- and it will bring about enlightenment for humanity.
As everyone is already aware, the world-building of Jujutsu Kaisen heavily draws inspiration from Buddhism, and I think it'd be helpful to first introduce some of the fundamental ideas of Buddhism in order to make more sense of why I am coming to certain conclusions.
~Buddhism in the most basic terms:~
~A - The Dharma:~
1. Karma:
Karma is the concept of the law of cause and effect. The intention of one's actions in life determines the circumstances of a person's future rebirth. Twelve laws determine one's Karma, the most important of which is The Great Law: Whatever thoughts or energy you put out, you get back—good or bad.
2. Samsara and Nirvana:
Buddhists believe in rebirth. This cycle of rebirth is called Samsara. Samsara has six realms: the realm of gods, the realm of demigods, the realm of humans, the realm of animals, the realm of hungry ghosts, and the realm of hell.
The realm of humans is considered to be the most fortunate one, as it is the only one in which one can attain Nirvana, which is the only way to exit the cycle of rebirth by overcoming the attachment to life itself.
3. Nirvāṇa (Enlightenment):
Nirvana is a state of calm, equanimity, non-attachment, and non-self—it is a reflection of the complete absence of emotional suffering. A common descriptor is “to have a mind as immovable as a mountain.” This is not to be confused with a state of apathy, but to be taken as a state of serenity. It is the ability to not be shaken by however desperate a circumstance one faces because one has rid themselves of all the pillars that create suffering.
4. Bardo (Space between any two states):
Tibetan Buddhism specifically identifies six states of Bardo, which refer to the space between any two states. The whole of those Six Bardo are: The Bardo of This Life, The Bardo of Dreaming, The Bardo of Meditation, The Bardo of Dying, The Bardo of Dharmata, and The Bardo of Becoming. The Bardo of Becoming specifically is the transitional space after death and before rebirth. It is said to be much like a dream, in which one perceives a variety of powerful and often frightening appearances influenced by one's karma of previous lives. It’s during this bardo that signs of future life start to appear, and the consciousness eventually takes rebirth in one of the six realms of existence according to one’s karma.
B - The Four Noble Truths:
The Four Noble Truths comprise the essence of Buddha's teachings:
Life is suffering (Duḥkha)
Suffering has a cause (The Three Fires)
Suffering can end (Nirvāṇa)
There is a path towards the end of suffering (The Noble Eightfold Path)
The term “suffering” is to be taken as synonymous with “dissatisfactory.” The Buddha differentiates between pain and suffering, the latter of which references mental and emotional distress. An example of pain would be to have a wounded leg; the emotional suffering that could potentially arise from such a wound would stem more from mental processes surrounding wishes to be rid of the wound, worries regarding the healing of the wound, wanting to be rid of the wound, and any other ruminations of such kind. The notion of suffering is not meant to invoke pessimism, but rather an acknowledgment of life as it is and an offering of salvation from it.
C - The Three Poisons:
Buddha believed that it is three negative qualities of the mind, which cause most of our own suffering and the suffering which we cause others:
- Delusion (Moha): Ignorance, not seeing and understanding things as they truly are.
- Attachment (Rāga): Greed, desire, or clinging. An unwillingness to let go or to accept what is. Attachment is also to be understood as a form of resistance to the impermanence of all things.
- Aversion (Dveṣa): Hatred, Anger, Ill-Will
D - The Four Immeasurables:
These build the foundation for the ethical conduct of Buddhists and all center on the intention of minimizing suffering in the world. The freedom from suffering is not just a self-centered pursuit in Buddhism but it includes the intention of not causing others suffering.
- Loving-Kindness (Metta): Active goodwill towards all
- Compassion (Karuna): Results from Metta, identifying the suffering of others as one's own
- Sympathetic Joy (Mudita): Results from Metta, the feeling of joy because others are happy, even if one did not contribute to it
- Equanimity (Upekkha): Even-mindedness and serenity, treating everyone impartially
The foundation of the Four Immeasurables is also reflected in the Five Buddhist Precepts, which basically is the most reduced and bare-bone core of how Buddhists should live. I will not list it here, because the entirety of it is reflected in the ethical section of the Noble Eightfold Path.
E - The Noble Eightfold Path:
The Noble Eightfold Path is Buddha's "guide" towards enlightenment. The eight points listed in the Noble Eightfold Path can be summarized into three main categories:
- Wisdom (understanding of the Four Noble Truths)
- Ethical Conduct (actions based on the Four Immeasurables)
- Mental Discipline (pertains to the cultivation of a focused and still mind)
It is important to note that “right” in this context is not an antonym to “wrong”, but rather to be seen as synonymous with “attuned”, “balanced” or “harmonious”.
The Four Stages of Enlightenment and the Ten Fetters:
Enlightenment is not a one-time experience, but takes place in stages. As a person frees themselves from the Ten Fetters (chains that bind us to suffering), they get closer to complete enlightenment. Once one frees themselves of all Ten Fetters, one becomes an Arahant and achieves Nirvana.
Now that we are all up to speed in terms of the basics of Buddhism, let's put this into the context of some major moments, plot points, and characters of Jujutsu Kaisen.
One crucial thing to take note of at the very start are the main recurring themes of Jujutsu Kaisen, which are
- Love
- Cursed Energy
- Enlightenment/Evolution
Those themes reflect the most crucial aspects of Buddhism itself.
The law of balance in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Whether it comes to Binding Vows, Heavenly Restrictions, the rise of Cursed Spirits in response to Gojo's birth, or twins—the principle of simultaneously losing one thing, where one gains another, is a recurring motif in the story. The origin of such an idea does not stem from Buddhism, but from Taoism, most of which people know for its infamous Yin and Yang symbol. We also see this reflected in the way Gege creates characters, which have their anti-counterpart: Gojo and Sukuna, Tengen and Kenjaku, Yuji and Mahito, Yuta and Geto.
The body and the soul in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Buddhism rejects the belief in the existence of a permanent soul. Still, the world-building of JJK heavily relies on this concept, as it is one of the aspects in which Gege took some creative liberty. When talking about the rebirth of his twin brother, Sukuna says:
"Perhaps his (Kenjaku's) mate was my other half reincarnated ... and thus possessed the same soul."
Sukuna confirms not only the existence of rebirth but also pronounces his awareness of it. Sukuna has knowledge of the existence of the Dharma.
