What is Berserk's Take on Religion?
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- Опубликовано: 27 сен 2024
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Music used:
Song 1 - Hoshi Yomi no Tou (Seirei no Moribito)
Song 2 - Taikutsu (Death Note)
Song 3 - The Chairman's Waltz (Memoirs of a Geisha)
Song 4 - Crystal Palace Crawl (Paper Mario)
Song 5 - Kyubey's Theme (Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica)
Song 6 - Anutsu (Mushishi)
Some interesting background information and an extremely concise version of certain things I’ve said here:
/ is_idea_of_evillost_ch...
gamefaqs.games...
Rest In Peace, Kentaro Miura. An absolute legend whose storytelling transcends and will continue to transcend forever. It’s impossible to put into words how much he touched my life with Berserk and that is also true with countless others around the world. Thank you❤️
I still can’t believe it
'not everything is black and white in berserk'
ironically, it is
Touché.
How so
Soccer Stuff you can also say that there is black and white through the ironic representation of Guts as a "dark" good and Griffith as a "light" evil
nope, berserk is GRAY, are one of the asshole who says Griffith is bad and guts its good?
How is guts...Good? explain that shit to me please, because guts its as bad if not worse that grifftith ever was until the eclipse happened.
seriously how did one person make this story its beyond game of throne.
That's what happens when you have creativity.
Don’t compare berserk to it
Two different themes with very different stories
Hit That I mean the novel a song of ice and fire not the trash d&d made
@@10packspyscho11 I adore Berserk but saying it's beyond ASoIaF is a bit of a stretch. From a writer's perspective, ASoIaF's cast of characters, its increasingly interwoven and expanding narrative, and its handling of politics and culture is a shade more complex than Berserk's narrative in terms of the number of pieces on the board and characterization.
They had both same theme questioning the nature of god itself
The 1 phrase that repeats in my mind when reading Berserk is,
"God helps those who help themselves"
Gutts, Griffith, Farnese's Father, the "Cloud King" demon, the Fairy child, these are those who thrust there hand out and grabbed something.
My take-away from Berserk is it seems to be "Anti-Passive" since those who do nothing most often seem to die.
(Not to say "doing something = you live" but the people who try to survive/succeed seem to be those with the drive for it)
>My take-away from Berserk is it seems to be "Anti-Passive" since those who do nothing most often seem to die.
(Not to say "doing something = you live" but the people who try to survive/succeed seem to be those with the drive for it)
>I think I agree with this. Not only for the troll/village reason I gave in the video, but because of the opposite scenario with regards to Guts' struggle. He has many flaws but among them is not his agency and perserverence. Passivity is treated as pretty damn negative in the series.
Casca is incoherent post eclipse, yet even in this state she actively reaches for her child when ever he appears, even then I feel alot of care is put into Casca to show her while not understanding things her action's (when she does them like when ever the child shows up) is done from the perspective of a new born, like when it comes to food or wanting to play with the fairy's n golems she does take action, she does what she wants for instant gratification, hope this explains my understanding of her.
Casca put her faith in Griffiths, and was betrayed so horribly it broke her. She's not completely gone, but she is mostly unable to act for herself.
Another point about what Berserk's stance on religion (which might have been mentioned in the video) is that blind worship of something is often a terrible thing, due to chance of being deceived.
The devil worshipers with the goat mask, the corruption of the supposed good guys who turn out to be the equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition on LSD and Steroids, who are corrupted and used by the very evils they purport to fight, the blind worship of Griffiths as a coming savior regardless of whether they know if he's going to be a good ruler.
Berserk ties its stance on religion to a stance on the value of free will vs passivity.
MasterofMistakes Maybe Miura's aversion to passivity stems from the Japanese mindset "Shikata Ga Nai" or grin and bear it.
Think of all the people who suffered after the dropping of atomic bombs, yet still blindly supported the Emperor. This rejection probably inspired Barefoot Gen, pacifism over passivity.
Yes. The east have much more reason to hate passivity than anyone else.
Glad that Bersek's take on religion is more of a much neutral one than a critic, than at the end has to do more on the hypocrisy of man kind.
And that's why I love about it. It's not the typical unilateral critic but one that it is much more objective and coherent. As it applies to real life where people would find anything to deposit their hipocrisy and fear of responsability, religion or not.
Found you Bro! :)
Hence the line ''mankind has no control, even over his own will''
Yes. It doesn't denounce the teaching of the church in berserk. If anything it confirms the in lore church's beliefs. But we watch the corruption of man even within the church like IRL. I connect to this as a Catholic more as a lesser critique. But a much needed one.
E.M.P. 339 As another fellow Catholic, I really love how in Berserk everyone sees the same mystical beings with different names and lore. Like when Schierke summoned the four cardinal spirits of protection and she informed the priest of Enoch that they were the “four guardian angels” in his religion (which would be archangels). It’s refreshing to see that the narrative isn’t a “your belief system is wrong and only mine is right” but rather, “all our beliefs systems hold truth despite their differences.”
