Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Non-Fiction 2018 | Page 51

protect the naïve Tang Seng (Xuanzang) because he could see through demons that disguised themselves as
innocent humans. It is also interesting to note that “Wukong” meant “Awakened to Emptiness.” Sun
Wukong is lacking in spiritual fulfilment and needs Tang Seng’s support to achieve such. In the novel,
magical companions and human species form bidirectional reliance on each other, bringing them together
through the thick and thin. As readers, we feel much more assured that the lonely monk is well backed up
by powerful companions. Yet we should never neglect the independence and courage that first ignited the
real Xuanzang’s travels.
On Xuanzang’s Contribution
At the end of the novel, Xuanzang was appointed to be the “Buddha of Sandalwood Merit.” The
real Xuanzang cared less about recognition and power: he refused to become a court advisor on the western
lands – he wanted to dedicate himself to translating the texts he brought back from India. Tang Gaozong
built a stone infrastructure known as the “Big Wild Goose Pagoda” to house Xuanzang’s collection of over
600 Buddhist scriptures and sutras. The Heart Sutra with its line that Xuanzang translated has been chanted
throughout East Asia more than a thousand years. In addition to his monumental translation work of 74
texts in 19 years, Xuanzang wrote the book “Great Tang Records on the Western Region.” It recorded his
travels between 626 and 645, including meetings of kings from various kingdoms, contributes to the sugar-
making technology in medieval China and India and is the earliest textual evidence for Buddhist sculptures
in Bamiyan.
What the real Xuanzang has left behind, is much more than just a name and an inspiration for a
classical novel. The journey to the West was not just any journey. It changed a monk’s life. It changed a
belief. It changed a nation.