Existence Without Essence: Satoru Gojo

Gojo is a boisterous animated personality within the Grim world of jjk often depicted by fans as a Carefree selfish Playboy concerned only about himself and to some extent they're right Gojo is somebody who seems dichotomous to the Dark World building that gege has set up a lighthearted teacher who really seems like he's there because he has to be and if you've only seen the anime then I can understand why your opinion might be that way in fact I definitely felt the same way while I was watching the first season yet what if I said that there's a lot more to Gojo than what it seems like what if behind that loud Persona laid an Indescribable loneliness and what if I said that Gojo within the manga is layered with depth and is quite possibly the best character in jjk at least until the end of the Shibuya Arc in this video essay I'll be talking about my favorite jjk character and one of my favorite Side characters and breaking down some of his Core Concepts and his panels so if you haven't read the Manga for jjk there will be spoilers until the end of the Shibuya Arc which is around chapter 136. now one of the most key elements to Gojo and a vital aspect to his character which is not only formed within the star plasma Arc but the arc preceding it which is Shibuya is that the price of strength is an eternity bound to its responsibilities now Gojo has always been strong ever since the first couple of pages within the star plasma Arc it shows Gojo and ghetto both saying that they are the strongest together however it's through this Arc that Gojo comes upon this realization once he forms purple that he is the strongest right and it leads into the panel of the honored the honored one is one of the titles for the Buddha and once the Buddha was born he pointed to both Heaven and Earth and said throughout the heavens and earth I alone am the honored one while it may come across as a panel of Enlightenment and breakthrough for Gojo I would argue that this is a panel of arrogance and perhaps even fake actualization for after making this ability Gojo becomes almost drunk in his power and then Likens himself to Buddha which essentially Compares himself to an Untouchable deity Gojo is somebody who has altered the balance of the jjk world since his birth the soximarronic statement plays well into his symbolism as Gojo is meant to represent Buddha from the honored one panel and Buddhism believes revolve around the concept of balance above everything else so Gojo has also had the expectations of becoming the strongest placed onto him from everyone else people from his clan other sorcerers that know him and this is a claim that he himself boasts about all the time that he is the strongest god reviews himself to be enlightened but that also ends up alienating him from both the human society and the jjk society coach doesn't really have anyone that he can claim to be his friend and he doesn't really have very many students that still remember him or even reach out to him so Gojo has not only been isolated from others ever since his birth due to the nature of his strength but he subconsciously chooses to do it to himself as well and that plays perfectly into his ability Limitless Gojo is able to get close with others such as Megami nobara and itadori but does he truly open himself up to them so his isolation is perfectly displayed with his ability Limitless just like nobody can physically touch him when Limitless is activated as it stretches to Infinity has Gojo subconsciously not allowed anyone to get close to him and does he even know how to after all Gojo's views are displayed perfectly when he says to Mega me that regardless of how many allies you have around you you'll always die alone size allow Gojo to have an extraordinary perception and the ability to use limpless to its full potential however I feel as if it's a great piece of characterization towards Gojo's blind nature to certain aspects and people that he cares about for example Gojo is shown to not understand ghetto's reasoning for wanting to eradicate Humanity despite it failing both of them during the star plasma Arc Gojo is shown to make relationships with itadori turning a black eye to the fact that he'll one day have to execute him for being sukuna's vessel time and time again the people that Gojo ends up caring about are the ones he'll willingly turn a blind eye for perhaps it's in order to save himself or perhaps it's his complete inability to understand his own sense of self who is Gojo anyways Gojo has been told that he's been strong his whole life so does he truly believe that he's above other humans placed on a pedestal does goju believe that he's above any other Jujutsu Sorcerers or is it something that's been placed upon him that he's forced to accept is it something which is real or a facade that he's had to put on for such a long time to be the honored one is to be enlightened is Gojo enlightened or is he egoic where does he really fall under and is this something that he chooses for himself or something which he's told himself over and over again just to accept the truth that's been told to him ever since his birth kojo's identity crisis is hinted at beautifully within the line are you the strongest because you're Gojo satro or are you Gojo satoru because you're the strongest does Gojo believe that he's the best because of his ability to nurture his talent or is it based upon the expectation placed on him by the sorcerer