Buddhism Physiology (Journey to the West)

==Introduction (Journey to the West)==
This page is going to do its best to go over the Physiology of Buddha's within The Journey to the West Novel written by Wu Cheng'en. As a 16th Century Novel JTTW is written with a lot of Flowery Language and it is difficult to discern what is true from what is false. This Physiology page will be my interpretation and based off of my own knowledge and research. 
==Transcendent Monk==
Within Journey to the West the protagonists come across many Transcendent Monks. A vast majority of them are normal people, however there are a select few that obtain abilities. These are the Monks that utilize The Great Way as a path to transcendence. They are capable of ascending beyond the boundaries of their World and as The Great Way exists in all worlds, they transcend the Main JTTW Cosmology. In the end they reach a Higher Plane of Existence known as The Realm of No Birth. While it is not known if they obtain any special abilities this transcendence can be considered to focus more on their state of being. (Cosmology and Terms) 
===Transcendent Monks Abilities===
*Immortality (Type 1; Transcendent Monks are stated to have eternal life. Type 5; Transcendent Monks are stated to not die, nor are they bornPage 43, Chapter 78 (Volume 4)Page 203, Chapter 8 (Volume 1))
*Acausality (Type 5; Transcendent Monks have been stated to have all of their causal relations abolished, because of this they are not born, nor do they die, they do not increase, nor do they decreasePage 43, Chapter 78 (Volume 4)Page 203, Chapter 8 (Volume 1))
*Transduality (Type 2: Within the world of ultimate bliss, one arrives at the gate of undivided truth, with sed gate referring to the one, undivided, non-dual unity of all things, and sed ultimate bliss being Buddha's Realm, the Trasure Monastery of Thunderclap. It is here that Transcendent Monks enjoy bhutatathatā, the permanent reality underlying all phenomena, referring to Buddha-NaturePage 72, Chapter 31 (Volume 2)Page 530, Notes (Volume 1)Page 203, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 202, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 516, Notes (Volume 1))
*Extrasensory Perception (Transcendent Monks are capable of perceiving things that are void and formless in nature. They would also be capable of seeing any and all Causes and EffectsPage 84, Chapter 81 (Volume 4)Page 43, Chapter 78 (Volume 4))
*Multilocation (Incorporeal Type 3: The Supreme Virtue is a part of The Great Way. Through it those whose spirits are pure and clean can have sed spirit flow freely through everything in JTTW Main CosmologyPage 278, Chapter 12 (Volume 1))
*Purification (Type 2: They would be capable of the Divine Spells of other monks, such as this one which purifies Mind and BodyPage 304, Chapter 13 (Volume 1))
===Transcendent Monks Resistances===
*Causality Manipulation (Transcendent Monks are free from Cause and Effect as they do not have it in general)
*Conceptual Manipulation (Transcendent Monks are beyond and unbounded from the Yin-Yang. The Yin-Yang is responsible for phenomena that are boundless in both substance, function. It is also the invisible formless force behind all images/representations of dyadic Models and dualities. It would be responsible for the creation of every Space-Time as it was Via the Yin-Yang that Pan Gu could even form the Universe. Without the Yin-Yang reality would cease to function properlyPage 377, Chapter 100 (Volume 4)Page 100, Chapter 1 (Volume 1)Page 109, Chapter 82 (Volume 4))
*Conceptual Manipulation & Elemental Manipulation (The Five Phases are a conceptual force alongside the Yin-Yang which is conceptual in nature and is stated to be responsible for human's natural endowments. Natural endowments would include things like intelligence and strength or their gifts, talents, etc. One statement also says The Five Phases formed creation itself. This is supported by the fact the Five Phases also make up the entire Universe. One cant can't even utilize abilities such as flight due to being born into the World of The Five Phases. This extends to the forms of Monsters & Demons which are molded to match the Five Phases. Transcending the World and seeing Reality as empty Transcendent Monks would be beyond the Five Phases' elemental and conceptual propertiesPage 278, Chapter 12 (Volume 1)Page 377, Chapter 100 (Volume 4)Page 100, Chapter 1 (Volume 1)Page 109, Chapter 82 (Volume 4))
