Brief Synopsis

The main story is told in 4 different chapters/sections. The first being the introduction of Wu Kong, who is born from a large stone-egg like thing on the coast. He is irrepressible and became one of the ‘rejects’ of the monkey gangs. They came across an enormous waterfall and everyone was scared to go through, everyone except for Wu Kong. Wu Kong makes it across and becomes the new Monkey King. Wu Kong believed that he needed more skills and he visits the monk “Immortal” and is taught martial arts, “qi” (or Ki in Japanese, pronounced “Chi”) and is taught discipline. Wu Kong and his followers were always afraid of dying so he works up a lot of trouble in the mortal world, enough trouble that the Kind of the Dead, Yan Wang (translated into the Death King, and King Yemma in Dragonball), comes and imprisons him in hell. Taking the opportunity he escapes from the chains and erased the name of every monkey from his register book. When he is visiting the Dragon King of the Western Seas, he spots the fabled “Jing Gu Bang” or the “Golden Pole” (translated), which forged the universe eons ago. The Dragon King believes that Wu Kong wouldn’t be able to lift it so he tells him if he could lift it he could keep it. Wu Kong effortlessly picks it up and leaves with his new weapon. The Yan Wang and the Western Dragon King complains the Emperor of the Heavens and sends his best fighters down to teach him a lesson. Thanks to his fighting skills, he is given a place in Heaven to quieten him down a little. Wu Kong is a very cocky and fun loving monkey and he soon gets a number of friends who live above the clouds or heaven. One day he angers the gods by stealing a fruit from the Heaven Emperor’s Peach Tree, which gives eternal life to anyone who eats it. First Wu Kong is punished by being thrown in a furnace for years but he wouldn’t die. Wu Kong escapes and tries to get back to him Monkey Kingdom but he is caught by Buddha’s hand. Wu Kong is punished by being trapped underneath a mountain for more than 500 years. Tang Seng is introduced and his quest is given. He is told that he must find his protector and companion, who will help him in his journey. He frees Wu Kong and the Guan Ying Pu Sa (Goddess of Mercy) places a golden crown is placed on his head. If he does not do what tang Seng tells him or he does a very bad deed he will experience amazing pain. Tang Seng is very anti-violence as he is a monk and he soon disowns Wu Kong because of his fighting and killing. Wu Kong returns to Tang Seng and apologizes for everything and promises that he will refrain from committing violence. When they are resting at a river, a dragon by the name of Xiao Bai Long (Small White Dragon) appears and eats Tang Seng’s horse. The female Buddha appears and turns the Dragon into a good person and a white horse so Tang Seng could continue.

The second chapter shows the beginning of their journey, and it introduces the other 2 characters. Zhu Ba Jie (or Ba Jie for short) used to be a General in Heaven. He has a major weakness for beautiful women and he makes the mistake of flirting with the Moon Princess and he is punished and he thrown into the mortal world and re-incarnated as a fat Pig Monk. The trio find Ba Jie and he joins their posse and is given a crown as well. A few days later he meet an evil Monk who guards a large river. After fighting him he joins them as Sha Seng and is given a crown as well, and the story continues…

The third chapter is the longest. It tells about all of the dangers that face their way. They face many as all the demons of the world know of Tang Seng and know that since he is the chosen holy one, anyone who would eat his flesh would become immortal. They face 81 dangers over the course of around 15 years. When they could not defeat their enemies, Wu Kong and the others seeked the help of Wu Kong’s many friends among the heavens. His main form of transportation was a cloud that followed him where ever he went. They fight a lot of demons and evil humans and escape a lot of danger and

The fourth and last chapter is simply about them reaching their destination and trying to get the bibles. They are first given fake copies, which were simply blank. Buddha transforms himself into a giant eagle and attacks them, sending the books flying and they discover they were fake. They return to his monastery and is told that it was all a test and Buddha wanted to see their reactions. They get the real copies, and they are all able to attain enlightenment and become Buddha’s. Once Wu Kong becomes a Buddha, he asks his master if he would remove his crown, and Tang replies that if Wu Kong was really enlightened it would go away by itself. Wu Kong reaches up to touch his crown and finds it is gone. The story ends with the group flying into the heavens.

Journey to the West

What is Journey to the West?
Xi You Ji also known as Journey to the West, is the story of a monk by the name of Tang Seng. During the seventh century, Tang Seng was sent from China to India by his brother the emperor to get a collection of Buddhist bibles. He faced many dangers along the way but finally reached India, returned and the ‘Jing’ or Gold (the bibles were priceless) and they currently reside in the giant Pagoda in Central Xi An, which is now open to tourists. Journey to the West isn’t the true story but it’s based on Tang Seng going from China to India in 629AD to 646AD, adding many mythical areas to the story and it has become one of the most loved stories in Chinese history. The main characters in Journey to the West are Tang Seng; “Sun Wu Kong” or “Wu Kong” for short; “Zhu Ba Jie” (mildly translates into Pig Monk); and “Sha Seng”(Sand Monk).

