November
6
This sudden realization is both a gift from the passage of time and a test of its trials.
Author | Ju Xiaoxiao
Source | Taolumusic (taolumusic)
For our generation, the unbreakable bond in our memories must be the 1986 version of “Journey to the West.”
When we were young, many of us loved the righteous Sun Wukong, the playful and lovable Zhu Bajie, but no one liked Tang Sanzang.
When we saw Sun Wukong fighting monsters, children imitated him, leaping and jumping, but they had little interest in the lingering story of the Kingdom of Women.
Even the theme song, we preferred the boldness of “Ask What Path Lies Ahead” and the freedom of “A Broad and Open Road,” but found “The Beauty of the Women” too melancholic for young tastes.
It wasn’t until many years later, when we偶然 heard the familiar melody, that we suddenly tasted a different flavor.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West” featuring Tang Sanzang and the Queen of the Women’s Kingdom
The profound meanings we once failed to understand suddenly flooded us through the years, revealing that love is a universal experience we are all caught in.
We once rejoiced that Tang Sanzang avoided the temptation; now, we realize he missed a lifetime of love.
01
“Couples dance together, butterflies fly in pairs, the garden is full of spring, intoxicating the eyes. Silently asking the sage, are the women beautiful?”
From the very beginning, “The Beauty of the Women” exudes restraint and hesitation.
Though couples dance and butterflies fly together, and the spring scenery intoxicates, the question is only whispered to the sage.
Even as the queen of a kingdom, in this moment, she is merely a shy and reserved young woman.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
About the queen’s appearance, the original text in Chapter 54 reads:
“Eyes like emerald feathers, skin as white as sheep’s milk. Her face is adorned with peach petals, her hair styled with golden phoenix threads. Her eyes are as deep as autumn waves, her figure as delicate as spring bamboo. Her red silk robes flutter in color, her pearl and jade hairpins shine with brilliance. She is more beautiful than the famous Zhaojun, indeed she rivals the beauty of Xi Shi.”
Such a woman, with the status of a queen and beauty comparable to Zhaojun and Xi Shi, should naturally hold the advantage in love, as others see it.
However, no matter how clearly the queen hinted, Tang Sanzang remained unmoved.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West” – the queen’s imagined life with Tang Sanzang
In the world of love, status and position do not determine the outcome; who falls first, loses.
When we were young, we believed that love was about beautiful appearances and substantial wealth, but as we grow older, we understand that the position in love is not measured by worldly wealth; some things are simply beyond our control.
Back then, Han Han invited Wan Xiaoli to sing “The Beauty of the Women” in his film “Let’s Meet Again.”
At the time, many criticized the choice, thinking how a black humor film and an old song from decades ago could possibly fit together?
But when the music started, the man’s hoarse, low voice paired with the gentle lyrics created a strange harmony.
Scene from the film “Let’s Meet Again”
The film features the line:Those who love will be reckless, but love is about restraint.
The ending of Tang Sanzang and the queen of the women’s kingdom fits this line perfectly.
Because of restraint, even though his heart aches, he still chooses to let you go west, even though it means a lifetime apart, he does not want to cause you hardship.
During our youth, we only remember the anticipation of “unattainable love, waking and dreaming of it,” but as we grow older, we understand the pain of “unattainable love.”
02
We all love happy endings, but after the passage of time, what truly stays with us are the missed opportunities.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
The queen was not unaware, but she chose not to understand.
In the original text, when the four travelers arrive in the Women’s Kingdom and stay at the迎阳驿, the驿丞 reports to the queen, who coincidentally dreams of auspicious signs. Learning that the high priest of the Tang Dynasty is passing through, the queen asks the国师 to propose a match.
Tang Sanzang naturally refuses, seeing no way for his disciples to pass through. Sun Wukong devises a plan: pretend to agree, obtain the pass, and then break the promise.
Sun Wukong’s plan succeeds. As the queen and Tang Sanzang bid farewell to the three disciples at the west gate, Tang Sanzang changes his mind.
“Xuanshou, Bajie, Sandao, all united and ready, face the imperial carriage, shouting loudly: ‘Your Majesty, do not send us far, we bid farewell here.’ The elder slowly lowers his dragon carriage, bows to the queen and says: ‘Your Majesty, please return, allow this humble monk to continue on his journey.'”
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
Tang Sanzang, who always treats others with Buddhist courtesy on his journey, uses the worldly “bow” to bid farewell this time, a detail that faintly reveals his emotional struggle, but he still chooses to ride away without looking back.
In the TV series, there is a dialogue between the queen and Tang Sanzang.
The queen asks, “You close your eyes tightly, still saying ‘all is empty under heaven,’ if you truly are empty, why don’t you open your eyes to see me? If you truly open your eyes, I don’t believe your eyes are empty.”
Tang Sanzang replies, “If there is a chance in the next life…”
The queen says, “I only want this life, not the next.”
