According to the author, the Monkey King Sun Wukong in Wu Cheng’en’s Xi-you-Ji owes its image directly to the Monkey Pilgrim of Ta-tang-san-zang-qu-jing-shi-hua ("A Poetic Storyof Master the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty"), who in turn takes its traits from the Indianmonkeys portrayed in the Buddhist work Rajajataka, particularly from the Little Monkeysof the Satparamitasannipatasutra. The author points out, however, that the Monkey Pilgrimmentioned above is not a simple or mechanical copy but a Chinese creation embodying bothChinese ingenuity and Indian influence. He also puts forward the following argument: The LittleMonkeys of the Buddhist story are no doubt the antecedents of Hanuman of the Ramayana, but theydiffer from the latter so far as their images are concerned, and hence, a link between the MonkeyKing and the Little Monkeys notwithstanding, the Monkey King’s direct relation to Hanumancannot be taken for granted as has been done by some writers.
