Since I was little my powers have been great;
My fame has spread in heaven and in earth.
As a bright young thing I learned to be immortal,
Acquiring the traditions of eternal youth.
I determined to visit the land of the heart
And reverently went to the country of the sages.
I learned the magic of infinite changes
And roamed at will through cosmic space.
My hobby was subduing the tigers on the hills;
When bored I forced the ocean dragons to submit.
I was monarch of the Mountain of Flowers and of Fruit,
And showed off my power in the Water Curtain Cave.
Often I decided to go up to Heaven
And in my folly I occupied the place above.
I was called the Great Sage Equalling Heaven
And given the title of Handsome Monkey King.
When they held a banquet of their magic peaches
I was most angry at not being invited.
Secretly I went to steal the jade liquor,
Drinking this rare wine in their elegant pavilions,
Liver of dragons, the marrow of the phoenix,
And many other delicacies did I steal that day.
I ate my fill of those immortal peaches,
And packed my stomach with pills of eternal life.
I then purloined all kinds of Heavenly marvel
And tucked away the treasures of that palace.
Because the Jade Emperor had learned of my powers
Heavenly soldiers were sent into battle.
The Nine Bright Shiners I sent on their way;
I wounded all five of the evil constellations.
The generals of Heaven were no match for me:
A hundred thousand soldiers all lost their nerve.
The Jade Emperor then was forced to summon
The Little Sage Erlang to join in the fight.
We both went through our seventy two changes,
Each of us showing his spirit and strength.
The Bodhisattva Guanyin came to their aid
With her vase of pure water and her sprig of willow,
And Lao Zi used his Diamond Jade
To take me a prisoner back up to Heaven.
They led me in chained to the Jade Monarch's palace
Where legal officials determined my fate.
Strong soldiers were ordered to cut off my head,
But the hacks at my scalp only made sparks fly
When they tried all their tricks but nothing killed me.
I was escorted to the palace of Lao Zi.
The Six Dings refined me with the fire of their furnace
And made my whole body as hard as steel.
After seven times seven days the furnace was opened,
And out I jumped, more terrible than ever.
The gods all shut their gates, unable to resist,
And the sages decided to ask the Buddha's help.
Great was the power of the Buddha's dharma,
Indeed his wisdom is infinitely mighty.
I wagered with a somersault to jump out of his hand,
But he crushed me with a mountain that rendered me powerless.
Then the Jade Emperor celebrated peace
And the West was proclaimed to be a land of bliss.
I was crushed by the mountain for five hundred years
Never tasting a mouthful of tea or of food.
When the Golden Cicada came down to earth
He was sent from the east to visit the Buddha.
He wants to bring scriptures back to China,
So the Tang ruler could save his ancestors' souls.
Guanyin converted me to the side of goodness,
To hold to the teachings and keep myself in check.
Since I was released from the agonizing mountain
I have been heading west to fetch the true scriptures.