iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

1/4 - I'm a big fan of the sci-fi novel Gladiator (1930) by Philip Wylie. The main character, Hugo Danner, is born with super strength & speed & bulletproof skin thanks to a prenatal injection by his scientist father. Here's a PDF for the 1974 reprint: journeytothewestresearch.com/wp-content/u...

This is the original dust jacket for the 1930 Knopf edition. It portrays a nude man standing above a city skyline in harsh, black shadow and red highlights. It's drawn in a very rough style.

110

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

I know this is supposed to be the holy mother Guanyin, but it kind of looks like a transformation Wukong would take to mock her. (A stone carving seen on Facebook Marketplace.)

161

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

I've added another parallel to my Sun Wukong-Heracles article: (#21) both use their blunt weapons to kill a shapeshifting enemy changed into a bee. journeytothewestresearch.com/2024/12/01/p... - Heracles kills Periclymenus with his club. - Wukong kills the Six-Ear Macaque with his staff.

071

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

I think I found a Sun Wukong door in the wilds of Taipei. I initially thought it was the Green Man due to the leafy elements, but upon inspection, it has a very monkey-like face and the headband. I was told this fancy door leads to an underground parking garage.

1122

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

A reader asked how Tripitaka could free Sun Wukong if he was punished to Catholic purgatory by Buddha. The Tang Monk would have to tour hell like the Tang Emperor * & Dante & free Monkey from Mt. Purgatory. * He temporarily dies and is prompted to free orphaned souls after touring hell (ch. 11).

The seven main terraces of Mt. Purgatory can be seen behind Dante in this 1465 fresco by Domenico di Michelino.

030

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

A question asked of me: "In the book, do they refer to Wujing more as Sēng or Heshang?" Sha seng (沙僧; "Monk Sha") - 814 times * 僧 = short for sengqie (僧伽, "sangha"), or Buddhist community Sha heshang (沙和尚; "Teacher Sha") - 94 times * 和尚 = Upādhyāya (उपाध्याय, "teacher; preceptor; spiritual adviser")

151

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

Journey to the West (Xiyou ji, 西遊記, 1592 CE)

0123

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

1/2 - Sun Wukong & the other pilgrims are given immortal foodstuffs in the Western Paradise (ch. 98) & later granted Buddhahood by the Tathagata (ch. 100). Could the food be a symbol for the immortality that comes with being free of the wheel of reincarnation? buddhistuniversity.net/content/arti...

Screenshot from my article about Sun Wukong's powers and skills.

https://journeytothewestresearch.com/2024/08/11/archive-46-a-catalog-of-the-monkey-kings-magic-powers-and-skills/

110

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

The Five Books and Six Volumes (Wubu liuce, 五部六冊; 1509), a sectarian Buddhist text by Luo Menghong (羅夢(孟)鴻, 1442–1527), lists the Journey to the West pilgrims as Buddhas! This is fascinating because this RELIGIOUS work predates the novel by 83 years. I have an article about this in the works.

Woodblock print from the 1830s Japanese translation of Journey to the West.

011

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Here is the profile for my new Greco-Roman project, "The Hercules Omnibus." I plan to gather public domain translations for all Greek and Roman works about Heracles-Hercules in a single Google Doc/PDF. I will also include info about his Etruscan and Germanic versions. bsky.app/profile/herc...

051

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

One of my longtime students handed me a flyer for a local Buddhist organization before class. It uses Sun Wukong to discuss enlightenment. enlighten.org.tw I really like the Monkey King image.

162

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Journey to the West chapter 16 notes that instead of sleeping, Sun Wukong “exercis[es] his breath to preserve his spirit, with his eyes half-closed” (... 只是存神煉氣，朦朧著醒眼). In chapter 37, Monkey says putting off sleep for 1,000 days (nearly 3 years) wouldn't make him tired.

040

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

A neat fact shared by Journey to the West (西遊記, 1592) and Investiture of the Gods (封神演義, c. 1620) is that immortals don't need lots of sleep. One supreme JTTW immortal states: “Those who have attained immortality should not be so desirous of sleep, for their spirits are full.”

132

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 29/10/2025

I'm going to take a break from writing about 'Journey to the West' for a while in favor of working on a compilation of sources about Heracles/Hercules. The tentative title is 'The Hercules Omnibus.' Read more here: www.tumblr.com/journeytothe... Carving by Antonín Pavel Wagner (1834-1895).

