Kotodama (the spirit of words). Will believers be saved?

Japan has an ancient belief called “kotodama” (the spirit/power of words). The idea is that words uttered from the mouth have a mystical power and their benefits appear after they are spoken. It may be similar to prayers in other religions.

In this article, I will talk about kotodama.

The concept of kotodama is still alive today

Even among modern Japanese people, who have lost the idea of kotodama, some are careful about the words they choose. For example, if you were speaking in front of a student who was going to take an examination, you mustn’t use the words ‘slip’ or ‘fall’ (both of these words can mean “fail” in Japanese).

Saying ‘cut’ or ‘end’ in front of a person who has a new girlfriend or boyfriend is another example of kotodama that has remained.

Kotodama from the anime, Jujutsu Kaisen (Sorcery Battle)

If you are a fan of Japanese anime, you may have seen Jujutsu Kaisen. There is an important kotodama in this anime.

It is,

　“Furuube Yura Yura”布瑠部由良由良

This one can be expressed in modern Japanese characters. “Furube” means shaking treasure, and “yurayura” is an onomatopoeic word that sounds like the shaking of a treasure ball.

The original words were:

　一二三四五六七八九十（ひふみよいむなやここのたり）

　布瑠部由良由良止（ふるべゆらゆらと）布瑠部（ふるべ）

“Hi-fu-mi-yo-i-mu-na-ya-koko-no-tari

Furube yurayura to furube”

This long kotodama is a type of “harai-kotoba”. These are words used to purge evil and are a type of ritual prayer, used by Shinto priests when offering prayers on paper.

Don’t worry, it won’t summon up any horrible monsters like in the anime!

The legendary saying, “samhara”

https://jp.japo.news/contents/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Samuhara.jpg

Chanting the word “samhara” several times each day is said to avert misfortune and guide you on the right path.

A famous samurai named Kiyomasa Kato also inscribed these words on his Japanese sword, and some soldiers heading off to war also carried a piece of paper with samhara written on it.

This word, when written in characters, cannot be entered on a computer because the kanji (Chinese characters) are not found in modern Japanese. It is written in an obsolete script called “kamiyomoji”.

We have made a wallpaper-sized version for the iPhone, which you can download here if you are interested.

I can understand if some people wouldn’t believe that just saying words out loud can bring about positive effects, but it seems to me that negative things happen to people who say negative words all the time.

I think it is important to try to talk about positive things and not complain or moan about people.

I think this is a philosophical view rather than a religious one.

To remind myself of this feeling I use the image I just mentioned as my iPhone wallpaper and say it every day to try to keep my thoughts positive.

To those who complain about work or their spouse:

It doesn’t have to be a Japanese kotodama, so why don’t you say something positive and make everyone happy, including the people around you?

ABE KENGO

• Japan
• japo
• kotodama
• SAMHARA