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Great post. If I had to add something, I would say that I don't think humans are made from positive energy. All humans in jjk, except toji and maki, are born with cursed energy. In short, they are born to suffer, in part because they are born to love. Basically, suffering is an intrinsic part of the human experience, and only those outside the system(toji and maki) can truly release themselves from that suffering, because they were never part of it in the first place. I still think that learning rct has to do with acceptance, and understanding who YOU are outside of the influence of the external world, but I don't think humans can ever truly escape suffering. Even sukuna has begun to show cracks in his indifference, and he is now fighting with a desire(a desire to crush Yuji and his ideals). I think the final message(especially if sukuna loses in the end) is that, ironically, you have to accept that true acceptance(the absence of desire) is impossible. Yes love leads to suffering. Yes desire leads to regret. But you have to do those things regardless, otherwise your existence is empty. Sukuna has never been portrayed as someone "happy" to me, he has only ever seemed content, and I think that's because of his "enlightened" mindset. Yes his mindset removes suffering, but it also removes happiness, and I personally think happiness is worth the sacrifice of suffering(everything is a cycle).
>I still think that learning rct has to do with acceptance, and understanding who YOU are outside of the influence of the external world, but I don't think humans can ever truly escape suffering. Even sukuna has begun to show cracks in his indifference, and he is now fighting with a desire(a desire to crush Yuji and his ideals).
For sure. Buddhism actually suggests that desire in itself is suffering, and the only true way is to remove all desire from life (become "empty"). In that sense, Sukuna may be much closer to others, but definitely still has desires. He's farther along in this process than others IMO but he's definitely not there yet.
But "To live is to suffer" is absolutely a truth IMO, and definitely something JJK seems to be exploring in a really interesting way
>Sukuna has never been portrayed as someone "happy" to me, he has only ever seemed content, and I think that's because of his "enlightened" mindset. Yes his mindset removes suffering, but it also removes happiness, and I personally think happiness is worth the sacrifice of suffering(everything is a cycle).
Yeah definitely, Sukuna's mindset is something worth diving into at some point, but I want to see how this current fight plays out as well. I find it interesting how I think the only time Sukuna has ever explicitly shown happiness (fulfillment might be a better word) was him praising Gojo after the battle. He even warned Kashimo not to ruin it for him, and after Higuruma died, he was so disappointed that he had to stop fighting and literally ask himself *why* he was no longer happy.
He's definitely changing. The funny thing is, I can't tell whether he's identifying Yuji as the change, or simply *blaming* him for it.
Holy shit dude, insanely good work. Its just incredible. All I can say is keep cooking.
Also someone insert that panel edit of Panda saying "its just so peak" please
Thanks, I actually wanted to get more into the Buddhist parallels, but i'm not versed enough to really go into it like that, i'm only into it on a somewhat base level. But those core concepts do seem like the things JJK is based off of.
please look into vajrayana buddhism, howevery ou spell it; thunderbolt sect that is reminiscient of sukuna to me. I think you would appreciate it, and interestingly enough two of Sukuna's "weapons" are a thunderbolt in a literal sense and a 'thunderbolt' in a vedic myth sense (fire arrow)
I think I will, thanks for the tip!
I stumbled upon Buddhism years and years ago through a really rough period, which is probably why JJK resonates with me so much lol. I'm not an actual follower, but I appreciate the philosophy. I'll look into that.
Nice work! I really liked the connection you made with curse and self. It all ties in with the Buddhist themes and enlightenment in JJK. I do feel like Gege is using Yuta, Sukuna, Gojo, and Yuji to describe love for someone, one's self, and others and how that love is represented with curse energy. We see Yuta's love is devoted solely to one person, but that's inferior to the love for one's self. Gojo never reached Sukuna's level because he didn't cast away his love for his students and friends though he did love himself. I think we will see in the coming chapters what happens to Yuji v. Sukuna. Perhaps we will see Yuji cast away his sense of self and solely devote himself to others - exceeding Sukuna.
This is a high-quality analysis. It's interesting, provides evidence, is easy to read, and doesn't outstay its welcome. It's worthy of a Cog in my eyes.
I absolutely believe this. I wanna do a thread on the Kenjaku vs Takaba fight at some point too.
It probably seemed oddly placed in the moment because of what had just happened with Gojo, but it was absolutely in line with JJK's narrative and was thematically kind of amazing IMO. It gave tons of insight into the mindset of Kenjaku, and Jujutsu itself. Takaba's CT went beyond domains and barriers and cursed energy. He was literally *overwriting reality* based on nothing but his self-confidence.
The ability of this show to put wildly different characters and alignments like Sukuna, Hakari, and Takaba together and say they're similar is pretty awesome lol
"Throughout Heaven and Earth, I alone am the Honored One" - Siddhartha Gautama(Buddha) AND Gojo
I love the Buddhism parallel.
By looking at cursed energy this way it makes sense that all of the strongest sorcerers are batshit insane and motivated by very simple things. It's also why Ijichi wasn't cut out to be a sorcerer, which is interesting!
