Transcendent Pig

The Transcendent Pig is a character in Diane Duane's Young Wizards series and Barry Hughart's Bridge of Birds. He originates in Chinese mythology.

In the Young Wizards series, the character is first mentioned in So You Want to Be a Wizard (the first book) and first appears in The Wizard's Dilemma (the fifth book). The pig is omnipresent, and tends to speak of past events as if they are happening right now. Its origins are unknown, even to The Powers that Be, who did not create it.

Wizards in the books are instructed to ask the pig what the meaning of life is as soon as they meet it, just in case the pig slips up and answers. He is aware that this is what they are trying to do and is relatively good natured about it.

References

"Interview with Diane Duane" by Harcourt Books, 2005
"Writer-In-A-Can 1: Meeting the Transcendent Pig" Diane Duane's account of her search for the character, June 15, 2003

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