Regarding the soul's relationship with the body, Mahito says:
"Does the soul dwell in the body? Or is the body built on the soul? The answer is the latter. The soul should always exist before the body."
"The shape of the body will always be dependent on the shape of the soul."
In the Buddhist faith, the self is not made up of one permanent core, but consists of five factors, which are constantly subject to change. But in Jujutsu Kaisen, the soul is the permanent core of a person, which remains unchanged as one moves from one life to another, and it finds its physical manifestation in the constitution of a body. The body is the physical representation of the soul. The relationship of the soul and body is illustrated through the appearances of the reincarnated sorcerers, who can make their host body transform into reflecting their own soul physically. In turn, maintaining the host body's appearance does not affect the soul of the person getting reincarnated. The soul alters the body but they are not symbiotic. The body does not change the soul in return and the body is not the soul itself.
This concept is also reflected in the construction of Cursed Corpses. Yaga uses physical information to replicate soul information. But that replicated soul information is not the true soul of the deceased person, it is only a copy of it. The same thing happened when Toji took over the body of his “host.” What manifested was not the real Toji, but only a copy of him as per Gege himself.
Samsara's Six Realms in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Sukuna confirmed the existence of Samsara with the revelation that Jin Itadori was the reborn form of Sukuna's twin, thus making Samsara a confirmed factor in the story, but what about the six realms? I believe they also play a factor in the story. Vengeful Spirits are the manifestation of a soul being reborn into the hungry ghost realm of Samsara. As we know now, someone who has accumulated enough negative Karma can be reborn into one of the less fortunate realms (animal realm, hungry ghost realm, hell realm). Naoya's greed and hatred towards women earned him such a fate of rebirth after Maki's mother killed him. Once Maki ended his life as a Vengeful Spirit, he likely ended up even further down in the hell realm.
Rika's fate has different origins and this represents another creative liberty Gege took: It wasn't Rika's own Karma which ended up with her being reborn as a Vengeful Spirit, but it was the negative Karma Yuta accumulated by clinging desperately onto Rika. His attachment (Rāga) to her led to her turning into a Vengeful Spirit. After Yuta's love for Rika transforms from a possessive, clinging one into a "pure love" (Metta), the negative Karma is “neutralized,” his hold on her is broken, and Vengeful Spirit Rika dies.
Cursed Spirits represent the hell realm. Though canonically Cursed Spirits are the manifestation of human sufferings, I find that the idea that souls could get reincarnated as various manifestations of that human suffering to not be contradictory. We see Jogo meet Hanami and Dagon in a space of post-death Bardo, where he acknowledges that they also will get reborn, though they won't be the same as before. Following that moment, Sukuna (who's also known as the King of Curses and whose character design is inspired by Enmaten, the Buddhist King of Hell) enters the scene and berates Jogo for his greed to become human and his resistance to accept what he is. Another argument for this is that Mahito himself is confirmation of Cursed Spirits having a soul, or else he would not have been able to use his CT on himself.
Bardo, Samsara, and Nirvana in Jujutsu Kaisen:
The concept of Bardo is something we often encounter in Jujutsu Kaisen. Specifically, The Bardo of Becoming and The Bardo of Dying. This metaphysical space between looks different depending on which person experiences it and what their karmic situation is. It is said to be filled with terrifying visions related to one's karma and in Jujutsu Kaisen it manifests similarly: Characters experience visions of the things that weighed on them the most heavily. Some examples are:
Kenjaku uses the Bardo of Dreams to inform all non-sorcerers of the Culling Games and their one chance to leave the colonies.
For Maki and Mai, the Bardo of Dying, which only occurs during the initial stages of approaching death, led them to a beach, upon which they talked about the origin of their ostracization: them being born twins.
For Nobara, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of empty chairs, which then started filling up with people who, despite her best efforts to maintain a distance, ended up making space for themselves in her life. What weighed the most heavily on Nobara was her experience of childhood in a small village, where privacy and force of conformity led to her building up her walls.
For Kashimo, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of Sukuna sharing some final wisdom with him, as the greatest weight in his life was having no match in terms of battle strength.
For Gojo, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of all the people whose deaths he felt responsible for: Geto, Nanami, Haibara, Riko, Kuroi, Toji, and Yaga. He explicitly states that he regrets that Geto hadn't been present for his final battle.
Whether these moments are actually only visions, or whether during those moments the spirits of other people are truly present is not certain. In terms of Gojo's vision, it seems unlikely that Haibara's soul would not have been reborn already, yet it stands to argue that Haibara informing Gojo about his appearance to Nanami, is not something Gojo would've known on his own.
Let's stick with Gojo for a moment. In Gojo's post-death Bardo, Gege introduces the concept of North and South. Gojo asks Nanami what his death was like. Nanami responds as such:
"In the past, this is what Miss Mei said when I asked about recommendations for leaving the country.
If you want to start anew, head north.
If you want to return to your old self, head south.
Without hesitation, I chose somewhere south. I'm such a backward-looking person, and yet I bet on the future in my final moment."
The characters are in a metaphysical space between life and death, which visually presents itself as an airport. They are given two options of destination: North is the start of something new and South is the return to something known. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? I believe this choice represents choosing between Samsara and Nirvana - the choice to enter another life cycle or to leave life behind altogether. Nanami describes his choice of going south as one made with a hopeful attitude towards the future, which contrasts his usually pessimistic personality. Thinking about how depressed Nanami was, my assumption would be that he would be more so inclined to choose to not be reborn. But since he describes his choice of going south as a last-minute change of heart, done so with the hope of a better future, it sounds like he chose to try again. Hence why I am concluding that South represents Samsara and North represents Nirvana.
This would mean Gege took another creative liberty with this narrative choice, by either:
1. Making enlightenment altogether not a necessity to exit the rebirth cycle
2. Or just lowering the threshold for how close to enlightenment someone has to be to be given that choice.
(Since we only see Gojo and Nanami conversing about those two options. Geto and Haibara might still be excluded from that choice and get reborn anyway.)
Enlightenment and its connection to mastery of Jujutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen:
The state of enlightenment of a character seems to heavily correlate with their mastery of jujutsu. Strength in terms of jujutsu itself is mainly measured by the Grade of a Sorcerer. If we apply this assumption to the plot, then non-sorcerers would be the furthest away from enlightenment and Special Grades would be the closest to it. Let's illustrate this point by going through some character examples, starting with Gojo.
