With only four more chapters left, my previous theory regarding the resolution of the story went officially down the drain. To summarize, I had assumed that it would be through the merger that Yuji would accomplish freeing everyone from Cursed Energy. At this point, it's safe to say that the merger will not happen. But what does that mean for the resolution of the problem of Cursed Energy and all the subsequent issues it causes in the story? I have too much faith in Gege to believe that he simply abandoned those issues. Therefore, I believe that the answer to that is a character I hadn't been able to place properly in my previous theory: Megumi.
Before Jujutsu Kaisen, there was Jujutsu Sousen, a previous version of the story that centered Megumi as the main character. Curses were described as a type of malediction and Megumi's goal in the story was to find a way to cure his sister of this malediction. It would be Megumi who would become Sukuna's vessel from the get-go, instead of Yuji. This variation was dismissed because editors deemed Megumi as not suitable for a main character. Still, Gege had managed to write the story in such a way that would have us end up in exactly the situation which he had wanted from the start: Megumi as Sukuna's vessel and on a quest to save his sister. Because of that, I believe that Gege's idea for the resolution of the story likely also hadn't changed since then – Megumi is the key to finding that "cure." Gege had long mentioned that the resolution for Megumi's end is something he already knew for a while.
None of the information I'm going to share is new, I'm just going to summarize it here to make the case for my theory at the end of this post.
The origin of Megumi's Ten Shadows CT derives mainly from Shintoism. Gakuganji and Utahime are two other characters related to the Shinto religion, making Megumi's ties to it not entirely out of place.
Shinto calls their gods "The Eight Million Kami" because they believe that there is an unknowable number of potential kami in the world. Kami are neither wholly good nor evil and are inherently connected to the living and dying world. They are hidden from the mortal world, existing in their own spirit world that is a mirror to ours - separate yet connected. The term Shikigami can also be read as Shiki-no-kami: Ceremonial Gods.
This already tells us a bit about the Ten Shadows' ties to Shinto: Megumi has access to the shadow world of the Kami, or more specifically to his own Shiki-no-kami.
The Shikigami in Megumi's possession all have some relation to the "Ten Sacred Treasures" in Shinto mythology, with the markings on their bodies bearing similarities to the regalia they are associated with. I won't go into the details of the mythological history behind every single one of his Shikigami, there are already many other posts talking at length about it.
In order to summon Mahoraga, Megumi chants, “Sacred Treasure swing and ring, ring.” This phrase is part of a real chant called the Furu no Koto (also known as Hifumi no Haraekotoba). This is a Shinto chant, one recites while slowly swinging the Ten Sacred Treasures. It is said that in the event of difficulty, illness, or in order to dispel evil, one should chant the names of the ten regalia while flourishing the objects, and the desired effect will immediately appear in response.
Shinto believes in the inherent good and purity of people, which gets corrupted throughout life. The concept of original sin is non-existent in Shinto, therefore making purification of all types of sins possible. Thus Shinto focuses a great deal on purification rituals (harae), which aim to cleanse people from the pollution of sins (tsumi). Tsumi encompasses the following three: Evil deeds, defilement, and disasters. It's obvious that Tsumiki's name has its origin in this term, as someone in need of purification of the defilement she has fallen victim to. Megumi, whose name means "to grant a blessing," is the perfect counterpart to the corruption of Tsumiki.
All of this leads me to assume that Megumi's full mastery of the Ten Shadows and his fully realized domain will lead to a complete purification of Cursed Energy. This might seem absurd at first, but what is Jujutsu Kaisen, if not a continuous exorcism of Curses? A purification is nothing else but an exorcism.
Let me explain a bit more:
There is simply no way that Jujutsu Kaisen will end without us readers seeing Megumi's fully mastered Domain Expansion. I believe his Domain Expansion is the externalization of his shadow - the shadow world of the Kami opened up. The term Chimera Shadow Garden already says as much: A shadowed garden for Chimera creatures.
We see Megumi's Domain Expansion form what seems to be a cervical vertebra. I think this might be the beginnings of what would be a complete fusion of all his ten Shikigami. A completely fused Chimera creature, that possesses all abilities of each Shikigami.
Reggie Star vs. Megumi also brought up some interesting insights:
In his battle against Megumi, Reggie Star makes three statements that might foreshadow what's to come:
1. Megumi's black shadow is like a fluid. At one point, he confuses the feeling outright to drowning in water. Purification rituals in Shinto include washings with water.
2. Reggie remarks that he assumes that if Megumi dies while Reggie is being held inside Megumi's shadow, that Reggie will be stuck in there forever. Unless Megumi is alive to open it, there is no way for anyone to exit this realm.
3. The weight of his shadow can potentially crush Megumi to death.
So here is what I think might happen in these final chapters:
1. Nobara returns as a Cursed Corpse (it appears she is alive, so this is mostly true aside from her coming back as a Cursed Corpse), so her Resonance technique can get applied to the remaining finger of Sukuna. As the finger is indestructible, the effects of her technique will simply echo to Sukuna's reincarnated body, for as long as she keeps going.
2. Yuji will keep his promises and kill Sukuna with Megumi's (via resisting Sukuna) and Nobara's (via the finger) assistance, and through that save Megumi.
3. Sukuna's remaining indestructible finger will get sealed into the Prison Realm, which will get topped off by additional seals.
4. Megumi will use his completed Domain Expansion to purify all of Japan of Cursed Energy. True to his name, he will bless everyone by sacrificing himself and dying after the weight of all the absorbed Cursed Energy kills him and remains locked into his now inaccessible shadow realm.