*Life Manipulation & Death Manipulation (Transcendent Monks are beyond the JTTW Main Cosmology and that puts them outside of the Register of Births and Deaths. This controls the death of every being even those with "Eternal Life" like Sun Wukong, until he crossed out his name. Its stated Monks among others do not die and are not bornPage 140, Chapter 3 (Volume 1)Page 203, Chapter 8 (Volume 1))
*Reality Warping (Transcendent Monks exist unbound from reality as they see reality as a whole as nothingPage 43, Chapter 78 (Volume 4))
*Possible Chaos Manipulation (Transcendent Monks exist beyond and unbound from the universe and reality, this would include The Yin-Yang. The Yin-Yang formed Chaos before splitting apart and creating the UniversePage 99, Chapter 1 (Volume 1)Page 100, Chapter 1 (Volume 1))
*Possible Statistics Reduction, Statistics Amplification (Transcendent Monks and others are stated not have Growth/Increase or DecreasePage 203, Chapter 8 (Volume 1))
*Fate Manipulation (Transcendent Monks are beyond the JTTW Main Cosmology that puts them outside of the Register of Births and Deaths. This controls the fate of every being, even those who are yet to be bornPage 255, Chapter 11 (Volume 1))
*Mental Manipulation, Perception Manipulation, Empathic Manipulation, Madness Manipulation & Sense Manipulation (Transcendent Monks can bypass all mental projections. Mental Projections in general include all types of perception. This includes ones based on vision as well as others that are shaped by memory and learning. This further includes mental events which are thoughts, feelings, decisions, dreams and realizationsPage 43, Chapter 78 (Volume 4))
==Bodhisattvas==
Within Journey to the West one of the highest Buddhist beings we encounter as Bodhisattvas, with Bodhisattva Guanyin being the most encountered by far. For all intents and purposes, they are the beings closest to becoming Buddha's themselves within Journey to the West. They each have their own Realm, some existing in an entirely different time flow within a Spiritual Mountains while others on Spiritual Islands guarded by Deities. However, while they all nearly have the same abilities, they are not all equal. Bodhisattvas need to go through the ten stages known as the ten stops before they can become Buddha's. They would follow the same standard of viewing seeing everything as emptiness. (Cosmology and Terms) 
===Bodhisattvas Abilities===
They would have the Abilities and Resistances from the previous stages. 
*Nonexistent Physiology (Nature 2, Aspects Type 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5: Bodhisattvas exist within thought being nothing as they originate from nothingness, and even their spirits are stated to be empty in nature. Within the 1st Volume, it is shown that the Heart Sutra explains some of the steps towards reaching Nirvana, achieving Enlightenment, and becoming a Buddha. It explains an understanding that emptiness and form are one and the same, and the same is true for sensations perceptions, volitations, and consciousness. Because they are one another, there are no forms within emptiness itself, nor eyes, ears, noses, tongues, bodies, minds, sound, smell, taste, touch, or objects of mind, there is no ignorance, or extinction of ignorance, no old age or death, nor extinction of old age and death, no suffering, nor annihilation, or way, no cognition nor attainment, as there is nothing to be attained. This encompassment of all things being emptiness and form extends to the knowledge of emptiness, the knowledge of form, the void, and the void of voids, and all sorts of recursions of such thingsPage 363, Chapter 17 (Volume 1)Page 114, Chapter 1 (Volume 1)Page 390, Chapter 19 (Volume 1)Page 113, Chapter 58 (Volume 3)Page 308, Chapter 96 (Volume 4))
*Acausality (Type 5; When pursuing the Dharma, one ties a firm knot on the void and fastens it to the no-work tree, this is the tree of passivity, nonactivity, spontaneity, and non-causalityPage 393, Chapter 20 (Volume 1)Page 530, Notes (Volume 1))
*Subjective Reality & Conceptual Manipulation (The Dharma is every Sutra, Scripture and the very teachings of The Buddha. It has no equal in either Potency or Authority. The Dharma is boundless in nature and can generate boundless Dharma Power. Dharma Power is stated to give rise to a Bodhisattvas abilities and as well as acting as a source to them. Dharma Power would be The Dharma inserting itself (Sutra's, Scriptures, Teachings, etc) into reality, as in itself it is nothing but text and information. This would give Bodhisattvas the ability to do anything The Dharma states or shows it can do. There would be hardly any limits as they can draw on boundless power, which would equate to boundless Dharma Power. With everything having Buddha-Nature, Bodhisattvas should be capable of doing anything using their own Buddha-NaturePage 204, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 346, Chapter 98 (Volume 4)Page 251, Chapter 42 (Volume 2)Page 253, Chapter 43 (Volume 2)Page 249, Chapter 42 (Volume 2)Page 363, Chapter 17 (Volume 1)Page 114, Chapter 1 (Volume 1))
