Ask John: How Significant are Religious Elements in Anime?

Question:
Does religion play an important role in the story, characher, and items in anime? Like in Evangelion when that monster was on that crucifix, or when Wolfwood had the guns shaped like a crucifix.

Answer:
The extent to which religion influences anime largely depends on the anime itself, and is partially influenced by the characteristics of Japanese society. Naturally, in anime series such as Evangelion and Cosmopolitan Players and Chrno Crusade, religious themes and iconography are used as interesting themes to add originality or novelty. Evangelion isn’t a show with a Christian or Jewish agenda. Chrno Crusade isn’t trying to suggest that Catholics are the last line of defense against evil. Christian themes and symbols appear in these anime only because they add weight and significance. The very fact that a question like this is asked and answered means that the religious symbolism included in these anime have achieved their intended purpose.

The Christian style cross is fairly common in anime simply because it’s a nearly universal symbol of sacrifice. Trigun’s Wolfwood carried a cross shaped gun and proclaimed himself a preacher. Yet the un-named soldier in Angel’s Egg also carried a cross-shaped gun but wasn’t Christian. The crucifixion of Lilith in Evangelion is yet another example of a character that has either sacrificed for the benefit of others, or who is burdened with a tremendous responsibility. The cross, in these cases, isn’t a moral or religious message; it’s just a representation of solemnity.

Westerners naturally recognize Christian symbolism in anime more than any other variety of religious element in anime, but that doesn’t mean that Christianity is the only form of religion that appears in anime. The gods and beliefs of Hindu religion form the basis of the Heavenly Sphere Shurato and RG Veda anime. Characters and legends from Japan’s native Shinto religion appear in Blue Seed and Five Star Stories. The Omishi Magical Theater: Risky Safety TV series comically juxtaposes Christian and traditional Japanese spirits. And even Hayao Miyazaki’s classic film My Neighbor Totoro may be interpreted as a heavily Shinto influenced work, as it emphasizes the Shinto belief in all things, including homes and trees having their own spirits and gods. Typically these anime use religious themes as a background or setting. But there are also anime films specifically created to promote the philosophies of a particular belief. For example, The Institute for Research into Human Happiness (Kofuku no Kagaku), which promotes a contemporary form of Buddhism, has produced three anime feature films: Hermes: Ai Wa Kaze No Gotoku (1997), The Laws of the Sun (2000), and Ougon no Hou: El Kantare no Rekishikan” (2003). Furthermore, although I can’t confirm this, I’ve heard that the 1993 film Mother: Saigo no Shoujo Eve (released in America as “E.Y.E.S. of Mars”) was produced for an American Christian group, which may make sense considering the film’s overt ecological preservation message.

As a form of storytelling, anime exhibits the same influences and characteristics that are interwoven into all fiction. Religious doctrine, iconography and parable are the oldest types of expressive literature and one of the foundations upon which all fiction is based. So religion does appear in anime just as religion may be found in every form of literature. In some anime, such as Evangelion, religion takes center stage as a significant character, but how important the religious element of anime is varies. In the vast majority of instances, including even titles like Evangelion, the inclusion of religious references is a natural extension of fictional embellishment, not a form of overt proselytizing.