**Immediately stops all important stuff**
This IS the important stuff!
"More likely than not, there are a lot more depth to a situation under the surface" I wish more people would keep this in mind especially in this day and age.
Soccer Stuff
And I do hope you looked at the depth behind the surface of all the groups you pointed out to come to your views on them >.>
Soccer Stuff
Yeah, basically. Just paraphrasing the original quote.
"If there's a God why is there suffering?"
The real question is why do WE allow people to suffer?
It's like eating cake over a vegetable. We all know the vegetable is better for you but the cake makes you feel good
nah you're just avoiding the question
der das Not true. If there was no suffering in this world and everything was perfect, what would be the point of heaven? Evil must exist for good to exist.
Very surprised at the responses. What, personally, have any of the responders done to combat evil in the world?
@@DoomRater Just watch the band of the Hawk. It's my favourite Arc but they were bloody bastards that did nothing but escalate in rank and kill even more people in their greedy paths; therefore they are without excuse. They got what they deserved.
@@JTomas96 After reading what my original comment was, I have no clue what you are referring to. Are you saying those who were sacrificed were evil? Also, I wasn't talking about any fictional characters in my response, I was directly addressing CynicalManchild's charge to mankind asking why we allow people to suffer. You do not need a God in order to derive that suffering can be minimized. So to hammer that point in, what do you, personally, do to combat evil?
Here's an example: I hate bugs. So I file issues with people's code when possible, and attempt to fix and file pull requests when necessary.
This has to be by far the most nuanced take on this kind of subject that I have seen in a while. There are a lot of folks nowadays who will analyze a story similar Berserk and then are very quick to take the usual approach of 'religion is bad and we'll only have peace once we get rid of it' without considering other factors. Such as whether an idea like communism, atheism, political correctness, or multiculturalism could be worshiped as a substitute for a deity to justify cruel acts against others. You know, like that old saying that says 'people don't possess ideas, ideas possess people.'
Anyways. I've always personally interpreted Berserk's religious themes in a similar way to the works of H. P. Lovecraft where we, as human beings, all have our various religions and interpretations of a god and what he or they are like and what kinds of rules they have set for mankind to govern themselves. However, it all changes once the protagonists uncover, witness, or experience something so horrifying to behold that their established concepts of the world and their god/s shatter and the idea of their insignificance in the grand scheme of the universe drives them completely mad. The Holy See in Berserk like to paint the idea of a deity that is very much inspired by the Christian religion and it is the religion that most citizens of Midland are a part of. Then the Eclipse happens and not only do strange things start appearing where they shouldn't, but, both Guts and Casca suffer severe mental trauma and as the world gradually gets more hopeless, and horrifying the more mad people seem to become. Even the Holy See, which seemed like either a benevolent or neutral party during the Golden Age arc have succumbed to the madness and thus begin their inquisition under the guise of restoring order to the kingdom.
That's just how I've always viewed it anyways and for me it makes Gatts' struggle against fate and causality all the more relatable for me. Though, as I said earlier, I love how you approached this topic with such a nuanced view and were able to articulate all your points without any kind of hesitation or second guessing. This has to be my new favourite Berserk video from you. Keep up the excellent work!
AnimetalViking Yes! Thank you!
Marvi .D. Smilodon Marvi .D. Smilodon when you become so anti-religious that you completely deny the possibility of any inherent good in religion/the existence of a higher power, you're no better than what you oppose ideologically. People worship ideas and as said by Alex, these ideas can be used to justify terrible actions.
Western atheists are like western feminists and extremists. SHoving their ideals in your face at every opportune moment, as if you give a shit.
Contempt Man i mean the same could be said about many religious people that I've met.
Marvi .D. Smilodon That lack of belief is a strong belief itself.
"Faith without works is dead"-James 2:17
As Wrath said use your own hands not gods
Ah, Bradley. His words are so powerful that they resonate across anime.
Guts also said that but not in extreme like bradley.
Wrath/King Bradley is the best and correct as always.
I’d say the closest Berserk has to a “benevolent” force is that of nature, and even then the goodness you get out of it is wholly dependent on you. Shierke and her master are an example of this.
Or Griffith and Falconia.
@@Gadget-Walkmen No, Griffith is clearly evil and selfish with a god complex. He’d sacrifice every last citizen of Falconia if it meant he’d get what he wants.
A shame you didn't bring up Sir Azan as he is a very solid example of one of the very few positive religious figures in Berserk. Interestingly, his faith seems to be a fairly benign aspect of his character that, while a part of him, does not define him which is easily the healthiest way to approach one's religious beliefs.
I did think of bringing up more examples of both "bad" and "good" uses of religion but ultimately thought it redundant since the entire series is full of examples of Miura being neutral on it.
