Sha Wujing

Sha Wujing

Shā Wùjìng is one of the three disciples of Xuánzàng in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, although versions of his character predate the Ming novel. In the novels, his background is the least developed of the pilgrims and he contributes the least to their efforts. He is called Sand or Sandy and is known as a "water buffalo" for his seemingly less developed intelligence in many English versions of the story.

His Buddhist name "Sha Wujing", given by Bodhisattva Guanyin, means "sand aware of purity". His name is translated into Korean as Sa Oh Jeong, into Japanese as Sha Gojō (sometimes Sha Gojyō, as is spelt in kana as ji-yo-u, or Sagojou in Romaji), into Sino-Vietnamese as Sa Ngộ Tịnh.

He is also known as 沙僧 "Monk Sha", "Shā Sēng" in Mandarin Chinese, Sa Tăng in Sino-Vietnamese and Sua Jeng in Thai .

Read more about Sha Wujing:  Overview, Character Origins