Gojo:
Gojo is, amongst the modern era sorcerers, considered to be the strongest. Gojo's very character design is centered around the theme of enlightenment.
- His first name derives from the Japanese term for enlightenment (Satori 悟り).
- His last name references the number five in relation to the Five Buddhist Precepts. His hair is white, referencing the color the Sala flowers turned when Buddha reached Nirvana (as mentioned in the Heike Monogatari, which Todo quoted in his Shibuya monologue). The Six Eyes reference the Six Realms of Samsara, the Six Sense Bases, the Six Perfections, and many other things.
His Domain Expansion "Infinite Void" references Śūnyatā in name, which is a meditative state of experience. The Mudra he uses to activate his domain is associated with Taishakuten, who is a Buddhist Deva.
Enlightenment in Hidden Inventory
His moment of enlightenment in Hidden Inventory is accompanied by a significant and immediate power-up. The temporary mental state he experiences is exactly as Nirvana is described: A state of calm, equanimity, nonattachment, and nonself - the complete absence of all suffering and the acceptance of all that is. Many people mistake this for egotistic indifference. It is not. It's a state of serenity. One that unlocks three new skills within him: Red, Purple, and RCT.
The connection of enlightenment to Jujutsu mastery is showcased through this scene. This makes complete sense in a meta context: The first step towards enlightenment starts with understanding the Four Noble Truths, which center around the role suffering plays in life. Since within the story suffering manifests as Cursed Energy, the connection between understanding suffering and understanding Cursed Energy are inherently synonymous within the story.
Stages of Enlightenment of Characters in Jujutsu Kaisen
I initially wanted to measure each character's stage of enlightenment by using the Noble Eightfold Path in a questionnaire type of way, but there are unfortunately some aspects which are impossible to answer for most characters, hence why I am choosing to keep it simple by measuring this through the Four Stages of Enlightenment. Even with this approach, it is not possible to give a definitive answer to each of the fetters, but we can make an estimated guess according to what we do know of the characters.
Tengen: Tengen herself represents a Bodhisattva, who is trying to postpone her ascend to Buddhahood and entry into Nirvana. Her characterization makes her position as an “ascended” human obvious: She is the one who taught the foundation of Jujutsu Sorcery, much like Buddha taught about the Dharma. Tengen maintains four major barriers, which reference The Four Noble Truths. Her base is visualized as an enormous tree - Trees are symbolically linked to the Buddha Gautama, who was born beneath a tree, obtained enlightenment beneath a tree, and died beneath a tree. She only maintains her sense of self and attachment by either merging with a Star Plasma Vessel or later on through the use of her own barriers. Tengen notably has an absence of aversion, as she doesn't show any inclination towards anger. Through her active attempts to stave off a loss of attachment (because the moment she loses her attachment to life as it is, she might no longer see the point of protecting everyone through her barriers) and her loss of identity, one can assume that she is at the stage of Non-returner (Stage 3 out of 4), who is actively preventing the final stage of enlightenment Arahant (Stage 4 out of 4). In Buddhism, a state of non-self does not necessarily mean becoming one with all of humanity, but within the story, that is what it represents. Yaga himself uses the term evolution to describe Tengen's predicament, which is being used synonymously to enlightenment in Jujutsu Kaisen, because isn't enlightenment itself a form of evolution?
Gojo: He rejects the traditional ways, which might be a manifestation of having let go of the belief in rites and rituals. Gojo seems not prone to aversion, since we rarely see him angry. Even after his unsealing, he seemed rather collected, despite the horrific circumstances. Similarly, we don't see him being overly clingy towards anything, as he seems to accept things as they happen. Still, he is shown to not be entirely free of his attachments to people. His sense of self is also very strong, which is why I conclude that Gojo is at the Stage of Once-returner (Stage 2 out of 4). This also fits in nicely with his farewell chapter being titled “Go South,” because even if Gege leaves the choice up to each character, thematically Gojo should still have one life cycle to complete until he reaches complete enlightenment and truly dies.
Sukuna: Sukuna is a more complicated case and this might be by design. He isn't driven by hatred, his actions are calculated with certain self-centered outcomes in mind. He is simply indifferent to everyone except himself. The question of attachment is a little complicated, as Sukuna has no emotional attachments to anything or anyone, but his actions do center his pursuit of pleasure and his desire for bloodshed. Because of this, I would say that Sukuna is driven by a greed for pleasure. He actively rejects any form of love, even deems it as useless, which is inherently anti-Buddhist. Despite that, solely based on his reduced attachment and absence of aversion, he should be placed close to the stage of Non-returner (Stage 3 out of 4), with only his egocentrism preventing him from achieving enlightenment. And it makes sense, because what would someone, who is free of all shackles but without an ounce of kindness in him, look like? Probably a whole lot like Sukuna. When we think about stages of enlightenment mirroring a sorcerer's mastery of jujutsu, then it becomes more evident why Gojo lost to Sukuna – Sukuna's understanding of the Four Noble Truths was more advanced and therefore his understanding of Jujutsu exceeded Gojo's.
Imo every single sorcerer has to have reached some kind of level of enlightenment, as I think it's necessary to be able to get to even a low level of mastery of Jujutsu. I think Gege likely thinks in terms of way smaller steps towards enlightenment, but I am going only by legitimate information in relation to Buddhism, while trying to keep the headcanons out of this analysis part.
Kenjaku and the Vision of Anti-Enlightenment
Kenjaku personifies the antithesis to Tengen – someone who understands the Dharma and the Four Noble Truths and who intends to corrupt the world even further through it. Kenjaku is the archetype of the character who wants to play god. He messes with the process of natural creation, tries to disrupt the natural order, and intervenes in the balance of life. All of his actions reflect a complete disregard for Buddhist values. This begins with the nature of his Cursed Technique, which in itself is a form of stealing. He makes Binding Vows with Sorcerers, which disrupt the natural cycle of rebirth and he makes them with the knowledge that he will be rid of his side of the bargain once he switches bodies. The Culling Games consist of ten colonies, which reference the Ten Fetters, which are the very roadblocks to enlightenment. Higuruma states that the very goal of the Culling Games is “permanence,” which goes against the natural impermanence of all things. Kenjaku's actions reflect the active effort to push humanity and life into the very opposite direction of enlightenment.
Kenjaku's Domain Expansion visualizes the Five Wisdom Buddhas encircling a horde of Cursed Spirits. Another way in which Kenjaku abuses his knowledge as a way to corrupt the spiritual.