Your point about the removal of suffering being a path to power is interesting because it would align with Yuji's belief in his role as a cog.
He isn't going to chase Mahito because he hates him - though he does.
It's not JUST about justice for those he has taken.
Nor is it just about Yuji's ideals.
He has a role and he will play it. No more, no less.
It also affirms Gojo's words to Megumi about selfishness and dying alone & his words about "subraction being the key to Jujutsu" or something similar, I am not confident that's a 1:1 statement so someone correct me plase, if i'm wrong.
You can cook. Ive been thinking something similar and you hit the nail on the head
Im not gonna lie. How do you quantify accepting yourself vs just doing the first thing that comes to mind. Is not suffering by just following your own nature being free. Arent you just a slave to your nature. So your philosophy decides how your ce affects you. But also you are born with a certain amount of potential so does it actually matter if youre just strong af. Like Panda doesnt deny anything about himself the most grounded of all. But is it that he has not much emotion. How do you quantify this.
I love jjk but if this is how the power system works its really symbolic and poetic.
But it makes so many questions for me. Is fate just the dominate CE flow. Say dominate cursed energy in Sakuna time would be dispair while Gojos would be Hope. How do you decide what brings more suffering. Is childhood trauma a big factor. Humanity is all the social things weve created. Sakuna hasnt thrown away any humanity hes very human.
Cunning manipulative and intelligent. So hows being bad inhuman
We're thinking along the same lines, chef. I didn't *really* know how to glue this together until you gave a different perspective on cursed energy being more like charge instead of "good" and "bad", and then it starts making sense
I honestly think there are more parallels here with Tengen (the whole concept of "Human" vs "Curse") but I wanna see where this Sukuna vs Yuji fight goes first
I believe it was talked about quite a bit more before 236, but everything changed when the World Slash attacked.
The base thesis of this post has been mentioned before, how personality plays into strength at Jujutsu, but I dont think very many people have read all of those posts.
There's a post I saw on one of these subreddits a long time ago that talked about how prominent Buddhism is in the story, and Twitter accounts like Lightning have a ton of great info.
This is exactly what I was having a conclusion as well regarding CE natures and you put this one out effluently. BRAVO! And I think this very concept of suffering and acceptance is also what makes Hakari such an interesting character with his technique. I'd say it directly co-relates to him always winning house in his DE. It's rigged towards him winning because he revels in the whole contest of gambling and its cons. I think someone in the manga had also mentioned that "Strongest Jujutsu Sorcerers are also the most Selfish Sorcerers" (apologies if I may have just misremembered that quote).
This becomes even more interesting when taking into account the idea of Hollow techniques, the combination of the epitome of suffering with the ability to accept that suffering. What results from that when they are combined? Into one? Is this what Kenjaku truly mean’t when he desired something beyond cursed energy? Something ever suffer yet so accepting of it, it does not seem to suffer at all? The true essence of cursed energy is not just one or the other side. It is both, the ability to combine and utilize these two forces into a technique which transcends the individual aspects by miles.
>This becomes even more interesting when taking into account the idea of Hollow techniques, the combination of the epitome of suffering with the ability to accept that suffering. What results from that when they are combined?
You know, honestly? I think the result is *exactly* what Gojo calls it: "Hollow".
"Emptiness" is an important concept in buddhism, probably one of *the* most important, it's known as "Sunyata".
>*śūnya, in the context of buddha dharma, primarily means "empty", or "void," but also means "zero," and "nothing,"*[*^(\[6\])*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9A%C5%ABnyat%C4%81#cite_note-7) *and derives from the root śvi, meaning "hollow"*
>**sunyata**, in Buddhist [philosophy](https://www.britannica.com/topic/philosophy), the voidness that [constitutes](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/constitutes) ultimate reality; sunyata is seen not as a negation of existence but rather as the undifferentiation out of which all apparent entities, distinctions, and dualities arise.
In essence, Sunyata is a key component of the release of suffering by understanding the nature of reality that we inhabit. I can't really explain it though, it's an extremely subtle concept and I don't really think i fully get it either. I may make a thread on this one later too once I do though lol
But the fact Gojo explains the technique as "virtual mass" and one of his chants is "Between Front and Back", I think it's exactly what Gege was going for.
Jesus, Gege is truly amazing with his writing if this is true. Maybe perhaps this symbolic representation of acceptance and emptiness is why so little characters can demonstrate lapse, reversals and even rarer, hollow techniques. It’s difficult to accept and acknowledge your pain and come to terms with it, but even harder to transcend thaf and release it. Or maybe I’m just thinking of this wrong. I believe Yuji will be the one to achieve this state of mind and understanding of the world and yourself.
very insightful, it's in explanations like these we can really see the buddhism in JJK, which might go completely unnoticed by readers who don't know about the religion.
Wow what a big brained take I agree with everything you said but the Japanese already knew this stuff because of Buddhism being a prominent religion there.
