Mythology & Religion Power Ranking TOP100
This article introduces Rank 81: Zhu Bajie from the “Mythology & Religion Power Ranking TOP100”, which ranks the gods, monsters, and heroes of world mythology, religion, and legend in order of strength.
If you want to see the full TOP100 list and the criteria behind the rankings, check out the overview article below.
Rank 81: Zhu Bajie (Chinese Mythology / Journey to the West)
Overview
Zhu Bajie is a demon-immortal from the Chinese novel Journey to the West who travels alongside Sun Wukong and Sha Wujing as a disciple of the monk Tripitaka.
He was formerly a high-ranking divine general “Marshal Tianpeng (Tianpeng Yuanshuai)” who commanded the Heavenly Navy, but he was expelled from heaven after drunkenly making unwanted advances toward the celestial maiden Chang’e, incurring the wrath of the Jade Emperor.
After being cast down to earth, he accidentally reincarnated into the body of a pig, becoming a pig demon. He was living quietly in a rural village married to a human woman when he met Tripitaka and Sun Wukong, after which he joined their pilgrimage to the West.
In Journey to the West, Zhu Bajie tends to serve as the comic relief, but given his origins as the powerful divine general Tianpeng Yuanshuai, he has in fact defeated many powerful demons and monsters during their journey — including Huhu Xianfeng and Fox A-Qi.
His weapon is the “Jiuchi Dingpa (Nine-Toothed Rake),” shaped somewhat like a farm tool with nine prongs. It is said to weigh approximately 3 tons, which gives a good sense of the extraordinary physical power of Zhu Bajie who wields it freely.
Why This Ranking
Zhu Bajie tends to be seen primarily through his comedic image, but as his origins as commander of the Heavenly Navy make clear, he is a genuine divine general-class powerhouse.
In particular, when he swings his Nine-Toothed Rake, it is said to be able to shatter mountains and even raise a vortex of fire and wind.
While he cannot match the absolute top tier of Heaven — Sun Wukong or Erlang Shen — he at minimum possesses the power to overwhelm demons and lower-ranking immortals, and can also employ divine powers including transformation techniques.
All of this puts him clearly in a different league from human-level heroes, and in terms of raw power he can hold his own against even upper-tier divine beings.
However, while he is tough, his immortality is limited, and he has a tendency to slip up even in Journey to the West — suggesting he would have few advantages in a battle against an opponent of equal or higher standing. Taking all of this into consideration, I judged this position in the ranking to be appropriate.
About the Book
I wrote a book that compiles this entire ranking! The reasoning behind each placement is grounded in the actual lore and episodes from each mythology, so I think it makes for a fairly convincing read.
The book also contains many columns and extras not published on this blog, so if you are interested, please check it out below.
📚 Series: Mythology Power Ranking (Individual Characters) (20/100)
