Nearly four decades after the release of the 1986 TV series Journey to the West, information surrounding the characters and plot of the show still fascinates audiences.
Although it's a "childhood movie" associated with many generations of 80s and 90s kids, Journey to the West may still contain surprising elements that many people are unaware of.
For example, if you were to ask which character in Wu Cheng'en's masterpiece has seven different names and what the meaning of each name is, not many people would answer correctly.
So who is that character?
He is the main character of Journey to the West: Sun Wukong.
The meaning of Sun Wukong's seven names in Journey to the West.
These seven names do not include the name Sun Wukong. This name was given to the "monkey's" first master, Bodhi Patriarch. Accordingly, "Sun" means monkey; "Wukong" means enlightened and wise.
1. Stone Monkey
This is Sun Wukong's real name. Shihou means "stone monkey," referring to the place where Sun Wukong was born from the rock that Nuwa used to mend the sky.
2. The Monkey King
This is the name Sun Wukong gave himself when he was on Mount Huaguo. He was the Monkey King, the most handsome of the troop.
3. The Monkey King
Having acquired mystical powers, Sun Wukong believed he could rival the heavens and no longer feared anyone. He even demanded that the Jade Emperor bestow upon him the title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven.
4. Turn on the Code.
To appease Sun Wukong's unruly nature, the Jade Emperor appointed him to the position of Bimawen, the horse supervisor of the Heavenly Realm.
However, it was only much later, after witnessing himself being ridiculed by the people of Heaven, that Sun Wukong discovered he had only received a very minor position. This truth became the pretext for Wukong's rebellion that shook all three realms, to the point that only the Buddha himself could "tame" the monkey.
5. Sun Wukong
After Sun Wukong caused trouble in the Heavenly Palace, he was suppressed by the Buddha Tathagata under the Five-Finger Mountain for 500 years.
Five hundred years later, Tang Sanzang, while passing through this place on his way to retrieve Buddhist scriptures, discovered Sun Wukong and rescued the monkey. When Sun Wukong accepted Tang Sanzang as his master and decided to follow him to obtain the scriptures, Tang Sanzang gave him this name, signifying that the monk's surname was Sun.
6. The Victorious Fighting Buddha
After escorting Tang Seng on his journey to obtain the scriptures and enduring 81 difficult trials together, Sun Wukong finally brought the scriptures back to the Tang Dynasty.
Upon arriving at Mount Ling to pay homage to the Buddha Tathagata, Sun Wukong attained Buddhahood and was bestowed the title of Victorious Fighting Buddha.
7. Great Holy Relic King, Patriarch Buddha
The title "Great Sage Relic King Ancestor Buddha" does not appear in the 1986 version of "Journey to the West" that was broadcast.
It was only later in the events of Journey to the West, when Sun Wukong defeated Wutian and saved the Three Realms, that he was bestowed this prestigious title by the Buddha Tathagata.
References: Sohu, Sina, Baidu
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