The Meaning of Journey to the West
Journey to the West was a classical Chinese novel about the journey of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, Monk Sand, and Tang Sanzang to India to retrieve Buddhist scriptures. This novel has profound cultural and philosophical significance, mainly in the following aspects: 1. Carry forward Chinese traditional culture: Journey to the West presents many elements of Chinese traditional culture, such as Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Chinese poetry, calligraphy, painting and other art forms, as well as Chinese traditional etiquette and customs. These elements are fully reflected in the novel, which will help readers better understand and understand the traditional Chinese culture. 2. Exploring the essence of human nature: Journey to the West tells the characters, life experiences, and philosophy of the four protagonists, as well as their interactions with the surrounding environment. Through reading this novel, readers can better understand the nature of human nature, including greed, selfishness, laziness, desire, etc., and also understand how to face the challenges and difficulties in life. 3. Showing Buddhist thoughts: Journey to the West is an adaptation of the Buddhist classic Maha Nirvana Sutra. A large number of plots and characters in the novel revolve around Buddhist thoughts. For example, in order to obtain the true scriptures, Sun Wukong kept practicing. Zhu Bajie encountered various difficulties and obstacles in his practice. In order to complete the task of obtaining the scriptures, Sand Monk made great efforts and sacrifices. These plots all show that the three schools of Buddhism, namely, precepts, concentration and wisdom, as well as compassion, tolerance and selflessness, help readers better understand Buddhist thoughts. Reflecting social reality: Journey to the West depicted the social reality of the Tang Dynasty, including official corruption, the gap between the rich and the poor, natural disasters, etc. The four protagonists in the novel were all living at the bottom of society. The difficulties and challenges they faced, as well as their struggles and sacrifices, all reflected the reality of the society at that time, which helped readers better understand the social reality.