Chapter 17: Sun Wukong Wreaks Havoc on Black Wind Mountain; Guanyin Subdues the Black Bear Spirit

Now to return: the Pilgrim leaped away on a somersault cloud, and the monks of the Guanyin Monastery, great and small, together with the porters, attendants, and Daoists, all bowed toward the sky.

"Heavens!" they cried. "So it was a sacred being riding the clouds. No wonder fire could not touch him. Curse that old skin-flayer, who tried to outwit others and only ended by harming himself."

Tripitaka said, "Good sirs, rise. There is no need to curse him now.

If we can recover the cassock, all is well. But if we cannot find it, my disciple has a temper not easily managed, and I cannot say what will become of you. I fear not one of you would escape."

Hearing this, the monks trembled from head to foot and prayed to Heaven, asking only that the cassock be found so their lives might be spared. But to return to the Great Sage: he reached the clouds, twisted at the waist, and before long arrived on Black Wind Mountain.

He settled his cloud and looked carefully around. It was indeed a fine mountain, and spring was in full bloom.

Ten thousand ravines raced each other in running water; a thousand cliffs vied in splendor.
Birds sang where no man could be seen, and fallen flowers still scented the trees.
After rain, the blue walls shone with moisture; when wind came, the pines rolled open like green screens.
Grass sprang on the slopes, wildflowers opened, sheer bluffs stood high and steep;
creepers climbed, fine trees flourished, ridges rose and leveled into smooth knolls.
No hidden recluse was to be found, no woodcutter came into view;
by the stream two cranes drank, on the rocks wild monkeys ran riot.
The mountain rose in piled black shapes, towering in green and stirring with mist and light.

The Pilgrim was still admiring the view when he heard voices from the grassy slope ahead. He moved lightly and without sound, slipped beneath a cliff, and peered out. There, seated on the ground, were three demons: on the upper seat a black-clad brute, on the left a Daoist, and on the right a white-robed scholar.

They were all talking grandly of furnace-stoking, cinnabar refinement, white lead, yellow sprouts, and the crooked arts that stray beyond the true path. In the middle of it, the black-clad brute laughed and said, "The day after tomorrow is the day of my birth. You two must honor me."

The white-robed scholar said, "We come every year to wish Your Majesty long life. How could we fail to come this year?"

The black-clad brute said, "Last night I obtained a treasure called a brocade cassock. It is truly a delightful thing. Tomorrow I shall use it for my birthday feast, throw open the banquet hall, and invite the Daoist masters from every mountain to celebrate the cassock. What do you say to a feast for the cassock?"

The Daoist laughed. "Excellent, excellent, excellent. Tomorrow I will come first to pay my respects, and the day after tomorrow I will come again to the banquet."

When the Pilgrim heard the words "cassock," he took it for the treasure that had been stolen from him. Rage burst in him. He sprang out from the cliff, raised the Golden-Hooped Rod in both hands, and shouted, "You pack of thieving fiends! You stole my cassock and mean to hold a feast for it? Bring it back at once!"

With a cry of "Stop there!" he brought the staff crashing down on their heads. The black-clad brute fled in a gust of wind; the Daoist rode away on a cloud; only the white-robed scholar was struck dead by the blow.

Wukong dragged the body over to inspect it, and it proved to be a white snake demon. He simply lifted it up and smashed it into five or seven pieces, then plunged into the deep mountain to hunt for the black-clad brute.

He turned the sharp peaks, crossed the steep ridges, and there, against a sheer cliff, saw a cave rising out of the rock.

Mist and haze lay faint and deep; pines and cypresses stood in dense ranks.
Mist and haze drifted through the gate, pines and cypresses ringed the door in green.
A bridge of deadwood logs spanned the path; creepers coiled over the peak.
Birds brought red blossoms to the cloud-filled ravine; deer trod fragrant clumps up onto the stone terrace.
At the gate flowers bloomed on the hour, and wind carried their scent.
Green willows by the bank turned the orioles; pink peaches along the shore stirred the butterflies.
Though the wild place could hardly boast of itself, it outdid the scenes below the Isles of the Immortals.

At the gate he found two stone doors shut tight. Over the lintel was a slab of stone with six large characters carved across it: Black Wind Mountain, Black Wind Cave.

He raised his staff and shouted, "Open up!"

Inside, a gatekeeper demon came out and said, "Who are you, that you dare strike my immortal cave?"

