Buddhism in Jujutsu Kaisen: The Curse, The Dharma, and The Hidden Philosophy

Table of Contents

The first time I watched Jujutsu Kaisen, I was hooked by the slick animation and the rule-breaking swagger of Gojo Satoru. But it was only on my second, third, and fourth re-watches (and deep dives into the manga) that I realized Gege Akutami had done something incredibly clever. Beneath the veneer of a modern shonen battle royale, he has woven a complex tapestry of Buddhist philosophy so deeply into the story’s fabric that the characters and power system are essentially modern-day parables.

This isn’t just about spotting a few hand signs and calling it a day. To understand the depth of buddhism in jujutsu kaisen is to understand the Buddhist concepts of karma, enlightenment (satori), emptiness (śūnyatā), and the bodhisattva vow. If you look closely, the entire series is a massive, violent, and beautiful dissertation on suffering and salvation.

Jujutsu Kaisen Is More Than Just a Shonen – Buddhism in Jujutsu Kaisen

When you press play on Jujutsu Kaisen, you enter a world where negative emotions manifest as literal monsters—Curses. It’s a brilliant hook, but it’s also a profoundly Buddhist one. In Buddhism, suffering (Dukkha) is born from desire, anger, and ignorance. These are the “three poisons.” Akutami simply asked, “What if those poisons had a physical form?” .

The series isn’t just inspired by Buddhism; it is structured by it. The lore, the history, and the very ontology of how Jujutsu works are lifted directly from East Asian Buddhist traditions, particularly Esoteric Buddhism (Mikkyō) and Onmyōdō . We are told that the immortal hermit Tengen began spreading Japanese Buddhism during the Nara period (c. 710-794 A.D.), and with it, the foundations of Jujutsu . This means that in the world of the story, Jujutsu and Buddhism are historically inseparable. The “magic” system is literally a byproduct of religious practice.

The Core Cycle: Samsara, Karma, and Curses

To understand the stakes of Jujutsu Kaisen, you have to understand Samsara—the endless cycle of death and rebirth. In Buddhism, one is trapped in this cycle due to karma, driven by attachment and desire. The only way out is Nirvana, a state of liberation.

In Jujutsu Kaisen, death is not the end. When a sorcerer dies with regrets or “earthly attachments,” they risk being reborn not as a human, but as a Cursed Spirit. This is the worst possible fate. It’s why sorcerers are taught to expunge negative emotions before death, and why their bodies are to be disposed of properly to prevent “rebirth” into a vengeful entity .

• Naoya Zenin: The most explicit example of this is Naoya. After his death at the hands of Maki, his arrogance and misogynistic rage were so potent that he was reborn as a Cursed Spirit, becoming a direct threat to his own family. He was literally too angry to die, so he re-entered Samsara as a monster.

This is the engine of the plot. Cursed Energy itself is generated by negative human emotions. We are not just fighting monsters; we are fighting the collective karmic debt of humanity’s suffering .

Enlightenment as a Power-Up: The “Honored One”

Perhaps the most famous Buddhist reference in the series is Gojo Satoru’s declaration: “Throughout Heaven and Earth, I alone am the honored one.” This is a direct reference to the Buddha’s birth, where he was said to have taken seven steps, pointed to the sky and ground, and proclaimed something similar, signifying his unique and enlightened status.

Gojo’s “enlightenment” moment isn’t just a power-up; it’s a genuine spiritual breakthrough . When Toji Fushiguro leaves him on the brink of death, Gojo experiences a profound detachment. He lets go of his fear, his arrogance, and his attachment to living. In that void, he understands the true nature of Cursed Energy—the Reverse Cursed Technique, which multiplies negative energy to create positive energy. He accesses a state of being that is beyond the physical, allowing him to perceive the “Akasha records” of the soul.

However, Akutami is too smart to leave it there. Was Gojo truly enlightened? A truly enlightened being in Buddhism has no ego and no attachment. Gojo, for all his power, is deeply attached to his friends, his students, and his ideals. He is burdened by the world. His “enlightenment” was real in a technical sense, but not a spiritual one. It was the enlightenment of power, not of peace. This is the tragic irony of his character: he reached the peak of the mountain, but he was still tied to the world below .

Sunyata and the Barrier of Emptiness

One of the most complex Buddhist concepts is Śūnyatā, or “Emptiness.” It’s often misunderstood as nihilism, but it’s actually the opposite. Emptiness means that nothing has a fixed, independent identity. Everything exists in relation to everything else. A table is only a table because of wood, a carpenter, a forest, sunlight, etc. Strip those away, and the “table” is empty of a permanent self.

This is the key to understanding the power system of Jujutsu Kaisen, specifically regarding Domains and barriers.

• The Sunyata Barrier: During the battle between Kenjaku, Yuki, and Choso, we learn about Tengen’s ultimate defense: a barrier built on the concept of Sunyata . This barrier allows for reality warping because it is constructed on the principle that all things are empty of intrinsic form and can therefore be redefined. This is high-level, esoteric Buddhism applied directly to combat.
• Mahito and the Soul: Mahito, the Curse who manipulates souls, carries the Heart Sutra. The Heart Sutra’s most famous line is, “Form is emptiness, emptiness is form” . Mahito understands that the soul is the true “form” of a person, and the body is just a temporary vessel (empty of permanent identity). Because he understands this emptiness, he can reshape the body at will. He even muses that ancient Buddhist monks could perceive him because they had carved their souls away from material existence, achieving a state of pure perception.

