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Two characters from Journey to the West delight children in a Shanghai amusement park. Courtesy of Peter Anthony.
Not much street noise makes it through to my 17th-floor hotel room in Shanghai. Somehow, one tune tiptoes in from below. “It’s a small world after all, it’s a small world after all…” The lyrics to this tune will always be etched into my memory. It was composed in 1962 by the songwriting brothers Robert and Richard Sherman. They composed more songs for movies than anyone else, before or since, in films like The Sword in the Stone, Mary Poppins, and The Jungle Book.
In 1964, my family took me to the World’s Fair in New York City, where the internationally famous showcase was being held that year. One of the most popular attractions there was the UNICEF pavilion. It featured a ride called “It’s A Small World.” Designed by Disney, this production was filled with animated models, a technology then in its infancy. As entranced visitors bobbed by in boats, they were treated to moving figures of kids from around the world dressed in their native land’s costumes. Like little Pinocchios brought to life, the “children” danced and sang “It’s a Small World (After All).” I never forgot the wonder of it.
“It’s a Small World (After All)” became a hit song that was broadcast over and over until people around the whole country, or maybe anywhere, could hum it. Later, the It’s a Small World ride was moved to Disneyland in California where, as a boy growing up in Los Angeles, I rode it again… And again.
The music dates to 1962, a time when the Soviet Union and the United States were at each other’s throats. It was the Shermans’ way to tell the world to knock it off, what we need is peace and brotherhood. Some 60 years later, this same tune snuck its way into my hotel room just as I finished reading a story about a difficult search in ancient China for peace and harmony, Journey to the West. The story is set during the Tang Dynasty, whose rule lasted roughly 300 years until 907 A.D.
Journey to the West is based upon an actual historical event, the long trek by the Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang to India. His self-imposed mission was to bring to China original Buddhist sacred prayer texts, or sutras. At this time, different sutras were used in north and south China, and there were constant disputes about which was correct. Xuanzang believed that original sutras from their source would settle the matter and lay out a true path to nirvana for his brethren. In 645 CE, 17 years after he departed, after countless adventures, given up for dead by many, the monk returned to Chang’an, now called Xi’an, then China’s capital city. He brought with him 20 pack horses loaded with precious scrolls. The emperor celebrated the achievement.
1996 50 Yuan Silk Road - Monk's Journey. Courtesy of PCGS.
Coin collectors today can celebrate Xuanzang’s pilgrimage, too. One possibility is a 50 yuan one-third-ounce gold coin issued in 1996. It depicts the backpack-carrying monk as he trudges through the desert, his head shielded from the sun by a thin cloth. This coin is part of the Silk Road series. The Shanghai Mint made only 10,000 Xuanzang coins. Each is 23 millimeters in diameter and is struck in 91.6% fine gold.
Xuanzang’s adventure was part of Chinese lore for centuries. Then, during the Ming dynasty, around nine centuries later, an obscure poet turned the arduous journey into a wild novel. This proved so popular it spawned knockoffs and sequels for centuries. In China, reminders of it are everywhere to this day. Among the paths and tree-shaded glades of People’s Square in central Shanghai is a kiddie amusement park. On a day off from school and work, squeals of delight fill its bumper car hall and toddlers and adults alike laugh as a brightly lit merry-go-round twirls. If that’s not enough, just steps away a giant figure of a monkey looks down on a ride called… Journey to the West. Very much like in It’s a Small World, passengers ride little boats through its scenes.
Wu Chengen was the poet-novelist who started all this when he was inspired to retell the trek legend as a fusion of Chinese mythology, folklore, and religion. His rollicking version of Xuanzang’s epic journey is almost entirely fantasy, barely bounded by reality. While the historic quest for the sutras remains the theme, pretty much everything else is a product of the writer’s extraordinary imagination.
Contemporary American writer Gene Luen Yang recalls, “When I was a kid, my mother used to tell me Chinese folktales before bedtime… Of all her stories, my favorites by far were about Sun Wukong, the monkey king. Here was a monkey who was so good at kung fu that his fighting skills leveled up to superpowers. He could call a cloud down from the sky and ride it like a surfboard. He could change his shape and clone himself. How cool was that?”
Journey to the West begins with a long description of how Monkey King obtained his powers and what he did with them. This monkey is no Curious George. He is a fierce warrior who gains superhuman powers and doesn’t hesitate to destroy his enemies. Monkey King, as he came to be known, becomes so powerful that even the Emperor of Heaven can barely contain him. In the end, Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, brings the unruly simian to heel and converts him into a Buddhist disciple. He is then given a mission: to bodyguard the mortal monk who must journey to India. This is his one opportunity to redeem himself for his sins and achieve nirvana.
The book begins at Monkey’s supernatural birth. It explains how at the creation of the world there was once a remarkable mountain called Flower-Fruit, home to many immortal beings. Atop its peak lay an immense rock that contained an embryo. One day this “egg” split open and out climbed a stone monkey. This “emergence” is the subject matter on the reverse of a 2003 half-ounce colorized Chinese gold coin, although the monkey looks more cute than fearsome. A total of 11,800 were minted, and it is part of a five-coin set, the first of three Journey to the West sets released between 2003 and 2005. These 15 coins follow Monkey King and his companions’ adventures as they seek passage to India and salvation.
