So far my 363 paper; opinions?
Folklore and mythology are closely associated with the theology of many Eastern practices; these tales communicate vital information which is pertinent to the understanding of the deeper connection shared between a cultural group and their religious beliefs. The Hindu The Ramayana, recounts the many trials and adventures of Prince Rama and his quest to defeat evil; likewise, The Monkey and the Monk, or Journey in to the West, tells of the many adventures of Monkey, who is a powerful and popular folkloric and mythical figure in many Eastern religions. These physical journeys, filled with supernatural and magical aspects, are powerful in their telling, and are a functional mirror for their respective religious practitioners. They serve to communicate the efforts required for a true spiritual pilgrimage towards the goal of proper dharma in Hinduism, or to proper practice in Buddhism. This essay will explore the manners in which these religiously and culturally important texts utilize the physical journey in order to communicate and mirror the real life spiritual journey one must take. The method of approach in pursuing this idea will be to first examine the physical journey taken by Prince Rama in connection with the idea of the Hindu pilgrimage or proper universal order. Secondly, the journey of Sun Wukong, or Monkey, will be investigated, and the important spiritual lessons which are explored in the texts will be examined. Both of these spiritual tales will then be examined in concert, and tied together to provide an overarching analysis of the physical and spiritual journey of the respective religion. Over all, the supernatural and religious physical journey will be shown to be a mirror, or a guiding example, for the more mundane and spiritual evolution and journey.
In the large scope of Hindu mythology and folkloric practice it is Prince Rama, considered to be the avatara of Vishnu,1 who is considered to be the pinnacle of the perfect Hindu Prince and the most devote pursuer of proper dharma; Rama then, becomes the model for all mortals in the Hindu faith.2 Prior to his marriage, another important step in the life of any Hindu male, Rama begins his journey. As the disciple of Sage Viswamithra, Rama journeys across the land of India in order to discover his purpose. From the very beginning of the journey, Rama knows that it is something which he must do, and like a proper Hindu behaves accordingly to his role as son, listening to his father without arguing over the fact that e is being asked to leave home on what could be a difficult journey.3 It is not long before Rama discovers his true powers and his true purpose; through supernatural encounters with a variety of characters, each associated with an aspect of topography in India, Rama is informed that he is to be a force for good, and that he “was born to restore righteousness and virtue to mankind and eliminate all evil.”4 To ensure proper dharma, it is Rama who must rise above all physical and emotional challenges in order to restore order to the world. This idea sets Rama as the external manifestation of the internal transformation and journey all Hindu's must make in order to best fill their own proper role.
Before science could explain what happened after death, it was up to the spiritual leaders to inform and give reasons to the daily phenomena of life; to this end “stories and parables, often illustrating moral or religious lessons, became very popular.”5 Rama, as more than just a mortal, is utilized to depict the difficulties any Hindu would encounter in their religious practice. However, since it is physically and realistically impossible for many of these events to actual occur, Rama becomes merely a mirror by which one can evaluate their spiritual journey. It is said that those of the Hindu faith pay deep attention to their philosophy, and they they hold to pursuit of understanding reality as being the “ most important task of a human being.6 For many, the undertaking of a grand pilgrimage is not an act which they could have engaged in. Instead of a continual physical pursuit of purpose and proper dharma, they must internalize their journey and their purpose. The Ramayana serves as a stand in for the physical journey. Rama embodies all proper moral and physical behaviour, and the excitement of his journey across India fills the void which many Hindu's feel in their inability to undergo such an outstanding journey in real life. His physical hardship such as the encounter with That aka,7 and the freeing of Ahalya,8 are moral lessons; If Rama can overcome such powerful monsters, and free long trapped women, then the hardships of normal mortals should be simple to overcome for Hindu's, by comparison.
As Rama is to India and the Hindu faith, Monkey is also a culturally important mythological figure in Buddhism. However, unlike Rama, Monkey is not an incarnation of a good or a prince. Rather, he is a divine being who behaves in the manner expected of a monkey; he is curious and impulsive. Monkey's purpose is, at first, quite undefined and he is unable to find a single course of action which he wishes to follow; his first decisive action on any given path is to rise above his brethren and step through the curtain of water.9 After this, he is hailed by the others of his kind. After this he goes on to leave the other mountain dwellers to discover his true course, in the study of the Dao and its magical offerings. Unfortunately, Monkey is not as noble or as vaunted as Rama at this point in the course of his tale. Monkey is susceptible to the imperfections which mortals find difficult to overcome, namely this being the pursuit of power and greed. Despite all this, Monkey begins to discover his purpose after meeting the Immortals. Like Rama, Monkey must become a protector. He must protect the search for the truth of Buddhism, and this begins with his realization that he can protect those who call him king.10 Monkey and the Monk brings with this evolution of Monkey, and the most difficult portion of his journey, which is to understand how to use his powers responsibly.
