing will vanquish specifically another.’ You can’t quite disobey the decree, can you? Use your judgment and select your celestial warriors. Don’t allow your hesitation to cause unnecessary blunder.” “In that case,” said Pilgrim, “I am grateful for the imperial favor. Indeed, I do not want to disobey the decree, nor does old Monkey wish to make this trip in vain. Let me trouble Jingyang to report to the Jade Emperor that I would like to be accompanied by Devarāja Li, the Pagoda Bearer, and Prince Naṭa. They have quite a few weapons designed to capture fiends. Let us go down below to do battle once with that fiend and see how things stand. If we manage to capture him, it will be the luck of old Monkey; if not, we can then decide what to do next.”
And so that Celestial Master made the report to the Jade Emperor, who gave an order at once for Devarāja Li, father and son, to lead an army of celestial soldiers to assist Pilgrim. The devarāja accepted the order and came to meet Pilgrim, who said again to the Celestial Master, “I cannot thank the Jade Emperor enough for sending along the devarāja. There’s one more request which I must trouble you to make known for me: we need the service of two thunder squires. When the devarājas fight with that demon, the thunder squires stationed at the edge of the clouds can aim their thunderbolts at the crown of his head. Isn’t that a good plan for killing the monster?” “Marvelous! Marvelous! Marvelous!” said the Celestial Master, laughing, and he indeed presented this plan to the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor issued another decree to the Mansion of Ninefold Heaven, where Deng Hua and Zhang Fan, the two thunder squires, were ordered to assist the devarāja in capturing the monster. They therefore went out of the South Heaven Gate with the devarāja and the Great Sage Sun.
In a moment they arrived at their destination. “This mountain,” said Pilgrim, “is the Golden Helmet Mountain, and the Golden Helmet Cave is right in the middle. Please decide among yourselves which of you will go there to provoke battle first.” Lowering the direction of his cloud, Devarāja Li ordered the celestial soldiers to pitch camp on the south slope of the mountain. “The Great Sage,” he said, “has always known that my son Naṭa once subdued the demons of ninety-six caves. Most adroit in transformations, he carries with him many weapons for the subjugation of fiends. Let him go into battle first.” “In that case,” said Pilgrim, “let old Monkey be the prince’s guide.”
Rousing his heroic powers, that prince leaped with the Great Sage into the tall mountain and arrived at the cave’s entrance. They found the door tightly shut and not a single spirit below the rocky ledge. Walking forward, Pilgrim shouted: “Brazen demon, open the door quickly! Return my master!” The little fiends standing guard at the doors inside the cave hurriedly made the report: “Great King, Pilgrim Sun is leading a boy to provoke battle in front of our door.” “The iron rod of the monkey,” said the demon king, “was taken by me. Since he can’t fight with empty hands, he must have gotten help now. Fetch my weapon!” Gripping the lance in his hands, the demon king walked out the door to have a look: he found a little boy with rare and refined features and who had a sturdy build. Truly
His coy, jadelike face is like a full moon;
Ruddy lips and square mouth show silver teeth.
Protrusive eyeballs give lightning-like gaze;
Bangs crowd his broad forehead like gathered mists.
His sash like flying flames dances in the wind;
Sunlit, his brocade robe sheds golden blooms.
Brilliant straps hold up his heart-guarding disk;
Lustrous armor matches his battle boots.
Though small of body, his voice rings loud and strong:
This faith-defender, fierce Naṭa of Three Heav’ns.
With a laugh the demon king said, “You are the third child of Devarāja Li who bears the name Prince Naṭa. Why are you clamoring at my door?” “Because of the disorder perpetrated by you, brazen demon!” said the prince. “So you seek to imprison and harm the holy monk from the Land of the East. By the golden decree of the Jade Emperor, I have come especially to arrest you.” Growing very angry, the demon king said, “You must have been asked by Sun Wukong to come here. I’m the evil star of that Tang Monk, all right! But what sort of martial skill does a small boy like you possess that you dare mouth such arrogant words? Don’t run away! Have a taste of my lance!”