The Soul, the Body, Enlightenment, and Cursed Energy – The Core Problem of Jujutsu Kaisen
So, what do we know by now?
Toji and Maki
Since the problem of Cursed Energy must be resolved, the origin of it must also be analyzed. The only way to do that is through analyzing Toji and Maki, and what sets them apart from everyone else. Toji is nicknamed as “the one who left it all behind.” His lifestyle inherently portrays the antithesis of what a Buddhist should aspire to: He is an assassin for a living, he gambles, he freeloads, he didn't speak kindly. So what could possibly set him apart from others, in the context of spirituality and how it relates to Cursed Energy? The most core aspect of Toji lies in his alias: He didn't want for anything. He only deviated from this attitude when presented with the opportunity to kill Gojo. Remember when I stated that Gojo's enlightenment moment in Hidden Inventory reflected a temporary state of serenity instead of, as many assume, apathy? What if, just like for some readers, the body struggles to tell the difference? All it senses is that the soul stopped experiencing suffering, whether it is because one voluntarily let go of all attachments or whether they were depressed to the point of total apathy, might not make a difference to the body. If Toji was already born this way, then the idea of the soul remaining a permanent part of the self throughout each life cycle would hint that Toji had carried these emotions from a previous life into his next one.
And what about Maki? Maki was only born a non-sorcerer but not entirely free of all Cursed Energy until she lost her sister. Binding Vow and twin-lore aside, what happened to her spiritually in that moment? According to Maki's own words, she lost her heart. This highlights the very significance of Mai to her - Mai was the one thing Maki clung to, the one thing that mattered enough to her to evoke such strong emotions in her. Once Mai died, just like Toji, Maki didn't want for anything. She didn't care for the acknowledgment of her clan or even the existence of it. She did what her sister asked her to do and felt no particular way about it. Even Yuji and Megumi later on notice the shift in her demeanor, which turned completely unaffected. Every other character clings to something to some degree, these two appear to be the exception.
Yuji Itadori – The One Who Will Teach You About Love
Let's get to the most important character in the story. We see him start off as someone who is incredibly compassionate and who is highly attuned to what other people are feeling. We learn that he is physically incredibly strong and that he has the ability to act as a “cage” for the strongest sorcerer in history. With the information we have, we can conclude that his physical strength reflects an incredibly strong soul, and that this strength might also be the reason why his soul is able to suppress Sukuna's soul and therefore keep him from taking over the body they shared. We don't know what exactly makes a soul “strong,” but one thing even Sukuna notes about Yuji is his will to be unbreakable. We watch him suffer through seemingly endless horrors, through which in turn his mastery of Jujutsu improves. This makes perfect sense, since we now know that understanding suffering is a core step towards enlightenment. He learns to control his emotions in the face of his losses, which is best illustrated in the difference in his reaction to Nobara's death and Choso's death. This is not because Yuji cared less about Choso, but because Yuji grew mentally. He is not driven by greed or resentment either, but only through his desire to be unbreakable in his pursuit of protecting people. Sounds pretty Buddhist, doesn't it? The Mudra Yuji uses for his domain derives from Kṣitigarbha, a Bodhisattva, who vowed to not reach Nirvana, until he has emptied all of hell. Seeing as Cursed Spirits are the very manifestation of hell creatures, Yuji's role in the story becomes more obvious than ever: He will be the one to rid the world of this hell manifested on earth, by freeing everyone of Cursed Energy.
A Vision for the End
Yuji will kill Sukuna. But death is not a final end, if one gets reborn. Killing Sukuna, only for him to get reborn with the same soul and therefore same feelings and attitudes, would only temporarily alleviate the problem. Eventually, the calamity that is Ryomen Sukuna would reappear and wreak the same havoc as before. This means that for the sake of the story Sukuna must not get reborn. Remember how I believe that Gege changed the rules of Samsara and Nirvana? That in Jujutsu Kaisen rebirth is not a matter of full enlightenment but of choice? Specifically getting to choose between South or North? Nanami chose South and therefore rebirth because he has hope for the future. There are things he still looks forward to. He has a reason to go back and not want to die for good. Now, what is the one thing that Sukuna still craves? The reason he turned himself into a cursed object? Bloodlust. This seemingly unsatisfiable lust for battle. The only way for Sukuna to voluntarily exit the rebirth cycle is for this desire to get quenched. His sole, self-centered attachment to life. Yuji will give him this satisfaction by demolishing him in a way he has never experienced before and ironically it will be the greater kindness Yuji could offer to him. After that, he will be able to die peacefully and never come back. This would also, beyond the idea of approaching all beings with compassion, explain why Gojo felt bad that he couldn't give Sukuna the same satisfaction he received from that battle - he likely knew Sukuna wouldn't be able to go peacefully as long as it remained unsatisfied. This resolution is as necessary for Sukuna as it was for both Kashimo and Gojo. The difference is that Sukuna doesn't long for anything else, unlike Gojo and Kashimo, who still craved for the connection to others. I believe Kashimo specifically was introduced for the sole reason of setting up Sukuna's death in this manner. Sukuna's death will be not the end of the story, since the main problem still hasn't been resolved. Yuji still has to bring about the cessation of Cursed Energy and this can only be accomplished through the merger, as it is the only device in the story through which such a significant change on this large of a scale could be enacted. And as the game master and someone in the hold of the darkest kind of desperation, Megumi will set the merger off, even after being freed from Sukuna. I have tried to make the case that ridding everyone of Cursed Energy does not mean that humanity has to reach complete enlightenment. By trying to understand what sets Maki and Toji apart from everyone, I have tried to deduce which aspect of enlightenment is responsible for the change in the body's constitution towards not creating Cursed Energy. I feel fairly confident in the assumption that it is attachment (desire, greed, clinging), and have also failed to come up with anything else based on what we know so far in the story. Hence, I am basing the rest of my theory on that assumption.
As everyone is already aware, the world-building of Jujutsu Kaisen heavily draws inspiration from Buddhism, and I think it'd be helpful to first introduce some of the fundamental ideas of Buddhism in order to make more sense of why I am coming to certain conclusions.
~Buddhism in the most basic terms:~
~A - The Dharma:~
1. Karma:
Karma is the concept of the law of cause and effect. The intention of one's actions in life determines the circumstances of a person's future rebirth. Twelve laws determine one's Karma, the most important of which is The Great Law: Whatever thoughts or energy you put out, you get back—good or bad.