Monkey, more so then Rama, can be linked to the human condition; he goes through all of the major conflicts that a human would experience when faced with the ability to do almost anything. Monkey must face the major adversities which are encountered by mortals; these include the ideas the greed, pride, laziness, and right action. Right thought and right actions are pinnacles in the practice of Buddhism, and signify major steps on the Eight Fold Path. Despite this, Monkey is trapped; he is neither an immortal nor is he a regular human being. However, in early Buddhist belief, this puts Monkey in an ideal place since “ it was customary to assume that ordinary human beings cannot hope to attain Buddha-hood unless the free themselves entirely from desires and worldly entanglements.”11 The story of Monkey and the Monk also puts Monkey in the position of being an achieved practitioner of the Doaism practices, which also focus on the need to abandon worldly desires. Monkey presents to his audience the dilemma of having to overcome one set of teachings in order to pursue another, in essence changing from a principally Doaist theology to a Buddhist one, since “ Buddhism represents a path of transforming the mind, with the aim of freeing ourselves from suffering and its causes.”12 Monkey's physical journey is a mirror for the much more difficult spiritual journey and transformation; his need to over come his very nature shows that it is possible even for mortals to overcome the hurdles of spiritual differences. As with a human, Monkey must act against his natural instinct to possess and claim ownership over the things they amass in life.
In the large scope of Hindu mythology and folkloric practice it is Prince Rama, considered to be the avatara of Vishnu,1 who is considered to be the pinnacle of the perfect Hindu Prince and the most devote pursuer of proper dharma; Rama then, becomes the model for all mortals in the Hindu faith.2 Prior to his marriage, another important step in the life of any Hindu male, Rama begins his journey. As the disciple of Sage Viswamithra, Rama journeys across the land of India in order to discover his purpose. From the very beginning of the journey, Rama knows that it is something which he must do, and like a proper Hindu behaves accordingly to his role as son, listening to his father without arguing over the fact that e is being asked to leave home on what could be a difficult journey.3 It is not long before Rama discovers his true powers and his true purpose; through supernatural encounters with a variety of characters, each associated with an aspect of topography in India, Rama is informed that he is to be a force for good, and that he “was born to restore righteousness and virtue to mankind and eliminate all evil.”4 To ensure proper dharma, it is Rama who must rise above all physical and emotional challenges in order to restore order to the world. This idea sets Rama as the external manifestation of the internal transformation and journey all Hindu's must make in order to best fill their own proper role.
Before science could explain what happened after death, it was up to the spiritual leaders to inform and give reasons to the daily phenomena of life; to this end “stories and parables, often illustrating moral or religious lessons, became very popular.”5 Rama, as more than just a mortal, is utilized to depict the difficulties any Hindu would encounter in their religious practice. However, since it is physically and realistically impossible for many of these events to actual occur, Rama becomes merely a mirror by which one can evaluate their spiritual journey. It is said that those of the Hindu faith pay deep attention to their philosophy, and they they hold to pursuit of understanding reality as being the “ most important task of a human being.6 For many, the undertaking of a grand pilgrimage is not an act which they could have engaged in. Instead of a continual physical pursuit of purpose and proper dharma, they must internalize their journey and their purpose. The Ramayana serves as a stand in for the physical journey. Rama embodies all proper moral and physical behaviour, and the excitement of his journey across India fills the void which many Hindu's feel in their inability to undergo such an outstanding journey in real life. His physical hardship such as the encounter with That aka,7 and the freeing of Ahalya,8 are moral lessons; If Rama can overcome such powerful monsters, and free long trapped women, then the hardships of normal mortals should be simple to overcome for Hindu's, by comparison.
As Rama is to India and the Hindu faith, Monkey is also a culturally important mythological figure in Buddhism. However, unlike Rama, Monkey is not an incarnation of a good or a prince. Rather, he is a divine being who behaves in the manner expected of a monkey; he is curious and impulsive. Monkey's purpose is, at first, quite undefined and he is unable to find a single course of action which he wishes to follow; his first decisive action on any given path is to rise above his brethren and step through the curtain of water.9 After this, he is hailed by the others of his kind. After this he goes on to leave the other mountain dwellers to discover his true course, in the study of the Dao and its magical offerings. Unfortunately, Monkey is not as noble or as vaunted as Rama at this point in the course of his tale. Monkey is susceptible to the imperfections which mortals find difficult to overcome, namely this being the pursuit of power and greed. Despite all this, Monkey begins to discover his purpose after meeting the Immortals. Like Rama, Monkey must become a protector. He must protect the search for the truth of Buddhism, and this begins with his realization that he can protect those who call him king.10 Monkey and the Monk brings with this evolution of Monkey, and the most difficult portion of his journey, which is to understand how to use his powers responsibly.
Monkey, more so then Rama, can be linked to the human condition; he goes through all of the major conflicts that a human would experience when faced with the ability to do almost anything. Monkey must face the major adversities which are encountered by mortals; these include the ideas the greed, pride, laziness, and right action. Right thought and right actions are pinnacles in the practice of Buddhism, and signify major steps on the Eight Fold Path. Despite this, Monkey is trapped; he is neither an immortal nor is he a regular human being. However, in early Buddhist belief, this puts Monkey in an ideal place since “ it was customary to assume that ordinary human beings cannot hope to attain Buddha-hood unless the free themselves entirely from desires and worldly entanglements.”11 The story of Monkey and the Monk also puts Monkey in the position of being an achieved practitioner of the Doaism practices, which also focus on the need to abandon worldly desires. Monkey presents to his audience the dilemma of having to overcome one set of teachings in order to pursue another, in essence changing from a principally Doaist theology to a Buddhist one, since “ Buddhism represents a path of transforming the mind, with the aim of freeing ourselves from suffering and its causes.”12 Monkey's physical journey is a mirror for the much more difficult spiritual journey and transformation; his need to over come his very nature shows that it is possible even for mortals to overcome the hurdles of spiritual differences. As with a human, Monkey must act against his natural instinct to possess and claim ownership over the things they amass in life.