SHA GOJYO

Height: 184 cm
Weight: 75 kg
Age: 22
Birthdate: November 9
Zodiac: Scorpio
Blood type: B

Voice actor: HIRATA Hiroaki

Red eyes and long red hair mark Gojyo as a "taboo child," the product of a forbidden union between human and youkai. Taboo children are generally despised, if not downright murdered for supposedly bringing bad luck.

Gojyo has not had it easy growing up. On top of being hated by the whole town as an ill omen, he also had to live with a mentally unstable youkai stepmother, who had tried to kill him when he was a little boy. Gojyo had an older brother called Sha Jien, whom he loved and admired. But as fate would have it, Jien had to save Gojyo's life, and afterwards abandon the child.

Since then Gojyo had to fend for himself, but he had been somewhat lucky in that area. His charm and gambling skills got him through cold nights; it didn't hurt that he was good-looking and a bit of a ladies' man. He grew up with a hedonistic lifestyle that became monotonous and meaningless after a while...

Then one rainy night he came across a badly wounded young man called Gonou, and despite his better sense, took the young man home and cared for him. It turns out this young man was a wanted criminal, sought by no less than Genjo Sanzo. Gojyo refused to hand the young man over. And with such an auspicious beginning, Gojyo's fate got entangled with the rest of the Sanzo team's.

Sha Gojyo is a happy-go-lucky person, emotional and loud, full of earthly appetites (he smokes, drinks, gambles, picks fights, eats to excess and yes, sleeps around). Most of the time, he provides the spirit of camaraderie, with his jokes and loud laughter and moments of light-hearted physical contact.

Gojyo has a deep friendship with Hakkai, who seems to have greatly influenced his view of himself and life in general since he crossed Gojyo's path. They lived under the same roof for three years.

He also seems to have a nice brotherly relationship with Goku, engaging the kid in petty fights just for the hell of it, squabbling with him over food. He calls Goku "stupid monkey" while Goku calls him "horny water monster". I didn't really understand the "water monster" reference until I read up on the original Journey to the West legend. See below this page for details.

He acknowledges Sanzo as the leader of the team, but otherwise has no respect for the man. He calls Sanzo "corrupt monk," "fake priest," "droopy eyes," etc., and pisses him off deliberately, every chance he gets.

His weapon is a huge glaive-like thing, sharp on both ends, with one end shooting out, attached to the trunk with a chain.

Original chara: Sha Wu Jing

This demon used to hold a high position among the Gods as the Curtain-Raising Marshal, servant to the Jade Emperor in the Treasure Hall of Mists, until he accidentally broke a crystal cup, and was banished to Earth in the form of a water monster guarding over the River of Flowing Sands.

The pilgrim Kuan-yin (represented in Saiyuki by Kanzeonbosatsu, the Goddess of Mercy, also known as Kwannon) came across the water demon, while searching for the "purest" person who will carry out the will of the Emperor to collect Buddhist scriptures in India. Kuan-yin tasked the water demon to wait for the "purest" person and to assist him/her on the journey to the West. The demon agreed, and he was named the Sandy Priest, or Sha Wu Jing (thanks for the help on his name, DragoraGirl! ^_^).

I haven't come across anything on Sha Wu Jing that says he had any distinctive qualities. At any rate, Minekura lent character to her Sha Wu Jing figure, Sha Gojyo, by giving him most of the hedonism formerly attributed to the other supernatural disciple, Chu Pa Chieh.

The "water demon" reference to Gojyo comes from Sha Wu Jing's profession, before he was recruited to accompany Tripitaka in his travels.

Other main characters:

Genjo Sanzo
Son Goku
Cho Hakkai