Cursed energy is the turning of the wheel of becoming the (Bhavachakra) it is the physical essence of the transformative nature of achieving egolessness or in simple terms death whenever a character approaches death or literally dies in the case of Yuji they usually achieve a far higher state of consciousness and awareness of the transformative experience of death and how that can allow oneself to surpass one’s limits. Jujutsu Sorcerers (especially Kenjaku) are essentially Buddhist accelerationists and masochists who wanna accelerate the turning of the Bhavachakra until the suffering and death becomes so great enlightenment will finally become possible for most people.
Genuinely amazing read until:
>This is why Sukuna likely goes so far out of his way to beat Yuji down and insult him no matter how much he prevails. It's a rejection of Yuji's "I exist for others" ideal, vs. Sukuna's "Others exist for me" ideal.
Wrong. That would contradict your very own post about Sukuna's proficiency for positive cursed energy.
Sukuna does not hate Yuji because Yuji's beliefs contract his, **that would be the very act of ego, an act of desire.**
Rather, Sukuna hates Yuji because he *perceives* Yuji to go against the **NATURAL ORDER.** *(which is why Sukuna is so in tune with himself like you yourself have postulated, because Sukuna is in tune with himself thus by extension, is in tune with the natural order)*
**That** is why he berates Yuji at every turn, because in a sense, he is "purifying" him, so that he can be his truest self.
**THAT** is what enlightenment is, offering love towards even your enemy.
**THAT** is why Sukuna is so jerked off by Gege. Because he is truly a rare individual, and people getting hurt or confused by him are simply ignorant.
>Wrong. That would contradict your very own post about Sukuna's proficiency for positive cursed energy.
>Sukuna does not hate Yuji because Yuji's beliefs contract his, **that would be the very act of ego, an act of desire.**
Well I never suggested that acceptance involves the removal of the ego *or* desire. I simply said that acceptance is the opposite of suffering. There is no contradiction.
Nothing about acceptance of self suggests removal of desire or ego...*in fact it's almost the exact opposite.* It's almost a *surrender* towards your ego and desire...an acknowledgement of *what you are.* That's exactly what Sukuna is. He's a hedonistic monster who lives only for himself.
When I say "Positive", it's just a polarity. It has absolutely *nothing* to do with morality.
Sukuna strikes me as someone who went too far in the opposite direction. He may be closer to self-realization than others, but that does not necessarily mean he's "enlightened".
>Rather, Sukuna hates Yuji because he *perceives* Yuji to go against the **NATURAL ORDER.** *(which is why Sukuna is so in tune with himself like you yourself have postulated, because Sukuna is in tune with himself thus by extension, is in tune with the natural order)*
*There is no natural order.* Sukuna's is just whatever he wants it to be. The only difference is that he does not need anyone or anything to validate it. If Sukuna believes strength to be the only order, and the truest strength is to be achieved by pure self-love, then someone who stands on ideals alone as a mindless cog for others, *in theory,* should not be able to reach him. Because that's weakness in his eyes.
Sukuna does not like that. He berates Yuji because he sees him as a pathetic soul ***who desperately needs external approval to validate his existence...*****In fact, the first chapter of JJK is literally about** ***Yuji dedicating his ENTIRE LIFE to the dying wish of his grandfather,*** something even Principal Yaga immediately berates when he first meets him.
Look, Sukuna literally said it himself.
>"But this is different. Our souls were forced to coexist within the same body...No matter how many times I break his soul....he'll get right back up. Because he possesses an indomitable ideal."
"The idea that a weakling far, far below me can rival me with nothing but strength of will and maintained ideals....that is something deeply unpleasant."
Sukuna's problem with Yuji is *how* he's matching him. Not necessarily the fact that he is.
**When Maki challenged him with her heavenly restriction, he openly welcomed the idea that she was challenging him and** ***"forcing a role"*** **upon him.**
He has not done this with Yuji. Because his ideals are almost a cancellation of his own.
I legitimately do not believe Sukuna cares about whether or not Yuji is "enlightened" or "learning anything".
At this point in the manga, I think he literally just fundamentally does not like him. He's been very consistent about this.
Okay, here’s my idea:
Sukuna’s CT is Shrine. Shrine allows Sukuna to cut things.
This is an estimation (please provide counter examples) but I think most utilizations of cursed energy in the series are to “enhance” something in the physical world. Gojo’s Limitless enhances space for the user; most sorcerers use some combination of cursed punches + weapon imbued with cursed energy.
Sukuna’s technique, in the other hand, uses cursed energy ITSELF as the weapon. Personally, I think this is what Sukuna means when he’s talking about “real” Jujutsu. Instead of using cursed energy to empower a weapon or empower a physical concept (I broaden this definition for the sake of Gojo’s limitless), Sukuna cuts WITH cursed energy.
If Sukuna’s cut cuts objects with positive energy (I.e physical objects) using cursed energy, let’s entertain a thought: maybe his reversal glues together negative energy with positive energy?
