Myth of the Week · China
The Monkey King for kids: Sun Wukong
· P.Sean Tales
Meet the cheekiest hero in all of mythology. Sun Wukong, the Monkey King of Chinese legend, was born from a stone egg on a mountaintop — and he has been causing delightful trouble ever since.
The magic staff
His weapon is a golden staff that obeys him completely: it can grow tall enough to prop up the sky, or shrink small enough to tuck behind his ear like a pencil. He took it from the palace of the Dragon King at the bottom of the sea.
Seventy-two changes
The Monkey King can transform into seventy-two different things — a fish, a bird, a temple, even a tiny insect to sneak somewhere he shouldn't be. He is very good at this, and very bad at resisting the temptation.
The cloud somersault
One flip of his cloud-somersault carries him thousands of miles. It is the fastest way to travel in Chinese myth — and the reason he is almost impossible to catch.
Did you know?
The Monkey King's adventures fill one of China's four great classic novels, Journey to the West — a story so popular it has been retold for four hundred years and counting.
Color the legend yourself
The Monkey King somersaults through Chinese Gods & Immortals — the gods, immortals and heroes of Chinese myth, ready to color:
- Chinese Gods & Immortals — the Monkey King and the Eight Immortals
- Indian Gods & Goddesses
- Japanese Gods & Dragons
Or start free: grab the free coloring pages.
You can find him in our book: Chinese Gods & Immortals.