This way Megumi would have realized his dream of creating a world that wouldn't have exposed Tsumiki to injustice and unhappiness, even if too late, while fulfilling his own wish: finally dying.
Before Jujutsu Kaisen, there was Jujutsu Sousen, a previous version of the story that centered Megumi as the main character. Curses were described as a type of malediction and Megumi's goal in the story was to find a way to cure his sister of this malediction. It would be Megumi who would become Sukuna's vessel from the get-go, instead of Yuji. This variation was dismissed because editors deemed Megumi as not suitable for a main character. Still, Gege had managed to write the story in such a way that would have us end up in exactly the situation which he had wanted from the start: Megumi as Sukuna's vessel and on a quest to save his sister. Because of that, I believe that Gege's idea for the resolution of the story likely also hadn't changed since then – Megumi is the key to finding that "cure." Gege had long mentioned that the resolution for Megumi's end is something he already knew for a while.
None of the information I'm going to share is new, I'm just going to summarize it here to make the case for my theory at the end of this post.
The origin of Megumi's Ten Shadows CT derives mainly from Shintoism. Gakuganji and Utahime are two other characters related to the Shinto religion, making Megumi's ties to it not entirely out of place.
Shinto calls their gods "The Eight Million Kami" because they believe that there is an unknowable number of potential kami in the world. Kami are neither wholly good nor evil and are inherently connected to the living and dying world. They are hidden from the mortal world, existing in their own spirit world that is a mirror to ours - separate yet connected. The term Shikigami can also be read as Shiki-no-kami: Ceremonial Gods.
This already tells us a bit about the Ten Shadows' ties to Shinto: Megumi has access to the shadow world of the Kami, or more specifically to his own Shiki-no-kami.
The Shikigami in Megumi's possession all have some relation to the "Ten Sacred Treasures" in Shinto mythology, with the markings on their bodies bearing similarities to the regalia they are associated with. I won't go into the details of the mythological history behind every single one of his Shikigami, there are already many other posts talking at length about it.
In order to summon Mahoraga, Megumi chants, “Sacred Treasure swing and ring, ring.” This phrase is part of a real chant called the Furu no Koto (also known as Hifumi no Haraekotoba). This is a Shinto chant, one recites while slowly swinging the Ten Sacred Treasures. It is said that in the event of difficulty, illness, or in order to dispel evil, one should chant the names of the ten regalia while flourishing the objects, and the desired effect will immediately appear in response.
Shinto believes in the inherent good and purity of people, which gets corrupted throughout life. The concept of original sin is non-existent in Shinto, therefore making purification of all types of sins possible. Thus Shinto focuses a great deal on purification rituals (harae), which aim to cleanse people from the pollution of sins (tsumi). Tsumi encompasses the following three: Evil deeds, defilement, and disasters. It's obvious that Tsumiki's name has its origin in this term, as someone in need of purification of the defilement she has fallen victim to. Megumi, whose name means "to grant a blessing," is the perfect counterpart to the corruption of Tsumiki.
All of this leads me to assume that Megumi's full mastery of the Ten Shadows and his fully realized domain will lead to a complete purification of Cursed Energy. This might seem absurd at first, but what is Jujutsu Kaisen, if not a continuous exorcism of Curses? A purification is nothing else but an exorcism.
Let me explain a bit more:
There is simply no way that Jujutsu Kaisen will end without us readers seeing Megumi's fully mastered Domain Expansion. I believe his Domain Expansion is the externalization of his shadow - the shadow world of the Kami opened up. The term Chimera Shadow Garden already says as much: A shadowed garden for Chimera creatures.
We see Megumi's Domain Expansion form what seems to be a cervical vertebra. I think this might be the beginnings of what would be a complete fusion of all his ten Shikigami. A completely fused Chimera creature, that possesses all abilities of each Shikigami.
Reggie Star vs. Megumi also brought up some interesting insights:
In his battle against Megumi, Reggie Star makes three statements that might foreshadow what's to come:
1. Megumi's black shadow is like a fluid. At one point, he confuses the feeling outright to drowning in water. Purification rituals in Shinto include washings with water.
2. Reggie remarks that he assumes that if Megumi dies while Reggie is being held inside Megumi's shadow, that Reggie will be stuck in there forever. Unless Megumi is alive to open it, there is no way for anyone to exit this realm.
3. The weight of his shadow can potentially crush Megumi to death.
So here is what I think might happen in these final chapters:
1. Nobara returns as a Cursed Corpse (it appears she is alive, so this is mostly true aside from her coming back as a Cursed Corpse), so her Resonance technique can get applied to the remaining finger of Sukuna. As the finger is indestructible, the effects of her technique will simply echo to Sukuna's reincarnated body, for as long as she keeps going.
2. Yuji will keep his promises and kill Sukuna with Megumi's (via resisting Sukuna) and Nobara's (via the finger) assistance, and through that save Megumi.
3. Sukuna's remaining indestructible finger will get sealed into the Prison Realm, which will get topped off by additional seals.
4. Megumi will use his completed Domain Expansion to purify all of Japan of Cursed Energy. True to his name, he will bless everyone by sacrificing himself and dying after the weight of all the absorbed Cursed Energy kills him and remains locked into his now inaccessible shadow realm.
This way Megumi would have realized his dream of creating a world that wouldn't have exposed Tsumiki to injustice and unhappiness, even if too late, while fulfilling his own wish: finally dying.
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