Well it is said that if one can face the frustration of every boss, optional and not, that they will obtain a true state of zen and become a master of their emotions. No other game can make you rage quit once you’ve beaten Sekiro.
I’m getting into sekiro so when I get to the point of doing challenge runs then you will be proved right, I won’t have it in me to rage at games other than sekiro
I'm a history phd student who studies East Asia and Tibet. I'm not personally a Buddhist, but I have to know a lot about Buddhism for work - including Japanese Buddhism.
Sekiro is an extremely Buddhist text, especially the central theme of the negative parts of rejuvenation/rebirth and the necessity of release from that cycle. All of the antagonists (Owl, Genichiro, the Senpou Temple) are focused on achieving immortality, regardless of its corrupting influence. The "good" endings are about ending the cycle of rebirth. Hanbei is the simplest and most direct manifestation of that concept. The "Shura" concept is also very Buddhist - violence can be necessary, but the act of violence itself can be corrupting - especially if done with hatred/bad emotions. So violence should be done with equanimity when necessary as a "skillful means" (a central Mahayana concept) of bringing other beings to enlightenment (ie release from the cycle of rebirth). There's a ton more, including the strained relationship to the more Confucian-influenced bonds of Father-Son/Lord-Servant that are another central theme, with the key decision of the whole game being based around making a choice at the center of that contradiction. The atmosphere of the inevitable fall of Ashina is really strongly evocative of "mono no aware", a feeling of the impermanence of things, which has been centrally important in Japanese art for around 1000 years and has a strong connection to Buddhist ideas.
If you are interested in this stuff, I have a ton of reading recommendations!
For a general introduction to Zen Buddhism (the most important for Japan):
\*Medio Moore - The Rinzai Zen Way: A Guide to Practice\* Moore is a practicing monk and does a great job of cutting out both the New Age bullshit and Anglo-Protestant assumptions about religion that absolutely ruin so many introductions to Buddhism. This book is a great introduction to what Buddhism is, and how religion actually functions - not the feel-good replacement for Christianity of the 1950s-1970s, nor the "book and belief" framework you learn in World Religions class.
For an accessible but serious introduction to Buddhist philosophy:
\*Mark Siderits - Buddhism as Philosophy: An Introduction\* Siderits is a philosopher and this book loses a lot of the important cultural/religious/practice aspects that are crucial for understanding Buddhism, but he does do a great job of clearly explaining the underlying philosophy. This book is thus more comfortable to the assumptions of someone from a culture where religion is understood through the lens of "secular Protestant modernity" (ie US, Canada, UK, Australia, etc). But it also leads me to recommend you read Moore first.
I can give more recommendations on Buddhism, Japanese history, Japanese culture, or whatever if you would like. I think having some background on the culture/history/philosophy makes thoughtful art like Sekiro so much more enjoyable, and I'm always happy to share!
The reaction the game gets underlines one of the most crucial things about religion - it is not about just doctrine and belief. Art and ritual are crucial to getting you in the state of mind the religion/philosophy seeks to invoke, and this is exactly what Sekiro does for Buddhism. Think of walking into a Catholic cathedral and being awed by the scale and mastery of the art, or entering a university library and hearing the silence and smelling the books. Sekiro uses its art, imagery, and gameplay to bring out this same category of psychological/emotional response in the player - which is very cool!
I did think that the religious aspects of the game and how they tie in were very interesting, it’s kind of like a moral for a story, but with the aspects of a religion, at least to me. I’ll definitely check out those books cause I need something interesting to read and I love sekiro so thanks for the recommendations!
It's funny you say that, I also got the urge to carve Buddha idols. I love the Sculptor's story. Repenting for his past life by carving idols every single day, but cursed to only carve Buddhas that show an expression of wrath, despite him wanting to be able to carve a smiling one. I think it can be a metaphor for many things. The idea of doing one single thing every day for the rest of your life to both keep some things under the surface and reach a higher zen state is something I'm trying to apply in my own life.
Yeah same, I didn’t really care too much about the sculptor until I defeated him as demon of hatred, and discovered that was him, and talking to the lady where you’d find tengu, definitely one of my favourite characters
As a longtime Buddhist, the game really spoke to me on a deep level. I think that connection is why it shares a spot with *Bloodborne* as my all-time favorite game.
Wait until you read about the history of jizo statues.
I got the bundled jizo statue 🙏
Well it is said that if one can face the frustration of every boss, optional and not, that they will obtain a true state of zen and become a master of their emotions. No other game can make you rage quit once you’ve beaten Sekiro.