Wukong cursed him. "You wretch, where do you think you are, calling this an immortal cave? Who gave you the right to use the word immortal? Go and tell that black brute to bring out the cassock he stole from your old grandfather, and I may spare the lives of your whole nest."

The little demon ran inside at once and reported, "Great King, the cassock feast is ruined. There is a monk outside with a hairy face and a thunder-god mouth, asking for the cassock."

The black-clad brute had only just returned from the grassy slope and shut the gate, not yet settled on his seat, when he heard this. He thought to himself, "This fellow must be from some strange place, so rude he dares shout at my gate." He ordered his armor brought out, dressed himself, took up a black-tasseled spear, and came out.

Wukong stood outside the gate with his iron staff and looked closely. The demon was indeed a ferocious one: a bowl-shaped iron helmet shining like hot lacquer, black-gold armor gleaming bright, a black silk robe with wide sleeves, a dark green sash with long fringe, a black-tasseled spear in hand, a pair of black leather boots on his feet. His eyes flashed gold like lightning. He was the Black Wind King of the mountain.

Wukong laughed inwardly. "That one is black as a charcoal kiln. He must be making a living by burning soot."

The demon cried out, "What sort of monk are you, that you dare behave so boldly here?"

Wukong came striding up, staff in hand, and roared, "Cut the talk. Bring back your old grandfather's cassock!"

The demon said, "Which temple are you from? Where did you lose your cassock that you come hunting it here?"

Wukong said, "My cassock was laid in the abbot's chamber behind the Guanyin Monastery to the north. Only because that monastery caught fire did you take advantage of the uproar, loot it, and steal it away to celebrate your cassock feast. How dare you deny it? Bring it back quickly and I will spare your life. If you dare let even half a word of 'no' slip from your teeth, I will topple Black Wind Mountain, flatten Black Wind Cave, and grind every demon in it to dust."

The demon laughed coldly. "You rabid thing, so it was you who set the fire last night. You made a scene in that abbot's chamber and stirred up the wind, and I took away a cassock. What of it? Where do you come from? What is your name? How great is your skill that you can boast like this?"

Wukong said, "You do not even know your old grandfather. I am the disciple of the imperial brother Tripitaka, the holy monk from Great Tang at court. My surname is Sun, my name Wukong. If you ask after Old Sun's skill, I will speak it and make your soul fly from your body and your death stand in front of your eyes."

The demon said, "I have not yet heard. What skill do you have? Say it and let me listen."

Wukong laughed. "Son, stand still and listen carefully. I:

From birth my powers rose high, and with the wind I made my way.
I trained my nature, refined the true, and wore out sun and moon.
One day I set out with pure intent to seek the Dao on Mount Lingtai;
there I found an old immortal whose age was one hundred and eight thousand.
I bowed to him as master; he pointed out the road to deathlessness.
He told me elixir lies within the body and cannot be gathered outside.
He passed on the Grand Method of the Heavenly Immortals, whose root is hard to bear without a firm foundation.
Turn the light inward, still the heart, and sit in quiet; let the waters and fire within the body meet.
Cast off all thought, empty desire; the six sense-roots become pure and the body stands firm.
Old age turns back to youth with ease; to rise above the common and enter the saintly is no far road.
In three years a body without leakage may be forged, unlike the worldlings who sweat and ache.
I roamed the Ten Islands and Three Islets, traveled to the ends of sea and sky.
I lived more than three hundred years and still could not fly up to the Ninth Heaven.
Only when I went beneath the sea and subdued the dragon did I win my true treasure, one staff of golden hoop.
At Flower-Fruit Mountain I was captain; in Water-Curtain Cave I gathered my demon host.
The Jade Emperor sent his decree and ranked me highest as the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.
I stormed the Hall of Miraculous Mist many times and stole the Queen Mother's peaches more than once.
A hundred thousand heavenly soldiers came down; ranks upon ranks of spears and blades enclosed me.
I beat back the Heavenly Kings and sent them home above; Nezha withdrew wounded and fled with his troops.
Erlang Shen can also change form, but Old Sun fought him flat and square.
The Dao Patriarch, Guanyin, and the Jade Emperor watched the demon-subduing from the South Heaven Gate;
still Laozi aided with one strike, and Erlang seized me for the celestial court.
They bound my body to the Demon-Subduing Pillar and ordered the divine troops to take my head.
Swords could not cut me, hammers could not break me, thunder could not shake me, fire could not burn me.
Old Sun truly has his own powers and fears not a particle.
They thrust me into Lord Lao's furnace and roasted me in the Six Ding Fire.
When the days were full and the furnace opened, I leaped out, staff in hand, and ran around heaven.
No road was barred where I went; I made havoc through the thirty-three heavens.
Then our Buddha Tathagata put forth his power and pressed Old Sun beneath Five Elements Mountain.
I lay there for full five hundred years, until Tripitaka came out of Tang.
Now I have turned my heart to the West and go to Thunderclap to see the jade radiance.
Go ask the four seas and heaven and earth: I am the most famous demon of all the ages.

