n Wukong said in reply, "Master, your disciple has been kneeling here

for a long time." When the Patriarch heard that it was Sun Wukong who
was speaking he pulled some clothes on, sat up cross−legged, and
shouted, "It's that monkey. Why have you come into my room instead of
sleeping out in front?" "Master, you told me publicly in front of the
altar yesterday that your disciple was to come in here through the
back gate at the third watch as you were going to teach me the Way.
That is why I made so bold as to come to pay my respects beside my
master's bed." The Patriarch was very pleased to hear this and said
to himself, "This wretch was indeed born of Heaven and Earth.
Otherwise he wouldn't have been able to understand my cryptic
message." Sun Wukong said, "There is no third pair of ears in this
room; your disciple is the only other person here. I hope, master,
that in your great mercy you will teach me the Way of Immortality. If
you do, I'll always be grateful to you." "You are predestined," the
Patriarch said, "so I shall be happy to tell you. Since you
understood my cryptic message, come over here and listen carefully
while I teach you the miraculous Way of Immortality." Sun Wukong
kowtowed with gratitude and knelt before the bed, listening with all
his attention. The Patriarch said: "True spells, revealing secrets
and all powerful, Are the only sure way of protecting one's life.
They all come from essence, vapour, and spirit, Must be stored away
securely, and never be divulged. Journey to the West Chapter 2 25
Must never be divulged, and be stored in the body, Then the Way I
teach you will flourish of itself. Many are the benefits of learning
spells: They give protection from evil desires and make one pure.
Make one pure with a dazzling radiance Like a bright moon shining on
a cinnabar tower. The moon contains a Jade Rabbit, the sun a Golden
Crow, The Tortoise and the Snake are always intertwined. Always
intertwined, then life is firm, And one can plant golden lotuses in
fire. Grasp all the Five Elements and turn them upside down, And when
you are successful you can become a Buddha, or an Immortal." The
Patriarch's explanation went to the root of things, and Sun Wukong's
heart was filled with bliss as he committed the spells to memory. He
bowed to the Patriarch to express his deep gratitude and went out of
the back door to look. He saw that there was a trace of white in the
East, while the golden light of the moon was shining in the West. He
went to the front door by the old path, pushed it open gently, and
went in. He sat down where he had been sleeping earlier, shook his
bedding and said loudly, "It's dawn, it's dawn. Get up." The others
were all asleep, unaware of Sun Wukong's good fortune. At daybreak he
got up and muddled through the day, while secretly keeping to what he
had been told. In the afternoon and evening he regulated his
breathing. After three years had passed in this way the Patriarch
once more sat on his lecturing throne and expounded the Dharma to the
students. He recounted famous sayings and parables, and discussed
external phenomena and external appearances. Without warning he
asked, "Where is Sun Wukong?" Sun Wukong went forward, knelt down and
replied, "Your disciple is present." "What Way have you cultivated
since coming here?" Journey to the West Chapter 2 26 "Your disciple
is now fairly well conversant with the Dharma," Sun Wukong replied,
"and my Source is getting gradually stronger." "If you are conversant
with the Dharma and you know about the Source," the Patriarch
replied, "and if the spirit has already flowed into you, then you
must beware of the 'Three Disasters.'" Sun Wukong thought for a long
time, then he said, "Patriarch, you're talking rubbish. I have often
heard that the Way is lofty and its power mighty, that it is as
eternal as Heaven, that it can overcome fire and water, and prevent
all illnesses from arising, so how could there be "Three Disasters?'"
To this the Patriarch replied, "This is not the ordinary Way: it
involves seizing the very creation of Heaven and Earth, and
encroaching on the hidden workings of the sun and moon. Once the
elixir is made, devils and spirits cannot tolerate it. Although it
will preserve the youthfulness of your face and prolong your life, in
five hundred years' time Heaven will strike you with a thunderbolt.
You must be clear−sighted in nature and mind, so that you can hide
from it before it comes. If you succeed in avoiding it you will live
as long as Heaven; and if you don't, it will kill you. Another five
hundred years later Heaven will burn you with fire. This fire will be
not heavenly fire or ordinary fire but 'hidden fire'. It will burn
you from the soles of your feet to the crown of your head; your five
viscera will be reduced to ashes, your four limbs will be destroyed,
and a thousand years of asceticism will have been so much wasted
time. Yet another five hundred years later a wind will blow at you.
It will not be the North, South, East, or West wind, nor will it be a
warm, fragrant wind from the Northwest; nor will it be the kind of
wind that blows among flowers, willows, pine, and bamboo. It will be
what is called a 'monster wind'. It will blow through the crown of
your head down into your six entrails. It will go through the
Cinnabar Field below your navel and penetrate your nine orifices.
Your flesh and your bones will be destroyed and your body will
disintegrate. So you must avoid all three of these disasters." When
he heard this Sun Wukong's hair stood on end, and he kowtowed with
the words, "I implore you, my lord, to show pity and teach me how to
avoid these three disasters. If you do I will be grateful to you for
ever." "That would be easy," the Patriarch replied, "but for the fact
that you are different from other people−−which means that I can't."
"I have a head that faces the sky and feet standing on earth," said
Sun Wukong. "I have nine orifices and four limbs, five viscera and
six entrails. How am I different from anyone else?" "Although you are
quite like other people, your cheeks are too small." Now the Monkey
had a funny face, with cheeks that caved inwards and a sharp chin.
Sun Wukong felt it with his hand and replied with a laugh, "Master,
you didn't take everything into account. Although I'm a bit short of
jaw, I've got more dewlap than other people to make up for it." "Very
well then," the Patriarch said, "which would you prefer to learn: the
thirty−six heavenly transformations or the seventy−two earthly
ones?" "Your disciple wants to get as much out of it as he can, so I
would like to learn the seventy−two earthly ones." "If that's what
you want," the Patriarch replied, "come here and I'll teach you the
spells." Thereupon he whispered into Sun Wukong's ear, and who knows
what miraculous spells he taught him? The Monkey King was the sort of
person who understands everything once he is told a tiny part, and he
learned the spells on the spot. He practiced and trained until he had
mastered all seventy−two transformations. One day the Patriarch and
all his disciples were enjoying the sunset outside the Three Stars
Cave. Journey to the West Chapter 2 27 The Patriarch asked Sun
Wukong, "Have you succeeded yet?" Sun Wukong replied, "Thanks to your
infinite mercy, master, your disciple's results have been perfect,
and I can now rise on the clouds and fly." "Let me see you try a
flight," the Patriarch said. Sun Wukong used his skill to perform a
series of somersaults that carried him fifty or sixty feet into the
air, then walked aroun