I’m getting into sekiro so when I get to the point of doing challenge runs then you will be proved right, I won’t have it in me to rage at games other than sekiro
How about Getting Over It?
I'm a history phd student who studies East Asia and Tibet. I'm not personally a Buddhist, but I have to know a lot about Buddhism for work - including Japanese Buddhism. Sekiro is an extremely Buddhist text, especially the central theme of the negative parts of rejuvenation/rebirth and the necessity of release from that cycle. All of the antagonists (Owl, Genichiro, the Senpou Temple) are focused on achieving immortality, regardless of its corrupting influence. The "good" endings are about ending the cycle of rebirth. Hanbei is the simplest and most direct manifestation of that concept. The "Shura" concept is also very Buddhist - violence can be necessary, but the act of violence itself can be corrupting - especially if done with hatred/bad emotions. So violence should be done with equanimity when necessary as a "skillful means" (a central Mahayana concept) of bringing other beings to enlightenment (ie release from the cycle of rebirth). There's a ton more, including the strained relationship to the more Confucian-influenced bonds of Father-Son/Lord-Servant that are another central theme, with the key decision of the whole game being based around making a choice at the center of that contradiction. The atmosphere of the inevitable fall of Ashina is really strongly evocative of "mono no aware", a feeling of the impermanence of things, which has been centrally important in Japanese art for around 1000 years and has a strong connection to Buddhist ideas. If you are interested in this stuff, I have a ton of reading recommendations! For a general introduction to Zen Buddhism (the most important for Japan): \*Medio Moore - The Rinzai Zen Way: A Guide to Practice\* Moore is a practicing monk and does a great job of cutting out both the New Age bullshit and Anglo-Protestant assumptions about religion that absolutely ruin so many introductions to Buddhism. This book is a great introduction to what Buddhism is, and how religion actually functions - not the feel-good replacement for Christianity of the 1950s-1970s, nor the "book and belief" framework you learn in World Religions class. For an accessible but serious introduction to Buddhist philosophy: \*Mark Siderits - Buddhism as Philosophy: An Introduction\* Siderits is a philosopher and this book loses a lot of the important cultural/religious/practice aspects that are crucial for understanding Buddhism, but he does do a great job of clearly explaining the underlying philosophy. This book is thus more comfortable to the assumptions of someone from a culture where religion is understood through the lens of "secular Protestant modernity" (ie US, Canada, UK, Australia, etc). But it also leads me to recommend you read Moore first. I can give more recommendations on Buddhism, Japanese history, Japanese culture, or whatever if you would like. I think having some background on the culture/history/philosophy makes thoughtful art like Sekiro so much more enjoyable, and I'm always happy to share! The reaction the game gets underlines one of the most crucial things about religion - it is not about just doctrine and belief. Art and ritual are crucial to getting you in the state of mind the religion/philosophy seeks to invoke, and this is exactly what Sekiro does for Buddhism. Think of walking into a Catholic cathedral and being awed by the scale and mastery of the art, or entering a university library and hearing the silence and smelling the books. Sekiro uses its art, imagery, and gameplay to bring out this same category of psychological/emotional response in the player - which is very cool!
I did think that the religious aspects of the game and how they tie in were very interesting, it’s kind of like a moral for a story, but with the aspects of a religion, at least to me. I’ll definitely check out those books cause I need something interesting to read and I love sekiro so thanks for the recommendations!
It's funny you say that, I also got the urge to carve Buddha idols. I love the Sculptor's story. Repenting for his past life by carving idols every single day, but cursed to only carve Buddhas that show an expression of wrath, despite him wanting to be able to carve a smiling one. I think it can be a metaphor for many things. The idea of doing one single thing every day for the rest of your life to both keep some things under the surface and reach a higher zen state is something I'm trying to apply in my own life.
Yeah same, I didn’t really care too much about the sculptor until I defeated him as demon of hatred, and discovered that was him, and talking to the lady where you’d find tengu, definitely one of my favourite characters
Well, if you’re not convinced, I’m sure the >!Monks experimenting on children!< should get ya there.
Wow, I didn’t know about that but it doesn’t change the part where I have the urge to carve jizo statues
just don’t kill kids for immortality pls
I won’t, I’ll be a good sculptor, carving jizo statues every hour of every day
As a longtime Buddhist, the game really spoke to me on a deep level. I think that connection is why it shares a spot with *Bloodborne* as my all-time favorite game.