Volume 3: A Long Journey – Chapter 212: On Emptiness

Master Wuchao appeared only once, suddenly and without any trace of origin or destination. He handed Tang Seng a copy of the “Sutra of Multiple Minds” for no apparent reason and also recited a verse hinting at the dangers ahead. Master Wuchao possessed extraordinary powers; even the Monkey King, using his Golden Cudgel, could not touch him at all—truly a rare master.

He lived on a tree branch high in the mountains of Wusizang Country, with peculiar habits. It seemed he was there solely to wait for Tang Seng. The circumstances surrounding his presence were mysterious, making it one of the great unsolved mysteries of the Journey to the West.

With many questions in mind, they eventually reached the mountaintop. There lay a magnificent mountain, adorned with green pines, willows, flying cranes, and a variety of fragrant flowers and lush grasses, creating a vibrant scene. Below, clear waters flowed, and auspicious clouds gathered before the cliffs—clearly a realm of immortals, free from any trace of evil.

After walking a while further, they saw a hut made of twigs on a fragrant cypress tree. Birds such as the green phoenix sang from the treetops, and mountain monkeys brought fruits. Zhu Bajie joked, “This master is quite carefree!”

Hearing their voices, the man in the tree jumped down from the hut. When Wukong saw Master Wuchao, he felt a strange sensation. He couldn’t describe the master’s appearance—neither tall nor short, neither ugly nor handsome. His clothes were a mix of black, white, green, and purple, making it impossible to discern a specific color. Wukong was shocked; this was certainly no illusion but rather the result of a cultivation level beyond his understanding. With such powers, Master Wuchao clearly did not wish to reveal his true appearance. Such abilities were truly astonishing; even Buddha and Guanyin might not possess such skills.

Tang Seng felt an inexplicable sense of closeness toward Master Wuchao and dismounted to pay him respects. Master Wuchao accepted the bow calmly. When Tang Seng wanted to bow again, Master Wuchao smiled and helped him up, saying, “Holy Monk, there’s no need for this. It’s not easy to come from afar; I’m sorry for not greeting you properly.”

Wukong was puzzled by Master Wuchao’s use of the title “Holy Monk.” With his powers, if he were a Buddhist, his status should be above all three thousand Buddhas; if a Taoist, he would surely be above the Three Pure Ones. Why then was he so polite to Tang Seng?

It should be remembered that in this world, gods are ordinary, immortals are common—only the title “Holy” should not be used lightly. Wukong called himself the Great Sage on Flower-Fruit Mountain, though that was also an act of arrogance. Even the proud Erlang Shen, Yang Jian, only dared to call himself a “Little Sage.” Could it be that Tang Seng had some other extraordinary identity beyond being the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada?

Wuchao glanced at Tang Seng and then at Zhu Bajie, and exclaimed in surprise, “Are you Zhu Ganglie from Fuling Mountain? How fortunate you are to be able to travel with the holy monk!” Zhu Bajie bowed and said, “It was thanks to the guidance of Guanyin Bodhisattva that I wished to become a disciple of the holy monk to protect him on his journey to the West.” Wuchao rejoiced, “Good, good, good!”

Wukong saw that Master Wuchao recognized the name of Guanyin without showing any reaction, and knew he must already be familiar with her.

Wuchao then turned to Wukong. Wukong met his gaze, and when he saw Master Wuchao’s eyes, he felt a strange sense of dizziness. Master Wuchao nodded at Wukong but said with a smile, “I don’t recognize you.” Wukong was puzzled. He had caused quite a stir here, reaching all the way from the Heavenly Court to the netherworld. Given Master Wuchao’s abilities, it would be strange if he didn’t recognize him.

But since Master Wuchao said he didn’t recognize him, he stepped forward and bowed, saying, “I am Sun Wukong, a disciple who, guided by Guanyin Bodhisattva, aims to protect my master on his journey to the West to obtain the scriptures. It’s only natural that the master has never seen me before.” Seeing Wukong’s polite demeanor, the master simply smiled and nodded.

Tang Seng, having heard from Zhu Bajie earlier about Master Wuchao’s great powers, asked, “Does the master know how far it is to the Great Thunder Sound Temple in the West?” Master Wuchao replied, “It’s not too far, but the journey is full of hardships and truly difficult to undertake.” Tang Seng sighed, “The master is absolutely right. Though the road is long, by taking steps one by one, we can eventually reach our destination. But if we encounter demons and evil forces blocking the way, it might cause delays.”

The master said, “If you’re afraid of the harmful miasma, I have a scripture called the ‘Many-Mind Sutra.’ If you encounter danger, simply recite this sutra, and you’ll be safe from harm. Would you like to learn it?” Tang Seng had read countless scriptures in his life but had never heard of the Many-Mind Sutra. Eager to learn, he immediately knelt down and begged. The master then recited aloud, “Guanyin Bodhisattva, practicing profound prajna paramita, sees that all five aggregates are empty…” The scripture consisted of just a few hundred words and was recited in no time. Tang Seng, already having a foundation in learning scriptures, remembered it instantly without forgetting a word.

After memorizing the Many-Mind Sutra and pondering it several times, Tang Seng felt its wonders even more, and his admiration for Master Wuchao grew even further. He then asked about the journey to the West. Master Wuchao simply smiled at Wukong and said, “Emptiness is not truly empty; it is perfection!”

Wukong was struck by these words. They didn’t seem to be an answer to Tang Seng but rather seemed to be addressed to him. His name was Wukong, and he had thought that by entering Buddhism, everything—the four great elements—would become empty, and no matter how many karmic debts there were, it would all ultimately be nothing. But what Master Wuchao said seemed to suggest otherwise. Yet how could “emptiness” be “perfection”? Could he understand the meaning of “Wukong” in his own name?

