Sanzang's Great Misfortune Is to Fall into the River; Guanyin's Fish Basket Saves the Tang Priest

Sanzang's Great Misfortune Is to Fall into the River Guanyin's Fish Basket Saves the Tang Priest The story tells how the Great Sage Monkey took his leave of the old Chen brothers, went with Pig and Friar Sand to the bank of the river, and told the two of them to decide which of them would go into the water first. "Brother," said Pig, "you should go first; neither of us two has very special powers." "To be frank with you, brother," replied Monkey. "I wouldn't need any help from either of you in dealing with mountain spirits, but I can't cope in the water. If I go into rivers or seas I have to make hand spells to keep the water away, or else change into something like a fish or a crab. But if I'm making a hand spell I can't get a good swing with my cudgel, use my powers, or kill evil spirits. I asked you two to go in because I've long known that you're both good swimmers." "Brother," said Friar Sand, "I'll go, but I don't know what we'll find at the bottom of the river. I think we should all go. You should turn yourself into something or else let me carry you through......