Wukong's Western Journey: The Perilous Adventures

Chapter 2: Becoming a Disciple of Patriarch Bodhi

Without realizing it, the Monkey King and his followers had already been living in the Water Curtain Cave for several hundred years. One day, while playing with the other monkeys, a sudden sadness overwhelmed him, and tears began to flow down his cheeks. Seeing him like this, the other monkeys were alarmed and asked, "Great King, why are you so sorrowful?"

The Monkey King replied, "Though I am extremely happy now, I am filled with worry about the future." The monkeys, puzzled, asked, "What is there to worry about? We live in a blessed place, free and unrestrained, with endless food. Aren't we fortunate?"

The Monkey King continued, "Although we are not under anyone's control, as we grow old and weak, the King of Hell will one day come to claim our lives. While we may not regret our time in this world, we will no longer be able to enjoy our happiness." Upon hearing this, the monkeys were overcome with sorrow and began to weep.

At that moment, a long-armed ape leaped out from the group and said, "Great King, you are truly wise to think ahead. Among all beings, only gods, Buddhas, and immortals are free from the control of the King of Hell. They can escape the cycle of life and death, living as long as the heavens and earth."

Hearing this, the Monkey King was delighted and said, "Good! Tomorrow, I will set out to find one of these three kinds of beings and learn the way to immortality so that I won't have to fear the King of Hell." The monkeys prepared a feast of fruits to send their king off on his journey.

The next day, after enjoying the fruits and wine, the Monkey King boarded a raft made of withered pine branches and sailed south towards the Southern Continent. After many days of drifting at sea, the Monkey King finally reached the shore, where he encountered a group of fishermen by the sea. He approached them, made a funny face, and scared them into fleeing in all directions. Taking advantage of the situation, the Monkey King grabbed one of them, stripped him of his clothes, and put them on himself before heading towards a nearby market.

At the market, the Monkey King tried his best to imitate human behavior while searching for immortals. But after eight or nine years in the Southern Continent, he still hadn't found any trace of an immortal. So, he set out to sea again and eventually arrived at the territory of the Western Continent.

There, he discovered a beautiful and serene mountain. As he gazed at it, he suddenly heard singing coming from within the mountain. Overjoyed, the Monkey King followed the sound and found a woodcutter.

Approaching the woodcutter, the Monkey King said loudly, "Old Immortal, this disciple greets you!" and bowed deeply. The woodcutter, startled, replied, "Oh no, I'm just a poor woodcutter. How dare I claim to be an immortal?" The Monkey King asked, "If you're not an immortal, then why are you singing songs about 'immortals and Dao'?" The woodcutter explained, "To be honest, these songs were taught to me by an immortal. He saw that I was troubled by my hard life and taught me these songs to help me find peace and tranquility. I never expected you to hear them."

The Monkey King eagerly asked the woodcutter, "Please tell me where the immortal lives. I wish to visit him."

The woodcutter replied, "He doesn't live far from here. There's a mountain nearby called Mount Spirit Platform, and on it, there's a cave called the Cave of the Three Stars. Inside lives an immortal named Patriarch Bodhi. He's the one you're looking for. Just follow this road south for seven or eight miles, and you'll reach it."

The Monkey King thanked the woodcutter and followed his directions, walking seven or eight miles until he reached a cave entrance. The cave was bathed in the light of the setting sun, flanked by pine and cypress trees, silent except for the occasional cry of a crane from within. At the entrance stood a large stone tablet with ten characters engraved on it: "Mount Spirit Platform, Cave of the Three Stars." Realizing that this was no ordinary place, the Monkey King dared not knock. Instead, he climbed a nearby pine tree and ate some pine nuts while waiting.

After a while, a boy with a refined appearance opened the gate and called out to the empty steps, "Who's causing trouble outside?"

Seeing this, the Monkey King jumped down from the tree and said, "I am a disciple seeking to learn from a master." The boy replied, "My master told me to open the door because a seeker was outside. That must be you. Follow me." The Monkey King followed the boy into the cave.

Upon meeting Patriarch Bodhi, the Monkey King knelt before him and said, "Master, this disciple greets you!" The patriarch said, "Don't be in a hurry to bow. First, tell me where you're from, and then we can talk about becoming my disciple." The Monkey King then told him about his origins. Patriarch Bodhi asked if he had parents or a name. The Monkey King said he had neither. After thinking for a moment, Patriarch Bodhi gave him the name "Sun Wukong." The Monkey King liked the name very much and happily exclaimed, "Good, good! From now on, I will be called Sun Wukong!"

