Wu Cheng-en - Journey to the West (vol. 1)

“Great Sage,” said the Star of Blessing, “even though we have no cure here, there may be one somewhere else. Why be so worried?”

“If there were anywhere else for me to go,” Monkey replied, “it would be easy. It wouldn't even matter if I had to go to the furthest corner of the ocean, or to the cliff at the end of the sky, or if I had to penetrate the Thirty-sixth Heaven. But the trouble is that the Tang Patriarch is very strict and has given me a time-limit of three days. If I'm not back in three days he'll recite the Band-tightening Spell.”

“Splendid, splendid,” laughed the three stars. “If you weren't restricted by that spell you'd go up to Heaven again.”

“Calm down, Great Sage,” said the Star of Longevity, “there's no need to worry. Although that Great Immortal is senior to us he is a friend of ours, and as we haven't visited him for a long time and would like to do you a favour we'll go and see him. We'll explain things for you and tell that Tang monk not to recite the Band-tightening Spell. We won't go away until you come back, however long you take, even if it's a lot longer that three to five days.”

“Thank you very much,” said Monkey. “May I ask you to set out now as I'm off?” With that he took his leave.

The Three Stars went off on beams of auspicious light to the Wuzhuang Temple, where all present heard cranes calling in the sky as the three of them arrived.

The void was bathed in blessed glow,

The Milky Way heavy with fragrance.

A thousand wisps of coloured mist enveloped the feather-clad ones;

A single cloud supported the immortal feet.

Green and red phoenixes circled and soared,

As the aroma in their sleeves wafted over the earth.

These dragons leant on their staffs and smiled,

And jade-white beards waved before their chests.

Their youthful faces were untroubled by sorrow,

Their majestic bodies were rich with blessing.

They carried star-chips to count their age,

And at their waists hung gourds and talismans.

Their life is infinitely long,

And they live on the Ten Continents and Three Islands.

They often come to bring blessings to mortals,

Spreading good things a hundred-fold among humans.

The glory and blessings of the universe

Come now as happiness unlimited.

As these three elders visit the Great Immortal on auspicious light,

There is no end to good fortune and peace.

“Master,” the immortal youths rushed to report when they saw them, “the Three Stars from the sea are here.” The Great Immortal Zhen Yuan, who was talking with the Tang Priest, came down the steps to welcome them when he heard this.

When Pig saw the Star of Longevity he went up and tugged at his clothes. “I haven't seen you for ages, you meat-headed old fellow,” he said with a grin. “You're getting very free and easy, turning up without a hat.” With these words he thrust his own clerical hat on the star's head, clapped his hands, and roared with laughter. “Great, great. You've been 'capped and promoted' all right.” Flinging the hat down, the Star of Longevity cursed him for a disrespectful moron.

“I'm no moron,” said Pig, but you're all slaves.”

“You're most certainly a moron,” the Star of Blessing replied, “so how dare you call us slaves?”

“If you aren't slaves then,” Pig retorted, “why do people always ask you to 'bring us long life,' 'bring us blessings,' and 'bring us a good job?'”

Sanzang shouted at Pig to go away, then quickly tidied himself up and bowed to the Three Stars. The Three Stars greeted the Great Immortal as befitted members of a younger generation, after which they all sat down. “We have not seen your illustrious countenance for a long time,” the Star of Office said, “which shows our great lack of respect. The reason we come to see you now is because the Great Sage Monkey has made trouble in your immortal temple.”

“Has Monkey been to Penglai?” the Great Immortal asked.

“Yes,” replied the Star of Longevity. “He came to our place to ask for a formula to restore the elixir tree that he killed. As we have no cure for it, he has had to go elsewhere in search of it. We are afraid that if he exceeds the three-day time-limit the holy priest has imposed, the Band-tightening Spell may be said. We have come in the first place to pay our respects and in the second to ask for an extension of the limit.”

“I won't recite it, I promise,” answered Sanzang as soon as he heard this.

As they were talking Pig came rushing in again to grab hold of the Star of Blessing and demand some fruit from him. He started to feel in the star's sleeves and rummage round his waist, pulling his clothes apart as he searched everywhere.

“What sort of behavior is that?” asked Sanzang with a smile.

“I'm not misbehaving,” said Pig. “This is what's meant by the saying, 'blessings wherever you look.'“ Sanzang shouted at him to go away again. The idiot withdrew slowly, glaring at the Star of Blessing with unwavering hatred in his eyes.

“I wasn't angry with you, you moron,” said the star, “so why do you hate me so?”

“I don't hate you,” said Pig. “This is what they call 'turning the head and seeing blessing.'“ As the idiot was going out he saw a young boy came in with four tea ladles, looking for bowls in the abbot's cell in which to put fruit and serve tea. Pig seized one of the ladles, ran to the main hall of the temple, snatched up a hand-bell, and started striking it wildly. He was enjoying himself enormously when the Great Immortal said, “This monk gets more and more disrespectful.”

“I'm not being disrespectful,” Pig replied. “I'm 'ringing in happiness for the four seasons.'”

While Pig was having his jokes and making trouble, Monkey had bounded away from Penglai by auspicious cloud and come to the magic mountain Fangzhang. This was a really wonderful place. As the poem goes,

The towering Fangzhang is another heaven,

Where gods and Immortals meet in the Palace of the Great Unity.

The purple throne illuminates the road to the Three Pure Ones,

The scent of flowers and trees drifts among the clouds.

Many a golden phoenix comes to rejoice around its flowery portals;

What makes the fields of magical mushrooms glisten like jade?

Pale peaches and purple plums are newly ripened,

Ready to give even longer life to the Immortals.

But as Monkey brought his cloud down he was in no mood to enjoy the view. As he was walking along he smelt a fragrance in the wind, heard the cry of the black stork, and saw an Immortal:

The sky was filled with radiant light,

As multicolored clouds shone and glowed.

Red phoenixes looked brighter than the flowers in their beaks;

Sweetly sang green ones as they danced in flight.

His blessings were as great as the Eastern Sea, his age that of a mountain;

Yet his face was a child's and his body was strong.

In a bottle he kept his pills of eternal youth,

And a charm for everlasting life hung from his waist.

He had often sent blessings down to mankind,

Several times saving mortals from difficulties.

He once gave longer life to Emperor Wu,

And always went to the Peach Banquets at the Jade Pool.

He taught all monks to cast off worldly fates;

His explanations of the great Way were clear as lightning.

He had crossed the seas to pay his respects,

And had seen the Buddha on the Vulture Peak.

His title was Lord Emperor of Eastern Glory,

The highest-ranked Immortal of the mists and clouds.

When Brother Monkey saw him he hailed him with the words, “I salute you, Lord Emperor.” The Lord Emperor hastened to return his greeting and say, “I should have welcomed you properly, Great Sage. May I ask you home for some tea?” He led Monkey by the hand to his palace of cowrie-shells, where there was no end of jasper pools and jade towers. They were sitting waiting for their tea when a boy appeared from behind an emerald screen. This is how he looked: