This article is about the short story by Pu Songling. For the character known as The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, see Sun Wukong.
"The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal" (simplified Chinese: 齐天大圣; traditional Chinese: 齊天大聖; pinyin: Qí Tiān Dà Shèng) is a short story by Pu Songling first published in Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio (1740). It revolves around Shandong native Xu Sheng, who initially rejects the existence of Sun Wukong but gradually becomes a firm devotee of him after encountering him and experiencing his power. The story acts as social commentary on the worship of mythical characters, in this case Sun Wukong. In 2014, it was translated into English by Sidney L. Sondergard.
Sun Wukong first appeared in the 16th-century Chinese classical novelJourney to the West by Wu Cheng-en. In the novel he is also referred to as "Great Sage, Heaven's Equal" and "Handsome Monkey King".[1] Wu's character was well-received, to the point that some regarded him as a real god. During Pu's time, actual and genuine Sun Wukong shrines were already in existence or emerging, as part of "(t)he cult of this divine monkey". In a larger phenomenon, works of fiction contributed to the public's perception of or belief in deities. Hence, Shahar and Weller, in their 1996 work Unruly Gods, opine that Pu Songling was criticising people's worship of a fictitious character.[2] The translation of the story, titled "The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal" by Sidney L. Sondergard, was released in 2014.[1]
The Martin Bodmer Foundation Library houses a 19th-century Liaozhai manuscript, silk-printed and bound leporello-style, that contains three tales including "The Bookworm", "The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal", and "The Frog God".[3]
Plot
A struggling merchant, Xu Sheng (许盛), and his elder brother, Xu Cheng (许成), attend a ceremony at a Sun Wukong temple in Fujian, China.[4] Xu Sheng is entirely sceptical of the self-styled "Great Sage, Heaven's Equal" (齐天大圣); in stark contrast, his brother becomes a fervent devotee. Afterwards, much to his brother's shock and chagrin, Xu Sheng remarks, "Sun Wukong is nothing but a parable invented by old Qiu. How can anybody sincerely believe him?"[5][a] He then challenges Sun to mete out divine punishment to him if he truly existed. Fujian locals, who live in fear of the monkey god, are equally appalled by Xu Sheng's haughty comments.[6]
Just a while later, Xu Sheng begins to feel unwell. His superstitious brother hurriedly prays to Sun on his behalf but Xu Sheng's physical woes only continue. Xu Sheng is about to believe in the Great Sage's prowess, when he is relieved of further agony after a visit to a physician. Almost instantly, Xu Cheng becomes the ill one and his condition takes a turn for the worse when Xu Sheng refuses to pray to Sun. Before long, Xu Cheng dies; in anger and grief, Xu Sheng storms into the Sun Wukong temple and confronts his effigy, demanding his brother back. At night, Xu Sheng encounters the Monkey King in his dreams, who counter-retaliates by criticising him for his rudeness and hiring of an inept practitioner to treat his brother. Nevertheless, Sun also promises to bring Xu Cheng back.[7]
Sure enough, after waking up, Xu Sheng finds Xu Cheng alive in his coffin – it is at this point that he begins to truly believe in Sun Wukong.[7] However, it is a bittersweet occasion for Xu Sheng, given the expenses he had incurred during the trip to Fujian and for his brother's funeral and burial.[8] Furthermore, while revived, his brother still remains relatively weak. Some time afterwards, back in the Yan (now part of Shandong) countryside, Xu Sheng encounters a stranger on the street, to whom he confides his financial troubles, as well as the strange incident in Fujian.[8] The stranger possesses some knowledge of magic, in particular cloud-walking. Together they go to the "temple of heaven",[8] where the stranger procures a few magic stones, said to bring good fortune, for Xu Sheng. At the end of the journey the mystery man reveals himself as Sun Wukong, then vanishes.[9]
The Xu brothers rake in tremendous profits from their business and they make numerous return trips to the Sun Wukong temple.[10] Pu Songling appends a footnote poking fun at Xu Sheng, stressing that "Sheng's mind must have been deluded, for what he saw simply couldn't be true", and concluding that "(w)hen people who share the same beliefs gather together, they will choose some central figure to represent their beliefs".[10]
Reception
Judith T. Zeitlin writes in Historian of the Strange that, apart from his "typical condescension towards popular cults", Pu wished to convey "that spiritual power depends not on the actual existence of a god or a fictional character but on the illusory strength of human belief and desire."[11] She compares Xu Sheng's eventual faith in Sun Wukong with Qian Yi's worship of the Peony Pavilion character Du Liniang;[12] both of them had dreams which turned "a skeptic into a believer".[11]
Shahar, Meir; Weller, Robert Paul (1996). Unruly Gods: Divinity and Society in China. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN9780824817244.