Wielding his fiend-cutting sword, the prince met him head-on. As the two of them joined hands and began their contest, the Great Sage dashed past the mountain slope and cried out: “Thunder squires, where are you? Get down there quickly and aim your thunderbolts at the demon. Help the prince to subdue him.” Treading on the cloudy luminosity, Deng and Zhang, the two squires, were just about to attack when they saw the prince resorting to magic. Shaking his body, he changed himself into someone with three heads and six arms holding six kinds of weapons to attack the demon. The demon king also changed himself into someone with three heads and six arms, using three long lances to defend himself. Exercising his fiend-routing power even further, the prince tossed his six weapons in the air. “Which six weapons are these?” you ask. They are a monster-cleaving sword, a monster-slashing scimitar, a monster-binding rope, a monster-taming club, an embroidered ball, and a fiery wheel. “Change!” he roared, and the weapons changed into hundreds and thousands. Like a thundershower and a sleet storm, these weapons rained down on the head of the demon. Not the least bit daunted, the demon king took out with one hand that somber white fillet. He tossed it into the air, crying, “Hit!” With a loud whoosh, the six weapons were all sucked away by it. In desperation Prince Naṭa fled for his life with empty hands, while the demon king turned back in triumph.
In midair Deng and Zheng, the two thunder squires, smiled nervously to themselves and said, “It was a good thing that we looked over the situation first and didn’t release the thunderbolts immediately. If they had been sucked away by him, how could we go back to face the Celestial Worthy?” Lowering the direction of their clouds, the two squires went with the prince to the southern slope and said to Devarāja Li, “That demon indeed has vast magic powers!” Giggling, Wukong said on one side, “His powers are only so-so, but that fillet of his is formidable. I wonder what kind of treasure it is that can suck away things like that.”
“This Great Sage is not very mature!” grumbled Naṭa angrily. “We have lost our weapons and we have fled in defeat—we are sorely distressed all because of you. And you are giggling there instead! Why?” “You speak of being distressed,” said Pilgrim, “you think old Monkey in the last analysis is not distressed? But I have neither plan nor alternative at the moment. I can’t cry, and that’s why I am giggling!” The devarāja asked, “How are we going to bring this to an end?” “You may discuss the matter some more,” said Pilgrim, “but one thing is certain: whatever object cannot be sucked away by that fillet will be able to seize that fiend.” “Only water and fire can resist being sucked away,” said the devarāja, “for as the proverb says, ‘Water and fire are ruthless.’”
When he heard this, Pilgrim said, “You may be right! Sit and wait here. Let old Monkey make another trip to Heaven.” “What for?” asked Deng and Zhang, the two squires. Pilgrim said, “When old Monkey gets there, he will not memorialize to the Jade Emperor. I will only go to the Red Aura Palace inside the South Heaven Gate and ask Mars, the Star of Fiery Virtue, to come here and start a fire to burn up that fiend. Perhaps the fillet, too, will be reduced to ashes, and then the demon will be arrested. First, we will be able to recover your weapons for you to take back to Heaven, and second, we will rescue my master from his ordeal.” When the prince heard these words, he was delighted and said, “No need for further delay. Let the Great Sage go and come back quickly. All of us will wait for you here.”
Mounting the auspicious luminosity, Pilgrim again went before the South Heaven Gate. Virūpāksa and the four marshals met him, saying, “Why has the Great Sage come here again?” Pilgrim said, “Devarāja Li told the prince to fight, but they only did battle once when his weapons were snatched away by that demon king. Now I want to go to the Red Aura Palace and request assistance from the Star of Fiery Virtue.” Not daring to detain him, the four marshals permitted him to enter the gate. When he reached the Red Aura Palace, the deities of the Fire Department went inside to make the report: “Sun Wukong wishes to see our lord.” The Third Pneuma of the South, the Star of Fiery Virtue, at once straightened his clothes and went out of his gates to meet his visitor. Then he said, “Yesterday Kehan Bureau inspected this humble palace, but there’s no one here who longs for the world.” “I know that,” said Pilgrim, “but Devarāja Li and the prince have lost their first battle and their weapons. I came especially to ask you to give us some help.” The Star said, “Naṭa happens to be the great god presiding over the Grand Assembly of Three Platforms.7 When he embarked on his official career, he once subdued the demons of ninety-six caves. If he with his vast magic powers could not do the job, how could this humble deity hope to assist you?” Pilgrim said, “I discussed the matter with Devarāja Li, and both of us thought that the most effective elements between Heaven and Earth are water and fire. That fiend has a fillet most capable of sucking away the possessions of others. We have no idea what sort of treasure it is. Since we know, however, that fire can destroy virtually everything, I have come to ask you to go to the Region Below and start a fire to burn up the demon and save my master from this one ordeal.”
