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Monkey

Monkey is a novel whose main character carries the title “Aware-of-Vacuity.” In an effort to fill the emptiness within him of which he is aware, the Monkey sets out on a Buddhist like path towards enlightenment. Monkey knows there is a wisdom he can acquire from the Buddhas, Immortals, and Sages, those who have transcended earthly concerns and are immune to fate and the curse of being reborn and destroyed. As the Majesty informs him at the outset of his journey, “These three are exempt from the Turning of the Wheel, from birth and destruction” (Ch’eng-en 15). Monkey is supposed to represent the human mind that tries to harness in the yoke of reason both desire and emotion. His series of challenges on his adventure are designed to develop his intellect in order for him to become a whole balanced human, detached from pursuits of fortune and fame, and energetically and willfully engaged in the pursuit of higher learning. Only this awareness will free him from being torn by pursuits based on desire and emotion, pursuits that would make him subjected to every twist of fate and every turn of fortune. To move further on his path towards enlightenment, Monkey must realize there are many who must be left behind because the material weight of their pursuits keeps them from elevating higher in consciousness and discovering transcendental peace, “He found the men of the world all engrossed in the quest of profit or fame; there was not one who had any care for the end that was in store for him” (Ch’eng-en 16).

We further see the Buddhist-like symbolism in the story when Monkey realizes he must be near the Immortals because of the song he hears sung at the top of the mountain, “I hatch no plot, I scheme no scheme;/Fame and shame are one to me,/A simple life prolongs my days” (Ch’eng-en 16). However, Monkey is full of contradictions regardless of his resolution to discover enlightenment. When M

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Monkey. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 06:14, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1685974.html