That kind of defeats the purpose of faith though. The whole point of it is that it is supposed to be a core element of your being, something you carry with you and act upon. If your faith doesn't play that role, and is just a passive accessory, then how is it supposed to transform you as faith claims to seek to do?
Although, this does bring up an interesting idea. What is the purpose of faith in Berserk? Is it to get people to change, to live for the better? Or does it serve some other purpose? I've never read the manga and don't plan to in the near future, so I don't know if the church in Berserk ever elaborated on its beliefs, but if it hasn't, I wonder what they are?
Faith and belief literally fuel self-perpetuating deities.
You're confusing "faith" for "values" and/or "guiding principles". Holding a set of values that govern your behavior is what is actually important and acting upon those values provides a paradigm to guide your actions in the future. Faith can demonstrate them or help guide you towards adopting a strong set of values and principles but it is not in and of itself those things. Faith is merely how you express what greater purpose your actions serve.
Sir Azan uses his faith to give purpose to his acts of kindness. Bishop Mozgus uses his faith to justify his horrible acts of violence guided by inconsistent or outright contradictory values as "the will of god." The role of faith is merely what the believer chooses to use it for. In this way, the responsibility lies within the INDIVIDUAL to decide what an appropriate application of faith is in their daily lives.
I'm sorry, were you replying to me or Aleczandxr?
I completely agree with you. I think some people might become violent not because of religion, but because it offers them a fixed world view, a purpose, in which they can have a comfortable place. The thing that truly scares our reason is to not have purpose in life. If everything is meaningless, what's the point? But ideologies lead humans to sacrifice everything for them, even if it is for the "greater good"... Indeed Griffith has created a utopia, but at what cost? No ideology, no religion and no purpose is worth human lives. The problem with men is that they refuse to be what they are.. Probably, if we accepted life as it is and took everything more lightly, even death itself, we wouldn't be violent at all and be at peace with the universe... Until then, we're still going to kill each other, declare wars and everything we've already done in the past
You cannot treat all religions like a monolith, no true disciple of a peaceful religion would become violent. I’d also like the add that no ideology, no religion, and no purpose, that is false, is worth human lives.
I would say that one of the reason religion as a concept appeared was due to there being no laws and people having no drawbacks on anything. Most media references very recent events in history about Catholic and Christian wars and moments when they were used as a pretext for personal gain, but the actual reason for religion to form as a concept was a form of civilizing people where there were no other means for any order and people would kill each other, assault, rape, steal, incest, children having it the worst and nobody had any inhibitions since there was nothing to tell them to think about any of that and nothing to stop them.
@@artorhen Anthropologists have theorized for a while that humans are made to be egalitarian, not violent, innately.
Organized religion's role generally falls under one purpose: it's control. Benevolent control, where rules to stop people from dying by ritualizing things that were deadly and dangerous (Leviticus has some rules that I will eat my socks if they weren't put there to stop idiots from dying by eating spoiled shrimp and animals that were in that time raised in squalid conditions and would have contaminated the meat and then the humans consuming it, and it's honestly a genius way to keep people safe without arguing with That One Guy who's always being a contrarian and gets people sick encouraging them to eat the bad shellfish he didn't get sick so neither will they!!!), and political control, where it's clearly for territorial and cultural control and dominion over others. (Heck, even Christianity was merged from two sources as part of a consolidation of power, unifying two kingdoms into one by integrating their faiths into a single one. Religion is fascinating when you admit and look through all its lenses, even the mostly secular ones, like Buddhism, once a sect of it nearly overthrew a Japanese daimyo before the monastery was assassinated on orders of the fearful daimyo.)
Community has been around since the earliest days of our early human ancestors and cousins, long before an agricultural revolution pulled most of us away from hunter-gatherer lifestyles. (That's not to say that we didn't have religion then, but religion doesn't make civilizations, it just facilitates them, the same way our modern construction methods don't make megastructures, it just facilitates building those.)
If we were violent and savage and orderless by nature, we'd never have evolved the way we do, we'd have evolved to be more like the chimps we share a common ancestor with, instead of being so open (physically, it's very easy to tell what we feel and where we're looking) and wired to trust one another-- and we'd likely never have adapted to co-evolve alongside dogs, who share our unique sociability (and ability to read and convey where they're looking, like us, while it's hard to tell in most canids, just like in most primates).
I always thought Berserk to be Furhur King Bradley's view taken to the extreme. It's still a tool in the world where people need to find comfort in, but Berserk judges how it is used by people. It is a means of disassociation where people don't have to feel guilty about not doing anything (i.e. fate), an outlet of cruelty for those carnal desires built up over the frustrations and hardship of a cynical world (i.e. will of god) and it is a means of deliverance which grants catharsis among the misfortune and despair (i.e. Salvation.)