When he heard this, the Star of Fiery Virtue immediately called up the divine soldiers of his department and went with Pilgrim to the south slope of the Golden Helmet Mountain. After they greeted the devarāja and the thunder squires, the devarāja said, “Great Sage Sun, you must go again to provoke that fellow to come out. Let me fight with him; when he takes out his fillet, I’ll move out of the way and ask Fiery Virtue to burn him.” “Exactly,” said Pilgrim, chuckling. “I’ll go with you.” They left to provoke battle, while Fiery Virtue stood on the tall peak with the prince and the two thunder squires.
When he reached the entrance of the cave, the Great Sage shouted: “Open the door! Return my master quickly!” The little fiends again hurried inside to report: “Sun Wukong is here once more!” The demon led his troops out of the cave to say to Pilgrim, “You brazen ape! What sort of help have you acquired this time?” From this side the Pagoda Bearer Devarāja stepped forward, crying, “Lawless demon! You recognize me?” “Devarāja Li,” said the demon king with a laugh, “you want to exact vengeance for your son, I suppose, and you want to recover your weapons?” “For one thing I want to exact vengeance,” said the devarāja, “and for another I want to arrest you so that we can rescue the Tang Monk. Don’t run away! Have a taste of my scimitar!” Stepping aside to dodge the blow, the fiendish creature lifted his long lance and turned to meet his opponent. In front of the cave the two of them had quite a battle! Look at the
Devarāja’s scimitar slashing;
The fiend’s lance upraised;
The scimitar slashes and frosty light emits bright flames;
The lance rises and the will to fight pierces doleful clouds.
One is the fiendish creature reared in the Golden Helmet Mountain;
One is the deity sent from the Divine Mists Hall.
That one for mocking Chan nature unleashes his power;
This one, to lift the master’s ordeal, shows the great relation.
Using magic the devarāja lets fly sand and stone;
Striving to win the fiend sprays mud and dirt.
Spraying dirt can darken Heaven and Earth;
Flying sand may becloud rivers and seas.
The two work hard to make a merit
Because the Tang Monk bows to the World-Honored One.
When the Great Sage Sun saw the two of them had begun to fight, he turned at once and leaped up to the tall summit and said to the Star of Fiery Virtue, “Take care, Third Pneuma!” Look at them! The demon fought the devarāja for some time, and in the heat of the battle, he again took out the fillet. When the devarāja saw it, he at once turned his auspicious luminosity around and fled in defeat. On the tall summit the Star of Fiery Virtue quickly gave the command for the various gods of his department to start the fire. It was some fire, all right! Marvelous!
The classic says:
“The South is the spirit of fire.”
A few tiny sparks
Can burn up ten thousand acres,
For the power of the Third Pneuma
Can change into a hundred-point fire.
Now there are fire lances,
Fire scimitars,
Fire bows,
And fire arrows—
Such the gods of sundry bureaus
Use in different fashions.
You see in midair
Fire crows flying and cawing;
And all over the mount
Fire steeds swiftly galloping.
Red rats in pairs—
Fire dragons in twos—
Red rats in pairs throw out mighty flames
And ten thousand miles are reddened;
Fire dragons in twos belch thick smoke
And every corner turns black.
Fire carts are pushed out;
Fire gourds are opened.
Fire banners wave on a skyful of mists;
Fire rods stir up an earthful of blaze.
Why speak of Ning Qi8 whipping the ox?
This is more fierce than Mr. Zhou at Red Cliff .9
This is a Heaven, not a worldly fire—truly awesome.
Crackling and roaring it’s a holocaust.
When the demon saw the fire coming, he was not in the least afraid. He tossed the fillet in the air and with a loud whoosh, it sucked away all those fire dragons, fire horses, fire crows, fire rats, fire bows, and fire arrows. Then he turned toward his cave and went back in triumph.