2. Samsara and Nirvana:
Buddhists believe in rebirth. This cycle of rebirth is called Samsara. Samsara has six realms: the realm of gods, the realm of demigods, the realm of humans, the realm of animals, the realm of hungry ghosts, and the realm of hell.
The realm of humans is considered to be the most fortunate one, as it is the only one in which one can attain Nirvana, which is the only way to exit the cycle of rebirth by overcoming the attachment to life itself.
3. Nirvāṇa (Enlightenment):
Nirvana is a state of calm, equanimity, non-attachment, and non-self—it is a reflection of the complete absence of emotional suffering. A common descriptor is “to have a mind as immovable as a mountain.” This is not to be confused with a state of apathy, but to be taken as a state of serenity. It is the ability to not be shaken by however desperate a circumstance one faces because one has rid themselves of all the pillars that create suffering.
4. Bardo (Space between any two states):
Tibetan Buddhism specifically identifies six states of Bardo, which refer to the space between any two states. The whole of those Six Bardo are: The Bardo of This Life, The Bardo of Dreaming, The Bardo of Meditation, The Bardo of Dying, The Bardo of Dharmata, and The Bardo of Becoming. The Bardo of Becoming specifically is the transitional space after death and before rebirth. It is said to be much like a dream, in which one perceives a variety of powerful and often frightening appearances influenced by one's karma of previous lives. It’s during this bardo that signs of future life start to appear, and the consciousness eventually takes rebirth in one of the six realms of existence according to one’s karma.
B - The Four Noble Truths:
The Four Noble Truths comprise the essence of Buddha's teachings:
Life is suffering (Duḥkha)
Suffering has a cause (The Three Fires)
Suffering can end (Nirvāṇa)
There is a path towards the end of suffering (The Noble Eightfold Path)
The term “suffering” is to be taken as synonymous with “dissatisfactory.” The Buddha differentiates between pain and suffering, the latter of which references mental and emotional distress. An example of pain would be to have a wounded leg; the emotional suffering that could potentially arise from such a wound would stem more from mental processes surrounding wishes to be rid of the wound, worries regarding the healing of the wound, wanting to be rid of the wound, and any other ruminations of such kind. The notion of suffering is not meant to invoke pessimism, but rather an acknowledgment of life as it is and an offering of salvation from it.
C - The Three Poisons:
Buddha believed that it is three negative qualities of the mind, which cause most of our own suffering and the suffering which we cause others:
- Delusion (Moha): Ignorance, not seeing and understanding things as they truly are.
- Attachment (Rāga): Greed, desire, or clinging. An unwillingness to let go or to accept what is. Attachment is also to be understood as a form of resistance to the impermanence of all things.
- Aversion (Dveṣa): Hatred, Anger, Ill-Will
D - The Four Immeasurables:
These build the foundation for the ethical conduct of Buddhists and all center on the intention of minimizing suffering in the world. The freedom from suffering is not just a self-centered pursuit in Buddhism but it includes the intention of not causing others suffering.
- Loving-Kindness (Metta): Active goodwill towards all
- Compassion (Karuna): Results from Metta, identifying the suffering of others as one's own
- Sympathetic Joy (Mudita): Results from Metta, the feeling of joy because others are happy, even if one did not contribute to it
- Equanimity (Upekkha): Even-mindedness and serenity, treating everyone impartially
The foundation of the Four Immeasurables is also reflected in the Five Buddhist Precepts, which basically is the most reduced and bare-bone core of how Buddhists should live. I will not list it here, because the entirety of it is reflected in the ethical section of the Noble Eightfold Path.
E - The Noble Eightfold Path:
The Noble Eightfold Path is Buddha's "guide" towards enlightenment. The eight points listed in the Noble Eightfold Path can be summarized into three main categories:
- Wisdom (understanding of the Four Noble Truths)
- Ethical Conduct (actions based on the Four Immeasurables)
- Mental Discipline (pertains to the cultivation of a focused and still mind)
It is important to note that “right” in this context is not an antonym to “wrong”, but rather to be seen as synonymous with “attuned”, “balanced” or “harmonious”.
The Four Stages of Enlightenment and the Ten Fetters:
Enlightenment is not a one-time experience, but takes place in stages. As a person frees themselves from the Ten Fetters (chains that bind us to suffering), they get closer to complete enlightenment. Once one frees themselves of all Ten Fetters, one becomes an Arahant and achieves Nirvana.
Now that we are all up to speed in terms of the basics of Buddhism, let's put this into the context of some major moments, plot points, and characters of Jujutsu Kaisen.
One crucial thing to take note of at the very start are the main recurring themes of Jujutsu Kaisen, which are
- Love
- Cursed Energy
- Enlightenment/Evolution
Those themes reflect the most crucial aspects of Buddhism itself.
The law of balance in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Whether it comes to Binding Vows, Heavenly Restrictions, the rise of Cursed Spirits in response to Gojo's birth, or twins—the principle of simultaneously losing one thing, where one gains another, is a recurring motif in the story. The origin of such an idea does not stem from Buddhism, but from Taoism, most of which people know for its infamous Yin and Yang symbol. We also see this reflected in the way Gege creates characters, which have their anti-counterpart: Gojo and Sukuna, Tengen and Kenjaku, Yuji and Mahito, Yuta and Geto.
The body and the soul in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Buddhism rejects the belief in the existence of a permanent soul. Still, the world-building of JJK heavily relies on this concept, as it is one of the aspects in which Gege took some creative liberty. When talking about the rebirth of his twin brother, Sukuna says:
"Perhaps his (Kenjaku's) mate was my other half reincarnated ... and thus possessed the same soul."
Sukuna confirms not only the existence of rebirth but also pronounces his awareness of it. Sukuna has knowledge of the existence of the Dharma.
Regarding the soul's relationship with the body, Mahito says:
"Does the soul dwell in the body? Or is the body built on the soul? The answer is the latter. The soul should always exist before the body."
"The shape of the body will always be dependent on the shape of the soul."
