The name Sun Wukong was given by the Bodhi Patriarch. In the first chapter of "Journey to the West", it is written very clearly. As long as you look carefully at this time, you should be able to easily understand the origin of his name. But looking carefully, this name still contains a lot of meaning.
Let’s first look at what’s written in the book.
When Patriarch Bodhi asked Sun Wukong his surname, Sun Wukong replied that he had no father, no mother, and no surname. Only then did Patriarch Bodhi make the following statement: "Although your body is humble, you are like a pine tree." You and I were given the surname "Hong". The word "Hong" is removed from the word "Heng", which means "ancient moon". The surname is "狲". The word "狲" has been removed from the word "Shu", which means "child". "Zi" means male, and "child" means "infant". It is in line with the basic theory of "infant". "Sun Wukong asked Bodhi. The Patriarch gave another name. The Patriarch said: "There are twelve characters in our sect, and the names are divided into twelve characters: Guang, Da, Zhi, Hui, Zhen, Ru, Xing, Hai, Ying, Wu, Yuan, and Jue. . The word "enlightenment" comes to you. How about I give you a Dharma name, Sun Wukong? "The Monkey King said: "Okay, okay, okay, I will call you Sun Wukong from now on." , this is how Sun Wukong got his name.
So, why did the author give him such a name through the mouth of Patriarch Bodhi?
According to Taoist thinking, all things are the product of the harmony of yin and yang. Therefore, when naming, the balance of yin and yang is often taken into consideration. According to Patriarch Bodhi, Sun Wukong was originally a "hozen", so naturally he could only choose from these two characters for his name. When choosing a name, you must remove his animal side, that is, you must remove the animal nature in him. If it is chosen as "Hu", then the moon is yin and Gu is old. Together they mean "Lao Yin". The so-called old yin means that the yin energy has reached the extreme, which is certainly not in line with the original intention of balancing yin and yang. Then, this surname cannot be adopted. The remaining word "grandson" is just right: he is both a boy and a baby, which means that the yang energy has just risen, but the yin energy is still retained, and the yin and yang are in a dynamic state of balance that develops in the masculine direction. This is the best thing. Nothing more. Therefore, the word "grandson" was determined. This surname not only appropriately indicates the identity of Sun Wukong's monkey, but also embodies the Taoist concept of the balance of yin and yang.
I think there is another underlying meaning here.
Since the entire novel is about human nature, then this surname must also contain traces of human nature.
Please don’t forget the following saying of Patriarch Bodhi: Your surname is Xi. The character Xi is removed from the animal side, but it is the descendant of the child. The descendant refers to a boy, and the descendant refers to an infant. This is in line with the origin of a baby. Argument. Let me teach you that your last name is Sun.
The words "just in line with the basic theory of babies" accidentally revealed a mystery!
What is the essence of infants? Is it just a principle of yin and yang balance? no. The essence of babies is development!
Infants are just the starting point in a person’s life development, not only the starting point of life, but also the starting point of the development of human nature!
Bodhi Patriarch accepted Sun Wukong and named him, and would teach him Taoism in the future. In the eyes of Grandmaster Bodhi, Sun Wukong was just a child, because he had not been infected with bad habits. He still seems very innocent, so it is not an exaggeration to regard him as a baby; more importantly, Sun Wukong still needs careful training and good training, because he needs development, and this is what the master should give him the most. something. Therefore, the surname was chosen as "Sun", which, in the words of Patriarch Bodhi, "fits the essence of a baby", which just reflects the Patriarch's love and ardent hope for Sun Wukong. At the same time, it also shows that human nature will be cultivated from here. This also cleverly answers the potential meaning of "the great path of cultivation of one's mind" in the first chapter.
Look again at the first name in Sun Wukong’s name.
It is written in "Journey to the West": The Patriarch said: "There are twelve characters in our sect, and the names are assigned, which are Guang, Da, Zhi, Hui, Zhen, Ru, Xing, Hai, Ying, The twelve characters are enlightenment, perfection and awakening.
Now that you are in the queue, when the word "enlightenment" is called "enlightenment", let me give you a Dharma name. Can you call it Sun Wukong? "So, Sun Wukong's name was decided, and he was called Wukong.
On the surface, it was just arranged in the order of the generation in the sect, and Wukong happened to be ranked in the "Wu" generation, so it was logical. It's natural to use the word "enlightenment".
But if you look closely, there is a lot to follow.
Let's arrange these twelve words into four. In one sentence, something similar to a verse appears in front of us:
Extreme wisdom,
True sea of ??nature,
Enlightenment and perfect enlightenment. /p>
What does it mean?
It can be simply translated as: There is vast wisdom in (the world), but real human nature is as unfathomable as the sea. If you want to understand it clearly, That is a very difficult thing. If we want to see the true nature of human nature, we must use our intelligence and understanding, so that we can truly understand and realize it.
Here, Patriarch Bodhi tells it clearly. If we want to truly understand human nature, we must not only use our intelligence and wisdom, but also "enlighten" more. Only through continuous practice and understanding can we fully understand and realize and truly achieve the "perfect enlightenment" of human nature. Realm. Therefore, he gave Sun Wukong the word "enlightenment", and the meaning behind it is self-explanatory.
But we have not mentioned the word "empty". After the meaning of the word, it is not difficult to understand: since this is the beginning of the development of human nature, and we need to painstakingly understand and practice, then we will always gain something in the end. What about human nature? Maybe it will be an "empty" word!
Why do you say this?
As the beginning of the Tao Te Ching says: Tao, Tao, is not Tao. Understanding human nature is the great road. If we can clearly explain what we have learned in the end, I am afraid that we will go further and further away from the true understanding. , realize it and turn it into a void.
So, this "emptiness" can be regarded as the final state to be reached.
The name of the protagonist in "Journey to the West". This is how it was finally determined. It leaves us with the following meaning: Human nature has been born and developed since then (a "Sun" character), and it needs to continue to progress based on the use of specific methods (a "Enlightenment" character), and Finally reaching the highest state of human nature (a word "empty")
This is the true meaning of the name Sun Wukong.
Sun Wukong also has several other titles: Monkey. Wang, Monkey King, Bima Wen, etc., these names, good or bad, are already well known to everyone, but he also has another mixed name, which was given to him by Tang Monk in "Journey to the West". "In the fourteenth chapter of "Five Elements Mountain", after Tang Seng rescued Sun Wukong, Sun Wukong asked him his name. Sun Wukong replied that he already had a name, so Tang Seng said happily: "It is also suitable for our sect. You look like that little Toutuo. I'll give you another mixed name and call you a traveler, okay? Wukong said: "Okay, okay, okay." "Since then, it has also been called Sun Wukong.
In a general sense, people who practice medicine are called practitioners. The reason why Tang Monk gave Sun Wukong such a mixed name just shows that at this moment, Sun Wukong has really begun. A long road to cultivate human nature.
The name Sun Wukong, together with his mixed name, constitute the complete meaning of the character Sun Wukong. In fact, it is the meaning given by the author. The complete plan for cultivating human nature: start cultivating from the beginning (actually, regardless of time, young or old, as long as you realize that you need to practice, it is the beginning); cultivating requires hard work and cannot be completed in a year or two. , you must have firm determination and will; when practicing, you must use wisdom to understand; in this way, you can always reach the state of human enlightenment.
In short, Sun Wukong’s surname is Sun, why is Sun Wukong’s surname? Sun, not Kong? Answer 1: Patriarch Bodhi said: "You hozen!" So he took the surname Sun. The original text of Journey to the West: The Patriarch said: "It's okay to do it gradually.