The banners were unfurled and drums and gongs rang in celebration. Hundreds of delicacies were prepared, coconut water and grape juice overflowed, and they all feasted for a long time. They continued as before with the military exercises. The Monkey King appointed the four old monkeys his top advisors. The two red-buttock monkeys he namedContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 3.4”
Tag Archives: storytelling
Journey to the West – Chapter 3.3
stopping hearts and draining bloodIn the text, the Dragon King’s gallbladder fights and heart startles 胆战心惊, while the dragon princes’ spirits take flight and bodies scatter 魂飞魄散. Where do you feel fear? Such power that monkey had! He spun the staff in his hands, feinting and striking in mock battle all the way back toContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 3.3”
Journey to the West – Chapter 3.2
The Monkey King jumped off the bridge, muttered an incantation, and dove right in. The waves parted before him forming a path that lead straight to the bottom of the East Sea.1 About halfway, a yaksha2 on patrol suddenly blocked his way, and said, “You who command the waters, what manner of immortal or godContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 3.2”
Journey to the West – Chapter 3.1
I am experimenting with narration styles in chapters 3 and 4. Click here to learn more. They say that the Handsome Monkey King defeated the Demon Lord of Mayhem and returned victorious with his trophy: the demon king’s big dao. He trained every day in the fighting arts. The other monkeys cut bamboo to makeContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 3.1”
Journey to the West – Chapter 2.4
The patriarch said, “Once you go, nothing good can come of you. In all your violent troublemaking, I forbid you from saying that you are my disciple. I will know if you let even one word slip, and I will skin you and crush your bones. I will banish your spirit to the furthest reachesContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 2.4”
Journey to the West – Chapter 2.3
Wukong’s hair stood on end, he quickly bowed, saying, “Master, in your infinite compassion, please tell me how to avoid these catastrophes. I will never cease to be grateful.” The patriarch said, “It is not difficult, but you are different from others. I cannot teach this to you.” Wukong said, “My head points toward theContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 2.3”
Journey to the West – Chapter 2.1
After the Handsome Monkey King got his name, he thanked Master Puti enthusiastically. The patriarch ordered the disciples to take Wukong to the inner courtyard and teach him to sweep and the proper manners to use among the disciples. Obediently, they went out. Outside, Wukong paid respects to his senpais,1 and they found a placeContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 2.1”
Journey to the West – Chapter 1.3
While he was looking around, he suddenly heard a voice coming from deep in the woods. He hurried through the woods toward the sound and found a person singing. “Watching chess, the axe handle rots.1 Thwack, thwack, I’m chopping wood. I walk through valleys at the edge of clouds and trade my wood for wine.Continue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 1.3”
Journey to the West – Chapter 1.2
*As usual, translation notes are in the mouseover text or at the bottom of the post. 🙂 Let’s continue the story! The monkey multitude cheered upon hearing this.1 They said “Lead us inside! We’ll follow you.” The stone monkey closed his eyes,2 crouched, and jumped in once more, calling “Follow me!”3 The braver of theContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 1.2”
Journey to the West – Chapter 1.1
First, a note on retelling Journey to the West. As a part of this, I wanted to share with you some of the decisions I made during translation, but I don’t want to distract from the story, so I’ve inserted them footnotes with mouseover text. There are these decisions almost everywhere. (For touchscreen viewers, clickingContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 1.1”
Etymology Adventures 