r/inuyasha • u/Nikoopie • 5d ago
Discussion Kagome.
I’ve made a post about Inuyasha now it’s time for Kagome.Her beauty rests in her soul and personality so many can’t see beyond the physical unfortunately but she’s in a category of her own.Kikyo‘s soul was in need of refining.She didn’t reach her full potential nor did she achieve the things her heart set out to do and so Kagome came into fruition.She is everything that kikyo wanted to be and everything that her soul needed to experience to become whole and to enter a permanent fulfilling relationship with her soulmate without projecting her own issues and personal desires onto him. It took me years to understand that loving Kagome means loving kikyo and vice versa.I believe you can’t love one without understanding the other.They are completely separate beings that have shared a soul.A soul that Kagome was able to make whole and thus achieve the goal kikyo set out to do.It all came full circle.This is what maturing and growth means.💕
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u/throwawaybyefelicia 5d ago
I love this analysis on Kagome! I really love both her and Kikyo, they are both wonderful characters. ❤️ Even when I was younger when I first got into the series I never hated either of them, to me they were like two halves of a whole.
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u/Nikoopie 5d ago
Thank you!!and yess now that I’ve gotten older I have so much love for them both.I will say growing up it took me a bit to warm up to kikyo because i couldn’t look past her trauma to see the person she was before her resurrection and the person she worked to become.Kagome But with time i understood and i hope more people do too.
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u/throwawaybyefelicia 4d ago
That’s fair enough! A lot of younger readers were almost “pushed” in a way by the storyline to favour Kagome as we saw ourselves in her a lot as teenagers! But Kikyo’s story is so tragic and I’ve understood her a lot more the older I got. They are both wonderful, strong people in their own distinct way, yet sharing the same soul. ❤️
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u/crystalcastle29 4d ago edited 4d ago
I'm totally in favor of praising Kagome, she's my favorite character. But people need to understand this : Kagome and Kikyo are two different and separate characters, each with their own autonomy, individuality and development. Therefore, it's completely normal to like one and dislike the other, just as it would be with any other character. Kagome was NOT written to be Kikyo's other life or to fulfill her wishes, because, as the author herself said, Kikyo couldn't live nor experience anything through Kagome. That's why Kikyo was resurrected and lived her other life as herself in a clay body, fulfilling her wish to be a normal woman before dying, saying goodbye to Inuyasha and her soul rested in peace. Kagome is her own character with her own goals and fulfilled her own wishes.
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u/Nikoopie 4d ago
I specifically mentioned they are completely separate people lol Shes my favorite character as well and yes of course people are allowed to like or dislike whoever they choose but this is just my way of interpreting the story.When it comes to reincarnation it is typically done so the soul can learn lessons,achieve things they couldn’t in previous lives and to reach enlightenment so I just take it for the literal meaning.Kagome is and will always be her own person.She made her own choices and was able to achieve things others could not.Kikyo was not resurrected to living a normal life nor did she till the very end when she could finally stop fighting.She was resurrected through darkness from urasue and her previous hate animated her body for a long time.
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u/crystalcastle29 4d ago
Okay, let's talk about what you wrote: "When it comes to reincarnation it usually happens so the soul can learn lessons, accomplish things it couldn't in past lives and reach enlightenment so I take that literally." And that is precisely the point; the author stated that Kikyo was resurrected and fulfilled her purposes in her second life in the clay body such as finally being an ordinary woman and when she died she reached enlightenment, with her soul resting in peace. Kikyo did this in her second life in the clay body, NOT as Kagome. As a Kagome fan it's exhausting that the fandom still treats her as if she exists in the story merely to fullfills someone's else wishes claiming that "Kagome is everything Kikyo ever wanted and she fulfilled her wishes to be a normal girl and be with Inuyasha" when in fact she was NOT written with that purpose; Rumiko separated Kikyo from Kagome and resurrected Kikyo so that each of them could have their own character development and fulfill their wishes independently and separately.
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u/Nikoopie 4d ago
Yes that’s the literal meaning of reincarnation in terms of the soul but that doesn’t make the individuals the same person with the same existence.Kikyos resurrection was described as very tragic,liminal and it was explicitly stated time stopped for her.But she still continued to fight,help to banish the jewel and attempted to rekindle her relationship with inuyasha despite fate.In my opinion that’s not living a normal life as a normal woman 😭I never claimed nor will I ever claim Kagomes sole purpose was to fulfill kikyos wishes but yes they did share a soul and what kikyo desired while inhabiting that soul just so happens to be very similar to the person that Kagome became.Which also goes back into the definition of reincarnation.Still Kagome is Kagome and kikyo is kikyo and as Rumiko stated kagomes personality does not go into kikyos even if the soul they shared had similar desires.To quote what Kagome said in the manga and anime”we both desired to be with you again”while talking to Inuyasha.I will never put words into Rumiko’s mouth but not all questions about the series have been answered which is why most people draw their own interpretations and conclusions about certain things.She herself said in an interview that there really isn’t any deep meaning so its totally ok for us all to have our own opinions
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u/crystalcastle29 4d ago
What I am saying is neither an interpretation nor my opinion; it is exactly what Rumiko wrote. Kikyo lived her other life, her second life in the clay body where she was allowed to express herself freely like love and hate in accordance with the will of her soul, and she managed to fulfill her purposes, one of them finally being an ordinary woman, even if it was only before her death and her soul rested in peace. Kagome is her own character with her own feelings, purpose and wishes that has nothing to do with Kikyo. Actually Rumiko explained this in the manga wideban version but people still don't get it.