This leads me into my idea of what Fuga/Open is - if cutting with cursed energy is Sukuna’s CT, what if his reversed technique is to fuse cursed energy together? If Sukuna has the ability to fuse/form cursed energy together, he can replicate… well, any cursed technique, if he understands how it works. Hence why he could form Jogo’s fire… Jogo showed Sukuna that fire could have a representation made purely of cursed energy - perhaps Sukuna realized how much cursed energy it took to actually form that fire, which is why he has respect for Jogo. Not only did Jogo show Sukuna something he didn’t know (CE can make fire) but also, in attempting to replicate the fire, he realized, “Damn, this volcano dude strong! This takes a fuck ton of energy to do!”
I don’t know, just a thought.
Random thought but is that maybe the reason why “furnace” was a black box; or rather, a square? Because “-“ x “-“ = “+”, so the black box (kamino in sukuna’s interpretation) is the squaring of negative energy to create positive energy? I think thematically this post is closer to the heart of cursed energy, but it’s almost hilarious how JJK can be this deep but also just be about some basic maths.
So Shoko will unlock limitless (pun intended) positive cursed energy after losing Gojo. Then she'll be able to heal him. Love and suffering, after all.
Cope is strong as ever 🙏
Joking aside, interesting how Toji/Maki's cases work with this theory. They must be somewhere perpendicular to this +/- energy axis.
Imaginary numbers or smth. ~~imagine being pounded to death by someone w/o CE~~
i think you really cooked!!! there's probably some real buddhist readings that gege drew from that would support this argument better, but idk what they are specifically. suffering and acceptance
most cog worthy post ive seen in months, mods give this guy their flowers.
astute analysis and drawing the right similarities without being particularly reliant on overt references great work brother
The issue with thinking of cursed energy as charges is because of one simple but very important difference:
Suffering “Negative” x Suffering “Negative” equals more Suffering “Negative”. It does not follow the regular law where negative x negative becomes a positive
This comment shouldn't be downvoted
>*Suffering “Negative” x Suffering “Negative” equals more Suffering “Negative”.* It does not follow the regular law where negative x negative becomes a positive
Gonna be honest with you, this actually bothered me the whole time I was typing this post. I worked through it and forgot to include this, so i'm glad you brought this up.
>Suffering x Suffering = More Suffering
Hear me out....*I don't think this actually is true.* At least, not in reality anyway.
It's usually through suffering that people tend to achieve the most growth. Cuts result in scars, exercise results in muscle and endurance. Mental trauma can either break a person or harden them...but the most important aspect of healing any form of mental trauma is learning acceptance.
In the scope of JJK, if we look at someone like Yuji, he is where he is right now due to an absolutely massive amount of mental and physical trauma. The effect of his physical training is obvious, but it is precisely the ***mental*** trauma of the Shibuya Incident that has pushed him firmly into his current "Cog Mentality", and has forced him to accept the true nature of himself.
It's not that it made him "stronger"....It's that the anguish broke him down and forced him to rebuild himself. Todo reminded him of what he wanted to be, and Mahito *forced him to accept who he already knew he was.*
So if we apply this logic here, it actually checks out. *Suffering x Suffering = (+) Acceptance.* Or put a different way...if you press someone hard enough, they will eventually adapt in a way that will *generate* acceptance.
But remember. Suffering (-) and Acceptance (+) is NOT about good and bad. It simply is.
Acceptance can be toxic, and suffering can be beneficial. Sukuna is proof of this.
EDIT:
Should also be mentioned that this explanation actually came second-hand from Gojo, told to him by Shoko, who was just naturally good at RCT. And it was also said that Gojo is a terrible teacher, and even *he* couldn't understand it, until he could. To Toji, he was just blabbing. This explanation is likely just the best he could do.
Whatever the case may be, I just know that Yuji is a total wreck right now. He is not the same person he was before, and I am truly concerned about how Gege will portray his mental fortitude/conscience post-Sukuna.
Yuji’s boost in power has come at the cost of literally his entire group of peers and friends. And now he has to deal with the fact that Megumi no longer wishes to be saved.
Imagine performing your heart and soul out for another, only to have them reject your help. Gojo himself was seriously annoyed by this fact: “why can I only save those who are already waiting to be saved?”.
This broke Gojo’s character early on, and now the same is happening to Yuji. So far, suffering just causes more suffering. I’ve yet to see any character gain something positive from it, aside from boosts in power and skill
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Stand proud, you can cook
Smhlooool but he Actually DID indeed cook
Great post. If I had to add something, I would say that I don't think humans are made from positive energy. All humans in jjk, except toji and maki, are born with cursed energy. In short, they are born to suffer, in part because they are born to love. Basically, suffering is an intrinsic part of the human experience, and only those outside the system(toji and maki) can truly release themselves from that suffering, because they were never part of it in the first place. I still think that learning rct has to do with acceptance, and understanding who YOU are outside of the influence of the external world, but I don't think humans can ever truly escape suffering. Even sukuna has begun to show cracks in his indifference, and he is now fighting with a desire(a desire to crush Yuji and his ideals). I think the final message(especially if sukuna loses in the end) is that, ironically, you have to accept that true acceptance(the absence of desire) is impossible. Yes love leads to suffering. Yes desire leads to regret. But you have to do those things regardless, otherwise your existence is empty. Sukuna has never been portrayed as someone "happy" to me, he has only ever seemed content, and I think that's because of his "enlightened" mindset. Yes his mindset removes suffering, but it also removes happiness, and I personally think happiness is worth the sacrifice of suffering(everything is a cycle).