The thing I love about Berserk is it doesn't really critique religion, but tries to emphasizes taking action "with your own hands" and forging your own path forward rather than giving into the world around. That's what draws people into both Guts and Griffith; even though they are on opposite sides of the spectrum on religion, they use their own hands to forge their own paths forward.
*I always thought Berserk to be Furhur King Bradley's view taken to the extreme.*
Interestingly enough, Berserk and FMA have very similar messages on religion (IMO) despite tackling and executing those messages in entirely different ways. Bradley and Scar are the best demonstrations of that in FMA by my estimations, and they show many parallels with Miura's themes.
That's why I love FMA's conclusion, where Bradley, the man bound by a predestined path, is beaten by Scar, the man who learns to make his path to god while bearing any burdens on his own shoulders. It's a conclusion that shows that old religion saying that "god only helps those that help themselves."
Well what is FMA really if not just a PG 13 depiction of the Seven Deadly Sins?
I mean, Femto is the real, extreme embodiment of greed. Slan is obviously lust. Void I'd assume is pride. Ubik being envy, and Conrad gluttony. Idk who sloth would be, but guess who would make the perfect wrath? Well who tf do you think is the angriest man in fiction? Ding ding ding, you guessed it. Isha' boy.
Just food for thought. It's not out of the realm of possibility that Guts would end up being a part of the Godhand. Casca dying might be the last straw that will break that camel's back. If this does happen, Griffith's iconic dialogue about how he'll only consider someone a friend when they're on equal footing would be a legendary foreshadowing. One of the reasons, if not the primary reason why Guts left was so he can pursue his own dream and be on the same plateau as Griffith. Which is a clear implication that he truly wanted to be his "friend" in the context of how Griffith defined the word. Talk about redefining the meaning of friendship.
Idk, that posibility is interesting but also awful. Would deep heart prefer Guts to reject the behelit and be better. Talking about it, why is Ubik envy? What lead you to that conclusion?
Whackashit just a random thought, couldn't sloth be all the people taken as a single "unit" that don't try to fight their way out of the stream of destiny or causality and instead just "exist" along?
Berserk has always reminded me of well of H.P Love Crafts views on gods and higher powers. We create gods in our image to relate to them and than state they created us. I feel Miura like lovecraft took the view if gods exist why would they give a damn about ants like us struggling in a void. Everytime a character in lovecrafts work meets a higher-being they end up worse off in their journey than before. The idea of evil embodies this fully a god that pays no heed to the struggles of lesser beings. If a god constantly claims to be malevolent in religious text yet does contrary all the guise of freewill is he really a god. In the end all that matters is how you lived your life through every hurdle that came your way. Gutts shows a perfect end to the hero's journey and the struggles against one's on fate.
completely true. That's why i love Emiya shirou of fate stay night ubw. He also encounter the evil of world. But in the end he decided to believe in himself. Love what he want. Learn from suffering and make your life more better.
Once again you manage to make me look at one of my beloved series with a different mind set. This was a fantastic video and I feel like I expanded my view on how Berserk tackles religion/the human condition.
Thank you very much, I'm glad to hear that!
Something to take into consideration: Berserk's themes seems to be HEAVILY based on Carl Jung's theories, and Gnosticism to a certain extent. It's not that there isn't a good God, but there could be one revealed in the future.
LMAO hell no. You saying there could be a "good god" revealed in the future is baseless and just you're delusional input of what YOU want to the series to be.
@@Gadget-Walkmen you really need a life bro.
Some stories like Berserk are more than just a story, it's art.
Your take on what Berserk means when it comes to religion is a really good message the real world needs to learn.
I always found it interesting how a lot of dark entities like the Godhand are referred to as ‘angels’ as well as ‘demons’
The Holy See was made by the God Hand to weaken people's perception of the astral realm and lessen the number of magic users by branding them as heretics. These magic users are slayed as they pose a threat to the god hand.
The religion also denounced the existence of supernatural beings such as elves, etc. As these creatures can help them defeat the demons as Schierke said.
And the Holy See's biggest achievement for the God Hand is to make people see Femto aka Griffith, as their holy savior.
Only real berserk fans know that!
“Religion is not the issue,
People are” fooking deep man
I've been coming back to this video a lot as I recently just got into Berserk and I'm about halfway through where we are currently in the series.
I've been in a very dark place since last year and reading this series gave me a lot of motivation to keep going. As I got into the Conviction Arc, I was a bit turned off by most of the negatively painted depictions of religion through the Holy See and some of the hierarchy of the Church (I'm a practicing Catholic, so this kind of thing gave me red flags).
But watching your video and going into discussions further on the themes of religion in Berserk, I've felt comfort in understanding that Miura probably doesn't see an idea of God or faith as a wrong thing. Far from that. Also, I understand his criticisms fully of how so called religious people act.