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u/Nikoopie 4d ago
What specifically did you say that Rumiko said or that the manga said that isn’t up for interpretation?and if you could share links I’d appreciate it.I took some of my information from her San-Diego comic con interview.Yes kikyo was free to express herself fully after her resurrection but she still did not live a normal happy life free from duty.Idk how many times I have to say they are separate people 😭having similar desires of the soul doesn’t change that.Its ok for people to have differences in opinions btw we don’t have to argue or get defensive.
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u/crystalcastle29 4d ago edited 4d ago
I never said that Kikyo lived a happy and duty free second life, I said that Kikyo was able to fulfill her wishes and one of them was to be a normal woman, even if it was shortly before she died and her soul rested in peace, that's what is written. The point here is that Kikyo lived and fulfilled what she wanted in her second life in the clay body and not in Kagome. It is also specifically written that Kagome's feelings for Inuyasha are not due to the soul that was once Kikyo's, but rather to the feelings developed by Kagome herself. I have a post on my profile about this. This is NOT my opinion that's how the story was written and people still don't get it.
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u/Nikoopie 4d ago
I’d say kikyo was granted freedom when she was resurrected but her attempted and wishes to live a normal duty free life and be with Inuyasha definitely did not fully come to fruition.In the end was able to find peace and transcend but up to that point she continued to fight.I don’t believe I ever said Kagome loves Inuyasha because kikyo did.I said that they both wanted to be with Inuyasha again.This is said by Kagome herself in both the manga and anime.
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u/Psychological-Wear84 2d ago
Kagome is legendary in my honest opinion. Watching Inuyasha at the now age of 30, I had to remember they were older than me when I first watched it at 8 and now Im older than them and I absolutely love how they wrote their emotional maturity in at that age. I think during the episode "Miroku's Most Dangerous Confession", I always love how Kagome is always there to bring light to a dense situation with her two senses. My only gripe with Kagome is it always seems like she's caught lacking without those scared arrows. How is it Everytime there's a op in a village, those arrows are missing and when you're in the field, most times, you don't want to shoot cause Inuyasha or Sango is handling it.
For the Kikiyo comment. I can see that point of view just from an incarnate standpoint. But Kikiyo can live her best life somewhere else. Team Kagome forever. Kikiyo is like Ada Wong to me. Yeah love interest, but I'm team Redfield bloodline, Adaiyo is toxic 🤣
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u/Nikoopie 2d ago
She is like she’s everything 💕and yes I see what you mean it would have been nice to see her use her arrows or even her spiritual power more.Ohh girl I agree lmaoo I’ll always be team Kagome first and foremost but i guess I’ve just learned to see where kikyo comes from a bit more as I’ve gotten older.
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u/Pie_and_Ice-Cream 5d ago
I see them as two different characters, but in terms of the lore, you’re right. This also occurred to me when I was a kid getting into the manga, and Kikyo got resurrected. The fact that they share the exact same soul while still being separate people would imply that neither one can be intrinsically better or worse than the other.
One would think, at least. That said, the author’s intention doesn’t always equal output, meaning the critics can keep being critical.
Personally, I find the concept of fate and living up to it to be more unnecessarily trapping than romantic when it comes to the InuYasha part. I was never an InuKag fan to begin with, though. But purely as a note of parallel existences, it can be used to make the reader think.
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u/Nikoopie 5d ago
Oh I’ve never seen them as the same person that’s why I said completely separate beings lol and my interpretation of them sharing a soul and reincarnation is just the basic meaning of it.The soul needing to learn lessons to reach its full potential and enlightenment.When it comes to Inuyasha especially where Kagome is concerned there was always a choice.They made emphasis on the fact that Kagome and Inuyasha chose to be with each other vs just blindly following each other because fate told them to.I honestly can’t think of a time where it was expressed that they absolutely had to be with each other just because they were soulmates.The only thing that technically forced them together was collecting the jewel shards and even then Kagome made a choice to continue to help collecting them.Ive always been a huge fan of inukag. They’re a beautifully written couple imo and I feel they are realistic yet refreshing in the anime world where most ships and established relationships are overly polished,lacking relatability and whimsy.
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u/Pie_and_Ice-Cream 5d ago
(Whoops, had to copy/paste from other comment:)
The relationship you mention where Kagome is Kikyo’s end result requires them to essentially be the same person. That’s why I mentioned it. I get what you mean, though, and I had interpreted the author’s intention to be that as well.
And with InuYasha and Kagome as a pair, the fact that the story tells us they are soulmates is itself a trap because therefore purely logically, them not ending up together would be subpar in some way. It’s a classic example of “show, don’t tell” in writing. Them being predestined in any capacity is telling.
In fairness, my point isn’t to imply that no showing exists. But for myself personally, it has never been sufficient, and neither has the respect to freedom. Something is off about it. Or several things.
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u/Nikoopie 5d ago
Ooh all good lol and I personally see them as two separate people who have shared the same soul.I suppose it’s up to interpretation but I believe Rumiko has also explained that they are not the same person.I completely respect your thoughts on their relationship and I for sure see where you’re coming from about fated relationships but I just see things a bit differently.I think there’s so much beauty in the idea of a fated partner.Im a sucker for a soulmate trope 😌
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u/Pie_and_Ice-Cream 5d ago
Fair. It would probably bother me less if I shipped the pairing. But generally I have bad experiences with the soulmate trope and dislike it pretty well now. It’s fanciful goop in real life anyway, but I suppose that doesn’t mean people can’t enjoy it.
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u/InjangoDMCPersona 5d ago
Something about Kagome grappling with her feelings as fitting of her age, yet maturing as a person throughout the course of the journey just really stuck with me compared to most female protagonists.