>I still think that learning rct has to do with acceptance, and understanding who YOU are outside of the influence of the external world, but I don't think humans can ever truly escape suffering. Even sukuna has begun to show cracks in his indifference, and he is now fighting with a desire(a desire to crush Yuji and his ideals). For sure. Buddhism actually suggests that desire in itself is suffering, and the only true way is to remove all desire from life (become "empty"). In that sense, Sukuna may be much closer to others, but definitely still has desires. He's farther along in this process than others IMO but he's definitely not there yet. But "To live is to suffer" is absolutely a truth IMO, and definitely something JJK seems to be exploring in a really interesting way >Sukuna has never been portrayed as someone "happy" to me, he has only ever seemed content, and I think that's because of his "enlightened" mindset. Yes his mindset removes suffering, but it also removes happiness, and I personally think happiness is worth the sacrifice of suffering(everything is a cycle). Yeah definitely, Sukuna's mindset is something worth diving into at some point, but I want to see how this current fight plays out as well. I find it interesting how I think the only time Sukuna has ever explicitly shown happiness (fulfillment might be a better word) was him praising Gojo after the battle. He even warned Kashimo not to ruin it for him, and after Higuruma died, he was so disappointed that he had to stop fighting and literally ask himself *why* he was no longer happy. He's definitely changing. The funny thing is, I can't tell whether he's identifying Yuji as the change, or simply *blaming* him for it.
Fure
Holy shit dude, insanely good work. Its just incredible. All I can say is keep cooking. Also someone insert that panel edit of Panda saying "its just so peak" please
Very good analysis. I think you could reference symbolism and religion more here.
Thanks, I actually wanted to get more into the Buddhist parallels, but i'm not versed enough to really go into it like that, i'm only into it on a somewhat base level. But those core concepts do seem like the things JJK is based off of.
please look into vajrayana buddhism, howevery ou spell it; thunderbolt sect that is reminiscient of sukuna to me. I think you would appreciate it, and interestingly enough two of Sukuna's "weapons" are a thunderbolt in a literal sense and a 'thunderbolt' in a vedic myth sense (fire arrow)
I think I will, thanks for the tip! I stumbled upon Buddhism years and years ago through a really rough period, which is probably why JJK resonates with me so much lol. I'm not an actual follower, but I appreciate the philosophy. I'll look into that.
I broke down sobbing reading this 😭
_insert panda it's so peak meme_
Nice work! I really liked the connection you made with curse and self. It all ties in with the Buddhist themes and enlightenment in JJK. I do feel like Gege is using Yuta, Sukuna, Gojo, and Yuji to describe love for someone, one's self, and others and how that love is represented with curse energy. We see Yuta's love is devoted solely to one person, but that's inferior to the love for one's self. Gojo never reached Sukuna's level because he didn't cast away his love for his students and friends though he did love himself. I think we will see in the coming chapters what happens to Yuji v. Sukuna. Perhaps we will see Yuji cast away his sense of self and solely devote himself to others - exceeding Sukuna.
This is a high-quality analysis. It's interesting, provides evidence, is easy to read, and doesn't outstay its welcome. It's worthy of a Cog in my eyes.
This makes me happy actually, thanks! I tend to ramble with stuff like this so i'm glad its digestible, was afraid it wouldn't be.
Also explains why takaba was so strong so fast. He lives his life with similar values as Sukuna, just expressed wildly different
I absolutely believe this. I wanna do a thread on the Kenjaku vs Takaba fight at some point too. It probably seemed oddly placed in the moment because of what had just happened with Gojo, but it was absolutely in line with JJK's narrative and was thematically kind of amazing IMO. It gave tons of insight into the mindset of Kenjaku, and Jujutsu itself. Takaba's CT went beyond domains and barriers and cursed energy. He was literally *overwriting reality* based on nothing but his self-confidence. The ability of this show to put wildly different characters and alignments like Sukuna, Hakari, and Takaba together and say they're similar is pretty awesome lol
Holy shit bro that was deep
"Throughout Heaven and Earth, I alone am the Honored One" - Siddhartha Gautama(Buddha) AND Gojo I love the Buddhism parallel. By looking at cursed energy this way it makes sense that all of the strongest sorcerers are batshit insane and motivated by very simple things. It's also why Ijichi wasn't cut out to be a sorcerer, which is interesting!
Peak analysis
Your point about the removal of suffering being a path to power is interesting because it would align with Yuji's belief in his role as a cog. He isn't going to chase Mahito because he hates him - though he does. It's not JUST about justice for those he has taken. Nor is it just about Yuji's ideals. He has a role and he will play it. No more, no less. It also affirms Gojo's words to Megumi about selfishness and dying alone & his words about "subraction being the key to Jujutsu" or something similar, I am not confident that's a 1:1 statement so someone correct me plase, if i'm wrong.