The one thing I just cannot grasp for the life of me is how the idea of a benevolent God came to be if one never existed. If there were revelations before the Church, surely there must have been some history we did not get about the origins of things like the Godhand to fully come to the conclusion that there is or isn't a Good God in Berserk.
Griffith could be seen as the icon of the Church since the revelations warned of a false prophet (like in the real Bible), as he is the master of the sinful black sheep and the blind white sheep, but I feel like there's something else we're missing, because if Griffith is the one to give hope back to the people of Falconia/Midland, wouldn't that just kill the Idea of Evil, and make an "Idea of Good"? To me, Griffith seems more like an Anti-Christ figure than a Christ-like one.
I'm unsure. Just my ramblings. Loved the video and loved your explanations and comments. Hope I can see another video covering a similar topic one day.
This is basically all I had to say about this topic, so I won't be making any videos similar to this otherwise I'd just be treading the same ground. I'm very glad you enjoyed this one though! Thanks for watching and sharing.
I know this is two years late but I wanted to try to help out with your wonderings and questions, as someone who is neck-deep in theological stuff at the moment because that's where my fanfic writing took me.
The Idea of Evil only makes sense if you understand it as being manmade-- to borrow a game that did this excellently: it's ODIO from Live-A-Live (do yourself a favor and at least watch a playthrough, it's so worth it). It's the darkness that dwells in mankind's hearts and can only truly be destroyed if NOBODY has darkness within themselves. When despair, when darkness, when hopelessness forms, then the Idea of Evil exists.
It's a self-made "god", humanity worshipping the very evil it created from inflicting misery and despair on itself, a snake eating its own tail without recognizing its suffering or that it's causing it by eating itself.
The Godhand is merely the main architects that props up and ensure that the Idea of Evil can never die by making sure that humanity continues suffering by its own hands. Griffith's "good", what he claims as good for Falconia, is resting on a lattice of corpses and untold sufferings, both past and future. Do you honestly believe that Griffith can control the apostles, that he can keep them from using the humans in his world as food, that he won't justify them as sacrifices to be made with the others of the Godhand murmuring in his ear, leading him further and further to serve the Idea of Evil and make sure that their power source and their dominion never end? Griffith is a false, misleading hope (and I think that Guts isn't true hope either: my guess would be Casca, instead of either protagonist; hope has to be a pure ideal, and neither Guts nor Griffith are capable of pure good even in the face of the darkest darkness.)
I'll propose something that may or may not make sense to you: a benevolent God, in Berserk's world, doesn't exist as an outside force like the Idea of Evil, fed by people's inner darkness when they give up and give in to despair. It instead exists as an active force WITHIN humanity, constantly battling against the passive Idea of Evil, and it's manifesting in the kindness and empathy and hope that people show each other, lights in the darkness. An idea of a good and benevolent God exists because it's a way to give hope; it was written not because it's true, but rather because someone was driven to inspire hope against despair, to unite people against the growing darkness.
And maybe, if humanity gets itself together, without taking actions that feed the Idea of Evil, _then_ this hope of a benevolent god will itself create an Idea of Good.
Source: I dunno I just read all of Devilman and Violence Jack and Miura's clearly inspired by that, I'm guessing based on Guts = Akira Fudo/Violence Jack, Beast of Darkness = Amon, Griffith/Femto/Moonlight Boy = Ryo Asuka/Satan, Casca = Miki Makimura, though the Idea of Evil is very very prevalent in Japanese media and it's always a parasite that feeds on humanity's collective inner darkness and corrupts ideals into warmongering so I'm not guessing on that part, I will eat my paintbrushes if I'm wrong about how the Godhand's whole purpose is to make sure it can't wither away by keeping humanity divided.
(Also generally in Japan the stance is more _organized_ religion is bad (and I mean when you have two huge cults there that steal people's money and leave them in abject poverty for its founders' personal profits, it's kind of understandable, see Mother's Basement's videos about Happy Science and the assassination of Shinzo Abe and his relation to the other big cult), _personal_ religion is good and laudable even when it gives people hope and unity, so I'm reflecting that with my guessing as to the nature of good in Berserk's world.)
I remember buying the complete series at the BX while I was stationed at Sheppard AFB. I just got done with a rough week in tech school and decided to buy it to binge watch over the weekend. I stayed up all night eating ramen noodles while being under the spell of Berserk. It was a time I'll never forget.
Another Great video you are the Togashi of Anime RUclipsrs
Aw, thank you!
Quite a good video tackling the subtleties of Berserk, and it's commentary on the negative side of worship and religion.
I'm quite glad the Christianity, once you get past the negative interpretations and those who preach poor interpretations to the actual core of Christianity, is a positive religion that asks people who choose to believe in God through Jesus to both be better people, and to work to improve the world through their faith.