The only thing left in the Star of Fiery Virtue’s clutch was a banner, which he used to recall all his warriors to join the devarāja and his followers. As they sat down in the south slope of the mountain, the Star said to Pilgrim, “O Great Sage, truly one seldom sees a vicious demon like this one! Now I’ve lost my fire gear. What shall I do?” “No need to grumble,” said Pilgrim with a smile. “All of you, please take a seat for awhile. Old Monkey will make another trip.” “Where are you going this time?” asked the devarāja, and Pilgrim said, “If that fiendish creature is not afraid of fire, he must be afraid of water. The proverb says, ‘Water can overcome fire.’ Let old Monkey go to the Northern Heaven Gate and ask the Star of Watery Virtue to let loose his water and flood the cave. When that demon king is drowned, I’ll get back your possessions.” “Though this is a good plan,” said the devarāja, “I fear that your master, too, will be drowned.” “Don’t worry,” said Pilgrim. “If my master is drowned, I have a way to revive him. But if I cause you all any further inconvenience, it will not be proper.” “In that case,” said Fiery Virtue, “please go! Please go!”
Dear Great Sage! Again he mounted the cloud somersault and went before the North Heaven Gate, where he ran at once into the Devarāja Vaiśravaṇa. “Where is the Great Sage Sun going?” asked the devarāja, bowing. Pilgrim said, “I must enter the Dark Vastness Palace and see the Star of Watery Virtue on a certain
matter. What are you doing here?” Vaiśravaṇa replied, “Today happens to be my
turn to patrol the gate.” As they spoke, the four grand marshals—Pang, Liu, Gou, and Bi—all came forward to greet Pilgrim and invited him to have tea with them. “Don’t trouble yourselves!” said Pilgrim. “My affair’s most urgent.” Taking leave of the deities, he went straight up to the Dark Vastness Palace and asked the deities of the water department to announce him. When the Star of Watery Virtue heard the announcement that the Great Sage Sun Wukong had arrived, he at once commanded that the four seas, the five lakes, the eight rivers, the four great rivers, the three mighty streams, and the nine tributaries be thoroughly searched. The dragon kings at these places were also asked to retire. He then straightened out his clothes to walk out of the palace door to greet his visitor. As they walked back into the palace, the Star said, “Yesterday, Kehan Bureau came to inspect our humble palace, for he feared that some god in this department might have longed for the world. We are still making a thorough investigation of the gods of rivers and seas, and it’s not finished yet.”
“That demon king isn’t a god of the rivers,” said Pilgrim, “but a much more powerful spirit. At first the Jade Emperor was kind enough to send Devarāja Li, his son, and two thunder squires to try to arrest him down below. He came up with his fillet and six divine weapons were sucked away. Old Monkey had no other choice but to go to the Red Aura Palace and ask the Star of Fiery Virtue to start a fire with the various gods of his department. Once more, the fillet sucked away the fire dragons, the fire horses, and the like. I thought that if this thing was not afraid of fire, it had to be afraid of water. I have come, therefore, especially to ask the Star to unleash your water power, capture that monsterspirit for us, and recover the weapons for the Heaven warriors. The ordeal of my master will also be lifted.”
When Watery Virtue heard this, he at once gave this order to the Divine King Water Lord of the Yellow River: “Follow the Great Sage and give him assistance.” Taking out a small white jade chalice from his sleeve, Water Lord said, “I have something here to hold water.” “Look at that!” said Pilgrim. “How much can this small chalice hold? How could it drown the demon?” “To tell you the truth, Great Sage,” said Water Lord, “this chalice of mine contains the water of the Yellow River. Half a chalice means half a river, and one whole chalice will hold an entire river.” Delighted, Pilgrim said, “Half a chalice is quite enough!” He took leave of Watery Virtue at once and slipped away from the Heaven arches with the Yellow River God.
After he had bailed out half of the Yellow River’s water with his chalice, Water Lord followed the Great Sage to the Golden Helmet Mountain, where they met the devarāja, the prince, the thunder squires, and Fiery Virtue. “No need for going into the details,” said Pilgrim. “Just let Water Lord follow me there and let me command the fiend to open the door. Don’t wait for him to come out. You just pour the water into the cave and the whole nest of that fiend will be drowned. I’ll go and fish out the corpse of my master, and there’ll be lots of time to revive him.” Water Lord agreed and walked right behind Pilgrim, who went around the slope to go up to the cave entrance. “Fiend, open the door!” he cried. Those little fiends standing guard at the door recognized that it was the voice of the Great Sage Sun and they hurried inside to report: “Sun Wukong is here again.”
