As soon as they crossed the Black River, the master and his disciples continued their journey westward, braving frost and snow.
Before long, spring arrived once again.
As the master and disciples were enjoying the beauty of the landscape, they suddenly heard a shout so loud it seemed to come from more than ten thousand throats at once. Master Tang was so startled that he immediately pulled on the reins and refused to go any further. Trembling from head to toe, he turned to Wukong and asked:
“Do you know where that deafening noise comes from?”
A City of Strife
The Monkey King gave a great leap and soared into the air. Looking in all directions, he soon spotted a city protected by a moat.
He saw a considerable group of monks trying to push a seemingly very heavy cart up a steep slope just outside the city gates. In order to coordinate their efforts, they were chanting the name of the Powerful Bodhisattva in unison—and these were precisely the voices that had so frightened Tang Monk.
After a while, Wukong noticed two young Taoist priests emerging from the city. What was most puzzling, however, was that when the monks saw the Taoists, they began trembling with fear and redoubled their desperate efforts to get the cart into the city.
Realizing what was happening, the Monkey King murmured to himself:
“This explains everything! I had heard that somewhere along the western route there was a place where Taoism enjoys every privilege, while Buddhism is denied even the basic right to exist. I believe, unintentionally, we have stumbled upon it.”
Disguised as a Taoist
He descended from the clouds and, after shaking his body slightly, transformed himself into a wandering Taoist priest of the Absolute Truth Sect. Clutching a wooden fish and tapping it continuously, the Monkey King headed toward the spot where the monks were desperately trying to push the cart uphill.
When they saw him appear through the narrow passage leading to the foot of the slope, all of them threw themselves to the ground, saying in trembling voices:
“None of us has given in to laziness; we are still five hundred strong, and we are all trying our best to get this cart into the city.”
The Monkey King said to himself sorrowfully:
“These monks must have suffered greatly under the Taoists. They are even afraid of someone like me, who clearly doesn’t look authoritative at all. What would they do if they encountered a real Taoist? Surely they’d die of fright.”
He approached them more closely and, waving his hand reassuringly, added:
“Rise and do not be afraid. I haven’t come here to inspect your work, but rather to search for a relative.”
Mockery and Revelation
Wukong looked at them for a while, then burst out laughing.
The monks asked:
“Why don’t you keep searching for your relative instead of laughing?”
The Monkey King explained:
“Do you really want to know why I laugh like this? I laugh because, despite your age, you are as immature as children. You were born at such an unlucky time that your parents decided to abandon you before your bad fortune could affect the whole family—including your brothers and sisters. Why haven’t you followed the path of the Three Jewels or respected the teachings of Buddha? How could you give up chanting sutras and reading sacred texts? Why do you willingly serve the Taoists and accept being their slaves? It’s unbelievable that you submit to such treatment as if you were mere servants!”
Startled, the monks exclaimed:
“Are you mocking us? You must surely come from far away, otherwise you wouldn’t know nothing about what is happening here.”
Sun Wukong admitted:
“That’s true—I do come from a very distant land.”
Suddenly, the monks confessed, bursting into tears:
“The ruler who governs the fate of our city is biased and evil. He cares only for Taoists and hates Buddhists.”
Oppression Unveiled
“What causes such strange behavior?” asked the Monkey King.
“The Taoist prays for rain—the Taoist prays for rain,” they replied.
They went on to explain:
“Years ago, this region was suffering from severe drought, which had practically ruined all the farmland. Suddenly, three immortals appeared, deceived the king, and forced him to demolish our monasteries, forbidding us at the same time from returning to our hometowns. Worse still, he stripped us of all rights that we, as citizens of this kingdom, should enjoy, and handed us over as slaves to those false masters. You cannot imagine how unbearable our situation has become! Whenever a Taoist arrives here, they request an audience with the king and give the traveler a generous sum of money. But if it’s a monk, he is arrested and sent to the palace of those wretches as a mere servant—regardless of his age or whether he is a citizen of another kingdom.”
Leave a Reply