Who is Yamata no Orochi in Jujutsu Kaisen? The latest episode showed Sukuna fighting Mahoraga, the most powerful shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique. After figuring out Mahoraga’s techniques, he compares them to Yamata no Orochi. Here is a guide on Yamata no Orochi in Jujutsu Kaisen.
Jujutsu Kaisen: Who is Yamata no Orochi?
Yamata no Orochi remains unknown in the Jujutsu Kaisen universe, other than Sukuna mentioning it in his fight with Mahoraga. However, since Jujutsu Kaisen draws concepts from Japanese mythology, the Yamata no Orochi that Sukuna mentioned likely has similarities to the one in Japanese mythology.
In Japanese mythology, Yamata no Orochi or Orochi is a Japanese dragon or serpent-like creature with eight heads and/or eight tails. According to the myth, Susanoo, a Shinto storm god, challenged his sister, Amaterasu, the sun goddess, to a competition. Amaterasu claimed that she won the challenge, but this made Susanoo angry. Because of this, he destroys a lot of her valuables and ends up inadvertently killing her favorite attendant. This upsets Amaterasu, who casts out Susanoo from Heaven. In her grief, she hides in a heavenly rock cave which plunges the world into darkness.
Susanoo wanders around the world after his banishment and he encounters a river where he hears crying from two Earthly Deities. They’re crying because they have had to sacrifice a daughter to Yamata no Orochi every year for seven years. They were down to their last daughter, and Susanoo made a deal with them. He would help them deal with Orochi and in exchange, he gets to marry the last daughter.
Susanoo manages to cut off all heads and tails of Orochi. While cutting the fourth tail, his blade hits a sword, which later becomes known as the Kusunagi-no-Tsurugi. He presents this to Amaterasu as an apology, together with the Yata no Kagami mirror and Yasakani no Magatama jewel, which becomes the three sacred Imperial Regalia of Japan.
In relation to Jujutsu Kaisen, it’s possible that Mahoraga’s cursed tools are inspired by the Imperial Regalia. We already see that with Mahoraga’s Sword of Extermination. The Yamata no Orochi myth also implies that there might be a comparison or similarity between Susanoo and Sukuna.
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