In the Buddhist faith, the self is not made up of one permanent core, but consists of five factors, which are constantly subject to change. But in Jujutsu Kaisen, the soul is the permanent core of a person, which remains unchanged as one moves from one life to another, and it finds its physical manifestation in the constitution of a body. The body is the physical representation of the soul. The relationship of the soul and body is illustrated through the appearances of the reincarnated sorcerers, who can make their host body transform into reflecting their own soul physically. In turn, maintaining the host body's appearance does not affect the soul of the person getting reincarnated. The soul alters the body but they are not symbiotic. The body does not change the soul in return and the body is not the soul itself.
This concept is also reflected in the construction of Cursed Corpses. Yaga uses physical information to replicate soul information. But that replicated soul information is not the true soul of the deceased person, it is only a copy of it. The same thing happened when Toji took over the body of his “host.” What manifested was not the real Toji, but only a copy of him as per Gege himself.
Samsara's Six Realms in Jujutsu Kaisen:
Sukuna confirmed the existence of Samsara with the revelation that Jin Itadori was the reborn form of Sukuna's twin, thus making Samsara a confirmed factor in the story, but what about the six realms? I believe they also play a factor in the story. Vengeful Spirits are the manifestation of a soul being reborn into the hungry ghost realm of Samsara. As we know now, someone who has accumulated enough negative Karma can be reborn into one of the less fortunate realms (animal realm, hungry ghost realm, hell realm). Naoya's greed and hatred towards women earned him such a fate of rebirth after Maki's mother killed him. Once Maki ended his life as a Vengeful Spirit, he likely ended up even further down in the hell realm.
Rika's fate has different origins and this represents another creative liberty Gege took: It wasn't Rika's own Karma which ended up with her being reborn as a Vengeful Spirit, but it was the negative Karma Yuta accumulated by clinging desperately onto Rika. His attachment (Rāga) to her led to her turning into a Vengeful Spirit. After Yuta's love for Rika transforms from a possessive, clinging one into a "pure love" (Metta), the negative Karma is “neutralized,” his hold on her is broken, and Vengeful Spirit Rika dies.
Cursed Spirits represent the hell realm. Though canonically Cursed Spirits are the manifestation of human sufferings, I find that the idea that souls could get reincarnated as various manifestations of that human suffering to not be contradictory. We see Jogo meet Hanami and Dagon in a space of post-death Bardo, where he acknowledges that they also will get reborn, though they won't be the same as before. Following that moment, Sukuna (who's also known as the King of Curses and whose character design is inspired by Enmaten, the Buddhist King of Hell) enters the scene and berates Jogo for his greed to become human and his resistance to accept what he is. Another argument for this is that Mahito himself is confirmation of Cursed Spirits having a soul, or else he would not have been able to use his CT on himself.
Bardo, Samsara, and Nirvana in Jujutsu Kaisen:
The concept of Bardo is something we often encounter in Jujutsu Kaisen. Specifically, The Bardo of Becoming and The Bardo of Dying. This metaphysical space between looks different depending on which person experiences it and what their karmic situation is. It is said to be filled with terrifying visions related to one's karma and in Jujutsu Kaisen it manifests similarly: Characters experience visions of the things that weighed on them the most heavily. Some examples are:
Kenjaku uses the Bardo of Dreams to inform all non-sorcerers of the Culling Games and their one chance to leave the colonies.
For Maki and Mai, the Bardo of Dying, which only occurs during the initial stages of approaching death, led them to a beach, upon which they talked about the origin of their ostracization: them being born twins.
For Nobara, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of empty chairs, which then started filling up with people who, despite her best efforts to maintain a distance, ended up making space for themselves in her life. What weighed the most heavily on Nobara was her experience of childhood in a small village, where privacy and force of conformity led to her building up her walls.
For Kashimo, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of Sukuna sharing some final wisdom with him, as the greatest weight in his life was having no match in terms of battle strength.
For Gojo, the Bardo of Becoming manifested in a vision of all the people whose deaths he felt responsible for: Geto, Nanami, Haibara, Riko, Kuroi, Toji, and Yaga. He explicitly states that he regrets that Geto hadn't been present for his final battle.
Whether these moments are actually only visions, or whether during those moments the spirits of other people are truly present is not certain. In terms of Gojo's vision, it seems unlikely that Haibara's soul would not have been reborn already, yet it stands to argue that Haibara informing Gojo about his appearance to Nanami, is not something Gojo would've known on his own.
Let's stick with Gojo for a moment. In Gojo's post-death Bardo, Gege introduces the concept of North and South. Gojo asks Nanami what his death was like. Nanami responds as such:
"In the past, this is what Miss Mei said when I asked about recommendations for leaving the country.
If you want to start anew, head north.
If you want to return to your old self, head south.
Without hesitation, I chose somewhere south. I'm such a backward-looking person, and yet I bet on the future in my final moment."
The characters are in a metaphysical space between life and death, which visually presents itself as an airport. They are given two options of destination: North is the start of something new and South is the return to something known. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? I believe this choice represents choosing between Samsara and Nirvana - the choice to enter another life cycle or to leave life behind altogether. Nanami describes his choice of going south as one made with a hopeful attitude towards the future, which contrasts his usually pessimistic personality. Thinking about how depressed Nanami was, my assumption would be that he would be more so inclined to choose to not be reborn. But since he describes his choice of going south as a last-minute change of heart, done so with the hope of a better future, it sounds like he chose to try again. Hence why I am concluding that South represents Samsara and North represents Nirvana.
This would mean Gege took another creative liberty with this narrative choice, by either:
1. Making enlightenment altogether not a necessity to exit the rebirth cycle
2. Or just lowering the threshold for how close to enlightenment someone has to be to be given that choice.
(Since we only see Gojo and Nanami conversing about those two options. Geto and Haibara might still be excluded from that choice and get reborn anyway.)
Enlightenment and its connection to mastery of Jujutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen:
The state of enlightenment of a character seems to heavily correlate with their mastery of jujutsu. Strength in terms of jujutsu itself is mainly measured by the Grade of a Sorcerer. If we apply this assumption to the plot, then non-sorcerers would be the furthest away from enlightenment and Special Grades would be the closest to it. Let's illustrate this point by going through some character examples, starting with Gojo.
Gojo:
Gojo is, amongst the modern era sorcerers, considered to be the strongest. Gojo's very character design is centered around the theme of enlightenment.
- His first name derives from the Japanese term for enlightenment (Satori 悟り).
- His last name references the number five in relation to the Five Buddhist Precepts. His hair is white, referencing the color the Sala flowers turned when Buddha reached Nirvana (as mentioned in the Heike Monogatari, which Todo quoted in his Shibuya monologue). The Six Eyes reference the Six Realms of Samsara, the Six Sense Bases, the Six Perfections, and many other things.
