Day Three: Face-to-face with Monkey King

As we drove to Keelung, Ju-Huang said, “Very amazing, very amazing news. My father is a Buddhist and I told him we were going to the Monkey King Temple in Keelung. He said, ‘Why go to Keelung? Why don’t you go to the Monkey King Temple around the corner?’ Listen, two blocks from where I live there is a Monkey King Temple. My father says it’s very small but he often goes there. Song has to leave by one this afternoon to film a wedding but I’ll take you.  I’ve lived all my life two blocks from the Temple and never knew it was there. You come from the other side of the world and I discover  two Monkey King Temples!”

The Monkey King Statue was awesome. We all gasped at its power and strength. It was surrounded by many small monkey kings which Sat photographed. According to the Temple Keeper, when the Gor Family, who were doctors, lived in China, they were greatly helped when they prayed to Monkey King. So they built a temple to him and when they came to Taiwan, they brought his image. People come from all over Taiwan to be healed by Monkey King in the Temple. Monkey King asked the Gors to hold a birthday celebration for him. On the full moon of the second month of the year,  there is a celebration for Monkey King. At that time a six year old boy goes into a trance, jumps onto a table and channels the wisdom of Monkey King. I was sad we hadn’t arrived at that time.

Seeing the statue and understanding how deeply Monkey King was a part of Chinese culture made the search for the Monkey King temple worthwhile. Monkey King was not a deity; he was a fictional character in a novel and yet he was so strong an inspiration to the imaginations of the readers of the novel that they had created Monkey King temples throughout China in devotion.

In Monkey King’s temple there were also statues of arhats with open hearts as well as statues of Kwan Yin. I took a photo of Ju-Huang in front of Kwan Yin’s statue (at right). Ju Huang is busy and works very hard running a business, and yet she’s gentle and generous and eager to help in any way she can. She said she doesn’t have time for religion. She goes to the Temple from time to time to please her parents. Her spirituality is innate. When I look at her, I feel the presence of a living Bodhisattva.

Back in Taipei we picked up Ju-Huang’s mother and found the Temple. It was very small, next to a highway.  Fu-Mei, the wife of Mr. Lin, the Temple priest, told us that when her husband’s grandfather was alive, a traveler in a typhoon had a vision of Monkey King. In gratitude because he survived the storm., he built a temple to Monkey King. Although her husband didn’t really believe in Monkey King, when the city wanted to destroy the Temple to broaden the highway, one construction worker after another was hurt so they had to stop. Then Mr. Lin had a car accident with 200 stitches and lost two thirds of his blood. Monkey King spoke to him and said that if he would be his body then he would be well and his family would be well and his business would thrive. Mr. Lin rebuilt the Temple with his own money. He didn’t’ ask for any money. Now he owns a tile factory. He works in the day and four evenings a week, he bcomes Monkey King’s channeler to help others. She told us to come back on Monday the 18th to meet Mr. Lin.

That night Aka came to the Artists Village and demonstrated Spontaneous Movement for us and insisted on taking us out for dinner. When he heard that Sat was a zen master and I wanted to meet a Taoist priest from Taiwan, he said he would arrange for us to meet the most important Taoist priest in Taiwan. It might take him a day or so. We wouldn’t be able to take photos. In every direction, an arhat with an open heart appeared.