The demon laughed when he heard this. "So you are that Horse-Farm Keeper who made trouble in Heaven?"

What Wukong hated most was being called Horse-Farm Keeper. At that insult, rage flared in him. He cursed, "You thieving brute! You stole my cassock and will not return it, and now you dare wound your grandfather. Do not run. Taste my staff!"

The black-clad brute sidestepped the blow, wheeled his spear, and came forward in answer.

The battle was fierce indeed:

Ruyi Staff, black-tasseled spear, the two of them strained at the cave mouth.
Point and blade struck at heart and face, with blows to arm and head.
One swept with an undercutting rod, the other stabbed in three urgent thrusts.
White Tiger climbed the mountain to show his claws; Yellow Dragon lay in the road and twisted away.
They breathed colored mist, they spat bright light; both were demons beyond measure.
One was the true and upright Great Sage Equal to Heaven; one was a black king who had grown to spirit.
They fought there on the mountain for a cassock, and neither side was willing to yield.

They fought more than ten rounds, and neither gained the upper hand. By then the red sun was straight overhead. The black-clad brute lifted his spear to hold off the iron staff and said, "Sun Wukong, let us call off the fight for now. I shall go in and eat, and after that I will wager blades with you again."

Wukong said, "You wretched beast, and you call yourself a man? A real man must eat after only half a day? Old Sun was pressed beneath a mountain for more than five hundred years and never once tasted even broth. What hunger do you have? Stop making excuses. Do not flee. Bring back my cassock, and only then may you go eat."

The demon gave a feint with his spear, withdrew into the cave, shut the stone doors, recalled his little demons, and prepared a banquet and invitation cards to summon the mountain kings to a celebration. We need not follow that here.

Wukong, seeing that he could not break the gate, returned to the Guanyin Monastery. The monks of the temple had already buried the old abbot and were serving Tripitaka in the abbot's chamber. The morning meal had been finished, and the noon meal was being laid out.

While soup was being poured and bowls changed, Wukong came down out of the sky. The monks bowed, welcomed him in, and led him to the abbot's chamber, where he saw Tripitaka.

Tripitaka said, "Wukong, you are back. How is the cassock?"

Wukong said, "There is already a trail to it. It was fortunate we did not wrong these monks. It turns out that the thief was the monster of Black Wind Mountain.

I went to look for him secretly and saw him sitting with a white-robed scholar and an old Daoist on the grassy slope, talking. The creature all but confessed himself. He said the day after tomorrow was his birthday and that he would invite all the monsters to celebrate. Last night he got hold of a brocade cassock and intended to use it as a birthday offering, holding a grand banquet called the Cassock Feast. I rushed in and struck him once. The black brute fled in a gust of wind, the Daoist vanished, and only the white-robed scholar was struck dead - it was a white snake demon in spirit. I then hurried to his gate and called him out to fight. He admitted it was he who had taken it. We fought all morning without a winner. Then the demon went back into the cave to eat, shut the stone doors, and stayed inside out of fear. So I came back to report first. Now that the cassock has a trail, there is no fear he will not return it."

The monks, hearing this, some clasped their hands, some bowed their heads, and all cried out, "Namo Amitabha! Now that the trail has been found, our lives are saved."

Wukong said, "Do not rejoice too soon. I have not yet taken possession of it, and my master has not yet left this place. Only when the cassock is in hand and my master is properly sent on his way will you be safe. If the least mishap arises, Old Sun is not someone to provoke. Have you provided good tea for my master? Have you fed the horse well?"

The monks all assured him at once, "Yes, yes, yes. We have not dared neglect a single thing."

Tripitaka said, "Since you left this morning, I have already had tea three times and two vegetarian meals. They have not dared slight me in the least. But you must still do your best and recover the cassock."

