>The Legend of the Monkey King | The Journey Begins

Xuan Zang never imagined his trip by foot from China to India and back would be the inspiration for a multimillion dollar animation franchise like Dragon Ball Z.

Thousands of years ago, Xuan Zang made that trek to get the Sutra, the Buddhist holy book, so he could spread the teachings of Buddha throughout China. Zang's journey was told over the years in many forms and many variations, but no version of the journey is as well-known as Journey to West.

Written by Wu Ch'eng-en in the 1500s, Journey to West adapted the many myths told about Zang's journey into a 100-chapter saga. The story is about a wild, rebelious monkey named Son Goku who was not only intelligent, but also very gifted. He learned magic and martial arts from a master Taoist and learned to transform into various things from trees to birds to mosquitoes. Son Goku also had the ability to use clouds as his own personal mode of transportation and a bo that could expand and collapse at his command.

He was also a little cocky, claiming to be the king of all he sees, making him a thorn at the side of the only authority over everything, the Great Emperor of Jade. After getting complaints from the masters of the four seas and the underworld, the Great Emperor (Yu Huang Da Di) wages war on Son Goku. Apparently, the little monkey handled himself in the many battles that took place. The Great Emperor wanted to shut Goku up so much, he offered him an official title. He refused, of course, after learning the title was "stable keeper." It took many gods and armies to bring Goku down, but they couldn't do any harm to him, since their swords didn't penetrate him.

Since metal couldn't kill this troublemaking pain in the butt, the Great Emperor decided that perhaps fire would do the job, so he ordered that Goku be burned in a furnace where mythical pills of immortality were refined. Of course, the fire not only didn't kill Goku, but also gave him fiery golden eyes of crystal which could see through things regular folks can't. It took the efforts of Buddha to suppress Son Goku, encasing him in the Mount of Five Fingers, where he was encased for 500 years.

Time went on, and Son Goku was finally rescued by a monk named Xuan Zang. In order for the Tang Monk to complete his trek to get the Sutras, Buddha orders Son Goku to be a disciple and a guide in the journey to the west. Along the way, Xuan and Goku are befriended by an officer who was turned into a pig after attacking a fairy and a being who used to be a sea creature. They encounter many dangers along the way in the journey to get the sacred tomes and bring it back home, and in the end, all learn valuable lessons.

Now, go here to learn about the projects that spawned from The Journey To The West.