Society to become the strongest now is Gojo a product of his own Talent or the expectation that he'd be the best in addition what ends up happening to Gojo if he's suddenly not the strongest sorcerer anymore who is Gojo and what is his identity if he isn't at the top with the structure of the jjk role centering around strength and Gojo standing at its absolute Peak what happens when Gojo disappears I want to change gears a little bit and talk about the shift of the dynamic of Gojo and ghetto after the star plasma Arc namely in the increased means of isolation for both Gojo and ghetto at the beginning of this Arc Gojo and ghetto are shown to be reliant on each other deciding to be the strongest but together Gage really displays strength within the shark to set the tone for the rest of the series showcasing toji to be the strongest human with zero cursed energy and then displaying Gojo to be the Pinnacle of Jujutsu sorcerers yet through an egoic lens whenever this Pinnacle of strength is actualized it's always shown to be in complete solitude when toji realized it upon his death the panel was completely empty filled with his regrets with ghetto it's served as a matter of statement for while the strength is something which serves to unite the sorcerers it ripped apart both Gojo and ghetto where ghetto continued to Devour the curses all by himself repeatedly and alone and it's again showed within this panel where Gojo is brought up to his students and his peers and they're asked what they think of him and in response they only state that he is the strongest Giga continually drives home the idea of being completely alone as a consequence of obtaining that power that coveted title of becoming the strongest continuing forward with the star plasma Arc I want to talk about rebirth within it and what it represents rebirth in Buddhism indicates that the actions of a person lead to a new existence after death in a cycle that's called samsara samsara is the suffering Laden continuous cycle of Life Death and rebirth without beginning or end Gojo died once by the hands of toji and was reborn by manipulating cursed energy to heal himself in this Ark stuck in the cycle of hatred within that jjk world samsara is also considered to be dukkah full of pain and suffering with his rebirth Gojo enters a temporary state of either insanity or Enlightenment in which he spreads his arms accepting that his fight with toji has just begun and like I've said earlier I believe that this is a state of false Enlightenment in addition it's said that samsara ends when someone reaches Nirvana however does Gojo truly obtain said Nirvana does he truly let go of all of his desires and become enlightened Gojo claims that he doesn't feel any sort of anger for amanai or nor does he feel any sort of Vengeance right before claiming that he alone is the honored one throughout all the realms but is that Enlightenment or is that Gojo merely drunk on his Newfound power later on Gojo asks ghetto if he wants to kill the mindless people within the background the same jjk society that wished for the death of the star plasma vessel is this the same society that ghetto wants to protect is this the same society that Gojo is supposed to use his strength for what was his suffering for at the end of the day and what did it lead to another important aspect of Buddhism that I want to talk about is the teaching of sunyara sunyara translates to voidness and emptiness however in this case it's important to distinguish that sunyada does not equate to nothingness it's commonly misconceived as nihilism and is separate from that belief sunyara talks about the idea that everything is empty it is existence that is empty of an essence which is translated to self-being or intrinsic nature is the essence that that everything is empty from nothing has intrinsic nature everything simply is by being dependent on other things in this case everything is connected in cold becoming and is continually changing now this is a little bit confusing but I will be explaining this idea in relation to Gojo and in relation to jjk I'm going to be putting up a panel which is from chapter 90 of jjk and what I believe to be the best peak of kojo and within this panel the first idea that it presents is perception through others Gojo gazes upon the eye and has shown what he believes others view him as where his face should be the defining aspect of his identity is avoid link through the Buddhist concepts of the honored one panel the void and nothingness that Gojo gazes upon is a depiction of sunyara which I was talking about earlier is goja simply a vessel devoid of an Essence dependent on the perception of others as the strongest for his identity Gojo's existence serves to be a tool for his strength they don't care for his Essence as they have no use for it they don't care for who he truly is as all that matters to the society is a strength in addition this panel represents self-reflection for Gojo showcased right after his domain of expansion in Shibuya Gojo looks upon himself and sees himself as a void he sees nothing acting as the complete dichotomy to the honored one panel Gojo is grounded within what might be his perceived reality whereas he was floating in the sky acting out of his Enlightenment with arrogance in this case kojo is fearful of his own reflection he's terrified to view his Essence as he believes there is none he is simply an empty being where others can place their expectations upon as a