Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Non-Fiction 2018 | Page 41

Journey to the West: The True Story
The ISF Academy, Ng, Anthony - 12
T
he Journey to the West is one of the most well-recognized tales around the world. It tells the story
of a monk called Xuanzang, who is on a journey to spread Buddhism to India, along with a
monkey named Sun WuKong, a pig named Zhu BaJie and a man named Sha WuJing. However,
do you know the true story of the Journey to the West? It is quite a peculiar one.
In the year 602, a monk named Xuanzang was born in Chen He village. As a young child, he was
engrossed in Buddhism and started studying it in various schools. At the age of 20, he was already a wise and
well-learned monk. However, Xuanzang was unsatisfied with the knowledge available to him and decided
that he wanted to gain a true understanding of Buddhism. At that time, India was one of the greatest
countries that studied Buddhism, so Xuanzang gathered a few other monks and set out on an expedition.
Unfortunately, they weren’t allowed to leave without permission, meaning they had to use the only other
solution: To sneak out of the country.
Travelling by night and hiding during the day, Xuanzang and many other monks began their
treacherous journey to India through what we now call the Silk Road. Passing through the Taklamakan
Desert was troublesome. Food and water were scarce, and the everlasting heat was slowly killing them.
Although they were almost half way to India, they had already lost many of their companions, and there
were still many challenges in their path. These included menacing bandits, vicious wild animals and
powerful leaders who sometimes wanted to keep them in their kingdom, rather than to allow them to travel
on.
By the time they reached India, many people there have heard of their journey. The people
welcomed them, and Xuanzang and the monks remaining had many adventures, such as going to the home
of the Buddha and then to Nalanda, the first university in which loved many of the greatest thinkers and
teachers of that time. They were impressed that Xuanzang had outwitted bandits who had tried to rob and
kill him, survived deadly typhoons, and won a Great Debate in front of thousands of wise Indian men.
The return trip was difficult nevertheless, they made it back to China. Still, there was a problem.
Since Xuanzang and the other monks had left without permission, they were considered outlaws. The
intelligent Xuanzang thought of the idea to write a letter to the emperor, telling him about what he had
learned on the trip. Astonished by his learning, the emperor welcomed them back.
The rest of Xuanzang’s life was spent teaching others about Buddhism, and translating manuscripts
he got from India. You may have thought the that the original story of the Journey to the West would be
boring, but even without magic or special powers, a story still can be enjoyable.