When the demon heard this, he picked up his treasure and his long lance and began to walk out. The stone door opened with a crash and Water Lord immediately emptied the content of his white jade chalice toward the inside of the cave. When he saw the water rushing in, the fiend dropped his long lance and took out the fillet, holding it high at the second door. Not only was the water blocked right there, but it reversed its course and gushed back out of the cave. So startled was the Great Sage Sun that he somersaulted immediately into the air and, together with Water Lord, leaped up to the tallest peak. The other deities also mounted the clouds to follow them; they all stood on the peak to watch the water swelling to tremendous height and force. Marvelous water! Truly
One spoonful of it
Will make it unfathomable;10
For when it’s propelled by divine force,
It benefits all things and flows to swell a hundred streams.
You hear its loud splashes rocking the valley;
You see its giant crest surging up to Heaven.
Its mighty roar seems like thunder rumbling;
Its violent waves seem like summit-snow swirling.
Billows, a thousand feet tall, cover the roadways;
Ripples, ten-thousand-layered, surge o’er the peaks.
Gurgling, like spilled jade;11
Clanging, like plucked strings.
Hitting the rocks, it foams like chips of jade tossed high;
Rounding the curves, it breaks out in eddies unending.
It flows through the lowlands and depressions,
Filling up brooklets and joining both their reaches.
Alarmed by what he saw, Pilgrim said, “That’s bad! The water is flooding the rice fields of people everywhere, but it hasn’t even touched the inside of his cave. What shall we do?” He asked Water Lord to retrieve the water at once, but Water Lord said, “Your humble deity only knows how to let loose the water but he doesn’t know how to retrieve it.” As the proverb says, “Water thrown out cannot be retrieved.” Ah! Fortunately, that mountain was rather tall and rugged, so that all the water flowed swiftly downward. In a moment, it drained into all the brooks and ravines and disappeared.
A few little fiends leaped out of the cave afterwards, and when they saw that the water had receded, they began to play there happily—shouting and hollering, boxing with their fists, and wielding their rods and lances. “So this water never reached the inside of the cave,” said the devarāja, “and all our efforts have been vain!” Pilgrim could not restrain the anger flaring up in his heart; wielding both his fists, he dashed up to the door of the demon and shouted: “Don’t run away! Watch out for a beating!” These several little fiends were so terrified that they all dropped their rods and lances to dash into the cave. Trembling all over, they made the report: “Great King, it’s terrible! He’s going to give us a beating!” Holding high his long lance, the demon king went out of the door to meet his adversary, saying, “This brazen ape is such a rascal! You have lost to me several times, and not even your water or fire can touch me. Why is it that you have still come to give up your life?” “My son is twisting the facts!” said Pilgrim. “I don’t know whether I’m the one who will give up my life, or whether you are the one! Come over here and have a taste of your old Grandpa’s fists!” “This monkey is desperately forcing the issue!” said the demon with a chuckle. “I’m using the lance, but he is using only his fists. That pair of hands is nothing but skin and bones, and no bigger than walnut pits! How could you call them ‘pounders’? All right! All right! I’ll put down my lance and box with you.” Laughing, Pilgrim replied, “That’s the way to speak! Come up here!”
Hitching up his clothes and walking forward, the fiend assumed a boxing posture; his two fists upraised looked truly like two iron sledge hammers. Our Great Sage also loosened his legs at once and moved his body to attack; right before the cave entrance, he began to box with the demon king. This was quite a fight! Aha!
The four limbs are stretched out;
The double-kicking feet fly up.
They pound the ribs and chests;
They stab at galls and hearts.
“The Immortal Pointing the Way”;12
“Laozi Riding the Crane”;
“A Hungry Tiger Pouncing on the Prey” is most hurtful;
“A Dragon Playing with Water” is quite vicious.
The demon king uses a “Serpent Turning Around”;
The Great Sage employs a “Deer Letting Loose its Horns.”
The dragon plunges to Earth with heels upturned;
The wrist twists around to seize Heaven’s bag.
A green lion’s open-mouthed lunge;
A carp’s snapped-back flip.
Sprinkling flowers over the head;
Tying a rope around the waist;
A fan moving with the wind;
The rain driving down the flowers.
The monster-spirit then uses the “Guanyin Palm,”
And Pilgrim counters with the “Arhat Feet.”
The long punch, stretching, is more slack, of course.
How could it compare with the short, sharp jabs?
