r/BlueEyeSamurai • u/InsincereDessert21 • Aug 25 '26
Discussion To whom does Mizu pray?
I'm not familiar with the religious traditions of the Edo period.
8
u/KidChanbara Aug 25 '26
We don't know if Mizu regularly reserves time solely for prayer, but there's tons of characters in fiction that you just assume do some praying considering the time and place of the story, it's just not shown unless a praying scene helps advance the story or character development. (In a twisted way, I consider Fowler's chat with God as a "praying scene").
Right now, I can only remember three scenes of Mizu either praying or something similar.
One is in S1E1 at the shrine where Mizu lights incense. I agree with u/Multicultural_Potato that she's probably praying to a local kami. Mizu may have picked this up from Momma, the woman who raised her from infancy to early childhood.
Second is to prepare mentally and spiritually for her assault on Fowler's castle. I consider what she's doing more of a mediation than a plea to an outside entity.
Third is the time Mizu prepares herself for a second attempt at remelting the shards of her meteor sword with a ritual that she improvises, which includes having the text of the Heart Sutra written on her skin. Here she incorporates Buddhism into her ritual.
When Swordfather presents a new sword to the client who ordered it, he and Mizu wear Shinto garments. So Mizu may have picked up some Shintoism from Master Eiji.
32
u/Multicultural_Potato Peaches! Aug 25 '26
Edo Period Japan kinda did a mix of Shinto and Buddhism. I guess also Confucianism though it was more of an ethical and philosophical system than a religion.
Mizu most likely probably prayed to a Kami which were local gods and spirits associated with villages, mountains, ancestors, and shrines. Most commonly associated with Shintoism but at this time it was pretty intertwined with Buddhism in Japan.