Xuanzang's journey along the Silk Road, and the legends that grew up around it, inspired the Ming novel "Journey to the West", one of the great classics of Chinese literature. The fictional counterpart Tang Sanzang is the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada, a disciple of Gautama Buddha, and is protected on his journey by three powerful disciples. One of them, the monkey, was a popular favorite and profoundly influenced Chinese culture and contemporary Japanese manga and anime (including the popular "Dragon Ball" and "Saiyuki" series), and became well known in the West by Arthur Waley's translation and later the cult TV series "Monkey".