*Flight (Bodhisattvas can fly using a cloudPage 355, Chapter 49 (Volume 2))
*Dimensional Travel (Bodhisattvas can travel to other Realms such as The Underworld and HeavenPage 348, Chapter 10 (Volume 1)Page 174, Chapter 6 (Volume 1))
*Non-Physical Interaction (Bodhisattvas can interact with evil-spirits/monster-spirits they can also interact with intangible things like cloudsPage 31, Chapter 77 (Volume 4)Page 355, Chapter 49 (Volume 2))
*Elemental Intangibility (A Bodhisattvas can transform into lightPage 317, Chapter 14 (Volume 1))
*Shapeshifting (A Bodhisattva has infinite transformationsPage 363, Chapter 17 (Volume 1))
*Immortality (Type 4; Having 72 transformations gives you 72 lives, Bodhisattvas have infinite transformationsPage 232, Chapter 41 (Volume 2)Page 363, Chapter 17 (Volume 1))
*Extrasensory Perception (A Bodhisattva can see through shapeshiftingPage 237, Chapter 66 (Volume 3))
*Paralysis Inducement (Bodhisattvas can turn words such as "restrain" into magic spells to freeze beings in placePage 237, Chapter 66 (Volume 3)Page 238, Chapter 66 (Volume 3))
*Mind Manipulation (Bodhisattvas can turn words such as "Delusion" into magic spells to warp a being's mindPage 247, Chapter 42 (Volume 2)Page 248, Chapter 42 (Volume 2))
*Dismantling (Bodhisattvas can dismantle a Gods Weapon, which was forged with the assistance of all kinds of Gods, including the Gods of TimePage 211, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 382, Chapter 19 (Volume 1))
*Creation (The Dharma can be used to control the Five Phases to create things like Mountains. The Dharma also contains The Great Way which is responsible for the imbue of the cosmosPage 195, Chapter 7 (Volume 1)Page 287, Chapter 12 (Volume 1))
*Immortality Negation & Invulnerability Negation & Fire Manipulation (Type 1, 2, 3 & 5: The Dharma can be used to control the Five Phases and utilizing the Five Phases one can summon Samadhi Fire. The heat from Samadhi Fire was capable of burning and killing Sun Wukong, with him only surviving thanks to his resurrectionsPage 225, Chapter 41 (Volume 2)Page 231, Chapter 41 (Volume 2))
*Transmutation (Bodhisattvas can turn things into something else and turn them back as wellPage 246, Chapter 42 (Volume 2)Page 249, Chapter 42 (Volume 2))
*Space-Time Manipulation (The Great Way/The Great Vehicle which is a part of The Dharma is responsible for the Cosmos Imbue. This is referring to the recursion of Worlds that exist within the cosmology. Wielding Boundless Power & Control over The Dharma, Bodhisattvas would be capable of manipulating the Great WayPage 204, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 197, Chapter 88 (Volume 4))
*Fate Manipulation & Age Manipulation (The Dharma is stated to have control over fate and may have been responsible for the entire story of JTTW. This would include controlling the Fate of Bodhisattvas, Gods, Nonexistent Spirits and everything else that appears throughout the Novel. Bodhisattvas are shown they can change a person's expected life, so their Fate comes laterPage 82, Chapter 81 (Volume 4)Page 358, Chapter 98 (Volume 4)Page 339, Chapter 97 (Volume 4))
*Holy Manipulation (The Dharma can create blessingsPage 377, Chapter 100 (Volume 4))
*Limited Soul Manipulation (Bodhisattvas should be able to change their Spirit/Souls at willPage 114, Chapter 1 (Volume 1))
*Biological Manipulation (The Dharma can reduce beings to piles of flesh or cramp musclesPage 31, Chapter 77 (Volume 4))
*Invulnerability (Holy Sages which are Bodhisattvas are outside of Creation and Destruction. As they get closer to reaching Nirvana they see annihilation as nothing, and via mastering The Great Way would have an indestructible bodyPage 107, Chapter 1 (Volume 1)Page 287, Chapter 12 (Volume 1))
*Power Nullification, Immorality Negation Nullification, Invulnerability Negation Nullification (Bodhisattvas can dispel the Three Calamities which could kill even Sun Wukong despite his Immortality Type 1, 2, 3 & 4 along with his Invulnerability. It consisted of Thunder that is guaranteed to strike if you're not smart enough to avoid it ahead of time, Fire that appears beneath you and reduces your insides to ashes, and Wind that disintegrates youPage 212, Chapter 8 (Volume 1)Page 121, Chapter 2 (Volume 1))
