Journey to the West

A sixteenth-century Chinese novel recounting the monk Xuanzang’s pilgrimage to India with supernatural disciples, especially the irrepressible Monkey King, Sun Wukong.

Xuanzang: A Chinese Buddhist monk whose seventh-century pilgrimage to India brought back Buddhist scriptures. The novel transforms this historical pilgrim into its central religious protagonist.
Pilgrimage: A journey to a sacred place undertaken for religious devotion or spiritual purpose. The westward quest gives the novel its overall structure and religious stakes.
Xuanzang's pilgrimage: The seventh-century journey by the monk Xuanzang from China to India to study Buddhist teachings and obtain texts. This historical expedition supplies the novel’s basic itinerary and central figure.
The Monkey King: A legendary figure based on Sun Wukong, the shape-shifting monkey warrior of Chinese literature and popular culture. The novel’s most famous disciple became an independent cultural icon.
Sun Wukong: The Monkey King, a supernatural warrior and trickster who serves as Xuanzang’s chief disciple. His rebellious energy and eventual discipline drive much of the novel’s action.
Chinese Buddhist scriptures: Buddhist texts translated into Chinese and used in the religious life of Chinese communities. Obtaining scriptures from India supplies the pilgrimage with its stated goal.
Wu Cheng'en: A Ming-dynasty writer traditionally credited with the novel Journey to the West. His name is most closely associated with the novel’s authorship, though attribution remains debated.
Journey to the West (1986 TV series): A Chinese television adaptation of Journey to the West broadcast in 1986 and 1988. Its memorable performances and imagery brought the novel to generations of television viewers.
Zhu Bajie: A pig-faced former celestial marshal who joins Xuanzang’s pilgrimage as a disciple. His appetites and cowardice provide comic counterpoint to the quest’s spiritual aims.
Demons in Journey to the West: Supernatural adversaries who obstruct the pilgrims in episodes across Journey to the West. Their attacks repeatedly test the disciples’ powers, loyalties, and self-control.

Linked from 19 pages