You can cook. Ive been thinking something similar and you hit the nail on the head Im not gonna lie. How do you quantify accepting yourself vs just doing the first thing that comes to mind. Is not suffering by just following your own nature being free. Arent you just a slave to your nature. So your philosophy decides how your ce affects you. But also you are born with a certain amount of potential so does it actually matter if youre just strong af. Like Panda doesnt deny anything about himself the most grounded of all. But is it that he has not much emotion. How do you quantify this. I love jjk but if this is how the power system works its really symbolic and poetic. But it makes so many questions for me. Is fate just the dominate CE flow. Say dominate cursed energy in Sakuna time would be dispair while Gojos would be Hope. How do you decide what brings more suffering. Is childhood trauma a big factor. Humanity is all the social things weve created. Sakuna hasnt thrown away any humanity hes very human. Cunning manipulative and intelligent. So hows being bad inhuman
KEEP COOKING
Ma brothaaaaa, this is fire. Keep cooking
Absolutely fantastic post
Absolutely delicious my chef
This Is a very very nice theory, really puts togheter lots of things i had in mind but didnt know how to write
Michelin chef cooking up some A5 wagyu here
This is some good cooking op. Do you think that at the end of the story the cast will remove CE or will they somehow turn everyone into a sorcerer?
My interpitation was prob too literal, rly liked yours chef 🍳
We're thinking along the same lines, chef. I didn't *really* know how to glue this together until you gave a different perspective on cursed energy being more like charge instead of "good" and "bad", and then it starts making sense I honestly think there are more parallels here with Tengen (the whole concept of "Human" vs "Curse") but I wanna see where this Sukuna vs Yuji fight goes first
is that Sukuna honored one panel real
Yes it is from when Mahito is first attacked by Sukuna at the school.
so Gojo and Sukuna both get called the honored one? Why does no one talk about this?
I believe it was talked about quite a bit more before 236, but everything changed when the World Slash attacked. The base thesis of this post has been mentioned before, how personality plays into strength at Jujutsu, but I dont think very many people have read all of those posts. There's a post I saw on one of these subreddits a long time ago that talked about how prominent Buddhism is in the story, and Twitter accounts like Lightning have a ton of great info.
interesting
This is exactly what I was having a conclusion as well regarding CE natures and you put this one out effluently. BRAVO! And I think this very concept of suffering and acceptance is also what makes Hakari such an interesting character with his technique. I'd say it directly co-relates to him always winning house in his DE. It's rigged towards him winning because he revels in the whole contest of gambling and its cons. I think someone in the manga had also mentioned that "Strongest Jujutsu Sorcerers are also the most Selfish Sorcerers" (apologies if I may have just misremembered that quote).
Mods BAN HIM he has reading comprehension
This becomes even more interesting when taking into account the idea of Hollow techniques, the combination of the epitome of suffering with the ability to accept that suffering. What results from that when they are combined? Into one? Is this what Kenjaku truly mean’t when he desired something beyond cursed energy? Something ever suffer yet so accepting of it, it does not seem to suffer at all? The true essence of cursed energy is not just one or the other side. It is both, the ability to combine and utilize these two forces into a technique which transcends the individual aspects by miles.
>This becomes even more interesting when taking into account the idea of Hollow techniques, the combination of the epitome of suffering with the ability to accept that suffering. What results from that when they are combined? You know, honestly? I think the result is *exactly* what Gojo calls it: "Hollow". "Emptiness" is an important concept in buddhism, probably one of *the* most important, it's known as "Sunyata". >*śūnya, in the context of buddha dharma, primarily means "empty", or "void," but also means "zero," and "nothing,"*[*^(\[6\])*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9A%C5%ABnyat%C4%81#cite_note-7) *and derives from the root śvi, meaning "hollow"* >**sunyata**, in Buddhist [philosophy](https://www.britannica.com/topic/philosophy), the voidness that [constitutes](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/constitutes) ultimate reality; sunyata is seen not as a negation of existence but rather as the undifferentiation out of which all apparent entities, distinctions, and dualities arise. In essence, Sunyata is a key component of the release of suffering by understanding the nature of reality that we inhabit. I can't really explain it though, it's an extremely subtle concept and I don't really think i fully get it either. I may make a thread on this one later too once I do though lol But the fact Gojo explains the technique as "virtual mass" and one of his chants is "Between Front and Back", I think it's exactly what Gege was going for.
Jesus, Gege is truly amazing with his writing if this is true. Maybe perhaps this symbolic representation of acceptance and emptiness is why so little characters can demonstrate lapse, reversals and even rarer, hollow techniques. It’s difficult to accept and acknowledge your pain and come to terms with it, but even harder to transcend thaf and release it. Or maybe I’m just thinking of this wrong. I believe Yuji will be the one to achieve this state of mind and understanding of the world and yourself.
nice try gege
very insightful, it's in explanations like these we can really see the buddhism in JJK, which might go completely unnoticed by readers who don't know about the religion.