His Domain Expansion "Infinite Void" references Śūnyatā in name, which is a meditative state of experience. The Mudra he uses to activate his domain is associated with Taishakuten, who is a Buddhist Deva.
Enlightenment in Hidden Inventory
His moment of enlightenment in Hidden Inventory is accompanied by a significant and immediate power-up. The temporary mental state he experiences is exactly as Nirvana is described: A state of calm, equanimity, nonattachment, and nonself - the complete absence of all suffering and the acceptance of all that is. Many people mistake this for egotistic indifference. It is not. It's a state of serenity. One that unlocks three new skills within him: Red, Purple, and RCT.
The connection of enlightenment to Jujutsu mastery is showcased through this scene. This makes complete sense in a meta context: The first step towards enlightenment starts with understanding the Four Noble Truths, which center around the role suffering plays in life. Since within the story suffering manifests as Cursed Energy, the connection between understanding suffering and understanding Cursed Energy are inherently synonymous within the story.
Stages of Enlightenment of Characters in Jujutsu Kaisen
I initially wanted to measure each character's stage of enlightenment by using the Noble Eightfold Path in a questionnaire type of way, but there are unfortunately some aspects which are impossible to answer for most characters, hence why I am choosing to keep it simple by measuring this through the Four Stages of Enlightenment. Even with this approach, it is not possible to give a definitive answer to each of the fetters, but we can make an estimated guess according to what we do know of the characters.
Tengen: Tengen herself represents a Bodhisattva, who is trying to postpone her ascend to Buddhahood and entry into Nirvana. Her characterization makes her position as an “ascended” human obvious: She is the one who taught the foundation of Jujutsu Sorcery, much like Buddha taught about the Dharma. Tengen maintains four major barriers, which reference The Four Noble Truths. Her base is visualized as an enormous tree - Trees are symbolically linked to the Buddha Gautama, who was born beneath a tree, obtained enlightenment beneath a tree, and died beneath a tree. She only maintains her sense of self and attachment by either merging with a Star Plasma Vessel or later on through the use of her own barriers. Tengen notably has an absence of aversion, as she doesn't show any inclination towards anger. Through her active attempts to stave off a loss of attachment (because the moment she loses her attachment to life as it is, she might no longer see the point of protecting everyone through her barriers) and her loss of identity, one can assume that she is at the stage of Non-returner (Stage 3 out of 4), who is actively preventing the final stage of enlightenment Arahant (Stage 4 out of 4). In Buddhism, a state of non-self does not necessarily mean becoming one with all of humanity, but within the story, that is what it represents. Yaga himself uses the term evolution to describe Tengen's predicament, which is being used synonymously to enlightenment in Jujutsu Kaisen, because isn't enlightenment itself a form of evolution?
Gojo: He rejects the traditional ways, which might be a manifestation of having let go of the belief in rites and rituals. Gojo seems not prone to aversion, since we rarely see him angry. Even after his unsealing, he seemed rather collected, despite the horrific circumstances. Similarly, we don't see him being overly clingy towards anything, as he seems to accept things as they happen. Still, he is shown to not be entirely free of his attachments to people. His sense of self is also very strong, which is why I conclude that Gojo is at the Stage of Once-returner (Stage 2 out of 4). This also fits in nicely with his farewell chapter being titled “Go South,” because even if Gege leaves the choice up to each character, thematically Gojo should still have one life cycle to complete until he reaches complete enlightenment and truly dies.
Sukuna: Sukuna is a more complicated case and this might be by design. He isn't driven by hatred, his actions are calculated with certain self-centered outcomes in mind. He is simply indifferent to everyone except himself. The question of attachment is a little complicated, as Sukuna has no emotional attachments to anything or anyone, but his actions do center his pursuit of pleasure and his desire for bloodshed. Because of this, I would say that Sukuna is driven by a greed for pleasure. He actively rejects any form of love, even deems it as useless, which is inherently anti-Buddhist. Despite that, solely based on his reduced attachment and absence of aversion, he should be placed close to the stage of Non-returner (Stage 3 out of 4), with only his egocentrism preventing him from achieving enlightenment. And it makes sense, because what would someone, who is free of all shackles but without an ounce of kindness in him, look like? Probably a whole lot like Sukuna. When we think about stages of enlightenment mirroring a sorcerer's mastery of jujutsu, then it becomes more evident why Gojo lost to Sukuna – Sukuna's understanding of the Four Noble Truths was more advanced and therefore his understanding of Jujutsu exceeded Gojo's.
Imo every single sorcerer has to have reached some kind of level of enlightenment, as I think it's necessary to be able to get to even a low level of mastery of Jujutsu. I think Gege likely thinks in terms of way smaller steps towards enlightenment, but I am going only by legitimate information in relation to Buddhism, while trying to keep the headcanons out of this analysis part.
Kenjaku and the Vision of Anti-Enlightenment
Kenjaku personifies the antithesis to Tengen – someone who understands the Dharma and the Four Noble Truths and who intends to corrupt the world even further through it. Kenjaku is the archetype of the character who wants to play god. He messes with the process of natural creation, tries to disrupt the natural order, and intervenes in the balance of life. All of his actions reflect a complete disregard for Buddhist values. This begins with the nature of his Cursed Technique, which in itself is a form of stealing. He makes Binding Vows with Sorcerers, which disrupt the natural cycle of rebirth and he makes them with the knowledge that he will be rid of his side of the bargain once he switches bodies. The Culling Games consist of ten colonies, which reference the Ten Fetters, which are the very roadblocks to enlightenment. Higuruma states that the very goal of the Culling Games is “permanence,” which goes against the natural impermanence of all things. Kenjaku's actions reflect the active effort to push humanity and life into the very opposite direction of enlightenment.
Kenjaku's Domain Expansion visualizes the Five Wisdom Buddhas encircling a horde of Cursed Spirits. Another way in which Kenjaku abuses his knowledge as a way to corrupt the spiritual.
The Soul, the Body, Enlightenment, and Cursed Energy – The Core Problem of Jujutsu Kaisen
So, what do we know by now?
- We know that the soul is linked to the body in an almost karmic way. Everything that alters the soul, also alters the body. These two are related, although they are not symbiotic. The body does not change the soul in return and it is not the soul itself.