2003 50 Yuan Journey to the West. Courtesy of PCGS.
A five-ounce rectangular 50 yuan silver coin in the 2003 set, reveals Monkey King during his most debauched stage. He reclines on a couch in Heaven as he stuffs himself with the same holy peaches of immortality that he was entrusted to protect. This goes on until, one day, the immortal ladies-in-waiting of the Queen Mother of Heaven arrive to harvest the peaches. The fruit will be the main course at “The Great Grand Festival of Immortal Peaches” banquet. What they discover is that all the best peaches are missing. Chaos then ensues as Monkey King flees. A run of 10,000 colorized coins on this theme were minted. There is also a rarer 2,000 yuan, five-ounce gold coin, with 500 of those minted in pure gold in 2003. They portray Monkey King and his heavenly havoc.
2003 10 Yuan Monkey King-Ocean Pillar. Courtesy of PCGS.
2003 10 Yuan Monkey King-Jade Emperor. Courtesy of PCGS.
A pair of one-ounce .999-fine silver coins rounds out the 2003 set. One shows Monkey King receiving his nearly invincible war club, or cudgel, and the other has him battling with a god, with 38,000 of each of these released.
The 2004 set continues the story. On the half-ounce colorized gold coin Monkey King is down on bent knee as he offers to follow Buddhist teachings and protect the monk on his journey, come what may. To ensure the frisky simian’s obedience Guanyin places a magical gold band around his head. Whenever the monk utters a secret phrase, the band tightens and causes the monkey indescribable pain. Just as in 2003, 11,800 50 yuan gold coins were minted. This is true for all the coins in the series; different years with the same denominations share the same specs: dimensions, weight, metallic content, mintages, everything. Only the designs change.
2004 50 Yuan Monkey King Fighting Imposter
2004 10 Yuan Monkey King-Ox King. Courtesy of PCGS.
2004 10 Yuan Monkey King-Pigsy. Courtesy of PCGS.
In one episode a fiend assumes Monkey King’s shape to confuse his companions. The 2004 five-ounce rectangular 50 yuan silver coin shows the battle between the two “monkeys.” More complicated is the story of danger and deception on the five-ounce gold coin. It tells a story in which the two other protectors of the monk, Pigsy and Sandy, play important roles. These two were both former inhabitants of Heaven who were banished to earth for their sins.
After Monkey King flies off to gather some peaches from a distant orchard, the monk is spotted by a demon to whom the traveler looks like dinner. But, even with Monkey King gone, Xuanzang is still protected by his other guardians. So, the demon disguises itself as a young woman with “bright eyes, red lips, white teeth, moonlike visage, delicate hands, tiny feet — wearing an emerald silk dress.” As soon as the monk sees her, he nearly forgets his religious vows. Pigsy, who was banished from Heaven due to his weakness of virtue, announces that he will ask her for directions. In short order, the trio of the travelers all fall under the enchanting spell of the demon. She is on the verge of capturing them for her stewpot when Monkey King returns. He recognizes the girl as a demon and instantly clobbers her. This demon is tricky though, and its spirit escapes before the blow can fall. The frustrated Pigsy then turns on Monkey and claims the poor girl was a simple country lass. After much finger pointing and loud words the group moves on.
Soon, the demon reappears along the road as an old woman. Not fooled at all by the disguise Monkey slays it again. The other three are stunned by this and accuse him of wanton cruelty against an innocent, but Monkey convinces the monk to let him stay.
By now, the demon is frantic that the group will escape and that other demons will taunt it over this later. So it meets them, once more, on the trail this time disguised as a pious old man who chants sutras. The monk is overjoyed by this, but Pigsy, still in a bad mood, warns that they will all be punished for Monkey’s crimes while that rascal escapes. Monkey calls Pigsy a fool and walks up to the old man.
“Where are you going, sir? And why are you reciting sutras?” Monkey inquires. When Monkey doesn’t immediately attack it the demon believes he is fooled this time too. Yet Monkey has other concerns, like being banished for slaying another innocent victim. He summons the mountain’s spirits and tells them to prevent the demon from fleeing. The spirits are more frightened of Monkey than the demon, so they do as told.
When the blow falls this time, the demon leaves only a skeleton that has written on it, “The White Bone Demon.” Xuanzang is satisfied that it was demon all along, but Pigsy keeps stirring up trouble in the group. Monkey King leaves and that leads to…
2005 50 Yuan Manjusri Helping Monkey King. Courtesy of PCGS.
The great Chinese writer Lu Xun once said of this novel, “The three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism form the scaffolding for Journey to the West. It contains profound content. It is a mythical work with an irreverent, anti-feudal spirit. Talking about monsters' joys and sorrows are little different than talk about human beings’ feelings, so everyone can enjoy and relate to it.”
Nearly four centuries after it was anonymously published, this book still delights, entertains, and informs. For anyone not familiar with the tales of the Monkey King, time is well-spent reading it. For those who know it already, there may be few coins and coin sets that have better stories, or offer more entertainment value, than the three-year Journey to the West series does. Happy collecting.
By Peter Anthony - August 7, 2023
Original link: https://www.pcgs.com/news/its-a-small-world
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发表于 2023-8-31 11:32:37
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发表于 2023-9-1 01:08:59