Seeing that the master wasn’t answering him, Tang Seng also knew when to stop asking.

Master Wuchao instantly transformed into a beam of golden light and returned to atop Wuchao. Wukong suddenly thought of trying the secret techniques of the Mysterious Void Method. So he channeled his magical power into his eyes and looked upward, only to see the top of the fragrant cypress tree blurred and indistinct, with nothing clear to see. Wukong was greatly surprised—although his mastery of the Mysterious Void Method was not yet complete, he could still discern some clues about all things in the world; he surely wouldn’t be completely clueless.

He turned to look aside and finally realized that, unbeknownst to them, the three of them had entered a realm set up by Master Wuchao. Within this realm, many of their magical abilities were restricted. No wonder Master Wuchao concealed his whereabouts, and no wonder the desolate mountain top resembled a fairyland—Master Wuchao had already arranged everything carefully.

Wukong couldn’t help but recall the time when he went to the Sloping Moon Three-Star Cave on Lingtai Square Mountain to learn skills, which was so similar to today. Master Wuchao’s abilities seemed even greater than those of Patriarch Subhuti!

Wukong sighed. If Master Wuchao didn’t want others to know his true form, no matter how hard he tried, it would likely be in vain. So he dismissed his magic and said to Tang Seng, “Master, let’s go down the mountain.”

Tang Seng responded and mounted his horse. After walking a few miles, Wukong looked back. The fragrant cypress tree appeared very small and faint. He thought, As expected, Master Wuchao, just like Patriarch Subhuti, probably would never appear in the world again. Recalling the time he spent learning skills at the Sloping Moon Three-Star Cave, Wukong sighed deeply. In any case, he should be grateful for Subhuti’s efforts in guiding him through the conflicts between Buddhism and Taoism. Wukong remembered the scene when Patriarch Subhuti gave him his name, as if it were right before his eyes. He murmured, “Wukong, Wukong—what exactly is emptiness?”

Suddenly, he heard Master Wuchao’s voice in his ear: “The five aggregates and the four elements are all impermanent; all phenomena are emptiness!”

Hearing this voice, Wukong was overjoyed beyond description. He suddenly realized that Master Wuchao’s voice at this moment was very similar to that of Patriarch Subhuti when teaching—not only was it clear and melodious, but each word was smooth and resonant, like the sound of gold and jade echoing in his ears, reaching straight to his heart.

Wukong panicked and mistook Master Wuchao for Subhuti. So he shouted to the sky, “Master!”

Tang Seng, who was on horseback, heard Wukong’s affectionate call of “Master,” stopped his horse, and turned around to ask, “Wukong, is something wrong?” Wukong was stunned—he had called out to Subhuti, but it gave Tang Seng an advantage. He replied, “Nothing. The mountain path is steep; it’s better to hold the reins.”

After dealing with Tang Seng, Wukong carefully pondered Master Wuchao’s words, and unknowingly, many unfamiliar principles of Buddhism emerged in his mind.

The Five Aggregates and the Four Elements are both terms used by Buddhists. The Five Aggregates refer to form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness. All things in the world—what the eyes see, the ears hear, the nose smells, the body feels, and the mind thinks—along with all kinds of joys and sorrows, thoughts, and intentions within a person—belong to the Five Aggregates. The Four Elements are earth, water, fire, and wind. Earth is hard and solid, water is fluid and moist, fire is warm and dry, and wind is light and moving. All objects in the universe are composed of these four elements. The Five Aggregates are external, while the Four Elements are internal; there is no self or ego, only unity in harmony.

“The myriad phenomena” comes from the Dhammapada: “All phenomena are manifestations of a single Dharma.” The universe is boundless and vast; in comparison, all things in it are transient and illusory.

Wukong thought deeply and found that the meaning of Master Wuchao’s two sentences was not difficult to understand. Emptiness is all things; emptiness is everything. I am a spiritual and intelligent monkey. Since my previous body was destroyed, turning to ashes, even my soul that carried my essence disappeared from the world. But the Divine Monkey of Creation is immortal; even if nothing remains, I can be reborn from this universe—truly born from emptiness! My master named me Wukong, meaning that I should gradually understand cause and effect from emptiness, comprehend how phenomena arise from conditions, and thus realize true emptiness.

As Wukong thought this, a silver star flashed in his left eye, though he didn’t notice it. He felt the forces of creation within him slowly beginning to move. This movement was different from when he attained enlightenment in the three realms—it was slower, yet it carried a sense of endless continuity. With each turn, he felt his cultivation growing slowly. Wukong was overjoyed; it seemed his reasoning was correct.

Recalling the Journey to the West, Wukong had clashed with Master Wuchao because they didn’t get along, leading to a fight. Though he didn’t know the full details, he could now guess roughly what had happened. Back then, the Great Monkey King was just like him now, having just embarked on his quest. Having been imprisoned under the Five Elements Mountain for over five hundred years, his mood was naturally upset. On top of that, Guanyin Bodhisattva placed an inescapable golden hoop on him, making him even angrier. When he met Master Wuchao, he must have recognized the master’s status, which made him furious enough to wildly swing his golden staff. This act of violence was no different from a child’s tantrum. Among those with such powerful magical abilities in the universe, few besides Patriarch Subhuti could make Wukong so angry. Was it out of resentment that Subhuti hadn’t told him the truth? Anger that Subhuti hadn’t freed him from the Five Elements Mountain? Grievance that Subhuti kept secrets and didn’t teach him more powerful skills? Or was it simply a tantrum to vent his unnameable anger?

The more Wukong thought about it, the more he felt sorry for the monkey. But upon further reflection, he became full of confidence, leaped after Tang Seng, and headed ahead to scout the way.