January 06, 2023
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This article is about the short story by Pu Songling For the character known as The Great Sage Heaven s Equal see Sun Wukong The Great Sage Heaven s Equal simplified Chinese 齐天大圣 traditional Chinese 齊天大聖 pinyin Qi Tian Da Sheng is a short story by Pu Songling first published in Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio 1740 It revolves around Shandong native Xu Sheng who initially rejects the existence of Sun Wukong but gradually becomes a firm devotee of him after encountering him and experiencing his power The story acts as social commentary on the worship of mythical characters in this case Sun Wukong In 2014 it was translated into English by Sidney L Sondergard The Great Sage Heaven s Equal by Pu Songling19th century illustration from Xiangzhu liaozhai zhiyi tuyong Liaozhai Zhiyi with commentary and illustrations 1886 Original title齐天大圣 Qitian dasheng TranslatorSidney L SondergardCountryChinaLanguageChineseGenre s ZhiguaiFantasyPublished inStrange Stories from a Chinese StudioPublication typeAnthologyPublication datec 1740Published in English2014Chronology Preceded byThe Bookworm 书痴 Followed by The Frog God 青蛙神 Contents 1 Background 2 Plot 3 Reception 4 See also 5 References 5 1 Notes 5 2 Citations 5 3 BibliographyBackground EditSun Wukong first appeared in the 16th century Chinese classical novel Journey to the West by Wu Cheng en In the novel he is also referred to as Great Sage Heaven s Equal and Handsome Monkey King 1 Wu s character was well received to the point that some regarded him as a real god During Pu s time actual and genuine Sun Wukong shrines were already in existence or emerging as part of t he cult of this divine monkey In a larger phenomenon works of fiction contributed to the public s perception of or belief in deities Hence Shahar and Weller in their 1996 work Unruly Gods opine that Pu Songling was criticising people s worship of a fictitious character 2 The translation of the story titled The Great Sage Heaven s Equal by Sidney L Sondergard was released in 2014 1 The Martin Bodmer Foundation Library houses a 19th century Liaozhai manuscript silk printed and bound leporello style that contains three tales including The Bookworm The Great Sage Heaven s Equal and The Frog God 3 Plot EditA struggling merchant Xu Sheng 许盛 and his elder brother Xu Cheng 许成 attend a ceremony at a Sun Wukong temple in Fujian China 4 Xu Sheng is entirely sceptical of the self styled Great Sage Heaven s Equal 齐天大圣 in stark contrast his brother becomes a fervent devotee Afterwards much to his brother s shock and chagrin Xu Sheng remarks Sun Wukong is nothing but a parable invented by old Qiu How can anybody sincerely believe him 5 a He then challenges Sun to mete out divine punishment to him if he truly existed Fujian locals who live in fear of the monkey god are equally appalled by Xu Sheng s haughty comments 6 Just a while later Xu Sheng begins to feel unwell His superstitious brother hurriedly prays to Sun on his behalf but Xu Sheng s physical woes only continue Xu Sheng is about to believe in the Great Sage s prowess when he is relieved of further agony after a visit to a physician Almost instantly Xu Cheng becomes the ill one and his condition takes a turn for the worse when Xu Sheng refuses to pray to Sun Before long Xu Cheng dies in anger and grief Xu Sheng storms into the Sun Wukong temple and confronts his effigy demanding his brother back At night Xu Sheng encounters the Monkey King in his dreams who counter retaliates by criticising him for his rudeness and hiring of an inept practitioner to treat his brother Nevertheless Sun also promises to bring Xu Cheng back 7 Sure enough after waking up Xu Sheng finds Xu Cheng alive in his coffin it is at this point that he begins to truly believe in Sun Wukong 7 However it is a bittersweet occasion for Xu Sheng given the expenses he had incurred during the trip to Fujian and for his brother s funeral and burial 8 Furthermore while revived his brother still remains relatively weak Some time afterwards back in the Yan now part of Shandong countryside Xu Sheng encounters a stranger on the street to whom he confides his financial troubles as well as the strange incident in Fujian 8 The stranger possesses some knowledge of magic in particular cloud walking Together they go to the temple of heaven 8 where the stranger procures a few magic stones said to bring good fortune for Xu Sheng At the end of the journey the mystery man reveals himself as Sun Wukong then vanishes 9 The Xu brothers rake in tremendous profits from their business and they make numerous return trips to the Sun Wukong temple 10 Pu Songling appends a footnote poking fun at Xu Sheng stressing that Sheng s mind must have been deluded for what he saw simply couldn t be true and concluding that w hen people who share the same beliefs gather together they will choose some central figure to represent their beliefs 10 Reception EditJudith T Zeitlin writes in Historian of the Strange that apart from his typical condescension towards popular cults Pu wished to convey that spiritual power depends not on the actual existence of a god or a fictional character but on the illusory strength of human belief and desire 11 She compares Xu Sheng s eventual faith in Sun Wukong with Qian Yi s worship of the Peony Pavilion character Du Liniang 12 both of them had dreams which turned a skeptic into a believer 11 See also EditList of media adaptations of Journey to the WestPortals China NovelsReferences EditNotes Edit In Chinese 孙悟空乃丘翁之寓言 何遂诚信若此 The authorship of Journey to the West is erroneously attributed to the Taoist sage Qiu Chuji Old Qiu 6 Citations Edit a b Sondergrad 2014 p 2078 Shahar and Weller 1996 pp 193 194 The Far East Fondation Martin Bodmer Retrieved 2 March 2016 Pu Songling 2014 1740 齐天大圣 The Great Sage Heaven s Equal 聊斋志异 Strange Tales from Liaozhai PDF Translated by Sondergard Sidney L Shahar and Weller 1996 p 194 a b Sondergrad 2014 p 2080 a b Sondergrad 2014 p 2082 a b c Sondergrad 2014 p 2083 Sondergrad 2014 p 2084 a b Sondergrad 2014 p 2085 a b Zeitlin 1997 p 170 Zeitlin 1997 p 168 Bibliography Edit Zeitlin Judith T 1997 Historian of the Strange Pu Songling and the Chinese Classical Tale Stanford University Press ISBN 9780804729680 Sondergrad Sidney January 2014 Strange Tales from Liaozhai Jain Publishing Company ISBN 9780895810519 Shahar Meir Weller Robert Paul 1996 Unruly Gods Divinity and Society in China University of Hawaii Press ISBN 9780824817244 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Great Sage Heaven 27s Equal amp oldid 1120313222, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