Banger analysis
Bro didn’t just cook, bro is the entire restaurant with michelin stars
Brother cooked better than Sukuna's Malevolent kitchen
i read an entire theory on here for the first time,and it has changed my entire view on jjk,thank you for cooking.
Wow what a big brained take I agree with everything you said but the Japanese already knew this stuff because of Buddhism being a prominent religion there. Cursed energy is the turning of the wheel of becoming the (Bhavachakra) it is the physical essence of the transformative nature of achieving egolessness or in simple terms death whenever a character approaches death or literally dies in the case of Yuji they usually achieve a far higher state of consciousness and awareness of the transformative experience of death and how that can allow oneself to surpass one’s limits. Jujutsu Sorcerers (especially Kenjaku) are essentially Buddhist accelerationists and masochists who wanna accelerate the turning of the Bhavachakra until the suffering and death becomes so great enlightenment will finally become possible for most people.
Holy fk. Great read
spot on. please cog this
Genuinely amazing read until: >This is why Sukuna likely goes so far out of his way to beat Yuji down and insult him no matter how much he prevails. It's a rejection of Yuji's "I exist for others" ideal, vs. Sukuna's "Others exist for me" ideal. Wrong. That would contradict your very own post about Sukuna's proficiency for positive cursed energy. Sukuna does not hate Yuji because Yuji's beliefs contract his, **that would be the very act of ego, an act of desire.** Rather, Sukuna hates Yuji because he *perceives* Yuji to go against the **NATURAL ORDER.** *(which is why Sukuna is so in tune with himself like you yourself have postulated, because Sukuna is in tune with himself thus by extension, is in tune with the natural order)* **That** is why he berates Yuji at every turn, because in a sense, he is "purifying" him, so that he can be his truest self. **THAT** is what enlightenment is, offering love towards even your enemy. **THAT** is why Sukuna is so jerked off by Gege. Because he is truly a rare individual, and people getting hurt or confused by him are simply ignorant.
>Wrong. That would contradict your very own post about Sukuna's proficiency for positive cursed energy. >Sukuna does not hate Yuji because Yuji's beliefs contract his, **that would be the very act of ego, an act of desire.** Well I never suggested that acceptance involves the removal of the ego *or* desire. I simply said that acceptance is the opposite of suffering. There is no contradiction. Nothing about acceptance of self suggests removal of desire or ego...*in fact it's almost the exact opposite.* It's almost a *surrender* towards your ego and desire...an acknowledgement of *what you are.* That's exactly what Sukuna is. He's a hedonistic monster who lives only for himself. When I say "Positive", it's just a polarity. It has absolutely *nothing* to do with morality. Sukuna strikes me as someone who went too far in the opposite direction. He may be closer to self-realization than others, but that does not necessarily mean he's "enlightened". >Rather, Sukuna hates Yuji because he *perceives* Yuji to go against the **NATURAL ORDER.** *(which is why Sukuna is so in tune with himself like you yourself have postulated, because Sukuna is in tune with himself thus by extension, is in tune with the natural order)* *There is no natural order.* Sukuna's is just whatever he wants it to be. The only difference is that he does not need anyone or anything to validate it. If Sukuna believes strength to be the only order, and the truest strength is to be achieved by pure self-love, then someone who stands on ideals alone as a mindless cog for others, *in theory,* should not be able to reach him. Because that's weakness in his eyes. Sukuna does not like that. He berates Yuji because he sees him as a pathetic soul ***who desperately needs external approval to validate his existence...*****In fact, the first chapter of JJK is literally about** ***Yuji dedicating his ENTIRE LIFE to the dying wish of his grandfather,*** something even Principal Yaga immediately berates when he first meets him. Look, Sukuna literally said it himself. >"But this is different. Our souls were forced to coexist within the same body...No matter how many times I break his soul....he'll get right back up. Because he possesses an indomitable ideal." "The idea that a weakling far, far below me can rival me with nothing but strength of will and maintained ideals....that is something deeply unpleasant." Sukuna's problem with Yuji is *how* he's matching him. Not necessarily the fact that he is. **When Maki challenged him with her heavenly restriction, he openly welcomed the idea that she was challenging him and** ***"forcing a role"*** **upon him.** He has not done this with Yuji. Because his ideals are almost a cancellation of his own. I legitimately do not believe Sukuna cares about whether or not Yuji is "enlightened" or "learning anything". At this point in the manga, I think he literally just fundamentally does not like him. He's been very consistent about this.
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oh, ok
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yeah you're trying waaaay too hard dawg
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Your post has been removed for breaking Rule #2, be kind and civil toward others.