It's sad that the message of Godliness and love got turned to such horrible things in the past though. Berserk clearly draws inspiration from that past failing of the Church and its leaders.
Also, as a last note: The God of Christianity does not actually need faith or believing to exist. He is just there, ready to provide his followers guidance, protection from evil, and a more abundant life. The belief/faith in the christian God benefits US, not him, though it is stated in the Bible that the happiest moments for God is when someone walks in His word. (to paraphrase)
...This video made me a little more philosophical than usual.
I agree, while belief is a necessary part, it does not require that u have to believe in him or however omnipotent beings are addressed, even in layers of the afterlife there are specific levels, people who believed and did good, people who didnt believe and did good people who believed and did evil, and people who didnt and did evil
I like your comment
I would agree with you, but I don't agree with some Christian beliefs.
The Bible supports slavery, persecution of gay people and eternal suffering of any non-believer in hell.
I believe these things to be immoral and would never want to be part of Christianity.
Also, I don't need gods protection from evil, because if he is the creator of everything than he is the creator of evil, therefore he want us to pray for his protection of something he himself made. That seems like something only a manipulator would do.
@@Jackson-tx5uc Christians, as written in the Bible, should be obeying the writings in the New Testament as their primary instructions on how to live their life.
There are a variety of instructions to NOT persecute others, and to be better people before even attempting to help others.
That message is often lost in the routine of big churches, and/or lost by not truly studying the Bible, and instead only reading through without fully understanding the more subtle points, or the not blatantly stated points in some cases.
I would also recommend being careful about posts/papers/articles stating things like "The Bible supports slavery" and other similar things.
Those are often written from a hostile perspective from the start, and seek out any passage that supports their perspective, while ignoring anything that doesn't immediately support said view.
Oftentimes, understanding that the bible is written to three different groups (Jew, Gentile (those who have never heard of God's word or who don't believe), and Believer) and that we are in the 5th Biblical era, of which the Old Testament is the 1st through 4th Biblical Eras (and thus for our learning, NOT for direct instruction) makes a claim like "The Bible supports slavery!" a moot point, because we're not asked to exactly follow the writings of the Old Testament, only to learn from them.
And often, slavery isn't even the point of many passages, but something that was part of the culture of the time.
Slavery is something that is not a standard of the New Testament that I can recall, and from the Believer's perspective, the unbeliever's fate to be burned in the lake of fire (which is the manifestation/lack of God's presence by the rejection of God) is the result of the choices of the nonbelievers.
It's impossible to live in harmony with God the Father if his love and teachings are rejected by someone.
Also, I am writing this comment to inform you of the Christian perspective, and to inform others who are likely to read these comments later.
How did you know that the Christian God is that one god that exists though
Miura got inspiration from Junji Ito, who admired HP Lovecraft. I think that's the reason why Berserk universe was so bleak and full of suffering.
The Holy See was made by the God Hand to weaken people's perception of the astral realm and lessen the number of magic users by branding them as heretics. These magic users are slayed as they pose a threat to the god hand.
The religion also denounced the existence of supernatural beings such as elves, etc. As these creatures can help them defeat the demons as Schierke said.
And the Holy See's biggest achievement for the God Hand is to make people see Femto aka Griffith, as their holy savior.
Only real berserk fans know that!
The chairmen theme from memoirs of a geisha is absolutly perfect song for this story.
the concept of Religion and how it was handeled in the story is difinetely one of the aspects tha made berserk magnificent. Great work! keep it up
Thank you!
@@AleczandxrThe Holy See was made by the God Hand to weaken people's perception of the astral realm and lessen the number of magic users by branding them as heretics. These magic users are slayed as they pose a threat to the god hand.
The religion also denounced the existence of supernatural beings such as elves, etc. As these creatures can help them defeat the demons as Schierke said.
And the Holy See's biggest achievement for the God Hand is to make people see Femto aka Griffith, as their holy savior.
Only real berserk fans know that!
Another great Berserk video. Maybe think about checking Samurai Champloo? For me its worth to watch
Thanks. And I might watch it but I'm not in any rush to do so.
Aleczandxr Champloo also has an interesting take on religion. Christianity in Medieval Japan.... Silence movie night be better for that though
I think Schierke’s conversations with the village priest are most representative of Berserk’s view on religion and metaphysics. It is against rigid dogmatism but recognizes that religions do grasp at some universal truths even if they may be interpreted in a different form. It’s a message of universal ecumenism. The magi seem to have the best grasp on the nature of things but also a firm understanding of the limits of their knowledge.
This summarizes why I hate that one kind of atheist, that simply say "If religion didn't exist, then there would be no conflict." My best friend is atheist but is very go with the flow and understand the conflicting duality of human nature.
Cabanilla
If someone really thinks that they are just stupid. There are Christians who think if everyone believed in god there would be no conflict. That’s just wrong maybe it will decrease though conflict will never end. People may fight over which god is right, what’s the perfect idea of god, and what god would want. There will always be conflict maybe less conflict though conflict will always happen it’s just what happens when you have a massive amount of people with free will.