When we were young, we failed to see Tang Sanzang’s struggle and helplessness, but over time, we recognize that he too was moved. A wrong time with the right person, it was always a missed chance.
Li Zongsheng once sang in “Mountain Slope”:There are so many things left unsaid.
Young love is “braving the ocean and crossing the sea just to see you,” it is “I want us to be together” with unwavering determination. After crossing the mountain, as we grow older, we can only quietly ask, slowly think, lightly frown, and carefully consider.
The helplessness of middle age is not “I don’t love you,” but “I love you, but I have to pretend not to.”
03
Only when we grow older do we understand the weight of the words “fate,” the pain of “the flower has intention, but the stream has no feeling,” and the dream of “King Xiang with his dream, but the goddess has no heart.”
In 2008, the art life program invited the cast of “Journey to the West” to reunite. When the actress playing the queen of the women’s kingdom, Zhu Lin, came on stage, the audience spontaneously applauded. She remained as gentle and graceful as ever.
She openly mentioned, “The moment I arrived, my eyes were only on one person, my little brother brother.” The little brother she referred to was Xu Shaohua, the actor who played Tang Sanzang.
When asked if she had anything to say to her old friend, Zhu Lin looked directly at Xu Shaohua and said:”It has been twenty years since we parted in the Women’s Kingdom. Little brother brother, have you been well?”
These words made Xu Shaohua tearful.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
When asked why she felt so deeply, Zhu Lin replied, “Although it was a love story without a head or tail in the play, it has become a beautiful legend in the world.”
Zhu Jun then asked, “What regrets do you have from filming ‘Journey to the West’?”
Zhu Lin replied, “I have no regrets because I was completely immersed in the love story with Tang Sanzang.”
She slowly said:
Humans have many emotions, life has many temptations. Like the queen of the women’s kingdom, she understands the bigger picture and treats love as a pursuit and a dream. This is a state of enlightenment. The queen of the women’s kingdom achieved this, and I hope I can too.”
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
Her words, “Little brother brother, have you been well?” left many deeply moved.
Zhu Lin on stage and Xu Shaohua off stage, one blameless, the other speechless, it was as if one was real and the other was part of the play.
They say, “A thousand readers will have a thousand Hamlet interpretations,” but for the audience of the 1986 version of “Journey to the West,” when it comes to the queen of the women’s kingdom, there is only one person: Zhu Lin.
In fact, there is also a rumor about Zhu Lin online, that she “fell in love with Tang Sanzang at first sight” and that because of the role, she never married. Xu Shaohua, however, had just gotten married three days before joining the cast.
Anyone who knows a bit will know that the rumor is just that—a rumor.
The reason such rumors exist is ultimately because the audience cannot let go of the love story between Tang Sanzang and the queen.
Only those who have experienced the trials of life understand that some things, even if incomplete, remain timeless.
Sometimes, being incomplete may not mean being unfulfilled in another sense.
Only those who have cried in the depths of the night can truly speak of life, only those who have been hurt by love can speak of true love.
Young people are unwilling, jealous, and entangled, but only those whose passion has been tempered by the daily grind of middle age can understand the love between Tang Sanzang and the queen of the women’s kingdom, a love that arose unexpectedly and remained deeply felt.
04
宋代 poet Jiang Jie wrote a poem:
Young people listen to the rain on the song platform, red candles dim the silk bedding.
Young adults listen to the rain on a traveling boat, the river is wide, clouds are low, a lonely goose cries in the west wind.
Now, listening to the rain in a monk’s cottage, temples are scattered, and the hair is already white. Joy and sorrow, parting and reunion, are all without feeling.
Let the drops fall to the morning light.
Young people indulge in the joys of the world, young adults drift in foreign lands, the elderly are lonely and melancholic. A lifetime of joy and sorrow, drops to the morning light, a curtain of rain, witnessing a lifetime.
Now, a song like ‘The Beauty of the Women’ also evokes deep reflections.
When young, we only saw a world of splendor, couples flying together; when young, we added a touch of courage to face the rules and regulations; only when we grow older can we hear the sorrow of love and the careful consideration of being unable to have both.
The queen and Tang Sanzang, one enjoys the luxury, seeking only love, the other is empty of the Buddha, dedicated to the west to seek the scriptures.
But after taking the west, they can only betray deep love; through all the trials and tribulations, they still fail to pass the test of their hearts.
Scene from the 1986 version of “Journey to the West”
They say, “In this world, how can one have it all? Not betraying the Buddha nor the beloved.” But it turns out that the hardest test is the love test.
This realization is both a gift from the passage of time and a test of its trials.
I hope every person who understands ‘The Beauty of the Women’ does not do so because of pain and separation, but because of the changes over time and the light at the end of the tunnel.
I also hope that all lovers find happiness.
— THE END —
☀This article is selected from Taolumusic (taolumusic). Through thousands of hardships, though laborious, blowing away the sand reveals the gold. We do not provide network god songs, only share classic music. Zaojian is authorized to publish.
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