- We know that the degree of someone's enlightenment reflects their mastery of Jujutsu, because Jujutsu is energy born from suffering.
- We know that the brains of sorcerers are different from non-sorcerers.
- Changes within the soul alter the body (specifically the brain). Mahito specifically used soul manipulation to alter Junpei's brain into developing a Cursed Technique.
- Different abilities stem from different areas of the brain. The ability to perceive Cursed Spirits is different from the ability to control Cursed Energy. RCT specifically is stated to be located in the frontal lobe. Cursed Energy is located in the gut, which seems to be a reference to the gut-brain axis.
- The soul is the source of all emotion. If enlightenment affects one's emotions, then it also must be affecting the soul.
Toji and Maki
Since the problem of Cursed Energy must be resolved, the origin of it must also be analyzed. The only way to do that is through analyzing Toji and Maki, and what sets them apart from everyone else. Toji is nicknamed as “the one who left it all behind.” His lifestyle inherently portrays the antithesis of what a Buddhist should aspire to: He is an assassin for a living, he gambles, he freeloads, he didn't speak kindly. So what could possibly set him apart from others, in the context of spirituality and how it relates to Cursed Energy? The most core aspect of Toji lies in his alias: He didn't want for anything. He only deviated from this attitude when presented with the opportunity to kill Gojo. Remember when I stated that Gojo's enlightenment moment in Hidden Inventory reflected a temporary state of serenity instead of, as many assume, apathy? What if, just like for some readers, the body struggles to tell the difference? All it senses is that the soul stopped experiencing suffering, whether it is because one voluntarily let go of all attachments or whether they were depressed to the point of total apathy, might not make a difference to the body. If Toji was already born this way, then the idea of the soul remaining a permanent part of the self throughout each life cycle would hint that Toji had carried these emotions from a previous life into his next one.
And what about Maki? Maki was only born a non-sorcerer but not entirely free of all Cursed Energy until she lost her sister. Binding Vow and twin-lore aside, what happened to her spiritually in that moment? According to Maki's own words, she lost her heart. This highlights the very significance of Mai to her - Mai was the one thing Maki clung to, the one thing that mattered enough to her to evoke such strong emotions in her. Once Mai died, just like Toji, Maki didn't want for anything. She didn't care for the acknowledgment of her clan or even the existence of it. She did what her sister asked her to do and felt no particular way about it. Even Yuji and Megumi later on notice the shift in her demeanor, which turned completely unaffected. Every other character clings to something to some degree, these two appear to be the exception.
Yuji Itadori – The One Who Will Teach You About Love
Let's get to the most important character in the story. We see him start off as someone who is incredibly compassionate and who is highly attuned to what other people are feeling. We learn that he is physically incredibly strong and that he has the ability to act as a “cage” for the strongest sorcerer in history. With the information we have, we can conclude that his physical strength reflects an incredibly strong soul, and that this strength might also be the reason why his soul is able to suppress Sukuna's soul and therefore keep him from taking over the body they shared. We don't know what exactly makes a soul “strong,” but one thing even Sukuna notes about Yuji is his will to be unbreakable. We watch him suffer through seemingly endless horrors, through which in turn his mastery of Jujutsu improves. This makes perfect sense, since we now know that understanding suffering is a core step towards enlightenment. He learns to control his emotions in the face of his losses, which is best illustrated in the difference in his reaction to Nobara's death and Choso's death. This is not because Yuji cared less about Choso, but because Yuji grew mentally. He is not driven by greed or resentment either, but only through his desire to be unbreakable in his pursuit of protecting people. Sounds pretty Buddhist, doesn't it? The Mudra Yuji uses for his domain derives from Kṣitigarbha, a Bodhisattva, who vowed to not reach Nirvana, until he has emptied all of hell. Seeing as Cursed Spirits are the very manifestation of hell creatures, Yuji's role in the story becomes more obvious than ever: He will be the one to rid the world of this hell manifested on earth, by freeing everyone of Cursed Energy.
A Vision for the End
Yuji will kill Sukuna. But death is not a final end, if one gets reborn. Killing Sukuna, only for him to get reborn with the same soul and therefore same feelings and attitudes, would only temporarily alleviate the problem. Eventually, the calamity that is Ryomen Sukuna would reappear and wreak the same havoc as before. This means that for the sake of the story Sukuna must not get reborn. Remember how I believe that Gege changed the rules of Samsara and Nirvana? That in Jujutsu Kaisen rebirth is not a matter of full enlightenment but of choice? Specifically getting to choose between South or North? Nanami chose South and therefore rebirth because he has hope for the future. There are things he still looks forward to. He has a reason to go back and not want to die for good. Now, what is the one thing that Sukuna still craves? The reason he turned himself into a cursed object? Bloodlust. This seemingly unsatisfiable lust for battle. The only way for Sukuna to voluntarily exit the rebirth cycle is for this desire to get quenched. His sole, self-centered attachment to life. Yuji will give him this satisfaction by demolishing him in a way he has never experienced before and ironically it will be the greater kindness Yuji could offer to him. After that, he will be able to die peacefully and never come back. This would also, beyond the idea of approaching all beings with compassion, explain why Gojo felt bad that he couldn't give Sukuna the same satisfaction he received from that battle - he likely knew Sukuna wouldn't be able to go peacefully as long as it remained unsatisfied. This resolution is as necessary for Sukuna as it was for both Kashimo and Gojo. The difference is that Sukuna doesn't long for anything else, unlike Gojo and Kashimo, who still craved for the connection to others. I believe Kashimo specifically was introduced for the sole reason of setting up Sukuna's death in this manner. Sukuna's death will be not the end of the story, since the main problem still hasn't been resolved. Yuji still has to bring about the cessation of Cursed Energy and this can only be accomplished through the merger, as it is the only device in the story through which such a significant change on this large of a scale could be enacted. And as the game master and someone in the hold of the darkest kind of desperation, Megumi will set the merger off, even after being freed from Sukuna. I have tried to make the case that ridding everyone of Cursed Energy does not mean that humanity has to reach complete enlightenment. By trying to understand what sets Maki and Toji apart from everyone, I have tried to deduce which aspect of enlightenment is responsible for the change in the body's constitution towards not creating Cursed Energy. I feel fairly confident in the assumption that it is attachment (desire, greed, clinging), and have also failed to come up with anything else based on what we know so far in the story. Hence, I am basing the rest of my theory on that assumption.
