Quick Answer: Who Is Lu Zhishen?
Lu Zhishen (鲁智深, Lǔ Zhìshēn) is the former officer Lu Da (鲁达, Lǔ Dá) in Water Margin (水浒传, Shuǐhǔ Zhuàn). He takes a monastic name at Mount Wutai and becomes known as the Flowery Monk (花和尚, Huā Héshang). He later joins the outlaws at Liangshan (梁山, Liángshān).[1][2][5]
- He is remembered for uprooting a willow in a temple garden.[3]
- He saves Lin Chong (林冲, Lín Chōng) while Lin is on the road into exile.[4]
- In the 120-chapter version, the sound of a tidal bore helps him understand his teacher’s words.[6]
The garden and the tidal bore show the monk at very different points in the story.
People in the garden watch Lu Zhishen pull a willow out of the ground. Much later, he opens a window to find out what is making a sound that he first takes for a battle drum. The two scenes show how much the novel can do with his reputation for strength.
How Lu Da Becomes Lu Zhishen
In Chapter 3, the officer Lu Da hears the story of a father and daughter seeking help and intervenes. He leaves after the confrontation turns fatal. In Chapter 4, he takes vows at Mount Wutai and receives the name Zhishen. His new position does not erase his old habits, which soon cause trouble at the monastery.[1][2]
The Willow and the Forest Rescue
Chapter 7 puts Lu Zhishen in charge of a garden. He uproots a willow in front of the people gathered there. The onlookers recognize his strength, and Lin Chong enters his story. Their friendship becomes important in Chapter 8, when the monk intervenes at Wild Boar Forest to save Lin from his escorts.[3][4]
In Chapter 71, the final list of the 108 Liangshan heroes places Lu Zhishen thirteenth. It preserves Flowery Monk as the name by which the band knows him.[5]
The Sound of the Tide
In Chapter 119, Lu Zhishen is staying at the Six Harmonies Temple (六和寺, Liùhé Sì) with Wu Song. Lu mistakes the Qiantang tidal bore for drums. The monks explain what he is hearing. He recognizes a phrase in his teacher’s earlier verse, prepares himself and dies at the temple. The final scene gives a new meaning to a sound that first seemed to call him back into battle.[6]
The Monk in Japanese Woodblock Prints
Utagawa Kuniyoshi includes the figure in his Japanese Water Margin series. The Smithsonian calls him the Flowery Monk, while Tokyo Fuji Art Museum uses Tattooed Monk. The second title makes explicit a visual detail that the nickname leaves implicit.[7][8]
FAQs About Lu Zhishen
Are Lu Da and Lu Zhishen the same person?
Lu Da is the officer’s earlier name. Zhishen is the name he receives on entering monastic life.[1][2]
Which chapter contains the willow episode?
Chapter 7 contains it in the 120-chapter text cited here.[3]
How does Lu Zhishen die in Water Margin?
In Chapter 119, he dies at the Six Harmonies Temple after hearing the tide and recalling his teacher’s words.[6]
出典
[1] Water Margin. Chapter 3, 120-chapter text
[2] Water Margin. Chapter 4, 120-chapter text
[3] Water Margin. Chapter 7, 120-chapter text
[4] Water Margin. Chapter 8, 120-chapter text
[5] Water Margin. Chapter 71, 120-chapter text
[6] Water Margin. Chapter 119, 120-chapter text
[7] Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art. Flowery Monk Lu Zhishen, by Utagawa Kuniyoshi
[8] Tokyo Fuji Art Museum. Lu Zhisen, the Tattooed Monk, by Utagawa Kuniyoshi