result of his overwhelming strength and after viewing that Gojo decides to run this reality whether it's true or not does not matter is what Gojo perceives to be the truth while he may believe in his students and other people he does not believe they view him as anything other than the strongest running away from his reality believing his existence is a void without any form of essence Gojo couldn't even look upon himself for more than a few seconds understanding that the world runs by sunyara is typically depicted as the first step towards Enlightenment in Buddhism however Simply Having this knowledge is not enough you must realize this fact you must experience that emptiness to realize it but in the face of his true Enlightenment Gojo is unable to accept anything is typically depicted with a perfect black circle in Buddhism and it's filled out as a result of Gojo's projection of these ideals while in the honored one Gojo welcomes his Newfound Enlightenment he runs from what may be the first step towards actual Enlightenment within this panel if the eyes are reflective of your soul then in this case Gojo views his soul within damnation as a sense of self-punishment for the actions he's committed in Shibuya it's a direct dichotomy to the honored one where he's floating within the sky in his own perceived heaven and here where he's in his own perceived hell not only is that represented through the rough shading of the pupil but it's also why the eye is stitched open and partly bleeding this malevolent gaze shown to represent the crafting of Gojo's existence through others doesn't allow him to find Value within himself or the world and no matter what Gojo may try to escape it he can't he's simply imprisoned to his own strength battle not with monsters lest ye become a monster and if you gaze into the abyss the abyss also gazes into you just Gojo fear to gaze too long at his own void lest he ends up becoming the very thing he fears to become an existence without any form of essence to be empty of a sense of self simply left to serve the jjk world and unable to save those that he truly cares for in a sense this panel displays the dehumanization of Gojo throughout the world or as Gojo perceives it to be the last part is vital here because there are people who care for Gojo there are some who understand that there is more to Gojo than his power but Gojo has to be willing to see that he has to know that there are those who are willing to love him and all that he has to do is reach out but will he be able to do it at the end of it all perhaps the life that Gojo craves so desperately is terrifying because he has never gotten to experience it fully and when he was able to experience a little bit of it with ghetto that too ended in death and pain what sort of Salvation can Gojo even begin to seek when he has never found unconditional happiness where can he even begin to look and from the second that he was born Gojo is a being who had his identity instilled into him and his childhood ripped away from him hopelessly isolated as a result of his own strength Gojo has always been ruled by this repulsive jjk Society but maybe it's this exact reason he fights so viciously for itadori and buta he fights because there was no one there to fight for him so now we come around and that fundamental aspect that I talked about earlier has come full circle where the price of strength is an eternity bound to its responsibilities goto may be the strongest jjk sorcerer that there ever is and perceived as a God as such but he is bound to the responsibility that it entails he has to be the one that saves that jjk Society even though he despises it and even if Gojo presents himself as somebody who's carefree as somebody who's a Playboy he's cursed to truly be alone worshiped as a God after star plasma how many meaningful relationships has Gojo truly made and the one being that he did start to get close to again isn't he faded to die by Gojo's hands I think it's an interesting thought do you think that Gojo will hold up his end of the deal that he'll truly execute Yuji itadori going on a rampage within Shibuya the only thing which was able to stop Gojo was a sudden reveal of the one true friend that he's had in his entire life ghetto who is really kanjaku at this point once he laid eyes upon Him memories flashing back in his head Gojo then proceeded to reject the one thing which he's lived by his entire life his six eyes the same six eyes which allowed Limitless the creation of purple and are a foundation for his entire strength these same six eyes which Define his entire existence at his moment of rapture satoru Gojo denied his six eyes and claimed my sex eyes tell me that you're suguru ghetto but my soul knows otherwise in a glaringly tragic fashion the one being who he felt closest to was the one who ended up isolating him from the rest of the world as he was then sealed by kenjaku it's interesting to think about the soul being independent from the physical body as when Gojo taunts kanjaku it's shown that ghetto's arm shoots upward in an attempt to strangle himself is Gojo's Soul bound to be alone to be fated to get continually hurt by the ones that he even attempts to love is there any form of salvation for the being who lives his existence without any form of essence

Channel: DhruvJ97_Anime

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Id: 5a4toDdQYfg

Length: 18min 20sec (1100 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 05 2023