Zhu Bajie

Zhu Bajie, also named Zhu Wuneng, is one of the three helpers of Xuanzang and a major character of the novel Journey to the West. He is called "Pigsy" or "Pig" in many English versions of the story.

Zhu Bajie is a complex and developed character in the novel. He looks like a terrible monster, part human and part pig, who often gets himself and his companions into trouble through his laziness, gluttony, and propensity for lusting after pretty women. He is jealous of Sun Wukong and always tries to bring him down.

His Buddhist name "Zhu Wuneng", given by Bodhisattva Guanyin, means "pig (reincarnated) who is aware of ability," or "pig who rises to power", a reference to the fact that he values himself so much as to forget his own grisly appearance. Xuanzang gave him the nickname Bājiè which means "eight restraints, or eight commandments" to remind him of his Buddhist diet.

In the original Chinese novel, he is often called dāizi (呆子), meaning "idiot". Sun Wukong, Xuanzang and even the author consistently refers to him as "the idiot" over the course of the story. Bodhisattvas and other heavenly beings usually refer to him as "Heavenly Tumbleweed", his former name when he was a heavenly marshal.

Zhu

Zhu or ZHU may refer to:

Zhu (string instrument)

The zhu (筑; pinyin: zhù) was an ancient Chinese string instrument. Although it is no longer used, three very old specimens in varying degrees of preservation survive. One with five strings, dating to approximately 433 BC, was discovered in the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng, in the Hubei province of central China.

It first became popular during the Warring States period, when its most famous player was Gao Jianli, a citizen of the state of Yan who attracted the attention and played for Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China.

The instrument remained popular through the Sui and Tang dynasties, and was lost during the Song Dynasty.

Little is known about the instrument but it is believed to have been a zither with a rectangular wooden body, with silk or gut strings that were played with a slender stick. Although ancient sources state that the instrument was struck (implying that the stick was bounced on the string in the manner of a hammered dulcimer in order to elicit sound), it is possible that it was actually plucked with the stick in the manner of the Korean komungo.

Zhu (surname)

Zhu is the pinyin romanization of four Chinese surnames: 朱, 祝, 竺, and 諸. It is spelled Chu in the Wade-Giles romanization system mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

The most common of the four, 朱, was the surname of the Ming Dynasty emperors. Today it is the 13th most common surname in the People's Republic of China, with a population of over fifteen million.

Origination and distribution

The Zhu (朱) family originated from the minor state of Zhu (邾, later renamed Zou) (p. 43, Chao) in present-day southwestern Shandong Province. King Wu of Zhou granted Cao Xie, a descendant of the Yellow Emperor through his grandson Zhuanxu, control over the small state. He was a vassal ruler under the Lu (state) (魯) and held the feudal title Viscount (子), but later held the title Duke of Zhu (邾公) during the Spring and Autumn Period. (p. 138, Li Chi; p. 239, Tan & p. 306, Wu).

The ancestral surname (姓) of the ruling family was Cao). (p. 144, Li Xueqin). The state of Zou was conquered and annexed by the state of Chu during the reign of King Xuan of Chu (楚宣王) (369–340 BC). (p. 43, Chao). The ruling family and its descendants adopted Zhu (朱) as their surname in memory of their former state of Zhu (邾). (p. 43, Chao & p. 239, Tan).