After becoming a disciple, Sun Wukong spent his days with the other disciples, sweeping the courtyard, tending to flowers and trees, fetching water and firewood, and studying the teachings. Seven years passed without notice.

One day, Patriarch Bodhi said to Sun Wukong, "In the 'Dao' path, there are 360 side paths. If you study them diligently, you can attain true results. Which path would you like to learn?" Sun Wukong replied, "I will follow whatever my master teaches." So, Patriarch Bodhi said, "Then I will teach you some principles from the 'Art' path. By learning them, you can divine fortunes and predict the future." Sun Wukong asked, "Can this make me immortal?" Patriarch Bodhi replied, "No." Sun Wukong said, "Then I don't want to learn it."

Patriarch Bodhi then said, "I can teach you some principles from the 'Meditation' path. By learning them, you can concentrate on chanting sutras, studying scriptures, and understanding the ways of the world." Sun Wukong asked again, "Can this make me immortal?" Patriarch Bodhi answered, "No." Sun Wukong said, "If it can't make me immortal, I won't learn it."

This exchange repeated several times, until Patriarch Bodhi, annoyed, tapped Sun Wukong on the head three times with a ruler and said, "You don't want to learn this or that. What do you want to learn?" Then, with his hands behind his back, he closed the central door and walked away in a huff.

The other disciples, seeing that Sun Wukong had angered their master, scolded him. But Sun Wukong secretly rejoiced, as he had understood the patriarch's intent: the three taps on his head meant he should pay attention at the third watch of the night, and the hands behind the back and the closed door hinted that he should enter through the back door, where the patriarch would secretly teach him the way to immortality.

Around midnight, Sun Wukong quietly dressed and went to the back door of the patriarch's residence. Finding the door slightly ajar, he was delighted and thought, "This must be master's doing."

Sun Wukong entered through the back door, knelt beside the patriarch's bed, and waited for him to wake. After a while, Patriarch Bodhi began mumbling in his sleep. Sun Wukong, seeing that his master was awake, said, "Master, this disciple has been waiting here for a long time." The patriarch said, "You cheeky monkey, why aren't you sleeping at this hour? What are you doing here?" Sun Wukong explained the hints his master had given earlier. Seeing that Sun Wukong had deciphered his clues, the patriarch was pleased with his insight and taught him the secret of immortality. Sun Wukong knelt in gratitude and committed the secret to memory.

Three more years passed. One day, Patriarch Bodhi reminded Sun Wukong to beware of the three disasters: thunder, fire, and wind. Sun Wukong asked his master for methods to avoid these disasters, but the patriarch, noting Sun Wukong's monkey-like appearance, which was unlike that of ordinary humans, felt that such disasters were meant for ordinary people and thus did not teach him any disaster-avoidance methods. However, Sun Wukong was persistent and insisted that the patriarch teach him more skills. Reluctantly, Patriarch Bodhi taught him the art of the Seventy-Two Transformations.

One night, while chatting with his disciples in front of the Cave of the Three Stars, Patriarch Bodhi asked Sun Wukong, "Wukong, how is your cloud-somersault skill coming along?" Sun Wukong replied, "Thanks to master's guidance, I can already fly." With that, he leaped into the air, performed a somersault, and barely managed to jump five or six zhang high, flying three or four li back and forth. After watching Wukong's demonstration, Patriarch Bodhi laughed and said, "That can't be called cloud-somersaulting; at best, it's cloud-climbing."

Sun Wukong then asked his master to teach him the secret of traveling ten thousand li in a single day. Patriarch Bodhi, seeing Sun

Wukong's determination, decided to teach him the technique. After learning it, Sun Wukong could cover ten thousand li with a single leap, and he felt his power increasing day by day.

Although Patriarch Bodhi admired Sun Wukong's abilities, he knew that Sun Wukong's destiny was not in the human world. Therefore, he warned Sun Wukong never to boast about his skills or reveal his master's teachings to others. If he disobeyed, his head would explode into seven pieces. Sun Wukong gratefully promised to follow these instructions and left the mountain after bidding farewell to his master.

As Sun Wukong returned to the Water Curtain Cave, he pondered over the many adventures and challenges that awaited him, confident in the immortal skills he had acquired. With the Seventy-Two Transformations and the cloud-somersaulting technique, he knew that the King of Hell would no longer hold sway over him. From that day forward, Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, embarked on a journey that would become legendary throughout the realms.