At the beginning, Tang Sanzang himself did not even know that he was the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada. However, all the monsters along the way wanted to eat his flesh in order to obtain an immortal body. Therefore, he should also be somewhat alert, thinking that his physical body should be different from that of mortals. Jin Chanzi is the second disciple of the Tathagata, and his rank is relatively high. However, in Journey to the West, it is not introduced who the Tathagata’s eldest disciple is, so it has become a mystery. Let this Jin Chanzi be the first beloved disciple of the Tathagata for now. However, theoretically speaking, if the Golden Cicada has already become a Buddha, then she possesses immortality. Why would she reincarnate? Generally, if this situation occurs, it indicates that the party involved has made a mistake, and it is a relatively serious mistake. However, it is not mentioned in Journey to the West that Jin Chanzi made any mistakes But it seems that the Tathagata still cares very much about his disciple.
Perhaps the Tathagata chose an old path for Jinchanzi to reincarnate and ultimately entered the Buddhist sect. Moreover, Tang Sanzang was not an ordinary monk. The mission he carried was related to the legitimacy of the entire Tang Dynasty’s scriptures, so he had to go through countless difficulties to reach the Western Heaven and obtain the true scriptures. Along the way, there are Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Monk to escort, but basically all monster fights rely on Monkey Brother. Zhu Bajie is responsible for humor, while Sha Monk is responsible for self isolation and carrying luggage. Everyone has their own responsibilities and cooperates quite well, but since Tang Monk didn’t even know he was the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada at the beginning of his reign, how did these monsters know?
This kind of thing is considered a secret of Buddhism, and both the Buddha and Guanyin must know about it. However, a “big mouth” leaked this matter, causing all the monsters in the world to also know. Here, I would like to explain why eating Tang Sanzang’s flesh can make him immortal. We all know an idiom called “Golden Cicada Sheds its Shell”, and the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada Child as Tang Sanzang represents the meaning of the Golden Cicada Sheding its Shell. Sheded cicadas mean rebirth, so Tang Sanzang’s flesh has the effect of immortality. However, there is never a monster in Journey to the West who can have such oral ingestion, so this claim has not been confirmed.
The status of Jinchanzi in Buddhism is actually very high, after all, he is a direct descendant of the Tathagata, and even the four great bodhisattvas need to be given some facial recognition. Moreover, the Tathagata also highly values the Golden Cicada and lists him as the successor. It would be difficult to balance the talent that has been cultivated for thousands of years and given up like this. So the Tathagata gave the Golden Cicada a second chance, as long as he could successfully overcome the difficulties of ninety-eight and one, he could return to the details. In fact, the essence of these four disciples who are taking Buddhist scriptures is to make meritorious contributions by committing crimes. Either they made mistakes in this life or in the previous life, it depends on how the Tathagata arranges it.
So the combination of Sun Wukong and Tang Monk is basically an invincible version in the Buddhist world. Don’t forget that the real protagonist of Journey to the West is only one, and that is Sun Wukong. And according to the sequel of Journey to the West, when the Three Realms are facing a crisis, neither the Tathagata nor the Golden Cicada seem to be giving up, and they still rely on our Monkey Brother.