I LOVE BERSERK, AND I LOVE THIS VIDEO
As someone who considers myself to be non-religious, I just want to say thank you for making this video.. it's a reminder that religion isn't the source of evil; the evil comes from human error, whether intentional or not. True character is defined by which actions humanity takes, whether religion is a tool used to sculpt that definition or not.
Hey I am also non religious and agree with this statement
Man, finally a Berserk a RUclips video about something not restricted to the Golden Age Arc. A great one even. Congrats.
In Berserk i felt a hint of Nietzsche's "god is dead" and the "super human"...and dude, I wish I had a friend like you, keep it up!
Thanks!
*This is very important. I guess you could say it cost Guts an ARM and a LEG!*
Griffith is worshipped and becomes evil.
Guts is hated and becomes good. What does this mean?
False adoration is from a corrupted world.
It's better to be hated and viritous than loved and evil.
I'm a Christian and this video was cool
I'm Cool and this video was Christian
No one cares.
@@testegameplays4285 This video was certainly NOT "Christian" at all. I don't care if your comment is a joke, don't joke by insulting this video like that.
@@Gadget-Walkmen cool dude!
@@Gadget-Walkmen No one cares lmao
Great vid mate. Always excited to see one of your vids in my inbox :D
Thanks! :)
My boy Aleczandxr shows quality again.
Thanks man, glad to be a subscriber.
:)
As a Christian I've never felt Berserk was anti-religious more being anti-fanaticism. Reading through the story I couldn't help but be taken back to the Book of Revelation, Griffith really comes off as an Anti-Christ figure, and how it's portrayed in Revelation including dying only to be resurrected later and then unifying people of all races under his banner, which we see Griffith working toward in the most recent captures. In the Book of Revelation the Anti-Christ will mark those that follow him with a brand that ensures their damnation to hell. Likewise Griffith marked all of the Band of the Hawk, Guts and Casca included, who followed him damning them all as sacrifices who would be consumed and killed. It's a imagining from the branding from Revelation but a lot of the principle still remains.
I would actually argue that while Berserk doesn't really advocate for or against Religion but most definitely pulls very strongly from The Book of Revelation for it's story and a lot of what happens.
*I would actually argue that while Berserk doesn't really advocate for or against Religion*
That’s essentially the main point of the video.
@@Aleczandxr my comment wasn't to disagree or argue simply to point out how much Miura seems to pull, either consciously or subconsciously from the Boom of Revelation in his writing.
Alec, i never comment on videos but this one just blew my mind. I am a long time fan of your videos and love every single one of them. The way you explained the idea of good was thought provoking and beautiful. You are amazing and so damn underrated.
That's awesome to hear! Thanks for being such a long time watcher, I'm so glad you enjoy the channel.
I watch gigguk for laughs
I watch Aleczandxr for K N O W L E D G E
Beautifully fitting and a perfect utilization of Kenji Kamiyama's Moribito soundtrack in the intro!
I’ve finally found a video of this topic thank you for making it
Thanks for watching.
Berserk is godly.
The Holy See was made by the God Hand to weaken people's perception of the astral realm and lessen the number of magic users by branding them as heretics. These magic users are slayed as they pose a threat to the god hand.
The religion also denounced the existence of supernatural beings such as elves, etc. As these creatures can help them defeat the demons as Schierke said.
And the Holy See's biggest achievement for the God Hand is to make people see Femto aka Griffith, as their holy savior.
Only real berserk fans know that!
I've been subscribing your channel for months and I have to say that I am really impressed by the content and overall quality of your videos. This easily beats all anime analysis channels on RUclips I have seen so far. Hopefully your audience will continue to rise in numbers.
Thanks so much mate, it really means a lot! :)
0:37-0:53 Petition for Jordan Peterson to do Berserk Lectures
These kinds of videos are so good man, please never stop making them
Thanks! And I'll have to stop eventually but I'll continue for as long as it continues to be worthwhile!
Dude this video is so good.... Good job
Thank you.
For a person who does as much research as you,I'm surprised out weren't able to discover Miura's religious beliefs. Especially since Miura does believe in a god. It's called......
The Idolm@aster™
Whether you're religious or not, "Berserk" shows us one crystal-clear thing about this subject: being a religious fundamentalist is very, VERY wrong.
Berserk is deep occult science packed in a manga series
I love it when a video manages to give me a new perspective of a story or even of a real life concept... and you managed to do that! Thx :)
My pleasure!
Well we for sure know that the ''Baphomet'' exists because we see him pictured in I think volume 1 or 2.
it is honestly so interesting how at base level it would seem to want to be against religon in almost every way but in reality it is less a commentary on religion itself but rather a commentary on the people who abuse religion to satisfy their own wants and needs rather than caring for their beleif and other people. we must learn to respect the other's beleifs, for it is something that you musn't force unto someone but rather just show, and leave the choice to join you or not up to them rather than you.