How does it relate to Dragonball?
This story inspired someone named Akira Toriyama to create the incredible story of Dragonball. In Journey to the West a character known as Monkey is what inspired Akira Toriyama to make Goku. This is why Goku has his tail and is able to transform into a giant monkey. Monkey also had an expanding staff and cloud that flies around. Although Goku receives his staff from his adoptive grandfather Gohan, Monkey received his from a Dragon King. Not only is Monkey’s staff made of Iron but it weighs in at 13,500 pounds. There is a cloud in the story which is where Akira got the idea but Monkey spends most of his time Walking unlike Goku.

With respect to personality, they aren’t so similar. Goku, a child, is naïve and innocent, good-hearted always wanting to help others. However, Monkey is a different matter. Clever and sly, his greatest shortcoming is his tremendous hubris. With his immense strength, he has no problem rebelling against Heaven and declaring himself, “The Great Sage Equaling Heaven.” Incidentally, this action is comparable to Satan’s revolt against God in the Bible, though it must be noted that Monkey is not evil, but instead highly arrogant and self-assured. Like most literary characters whose fatal flaw is pride, Monkey is punished for his actions. After spending five hundred years trapped beneath a mountain with nothing to eat or drink, he has a chance to redeem himself by assisting the Buddhist Priest Sanzang on his journey to the west to fetch scriptures from Buddha. In an early brush-in with bandits, Monkey kills all of them without a thought. Over the course of the journey, however, he gradually begins to restrain himself and purges himself of his intial propensity towards evil. Goku too is revealed to have a dual good/evil personality when he transforms into a rampaging, mindless, giant ape by the moon’s light. It wouldn’t be surprising if Toriyama derived that idea from Journey to the West.

The character Sanzang may seem nothing like Bulma, given that a bitchy girl and a pious monk seem to have just about nothing in common, upon closer examination, the similarities appear. First off, they’re usually the only human amongst their non-human followers. Secondly, they set off on their journey alone and recruit these non-human followers along the way. Remember that Bulma meets Goku because he has a Dragon Ball that she wants. Another trait that Bulma and Sanzang share is their helplessness. They depend on Goku and Monkey to save them every time they’re in danger. A recurring sight in Journey to the West is Monkey having to rescue a sobbing Sanzang who’s been stripped naked and tied by demons who want to gain immortality by eating his flesh. Pilaf, a villain from Dragonball who wants the Dragon Balls to take over the world, is likely to have been based on the numerous power-hungry demons from Journey to the West. Lastly, both Bulma and Sanzang are bossy and not always likable as characters. Bulma is prone to yelling, while Sanzang nags his disciples and exhorts them not to be so bad.

In both stories, a pig serves as a comic foil to the protagonist monkey. Dragonball fans will recognize this to be Oolong. Complaining, cowardly, and lazy, he is modelled closely on Pig from Journey to the West. Both are the butt of jokes, and both get their groups in trouble. To their credit, they do help out, but these occasions are few and far. Usually it’s their ability to do transformations that allow them to be of use. Pig is mightier than Oolong. With his nine-pronged rake, he’s strong enough to do battle with demons. Additionally, he’s an excellent swimmer. When Sanzang and Monkey first encounter him, he’s a monster terrorizing villagers. Oolong was doing the same when Bulma and Goku run into him. Cheng’en and Toriyama acknowledge the expression “chauvinist pig” by their portrayal of the lust of both Pig and Oolong. On several occasions, Pig is tempted by pleasures of the flesh, and he always succumbs, though it always turns out to work against him. Oolong too is boorish. Besides being a peeping tom, he has a panty fetish.

There are further examples of Journey to the West influencing Dragonball. One case for instance, is when the path to a Dragon Ball is blocked by a blazing fire. Ox King is introduced at this point. The fire and Ox King are lifted straight out of Journey to the West, except that the original character is called “Hermit Ox” who likewise has a horned helmet. To look at another example, take the Dragonball character Puar, who like Oolong, is capable of transformations. In Journey to the West, Monkey and Pig are both able to shape shift. Then there’s King Yemma. In Journey to the West and Chinese mythology, he’s one of the ten kings of hell who judge the deceased. In Dragonball, he’s the sole judge of the afterlife. It is important to realize that Toriyama did not copy Journey to the West. He was, however, noticeably influenced by it, and this influence is reflected in the characters and settings of Dragonball.