Welcome to Maid Spin, the personal website of iklone. I write about about otaku culture as well as history, philosophy and mythology.
My interests range from anime & programming to mediaevalism & navigation. Hopefully something on this site will interest you.
I'm a devotee of the late '90s / early '00s era of anime, as well as a steadfast lover of maids. My favourite anime is Mahoromatic. I also love the works of Tomino and old Gainax.
To contact me see my contact page.
When people talk about Christian symbolism in anime, they often dismiss it as meaningless or as just being there to look cool. This is almost always not the case. Christianity is far more rooted in Japan than you may think; with five centuries of history in the pagan archipelago. Japan celebrates Christmas and Valentines day, and Christian marriages are more common than Buddhist or Shinto ones combined. 13% of Japanese prime ministers have been Christian, with the religion being more prevalent in the upper and influential classes than in the populous on average, giving it more sway than its adherence levels of 2% would imply [1].
Gainax is the anime studio probably most infamous for their inclusion of Western theological imagery in their works (with the possible exception of Shinbou's work with Shaft). Hideaki Anno is often cited with saying that the Christian and occultic imagery used in Evangelion is nothing more than a cool facade [2]. But he can also be quoted as saying that his works have no deeper meaning to them, and that his characters are worthless otaku bait. This is a man than cannot and will not explain his own work in any way that is not the work itself: to understand Evangelion you must watch Evangelion, not ask what it is about. While the Evangelion series is the most known for its Christian imagery, many other Gainax works include this aspect: Honneamise, Nadia, Mahoromatic, and the one I will break down now, Gurren Lagann.
The story of Gurren Lagann, as many of my favourites are, is one of totality. It tells us the complete story of the life of one man, his companions, his society and his world (and in this case his universe). An on-the-nose sekai-kei story that fits atop and into our collective vision of world history. As I neared the end of the show, I was starting to draw parallels between the four-act plot of TTGL and the story of the gospels. We must start with Kamina, the Christ surrogate of the show. He acts as a purely righteous being. Someone who's actions define good and to whom countless miracles of luck come. And, while Kamina's figure casts an all-encompassing shadow over the entire story, his life is short and his death early. His oration of beauty and truth brings humanity out of the dark of the underground. He disregards the old beliefs of pessimism, and is unafraid of the consequences of his taboo actions. Kamina dies for his courage and his cause, allowing his disciples to move on and spread his message to destroy the evil forces of the world. In episode 8, as seen in the screenshot above, Kamina is pierced in the side of his abdomen with a spear and dies, just as Jesus is on the cross in John [3]. With Christ gone, the apostles set out to build the church and the kingdom of God on Earth. The first leader of this church was St Peter. Also known as Simon Peter. Simon then goes on to cure the world of its misguided nature and builds a new kingdom in the name of his Lord, Kamina City. This is the end of the second act of Gurren Lagann, and where it becomes a truly great story.
With the prosperity and plenty of Kamina city, the attention of Satan is caught in the form of the Antispirals. Rossiu betrays the cause and imprisons Simon, losing his faith and thus his heart. Since he no longer believes that Kamina's strength can defend the world, he becomes nihilistic and fearful, eventually abandoning the Earth altogether and building an ark. His love is without faith. The fall of the world is personified through the corruption of the most pure being: Nia, one who was not born from woman and thus is free from original sin.
With the end times in motion, Simon and team Gurren leave Earth to face the Satanic forces of the Antispirals. It must be stated here that the Antispirals are not Gods. Their power is great, but finite. They can be deceived and they do not know all. They are a formally pure race that have lost faith and have fallen from grace to become a puppeteering Satanic force of the universe. "We do not need to understand. We only need to know. - The Antispirals [4]". This sentiment is counter to that of Kamina's belief in the self and in the world. In episode 26, Simon is trapped by the Antispirals in a set of visions sent to tempt him from his path. He sees a vision of a fallen Kamina, one content with a sinful world. But into the dark vision appears the true Kamina, the holy spirit saves Simon once again and lets him escape and defeat the Antispirals once and for all.
"Do the impossible. See the invisible." These words and sentiments similar are found throughout Gurren Lagann. Rejecting mundane conceits of logic and reason and being able to achieve anything if only you hold strong your faith in God and in one another. There is a similar passage in Matthew 17:20 - "If ye have faith but as small as a mustard seed, ye may move this mountain hence to yonder place; nothing shall be impossible unto you [5]."
But from where does this quite knowledgeable portrayal of Christianity come from in Gainax? It is more than could be expected to be known or understood by most Japanese, but there seems to be a culture surrounding it the studio. One explanation comes through Toshio Okada; one of Gainax's founders and self-proclaimed "Otaking". His mother was a Christian and although Toshio himself does not belong to a church, he assumedly learnt a lot from his both his mother and through the Japanese YMCA he was a part of when he was young. [6] In interviews, Hideaki Anno has revealed his deep interests and knowledge of Abrahamic occultism, focusing on Early Christianity and her heresies, Gnostic ideas and Kabbalism. All of these play a great part in much of his work, namely Nadia and Eva. I'm unsure on where Imaishi (TTGL's director) lies, but his fascination with Western culture is obvious through Panty & Stocking. His relationship with the minds of both of the aforementioned writers is also telling, they both have influenced his style enormously. I am sure his habit of using the imagery of Christ is not a product of subconscious laziness but of an active interest and understanding.
Now, as an afterword, I would like to mention that I am not saying that Gurren Lagann is a totally Christian story. That is not "the point" of the show, and I am not telling you to reconsider your understanding it with this as the framework. But it is a prominent part of the show. While bright flashing crosses and biblically reminiscent phrases do not hold value in themselves, they can act as a white rabbit that can deepen your understanding of the message Gurren Lagann (and many other anime) are telling. It is very rare for symbology to be used in a careless manner, whether their inclusion be part of a grand mystery or just used subconsciously as easy-to-understand icons, it is always worth reading into them if you are interested in breaking down the stories that you love.
Bibliography:
[1] - Christianity in Japan
Facts verified by sources from this Wikipedia article. See sources on holidays, wedding ceremonies and prime ministers.
[2] - Hideaki Anno on undermining Evangelion's symbology
There are a few similar quotes out there, but the most common one is actually not even from Anno, it's from Tsurumaki and it doesn't even deny the deeper meaning of the symbols, just that Eva is not a religious story. The interview is here.
[3] - The Lance of Longinus
John 19:34 - But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
[4] - We do not need to understand. We only need to know.
Quoted from the messenger of the Antispirals talking to Nia. Not an exact translation. From episode 25.
[5] - The Mustard Seed
Matthew 17:20 - If ye have faith but as small as a mustard seed, ye may move this mountain hence to yonder place; nothing shall be impossible unto you.
[6] - On Okada's Christian upbringing.
Okada talks about his mother and his own religion in an online seminar you can watch here. Originally streamed on Nico Nico.
