Mythology, Religion & Legend — Power Ranking TOP 100
I wrote a book ranking the most powerful gods, monsters, and heroes from world mythology, religion, and legend! The ranking is heavily influenced by my own perspective, but every placement is grounded in the actual lore and episodes from each mythology, so I think it makes for a satisfying read.
In this post, I’d like to introduce some of the characters featured in the ranking. There are many more beyond the ones mentioned here, so if you’re interested in mythology, religion, or legend, I think you’ll enjoy it!
Rank 82: Sha Wujing (Chinese Mythology / Journey to the West)
Overview
Sha Wujing is a demon-immortal from Journey to the West who journeys alongside Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie in search of the Buddhist scriptures.
Whether Journey to the West counts as mythology or legend rather than fiction is debatable, but for this ranking I will treat it as part of Chinese mythology. (The Investiture of the Gods, by contrast, diverges too greatly from Chinese mythology to be treated as anything other than fiction.)
Sha Wujing was formerly a high-ranking divine general “Juanlian Dajiang (the Curtain-Raising General)” serving in Heaven, but was expelled from the Heavenly Court after accidentally smashing a crystal vessel during a celestial banquet.
He was later taken in as a disciple of the monk Tripitaka and joined the pilgrimage.
In Journey to the West, Sha Wujing mostly serves as bodyguard to Tripitaka and rarely has the opportunity to fight compared to Sun Wukong or Zhu Bajie. However, when he first met Zhu Bajie, they fought three times without a clear victor, so they are treated as evenly matched.
His weapon, the “Xiangyan Baobang (Demon-Subduing Staff),” is a crescent-bladed staff said to weigh approximately 3 tons — which speaks to his formidable physical capabilities given that he wields it as a weapon.
As a side note, his appearance — blue-tinged skin and a preference for living by the water — has led many Japanese to depict him as a kappa (water sprite), but since the kappa is a uniquely Japanese creature, only Japan depicts Sha Wujing this way.
Why This Ranking
Sha Wujing is a fairly understated presence in Journey to the West, and since his battle with Zhu Bajie was fought in a waterside terrain that favored him while still ending in a draw, his raw ability is probably a step below Zhu Bajie’s.
That said, the fact that he can freely wield a staff said to weigh around 3 tons makes it undeniable that his physical capabilities are incomparably superior to any human.
Even so, compared to the war gods of other mythologies, he gives the impression of lacking a decisive edge, and in an actual battle against an opponent of equal or higher rank it would be difficult for him to come out on top. Taking all of this into account, I placed him at this position in the ranking.