020

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 20/10/2025

Journey to the West gives 3 explanations for Sun Wukong's invulnerability: - Ch. 7: Samadhi fire refined immortal foodstuff into a "Diamond body" (per Laozi) - Ch. 34: Laozi's furnace refines a metallic body (Per Sun) - Ch. 75: Born w/a head of bronze & iron, further refined by furnace (Per Sun)

070

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 04/10/2025

My new article provides a more natural reason for Sun Wukong to fight Heracles from Greco-Roman Myth. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/10/04/s... Drawing by Dario Virga (Onibotokemaru on Instagram).

050

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 02/10/2025

I just figured out a way to insert Sun Wukong into Greek myth. The "Cercopes" (Gr: Κέρκωπες; lit: "tail men") were two bandit brothers that were transformed into monkeys by Zeus for their misdeeds. Another version says they were turned to stone. Why not both?

070

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 27/09/2025

(1/2) I thought of another parallel between Sun Wukong & Heracles/Hercules: both figures have twins! - Heracles' twin (half) brother is Iphicles. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iphicles - Monkey's twin is the Six-Eared Macaque. journeytothewestresearch.com/2020/11/04/o...

141

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 11/08/2025

I have written a quick article about the origins of the JTTW episode where the white turtle-spirit dumps the pilgrims and the scriptures into the water. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/08/09/o...

082

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 27/07/2025

I've archived a PDF of Dr. Moss Robert's four-volume Foreign Language Press translation of Three Kingdoms (Sanguo yanyi, 三國演義, 14-century). I did this because per the Journey to the West Library blog the book influenced aspects of Journey to the West. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/07/27/a...

062

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Here's a Master's thesis that describes the cultural and political context behind the creation of the animated film 'Havoc in Heaven' (1961/1964). journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/07/24/a...

1105

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 22/07/2025

The scorpion-spirit from Journey to the West is one of my favorite baddies. A cursory search of CBETA shows that snakes, scorpions, and centipedes are commonly cited evils in Buddhist literature. This might explain her (ch. 55), the red python-spirit (ch. 67), and the centipede-spirit (ch. 73).

062

Reposted by Journey to the West Research

Silly Rookie @sillyrookie.bsky.social · 26/12/2023

Heaven, 7am. Jade Emperor: "I'm sorry, Sun Wukong did WHAT!?"

062

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

Here is my new article about Shi Pantuo, Xuanzang's historical (temporary) guide that likely influenced Sun Wukong. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/06/29/a...

092

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

Blood magic is one of Sun Wukong's most powerful skills. In ch. 25, he bites his tongue and spits blood to change trees into the JTTW pilgrims. These clones can even talk and answer questions. They are so perfect, in fact, that Monkey feels a shiver up his spine when his is hit with a magic whip.

081

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

I've previously posted that Sun Wukong's Buddha title, "Victorious Fighting Buddha" (鬥戰勝佛), is based on the historical Yuddhajaya Buddha (Sk: युद्धजय). I just learned that Yuddhajaya has another name, "Vijita-saṃgrāma" (Ch: 勇健吉祥佛; Viet: Dũng Kiện Cát Tương Phật; lit: “Brave and Auspicious Buddha”)

090

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 10/06/2025

I bought this JTTW bag on Taiwan Facebook marketplace.

0173

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Two of the neatest things I learned from a book on Indo-European mythology is that someone can recognize a disguised god by two things: 1) They are exceptionally heavy for their size. 2) They walk with great ease, almost like they are skating or hovering just above the ground.

142

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 17/05/2025

My article about the “four monkeys of havoc” (四猴混世, a.k.a. "four celestial primates") is one of my most popular pieces. It's received roughly 45K views in just 3 years. This is surprising since the group is only mentioned by name once in JTTW. journeytothewestresearch.com/2022/02/20/a...

0186

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

I've updated the images on my "Qitian Dasheng Monkey King Temples in Taiwan" article. The links originally stopped working when my old uni gmail account was deleted in 2024. journeytothewestresearch.com/2021/02/15/q... Pic: Monkey spirit-generals from Shengfo Tang (聖佛堂) in Beigang, Yunlin.

051

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

A British friend of mine visited a Zhu Bajie temple in Yunan, China and got me two of these Talismans. They arrived in the mail today.

0144

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Zhu Bajie has two giant forms in Journey to the West. In chapter 29, he grows 8 or 9-zhang (八九丈), which is 83.44 or 93.97 feet / 25.44 or 28.62 meters tall. In chapter 67, his giant boar form is 1,000-chi (千尺), which is 1,025 feet / 312.42 meters tall.