*Information Manipulation (The Dharma is Knowledge, Teachings, Sutra's etc. Bodhisattvas can control it and turn it into power)
*Precognition (Bodhisattvas are capable of seeing events of the Past, Present and FuturePage 362, Chapter 17 (Volume 1))
*Cosmic Awareness (Bodhisattvas can see everything across the entire UniversePage 362, Chapter 17 (Volume 1))
*
*Social Influencing (The words and teachings of a Bodhisattva are capable of redeeming and converting even the dead. This would include the heinous beings that exist throughout all Eighteen Layers of HellPage 48, Chapter 29 (Volume 2)Page 359, Chapter 11 (Volume 1))
===Bodhisattvas Resistances===
*Existence Erasure & Deconstruction (Bodhisattvas are outside of Creation and Destruction and lack annihilation in generalPage 107, Chapter 1 (Volume 1))
*Will Manipulation (The Heart Sutra states Bodhisattvas as they get closer to Nirvana volition is removed from them which is WillPage 390, Chapter 19 (Volume 1))
*Age Manipulation (The Heart Sutra states Bodhisattvas as they get closer to Nirvana have Age & Death along with the destruction of Age & Death removed from them)
*Limited Mind Manipulation (The Heart Sutra states Bodhisattvas as they get closer to Nirvana have no hindrances, errors, or delusions mentally and are removed from such things. They do not even have cognition not thinking or having thoughts)
*Cosmic Radiation (Would have had to have travelled through space to reach HeavenPage 174, Chapter 6 (Volume 1))
==Buddhas==
Within Journey to the West by far the most honored and exalted existences by others are Buddhas. These are the Buddhas that show themselves throughout the Novel along with Tathagata. All of them are Buddha's whose very body and being is made of the Dharma and is one with it as well. Because of this it wouldn't be inaccurate to consider them living Subjective Reality. However, it should be knowing that Buddhas are not actually the highest existence. Instead, they are Avatars manifested by The Dharmakaya so it may interact with the world and teach those that live in the Realms below them. They see everything as unreality in comparison to themselves. (Cosmology and Terms)
===Buddhas Abilities===
They would have the Abilities and Resistances from the previous stages. 
*Immortality (Type 8 & 9; The diamond incorruptible body of Buddhahood, is the incorruptible dharma-body. As one of the Three Religions, Buddhism is unable to be destroyed or abolished, and the dharma is neither produced nor destroyed from the very beginning. For the dharma to be born or destroyed, it must be decided by one's mind, and one's mind must decide who caused such a thing to happenPage 404, Notes (Volume 4)Page 365, Chapter 99 (Volume 4)Page 274, Chapter 12 (Volume 1)Page 393, Chapter 20 (Volume 1))
*Nonexistent Physiology (Nature 2, Aspects 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5: When one becomes a Buddha, all Nidanas cease and all forms become emptiness, with Nidanas referring to the causation that gives rise to all things and all phenomena. This includes the causes that give rise to ignorance, which give rise to the phenomena of aggregates, the phenomena of consciousness, the phenomena of name and form, the phenomena of the six senses, the phenomena of contact, the phenomenon of sensations, the phenomenon of desire, the phenomena of coming into existence, the phenomena of birth, and the phenomena of old age and deathPage 89, Chapter 32 (Volume 2)Page 379, Notes (Volume 2)Page 381, Notes (Volume 2))
*Omniscience (Buddha's have eyes of wisdom that let see and grasp anything. They can also gaze across the entire Universe in an instant. They have limitless wisdom, knowing every category and thing. Their intelligence encompasses everything even things that have no relation to them and their spirit can perceive the formlessPage 25, Chapter 52 (Volume 3)Page 94, Chapter 57 (Volume 3)Page 22, Chapter 52 (Volume 3)Page 115, Chapter 58 (Volume 3)Page 378, Chapter 100 (Volume 4))
*Abstract Existence (Type 1; The diamond incorruptible body of Buddhahood, is the incorruptible dharma-body, and the dharma is the half-hidden and half-manifest law, birthless and deathless, never aging, neither produced nor destroyed, neither defiled nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing, simply an empty appearance)
*Incorporeality (The diamond incorruptible body of Buddhahood, is the incorruptible dharma-body and the dharma is emptiness and has no forms within itself)
