The monkey miraculous is already based on Sun Wukong, so I tried to figure out how to incorporate that in the design. Wukongâs iconic elements are the Jingu-Quan golden band (éçźć) and the Ruyi-Jingu-Bang staff (ćŠæéçźæŁ), however both of those are already parts of the miraculous; so itâd feel strange if the Kwami wore mini-replicas. I decided to style the hair strands like the Phoenix-Crown, and added the Fiery-Golden Gaze (ç«çŒéç) that sees truth.
I used Shenlong (ç„éŸ) as inspiration; a Celestial Dragon (usually dark blue/black) that can command winds, rainfall, and thunderstorms. The mystical pearl that Shenlong carries is a tool for controlling the weatherâ I colored it gold, as I thought itâd look better with the color palette. Something interesting I learned while researching, was the phrase âShenlong falls into disgraceâ (ç„éŸć€±ćą) which is a metaphor for a capable person losing status/power. Apparently this saying arose from a cultural shift after the fall of dynasties in China, and the focus shifted from appeasing nature to human resilience.