Wukong said, "Do not worry. Now that I know where it is, I will surely seize that fellow and bring the original treasure back to you. Rest easy, rest easy."

Just then the abbot of the upper chambers had vegetarian fare prepared and invited Sun the Elder to eat. Wukong had a little, then rode the auspicious cloud back out to look again.

As he was traveling, he saw a little demon coming down the road with a rosewood box tucked under his left arm.

Wukong guessed that there must be some invitation in the box, and brought his staff down on the demon's head. Alas, the little creature could not withstand the blow and was beaten flat like a meat cake. Wukong dragged the body to the roadside, opened the box, and found, as expected, an invitation.

It read:

Your humble student Xiong Pi bows low and respectfully addresses the old abbot Jinchi of the Great Toleration Monastery. We have long enjoyed your kindness and are deeply grateful. Last night, seeing the disaster of the fire, I failed to offer rescue, but I trust the immortal plan had no other injury. This student happened to obtain a cassock of Buddha, and wishes to prepare a refined gathering. I have respectfully arranged flowers and wine and beg you to grace the banquet with your august presence. At the appointed time, I earnestly request that your immortal carriage come in person for a short visit. I will be obliged. Written two days in advance.

Wukong, seeing it, laughed aloud. "That old skin-flayer did not die in vain after all. So he was in league with the demon. No wonder he lived to be two hundred and seventy years old; most likely that monster taught him some little breathing art, which gave him such longevity. Old Sun still remembers his face. I will simply transform into that monk and go into his cave to see where he has put my cassock. If I can get my hands on it, I will bring it back at once and save myself some trouble."

The Great Sage muttered a spell and, facing the wind, transformed himself. At once he looked exactly like the old monk. He hid the iron staff away, strode straight to the cave gate, and shouted, "Open up!"

The little demon opened the door. Seeing that figure, he hurried inside to report, "Great King, Abbot Jinchi has come."

The demon was startled. "I just sent a little one with an invitation to ask him here. He could not possibly have reached me so quickly. Most likely the little one never met him, and it is surely Sun Wukong himself who has sent him to demand the cassock. Keep the cassock hidden. Do not let him see it."

Wukong entered through the front gate. In the courtyard he saw pine and bamboo in green profusion, peach and plum trees competing in bloom, clusters of flowers opening, clumps of orchids fragrant with scent. It was truly a cave of heaven.

On the second gate there was a pair of lines:

In quiet seclusion, deep in the mountains, there is no worldly concern;
in a hidden cave of immortals, one delights in native truth.

Wukong thought to himself, "This fellow is truly a demon who has shaken off dust and filth and knows the Way."

He passed through the gates and went inward, through the third gate and into the main hall, where there were painted beams, carved rafters, bright windows, and colored doors. The black-clad demon wore a black-and-green silk jacket, a crow-blue patterned cloak, a soft black cap with dark horns, and a pair of black deerskin boots. Seeing Wukong enter, he smoothed his clothes and came down the steps to welcome him.

"Old friend Jinchi," he said, "I have been remiss in visiting for several days. Please sit, please sit."

Wukong returned the courtesy and sat. Tea was served.

After the tea, the demon bowed and said, "I sent a note inviting you a few days from now. Why have you honored me with your presence today?"

Wukong said, "I had come to pay my respects, but unexpectedly encountered your letter on the road and saw mention of the cassock banquet. So I hurried here in hopes of seeing it."

The demon laughed. "My friend, you are mistaken. That cassock was the property of Tripitaka. He lodged in your monastery, so how could you not have seen it there? Why come to me to look at it?"

Wukong said, "I had borrowed it, and because it was already night I had not yet unfolded it for a look. Then, unexpectedly, Your Majesty took it away. After that the mountain burned and my property was lost. Tripitaka's disciple is also somewhat fierce, and in the confusion I searched everywhere without finding it. It was all by Your Majesty's great fortune that it was gathered here, so I have come especially to see it."

As they were speaking, a patrol demon came to report, "Great King, disaster! The little one who was sent with the invitation has been beaten to death by Sun Wukong by the roadside. He is carrying the scriptures and has changed himself into Abbot Jinchi to cheat us of the cassock!"

The demon heard this and said to himself, "So the abbot came today, and so quickly too - it really is him." He sprang up, seized his spear, and stabbed at Wukong. Wukong yanked the staff from his ear in an instant, showed his true form, blocked the spear-point, and leaped out from the hall into the courtyard, from there fighting all the way to the front gate.