0123

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

Here's a new article analyzing the claim that Sun Wukong can gain the strength and magical abilities of an opponent by copying their appearance via the 72 Changes or hair clones. It's a misconception based on Monkey's battle with Nezha in JTTW chapter 4. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/05/04/c...

0101

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

I was surprised to see that the movie Sinners (2025) has a background dancer wearing Sun Wukong opera garb. They appear in a dream-like sequence while everyone dances to blues music. I wasn't expecting this since the movie is set in the 1930s Mississippi Delta (USA).

150

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

I just started reading 'Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs' (2002) by John Lindow. It's interesting. Here's a PDF for those who may also want to read it: journeytothewestresearch.com/wp-content/u... If you enjoy it, please buy the official release.

030

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 26/04/2025

I got these resin Monkey King statues on Facebook Marketplace Taiwan. They came with wooden stands that appear to have once held name plates, suggesting that they're originally awards. Each is a little over 17-inches(43.18 cm)-tall and REALLY heavy.

071

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 21/04/2025

My 2022 article proposes a real world mantra for the "tight-fillet spell," which causes Sun Wukong's headband to tighten around his skull. It has been surprisingly popular according to my blog analytics. I'm not sure why. journeytothewestresearch.com/2022/01/23/t...

1202

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 13/04/2025

This PDF of Les Sogdiens en Chine (2005) might be useful to someone. journeytothewestresearch.com/wp-content/u...

0136

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 10/04/2025

I've expanded a tumblr post into an article about the "Crow's Nest Chan Master" (烏巢禪師), a Buddhist sage with magic powers. He orally transmits the Heart Sutra to Tripitaka at the end of JTTW chapter 19. He is based on the Tang monk Niaoke Daolin (鳥窠道林). journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/04/10/t...

061

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Here's a new article about an "immortal register" (仙籙) that Sun Wukong had to sign in order to become a god: journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/03/30/t... The concept can be found in Daoist literature as far back as the 4th-century. Picture: Perhaps the register would look something like this.

0143

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 10/03/2025

Here are details of Sun Wukong as the Great Sage Equaling Heaven (齊天大聖) from a series of Vietnamese Lê Dynasty (1428–1789) paintings.

1174

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 09/03/2025

I've added an update to a previous article about the origins of Sun Wukong's time under Five Elements Mountain. It's about a Song-era Daoist work that references forcing devils/ghosts (鬼) to carry mountains as punishment. journeytothewestresearch.com/2018/05/12/t...

0116

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

Here's a lovely drawing of Zhu Bajie as Marshal Tianpeng (天蓬元帥) using his traditional iconography. My thanks to artist Ningadudexx. tumblr.com/ningadudexx

2225

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

I've been told that today, the 7th day of the 1st lunar month, is the birthday of humanity, when the primordial goddess Nuwa created us from clay. Happy birthday everyone!

1150

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

I came across the strangest Journey to the West fan theory: the Buddha loses his hand and subsequently dies from the injuries after confronting Sun Wukong. This is based on a way too literal reading of events from chapter 7. I will eventually post an article about this.

191

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

If you are a westerner who has incorporated Sun Wukong into your Wiccan/Pagan practices, I'd like to interview you. This was spurred on by coming across three people on reddit inquiring about Monkey's "deity work." Please repost so I can reach a larger pool of possible worshipers.

295

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

One of Sun Wukong's rarer powers, knowledge of fate, appears in Journey to the West chapters 47, 81, 97, and 99. For example, in chapter 97, he knows that Tripitaka is fated to be arrested and tortured. He only intervenes after this time has passed. This power should appear in modern media.

090

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 20/01/2025

Here's an article analyzing a JTTW poem that reveals details about Zhu Bajie's past life as a human and rise to godhood. It also touches on details about his life prior to the quest to India. journeytothewestresearch.com/2025/01/19/t... Pictured: A stamp with Zhu and the moon goddess Chang'e.

0182

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

I would like to offer prints, clothing, and bags of this, but I don't know what the best online service is. I'm open to suggestions.

0110

Journey to the West Research @jttwresearch.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

I commissioned this lovely drawing of Sun Wukong as "Yuddhajaya" (Sk: युद्धजय), the historical "Buddha Victorious in Strife / Victorious Fighting Buddha" (Ch: 鬥戰勝佛), using his traditional iconography. My thanks to artist Ningadudexx. tumblr.com/ningadudexx

44420