The two of them fought for many rounds—
None was the stronger, for they’re e’enly matched.
As the two of them boxed in front of the cave entrance, those standing high on the peak were so thrilled by the spectacle that Devarāja Li shouted bravos and the Star of Fiery Virtue clapped his hands in acclaim. Then the two thunder squires and Prince Naṭa led the other deities in rushing forward and tried to help their colleague. On the other side, the little monsters immediately surged forward also to cover their master, waving banners and beating drums, wielding swords and brandishing scimitars. When the Great Sage saw that the situation might turn against him, he yanked off a handful of hairs from his own body and tossed them into the air, crying, “Change!” At once they changed into some fifty little monkeys, who swarmed all over the demon—grabbing his legs, tugging at his torso, gouging his eyes, and pulling at his hair. The fiendish creature became so alarmed that he immediately took out his fillet. When the Great Sage and his companions saw that object, they mounted the clouds at once and fled toward the tall summit. Tossing the fillet up into the air, the fiend changed those fifty monkeys back into their true forms and then they were sucked away again with a loud whoosh. After he had gained this victory, the fiend led his troops back to his cave, closed the door, and celebrated.
“The Great Sage Sun is still a marvelous fighter!” said the prince. “The way you box, it’s truly like adding flowers to the embroidery, and the way you use your body-division magic is indeed the display of nobility before others.” “As you watched from afar,” said Pilgrim, smiling, “how did the abilities of the fiend compare with old Monkey’s?” “His punches were slack,” said Devarāja Li, “and his kicks were slow; he certainly could not match the Great Sage for his speed and tightness. He was quite flustered already by the sight of our arrival, and when he saw your magic of body-division, he grew even more desperate and resorted to his fillet.”
“It’s simple to deal with the demon king,” said Pilgrim, “but it’s difficult to overcome that fillet.”
Both Fiery Virtue and Water Lord said together, “If we want to win, we must acquire his treasure first before we try to arrest him.” “How could we acquire his treasure,” asked Pilgrim, “unless we try to steal it?”
“If we want to practice the ritual of stealing,” said a thunder squire, chuckling, “there is no one more able than the Great Sage. Remember that year when you caused great havoc in Heaven, how you stole imperial wine, immortal peaches, dragon’s liver, phoenix’s marrow, and the elixir of Laozi? What a talent that was! Today is the time to put that to use again.” “Thanks for the compliment!” said Pilgrim. “Thanks for the compliment! If that’s what you think we should do, take a seat here and let old Monkey go to make some investigation.”
Dear Great Sage! He leaped down from the peak and crept up to the cave entrance; with one shake of his body he changed himself into a tiny fly. Truly graceful! Look at him!
His wings thin as skin of bamboo;
A body small like a flower’s heart.
His arms and his legs just thicker than hairs;
Beady eyes both shining and bright.
Good at chasing scent and fragrance,
He flies swiftly riding the wind.
His frame barely pulls down the steelyard weight;
So cute he’s even of some use.13
Ever so lightly he flew up to the door and crawled inside through a crack. There he found many fiends, young and old; some were singing and dancing, while others stood in rows on both sides. Sitting high on his throne was the old demon king, and before him were placed dishes of serpent meat, venison, bearpaw, camel-hump, mountain vegetables, and fruits. There were wine pots made of blue porcelain, from which came fragrant goat’s milk and coconut wine. In big bowlfuls he and his other fiends were drinking with abandon. Dropping down into the crowd of little fiends, Pilgrim at once changed into a badger-head spirit and inched his way toward the throne of the demon king. He looked everywhere for a long time, but he could not discover where the treasure was placed. Dashing behind the throne, he found the fire dragons and fire horses hung up high in the rear hall, all whining and neighing. As he raised his head, he suddenly saw his own golden-hooped rod leaning against the east wall. So delighted was he by this discovery that he even forgot about changing into his true form before running forward to seize his iron rod. Only after he had picked it up did he reveal his original form and fought his way out with his rod. All those fiends were terrified, while the old demon king was caught completely off guard. Thus Pilgrim was able to push down three monsters on one side and bring down two on the other; opening up a bloody path, he went directly out of the cave. So it is that
The demon, so arrogant, lets down his guard;
The lordly staff returns to the rightful man.
We don’t know whether good or evil will befall him; let’s listen to the explanation in the next chapter.