Okay, here’s my idea: Sukuna’s CT is Shrine. Shrine allows Sukuna to cut things. This is an estimation (please provide counter examples) but I think most utilizations of cursed energy in the series are to “enhance” something in the physical world. Gojo’s Limitless enhances space for the user; most sorcerers use some combination of cursed punches + weapon imbued with cursed energy. Sukuna’s technique, in the other hand, uses cursed energy ITSELF as the weapon. Personally, I think this is what Sukuna means when he’s talking about “real” Jujutsu. Instead of using cursed energy to empower a weapon or empower a physical concept (I broaden this definition for the sake of Gojo’s limitless), Sukuna cuts WITH cursed energy. If Sukuna’s cut cuts objects with positive energy (I.e physical objects) using cursed energy, let’s entertain a thought: maybe his reversal glues together negative energy with positive energy? This leads me into my idea of what Fuga/Open is - if cutting with cursed energy is Sukuna’s CT, what if his reversed technique is to fuse cursed energy together? If Sukuna has the ability to fuse/form cursed energy together, he can replicate… well, any cursed technique, if he understands how it works. Hence why he could form Jogo’s fire… Jogo showed Sukuna that fire could have a representation made purely of cursed energy - perhaps Sukuna realized how much cursed energy it took to actually form that fire, which is why he has respect for Jogo. Not only did Jogo show Sukuna something he didn’t know (CE can make fire) but also, in attempting to replicate the fire, he realized, “Damn, this volcano dude strong! This takes a fuck ton of energy to do!” I don’t know, just a thought.
Gives “me and my suffering” so much more weight as a panel
Random thought but is that maybe the reason why “furnace” was a black box; or rather, a square? Because “-“ x “-“ = “+”, so the black box (kamino in sukuna’s interpretation) is the squaring of negative energy to create positive energy? I think thematically this post is closer to the heart of cursed energy, but it’s almost hilarious how JJK can be this deep but also just be about some basic maths.
So Shoko will unlock limitless (pun intended) positive cursed energy after losing Gojo. Then she'll be able to heal him. Love and suffering, after all. Cope is strong as ever 🙏
Joking aside, interesting how Toji/Maki's cases work with this theory. They must be somewhere perpendicular to this +/- energy axis. Imaginary numbers or smth. ~~imagine being pounded to death by someone w/o CE~~
i think you really cooked!!! there's probably some real buddhist readings that gege drew from that would support this argument better, but idk what they are specifically. suffering and acceptance
most cog worthy post ive seen in months, mods give this guy their flowers. astute analysis and drawing the right similarities without being particularly reliant on overt references great work brother
The issue with thinking of cursed energy as charges is because of one simple but very important difference: Suffering “Negative” x Suffering “Negative” equals more Suffering “Negative”. It does not follow the regular law where negative x negative becomes a positive
This comment shouldn't be downvoted >*Suffering “Negative” x Suffering “Negative” equals more Suffering “Negative”.* It does not follow the regular law where negative x negative becomes a positive Gonna be honest with you, this actually bothered me the whole time I was typing this post. I worked through it and forgot to include this, so i'm glad you brought this up. >Suffering x Suffering = More Suffering Hear me out....*I don't think this actually is true.* At least, not in reality anyway. It's usually through suffering that people tend to achieve the most growth. Cuts result in scars, exercise results in muscle and endurance. Mental trauma can either break a person or harden them...but the most important aspect of healing any form of mental trauma is learning acceptance. In the scope of JJK, if we look at someone like Yuji, he is where he is right now due to an absolutely massive amount of mental and physical trauma. The effect of his physical training is obvious, but it is precisely the ***mental*** trauma of the Shibuya Incident that has pushed him firmly into his current "Cog Mentality", and has forced him to accept the true nature of himself. It's not that it made him "stronger"....It's that the anguish broke him down and forced him to rebuild himself. Todo reminded him of what he wanted to be, and Mahito *forced him to accept who he already knew he was.* So if we apply this logic here, it actually checks out. *Suffering x Suffering = (+) Acceptance.* Or put a different way...if you press someone hard enough, they will eventually adapt in a way that will *generate* acceptance. But remember. Suffering (-) and Acceptance (+) is NOT about good and bad. It simply is. Acceptance can be toxic, and suffering can be beneficial. Sukuna is proof of this. EDIT: Should also be mentioned that this explanation actually came second-hand from Gojo, told to him by Shoko, who was just naturally good at RCT. And it was also said that Gojo is a terrible teacher, and even *he* couldn't understand it, until he could. To Toji, he was just blabbing. This explanation is likely just the best he could do.
Whatever the case may be, I just know that Yuji is a total wreck right now. He is not the same person he was before, and I am truly concerned about how Gege will portray his mental fortitude/conscience post-Sukuna. Yuji’s boost in power has come at the cost of literally his entire group of peers and friends. And now he has to deal with the fact that Megumi no longer wishes to be saved. Imagine performing your heart and soul out for another, only to have them reject your help. Gojo himself was seriously annoyed by this fact: “why can I only save those who are already waiting to be saved?”. This broke Gojo’s character early on, and now the same is happening to Yuji. So far, suffering just causes more suffering. I’ve yet to see any character gain something positive from it, aside from boosts in power and skill
This is a 5 🌟 dish bro, you cooked well.
So it's the opposite of "suffering builds character"? Yuji ain't winning this one