Wu Cheng-en - Journey to the West (vol. 2)

When Monkey leapt up into the sky and saw the demon leading his troops back and fastening the gates he brought his auspicious light down to land and stood on the Western slope of the mountain. “Master!” he wept aloud in his misery,

“Since being converted and becoming a monk

I've been grateful to Guanyin for ending my woes.

In escorting you West to seek the great Way

I have helped you towards the Buddha's own temple.

Who would have thought when the going looked easy

That we'd be attacked by so mighty a monster.

None of my tricks or devices succeed;

All the help I have looked for has just been in vain.”

As Monkey was in the very depths of misery a brightly-coloured cloud suddenly landed to the Southwest and the whole mountain peak was lashed with a torrential rainstorm. “Wukong,” a voice called, “do you know who I am?” Monkey hurried forward to look and this is what he saw:

Big ears, a broad jaw and a square face;

Wide shoulders, a deep chest and a fat body.

A jolly voice that was full of fun,

A pair of bright and sparkling eyes.

His clothes hung open; luck was all about him.

His straw sandals were comfortable and his spirits high.

He was the lord of the land of bliss,

The laughing monk Maitreya.

As soon as Monkey saw him he kowtowed immediately and said, “Where are you going, Lord Buddha from the East? I beg you to forgive me for failing to keep out of your way.”

“I'm here because of the demon in the Lesser Thunder Monastery,” the Buddha replied.

“I am very grateful for your great kindness, my lord,” Monkey replied. “May I ask where the demon is from and where he became an evil spirit? What sort of treasure is that pouch of his? Please tell me, my lord.”

“He was a yellow-browed page who used to strike my stone chime,” the Buddha Maitreya replied. “On the third day of the third month this year I left him looking after my palace when I went to an assembly of the Primal One. That was when he stole some of my treasures and became a spirit as an imitation Buddha. That pouch is my future heaven bag, or what's generally called a human seed bag. The wolf-tooth cudgel was originally the stick for striking the chime.”

When Monkey heard this he shouted, “You're a splendid laughing monk, I must say. By letting that boy escape you let him masquerade as a Buddha and ruin things for me. You ought to be charged with slack management of your household.”

“I was careless,” Maitreya replied. “Besides, your master and you disciples have not yet come to the end of the demons you will have to deal with. That is why every kind of spiritual creature has been coming down to earth. It's right that you should suffer. Now I'm here to capture him for you.”

“That evil spirit has very great magic powers,” Monkey replied, “and you haven't got any weapons. How can you possibly subdue him?”

“I'll make a little hut under the mountain,” said Maitreya, “where I grow fruit and melons. You challenge him to battle, lose in the fight that follows, and lure him into my melon patch. All my melons are still unripe, so you're to change into a big ripe melon. When he gets there he's bound to want a melon and I'll give you to him. Once you're in his stomach you can do what you like to him. Then I'll get his pouch and we can put him inside it.”

“It's a very good plan,” Monkey replied, “but how will you know which is the ripe melon I'll have turned into? And why should he be willing to go there after me?”

“I'm the ruler of the world,” laughed Maitreya, “and I have miraculous vision. Of course I'll know which one is you. I'd recognize you whatever you turned into. The only worry is that the demon won't come after you. I'll have to teach you some new magic.”

“But he's bound to catch me in his pouch,” Monkey replied, “not come after me. What magic power could I use?”

“Stretch your hand out,” Maitreya said. Monkey stretched out his left hand. Maitreya moistened the forefinger of his own right hand with some magic saliva, wrote “stop” on it, and told Monkey to make a fist. If he opened that hand again in the demon's face the demon would certainly come after him.

Monkey cheerfully made the fist as he had been instructed and went back to the monastery gates, brandishing his cudgel with one hand as he shouted, “Evil spirit, your lord and master Monkey's here. Come out at once and we'll see who's the champion.” When the little devils rushed inside to report the demon king asked how many soldiers Monkey had brought with him this time.

“None,” they replied. “He's here by himself.”

“That Monkey's at his wit's end and exhausted,” the demon king laughed, “and he can't get anyone else to help. He's just throwing his life away now.” Once he was in his armor again he took his treasure and his flexible wolf-tooth mace and went out through the monastery gates shouting, “You won't be able to hold out this time, Sun Wukong.”

“Damned demon,” Monkey replied abusively. “What do you mean, I won't be able to hold out?”

“Look at you,” the demon replied. “You're at your wit's end and exhausted. There's nobody else you can turn to for help. Now you're here again to try to resist me there won't be any more divine soldiers or anything like that to help you. That's why I said you wouldn't be able to hold out.”

“Fiend,” said Monkey, “you don't even know whether you want to live or to die. Stop all that talk and take this!”

Seeing that Monkey was wielding his cudgel single-handed, the demon burst out laughing: “What a clever little ape! Do you think you'll be able to hold me off by using your cudgel one-handed?”

“My dear boy,” said Monkey, “if I used both hands it would be too much for you. Even with four or five hands you wouldn't be able to beat me even if I had one hand tied behind my back. That is, as long as you didn't use that pouch of yours.”

“Very well then,” the demon king replied, “I won't use my treasure. I'll give you a straight fight and we'll see who's the best man.” With that he raised his wolf-tooth mace and attacked Monkey, who opened his clenched fist in the demon's face before wielding the cudgel in both hands. Once the demon was under the spell he put all thought of retreat out of his mind and indeed did not use his pouch, but went for Monkey with his mace. Monkey feinted then turned and fled in defeat, pursued by the evil spirit down the Western slopes of the mountain.

As soon as he saw the melon field Monkey rolled himself into a ball to go into it and turn himself into a big, ripe, sweet watermelon. The evil spirit stopped to look all around, not knowing where Monkey had gone.

He rushed over to the hut and asked, “Who's growing these melons?”

Maitreya, who had turned himself into an old melon grower, came out of the thatched hut and said, “I am, Your Majesty.”

“Have you got any ripe ones?” the demon king asked.

“Yes,” Maitreya replied.

“Pick me a ripe one then,” said the demon. “I'm thirsty.”

Maitreya then picked the melon that was Monkey transformed and handed it to the demon king respectfully with both hands. The demon king did not stop to examine it, but took it and bit into it. This was Monkey's chance to go straight down the demon's throat. Without any more ado he started hitting out and kicking, grabbing and clawing at the monster's entrails and stomach, turning somersaults, standing on his head, and doing just as he liked. The evil spirit ground his teeth and grimaced in agony, the tears flowing down his face, as he rolled around the melon field till it looked like a threshing floor.

“Stop, stop!” he shouted. “Save me, save me.”

Maitreya then reverted to his true form and said with a jolly smile, “Evil beast, do you recognize me?”