Today is the ninth day of the Chinese lunar calendar. The birthday of the Jade Emperor would fall on that day. It would be time to analyze the role of the Jade Emperor in the novel Journey to the West. The story would have the journey from China to India to gain the Buddhist sutras. An earlier portion of the novel took place 500 years before the legendary journey. Yes, 500 years which is the amount of time needed to win ten consecutive Mortal Kombat tournaments from the Mortal Kombat game. In Mortal Kombat, the Jade Emperor would be the highest-ranking Elder God, the one who'd call the shots, and have the Mandate of Heaven.
However, Journey to the West presents a curious case of the Jade Emperor's defeat. The defeat was so bad that they needed the help of the Amitabha Buddha to defeat Sun Wukong. How could Sun Wukong defeat the Elder Gods? Was it because Sun Wukong ate the peaches of the Queen Mother of Heaven, the wife of the Jade Emperor? Lao Tzu tried to burn Sun Wukon but FAILED. The combined efforts of all the Elder Gods couldn't help. Not even King Yama, the ruler of the Netherrealm, could stop him. Sun Wukong did already strike his own name from King Yama's role call. I'd assume Sun Wukong's role had caused the fallen Elder God, Tongtian Jiaozhu (aka Shinnok in Mortal Kombat) to be released. The Heavens were ruined and it took Amitabha Buddha to defeat Sun Wukong.
Digging through Indian literature will help
Some characters in Journey to the West are of INDIAN origin. Amitabha Buddha is just one. For some reason, the Hindu god Kuber was called Maitreya Buddha aside from the Laughing Buddha. The goddess Guan Yin is also known as Avalokitesvara (one who looks from above). However, Guan Shi Yin is more synonymous with Gayatri meaning "she who hears the sorrows of the world". Gayatri is also referred to as the Hindu goddess of mercy. Shakti worshipers call Gayatri the goddess of INFINITE COMPASSION.
One of the stories in Pushkar may help things. In Hinduism, Indra is known as the king of the gods. We can connect the story to the origins of Pushkar. A story in Pushkar goes that Brahma (who is referred to as the Four-Faced Buddha in Buddhism) wanted to start a fire ceremony. However, Brahma couldn't start one without a wife. Saraswati was taking TOO LONG. Angered, Brahma requested Indra (whose counterpart is the Jade Emperor) to find him a suitable partner as soon as possible. Brahma was soon given the cowherd girl named Gayatri. Brahma soon married Gayatri in a hurry as to start the fire ceremony on time. Saraswati arrived and soon cursed as much as she could. Brahma was cursed not to be worshiped. Vishnu was cursed to be separated from his wife in every incarnation. The monks were cursed to be poor. Everyone panicked. Gayatri heard the cries of everyone and through her newfound power, placed safeguards. Indra would regain his kingdom. Vishnu would always reunite with Lakshmi. Brahma soon has his temple in Pushkar and later had a following in Thailand and Indonesia.
The way the Jade Emperor needed the help of Amitabha might also be similar to events in Ramayana. Ramayana is when Vishnu became Lord Rama to deliver the world from Ravana's reign of terror. Vishnu had appeared as several beings to deliver sentient beings. Among the earlier incarnations were also Varaha the boar, Narasimha the lion, and a later incarnation Lord Krishna during the Mahabharat. Vishnu himself was also said to have become Gautama Buddha. Lord Indra and the others begged Vishnu to take action against Ravana's reign of terror. Later, Indra gave Vishnu the chariot needed for the final battle with Ravana. One can conclude that Vishnu indeed is more powerful than Indra.
The Journey to the West would be no different. Granted, Amitabha Buddha is infinite light. Vishnu is infinite light. Both are caretakers of the Vaikuntha or the Pure Land. Like in Ramayana, the Jade Emperor has to call upon Amitabha to defeat the terror reigning in Heaven. Like Kakbushindi, Sun Wukong would soon learn that Amitabha Buddha's reach is INFINITE. The famous bet was that if Sun Wukong could escape the Buddha Hand - Amitabha would hand over the Heavens to him. The curse of Saraswati was in effect. The blessing of Gayatri was also in effect. Sun Wukong defeated all the Elder Gods in the process. Amitabha Buddha soon banished Sun Wukong and locked him up for 500 years to reflect on his misdeeds.
Apparently, the Jade Emperor more or less has the same position as Indra. Indra is pretty much the CEO while the Hindu Trinity works like the Board of Directors. The Jade Emperor is apparently a symbolic emperor like in a parliamentary system with a monarchy. Why would the Jade Emperor be defeated by Sun Wukong while Amitabha took care of the mess? Hmmmm....
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