Yuji Itadori: The Accidental Bodhisattva

If Gojo represents Wisdom (the “Chie” of the Buddha), then Yuji Itadori represents Compassion (the “Jihi” of the Bodhisattva) .

In Mahayana Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is one who delays their own entry into Nirvana to stay in the cycle of suffering (Samsara) and save all sentient beings. They take a vow to liberate others, even at the cost of their own peace.

Yuji Itadori fits this archetype perfectly, but not because he’s holy. He fits it because of his gut-level refusal to let others die unjustly. He eats Sukuna’s finger not out of a desire for power, but to save Megumi and the others from a Curse he feels responsible for. He willingly becomes a vessel for the King of Curses, accepting an eternity of suffering and execution as a personal burden.

• The Vow: Yuji’s life is a constant act of self-sacrifice. He fights for others to have a “proper death.” He carries the weight of the lives lost in Shibuya as if they were his own sins.
• The Domain of Compassion: In the climax of the manga, Yuji finally unveils his Domain Expansion. The hand sign he uses is the mudra of Kṣitigarbha (Jizō) .

This is where Akutami’s genius becomes undeniable. Kṣitigarbha is a bodhisattva specifically known for his vow to save beings suffering in Hell. He is often depicted as a monk guiding lost children and tortured souls. Yuji’s Domain manifests as a train station—a liminal space, a gateway to the afterlife . He isn’t just trying to kill Sukuna; he is trying to guide him, to sever his attachments, and to send him to the “beyond.” Yuji is not a destroyer; he is a ferryman of souls. He is trying to empty the Hell that Sukuna has created.

Mahoraga: The Dharma Wheel in Action

The Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga is one of the most terrifying entities in the series, and his design is a masterclass in Buddhist iconography.

• The Wheel: The large wheel behind Mahoraga’s back is a Dharmacakra—the Dharma Wheel . In Buddhism, the Dharma Wheel represents the teaching of the Buddha, the cycle of Samsara, and the Noble Eightfold Path. For Mahoraga, this wheel turns to analyze and adapt. It “spins” to learn the “phenomena” (Dharma) of the attack used against it, and then it adapts .
• The Adaptation: Mahoraga’s ability to adapt to any and all phenomena is a direct representation of the Buddhist concept of causality and dependent origination. Nothing can harm it twice because once it has experienced a cause, it understands the effect and renders it null. Sukuna’s interest in Mahoraga wasn’t just about beating it; it was about using it as a tool to understand the “phenomena” of Gojo’s Infinity, thereby allowing him to cut through the fabric of causality itself.

The Hidden Details: Foreshadowing and Fate

Akutami rewards the attentive reader. The Buddhist references aren’t just set dressing; they are often foreshadowing.

• Sukuna’s Enemy: Sukuna’s title as the “King of Curses” places him as the ultimate manifestation of the Three Poisons (Greed, Anger, Ignorance). Historically, during the Heian period (the height of Jujutsu), Sukana fought squads with explicitly Buddhist names: the Celestial Quad, the Void Generals, and the Nirvana Pacification Squad from the Abe clan . These were the monks and sorcerers who fought to contain him. This tells us that from the very beginning, the conflict has been one of Dharma (cosmic order) versus Adharma (chaos).
• The Six Eyes: Gojo’s Six Eyes allow him to perceive Cursed Energy at an atomic level. This is akin to seeing the “Dependent Origination” of all things. He sees the links between cause and effect, which is why he is practically omniscient in battle .
• Megumi’s Name: Megumi’s name means “blessing” or “grace,” yet he is constantly mired in darkness and self-doubt, calling his own life worthless . This irony highlights the Buddhist tension between one’s nature and one’s actions. He is a walking “blessing” who believes he is a curse, until he learns to accept the grace of connection.

The Impermanence of All Things

The final and most poignant Buddhist theme in Jujutsu Kaisen is Impermanence (Anicca) . The series’ ending, which left many fans frustrated, is actually the most Buddhist conclusion possible. The idea that beloved characters could die, that the strongest could fall, and that the world would keep spinning is a direct reflection of the truth of suffering .

There is no happy, static ending in Buddhism because existence itself is flux. Jujutsu Kaisen teaches us that life is a “vast ceremony of coexistence,” where curses and humans, joy and sorrow, are intertwined . The goal isn’t to eliminate suffering (an impossible task), but to change our relationship to it. Yuji doesn’t win by erasing curses; he wins by bearing the burden of them with compassion.

So, the next time you watch Gojo declare himself the “Honored One” or see Yuji form that hand sign, remember: you aren’t just watching a fight scene. You are watching a 2,500-year-old philosophy playing out in real-time, a testament to the fact that even in a world of monsters and mayhem, the search for enlightenment is the only thing that saves us.

Frequently Asked Questions: Buddhism in Jujutsu Kaisen Explained

Editorial Disclaimer

This article reflects the author’s independent critical and thematic interpretation of the series Jujutsu Kaisen. All characters, titles, and references belong to their respective creators and rights holders. This content is intended solely for commentary, analysis, and educational discussion under fair-use principles. The author is not affiliated with the original creators, publishers, or production studios.