*Omnipresence & Large Size (Type 10; The diamond incorruptible body of Buddhahood, is the incorruptible dharma-body. The dharma is stated to impregnate the cosmos, filling all space no matter how tiny and permeating itPage 377, Chapter 100 (Volume 4))
*Transduality (Type 2; Dyadic Models and dualities manifest themselves throughout heaven and earth under the rudimentary laws of the yin and yang and its images. The changes and transformations of the yin and yang result in boundless substances, functions, true natures, and the permanence of its phenomena, however, in the end, all fundamental nature will end in extinction, existing as nothing just like empty phenomena, because when one becomes a Buddha, all Nidanas cease and all forms become emptiness, with Nidanas referring to the causation that gives rise to all things and all phenomenaPage 377, Chapter 100 (Volume 4)Page 278, Chapter 12 (Volume 1)Page 202, Chapter 8 (Volume 1))
*Teleportation (Through Buddha-Nature you simply arrive at places, with no need to travel. Spiritual Mountain in this case being Tathagata's Pure LandPage 452, Chapter 24 (Volume 1))
*Soul Manipulation (A Buddha can banish a being's soul from their bodies and forcefully reincarnate them into new onesPage 100, Chapter 57 (Volume 3))
*Life Manipulation & Resurrection (A Buddha can bring souls back to life and recreate their bodiesPage 120, Chapter 83 (Volume 4))
*Subjective Reality (As Buddhas would be one with the Dharma anything they think would automatically be possible. This puts their ability to utilize The Dharma above Bodhisattvas as they are the Kings of The Dharma, and the Dharma would be molded by them and the mindPage 140, Chapter 84 (Volume 4)Page 204, Chapter 64 (Volume 3)Page 393, Chapter 20 (Volume 1))
*Power Bestowal (Buddhas can bestow Dharma Power which can take the form of artifacts & treasuresPage 25, Chapter 52 (Volume 3))
*Power Mimicry (Treasures of Buddhas and Bodhisattva's would be manifestations of Dharma Power. And it is through Dharma Power that a Bodhisattva's Treasure or Artifact has their abilities. This would mean a Buddha would be capable of doing the same as any Artifact or Treasure through the DharmaPage 25, Chapter 52 (Volume 3)Page 247, Chapter 42 (Volume 2))
*Sealing & Power Nullification (A Buddha is capable of sealing beings away. While sealed, Sun Wukong could not and did not use any of his abilities and couldn't even muster his strengthPage 199, Chapter 7 (Volume 1))
*Healing (A Buddha is capable of some level of healingPage 304, Chapter 13 (Volume 1))
*Light Manipulation (A Buddha light can stop attackersPage 31, Chapter 77 (Volume 4))
*Morality Manipulation & Transformation (A Buddha can transform beings into their guardians and change their allegiancePage 32, Chapter 77 (Volume 4))
Buddhas Resistance
*Corruption & Purification (The Dharma is neither corrupt nor pure and Dharma-Bodys are incorruptiblePage 365, Chapter 99 (Volume 4))
*Possible Mist Manipulation & Electricity Manipulation (Dharma-Bodys cannot be harmed by Fog, Thunder, or Lightning)
*Possible Power Modification, Information Manipulation & Power Absorption (The Dharma & Buddhism are stated to be incapable of being destroyed or abolished. The Dharma via its very nature cannot be changed as it does not increase or decrease in any way)
==The Dharmakaya==
Within Journey to the West Buddhas are represented through Dharma Bodied Buddhas. However, in truth Dharma Bodies are simply avatars utilized by The Dharmakaya. It is the unity of every Buddhas Mind that exists within Nirvana. It encompasses and represents everything Buddhism is from the Dharma to Buddha-Nature. Within the JTTW Verse only it and Nirvana truly exist as Buddhism is founded upon Nirvana. It is the unfathomable source of the Dharma. (Cosmology and Terms)
===The Dharmakaya Abilities===
* Omnipresence (The Dharmakaya is stated to be a pearl-like radiance holding myriad things, with this referring to the mating of Heaven and Earth in which all things were createdPage 306, Chapter 14 (Volume 1)Page 29, Chapter 77 (Volume 4))
* Nonexistent Physiology (Nature 2, Aspects 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5: The Dharmakaya is stated to truly have no shape nor form, is the bodiless body that is the true body, the real form that is form which has no form, having no void, no no-emptiness)
* Transduality (Type 3; The Dharmakaya has no coming nor leaving, no contrast nor sameness, no being nor nonbeing, no giving, no taking nor any hopeful craving) 
** This means it is neither dual like the Yin and Yang, non-dual like the Transcendent Monks, nor outside of duality like the Buddha's.
==References==
Category:Verse-specific Powers and Abilities
Category:Journey to the West