The demons in the cave were all terrified out of their wits, and the old and young in the house were beside themselves.

The battle on the mountain was more fierce than the first.

The monkey king was bold enough to disguise himself as a monk; the black-clad demon hid the cassock in secret.
Words flew back and forth, each side seizing the chance; nimble and alert, neither gave the other an opening.
The cassock could not yet be seen, and the treasure's mystery was truly a marvelous mystery.
A little demon ran the mountains to report disaster; the old demon flared in rage and showed his divine might.
He whirled out of Black Wind Cave; spear and staff met as they argued their case.
Staff against spear rang out clear and bright; spear against staff flashed with light.
Sun Wukong's transformations are rare among men; the demon's powers are also rare in the world.
One would celebrate the cassock as birthday tribute; the other would never yield the cassock in peace.
This bitter fight was hard to break; not even a living Buddha descending among men could untie the knot.

They fought from the cave mouth up to the top of the mountain, and from the mountaintop out into the clouds, breathing mist and wind, scattering sand and stones, until the red sun sank in the west and still there was no winner.

The demon said, "Surname Sun, stop your hand for now. It is late today, and this cannot be continued. Go on, go on. Come again tomorrow morning, and we will settle life and death."

Wukong shouted, "Son, do not run! If you mean to fight, fight like a man. Do not put me off with the claim that it is late."

The black-clad brute would not answer. He only churned his staff wildly for a time, then turned into a gust of clear wind and went back to his cave, sealing the stone doors tightly and refusing to come out.

Wukong, unable to do anything else, returned to the Guanyin Monastery, brought his cloud down, and called, "Master."

Tripitaka, who had been staring anxiously for him, was greatly relieved to see him at last. But when he saw that Wukong's hands were empty and the cassock was still absent, fear returned.

"Why is there still no cassock this time?" he asked.

Wukong drew an invitation card from his sleeve and handed it to him.

"Master," he said, "that monster and the dead old skin-flayer were friends. He sent a little demon with this card to invite him to the Cassock Feast. I killed the little demon, transformed myself into the old monk, and entered the cave to cheat him of a cup of tea. I wanted to ask him for a look at the cassock, but he would not bring it out. We were sitting there when some mountain scout let the news leak out, and then he came at me. We fought until this hour and still neither had the upper hand. When he saw the sky growing dark, he slipped back into the cave and shut the stone gates.

Old Sun had no choice but to come back for a moment."

Tripitaka asked, "How do your skills compare with his?"

Wukong said, "Not much to choose. We are evenly matched."

Tripitaka then looked at the invitation card and handed it to the abbot. "Could your master perhaps be a demon as well?"

The abbot hastily knelt. "My lord, my master is human. Only because that Black King has cultivated human ways and often comes to the temple to discuss scripture with my master did he teach him some arts for nourishing the spirit and breathing the vapor, and so they came to call each other friends."

Wukong said, "These monks have no demon air about them. Each has a round head over his head and square feet beneath him, though they are a bit fatter and taller than Old Sun. They are not demons. Look at the card: it says 'Your humble student Xiong Pi.' That creature is certainly a black bear spirit."

Tripitaka said, "I have heard the ancients say that bears and apes are alike. They are both beasts.

How, then, has he become a spirit?"

Wukong laughed. "Old Sun is a beast too, yet I was made the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. What difference is there? In truth, all things in the world with nine openings may cultivate themselves into immortals."

Tripitaka asked again, "You said his skill was equal to yours. How, then, are you to win and bring back my cassock?"

Wukong said, "Do not worry, do not worry. I know how to deal with him."

While they were discussing the matter, the monks brought in the evening vegetarian meal and fed master and disciple. Tripitaka told them to light the lamps and then retired with the others to the front meditation hall. The monks leaned against wall and beam, set up makeshift sleeping places, and lay down one by one, leaving the rear abbot's chambers for the two overseers.

The night was still. The Milky Way showed itself in a sky without dust. Countless stars shone overhead, and the ripples on the water were quieted. Every sound in the world fell silent, and the birds of a thousand mountains were gone. Fishing lights on the stream bank had gone out, and the Buddha lamps in the pagoda dimmed. The drums and bells of the previous night's chanting had passed, and tonight only the sound of weeping could be heard.