Berserk is grim and depressing, but it's hopeful the fact that humanity can change their situation if they take responsibility for their actions and work for a better future. The Drakengard universe is darker though because eldritch monsters exist outside of human responsibility, and they are still threatening life in the universe even after humanity's extinction.
The sad thing is that you cant change human nature, and even if you could, be would be stop being humans all together, we would be mindless drones.
Human's can't change their nature, that is true, but they have proved to take action in the face of adversity. The same nature that makes humans act stupidly is the same nature that allows for personal growth and using violence to fight back oppression. Humans like the nazis caused a continental genocide, but there were humans that fought back and humans that made the decisions necessary for peace treaties and stopping future wars. I don't know how Berserk will end, but humans in this world have proven they are capable of both kindness and cruelty, so I hope humanity learns to become better.
Yeah, put some of those humans were hypocrites were they had systematic racism and segregation in their own country, and now those same peace treaties are being used by greedy men to cause a nice and warm nuclear war, humans never change, violence and greed in their nature, humans never learn from their mistakes, they didn't in the past, and they wont now.
I can't judge all of humanity by the actions of an elite of greedy people. Even if humanity enters a Fallout kind of scenario, human kindness can survive because, as I said, the determination that makes us be fools also make us not give up in being good. I am not naive, but I am not a pessimist like Bansky.
Wow, the music choices for this one were stunning.
You really brought about an interesting point about humanity’s hypocrisy. Humanity wanted reasons for its suffering and its problems, so the Idea of Evil was created to explain those problems. However, humanity doesn’t need reasons for good things like family, status, wealth, or victory on the battlefield. They just believe those things should be natural or that we earned those things ourselves, because our pride wouldn’t allow us not to take credit for those things. There’s no supernatural reason these good things should be happening, so there’s no reason that the Idea of Good was formed from the collective consciousness of humanity.
That would be an interesting way to turn the story, to create an Idea of Good, borne from the goodness of the collective conscious to explain the reasons for good, as a way to counter the Idea of Evil. But I don’t see that happening, especially with Miura’s untimely death.
The Holy See was made by the God Hand to weaken people's perception of the astral realm and lessen the number of magic users by branding them as heretics. These magic users are slayed as they pose a threat to the god hand.
The religion also denounced the existence of supernatural beings such as elves, etc. As these creatures can help them defeat the demons as Schierke said.
And the Holy See's biggest achievement for the God Hand is to make people see Femto aka Griffith, as their holy savior.
Only real berserk fans know that!
I can't stop pausing at the manga pages just to stare at the crazy details.
Berserk is my religion
Soccer Stuff no Donovan is our god
Soccer Stuff He is a cruel god, who ignores our pleas! To deliver us from HIATUS!
icon buddies
@@edwardgaines6561 I see you in every Berserk vids...
@@mcp7158 It's a nice pet to have, Bereark is.
I've never read a manga that dealt with such raw and graphic subject matter: Sexual violence, menstrual cycles, pedophilia...
Not sure about Griffith but Guts was very pragmatic in the Conviction Arc when they fought/held the spirits of the dead at bay before the incarnation ceremony concluded. While he was swinging around his torch (spirits of the dead don´t like light) Farnese started to pray and Guts shouted at her "Do not pray! If you pray, your hands will close together and you will not be able to fight!" It can be interpreted as a spur of the moment shout out, or it could also mean that if you put your faith in something outside yourself, you are forfeiting your ability to fight for yourself/overcome life´s obstacles on your own.
As stated, everything is contextual. Farnese had an unhealthy dependency on religion that stunted her own growth. As such, Guts discouraged it.
First time I saw the 97 anime I knew Griffith was suppose to be an antichrist.
The 2016 anime was more about Guts detesting the Roman "Catholic" church and dealing with spirits.
also didn't the idea of evil (god) say he was form from humans?
Qarcon Yes it did. Mangastorian posted a video of the chapter it was in before it was omitted by the author who felt it gave away to much information to soon. Here's hoping it's introduced in the story's canon soon.
Yep, like I said in the video.
That kinda means human's collective unconscious is god then right.
I love your berserk videos as they are my favorite, and I wish there were more Berserk content on youtube like yours
Glad to hear it!
The entire arc with father Mozgus and the tower of conviction hammers Berserks message about religion in very clearly.
That intro makes you always think about humanity and your life.
Thanks for the amazing video, I feel that you made it as unbiased as possible, which considering the subject matter is not a easy thing. I think it can give people a lot to think about in terms of what a good God would be and how we should live out our lives to perpetuate those ideals. As someone who is theistic it can help in personal philosophy to see a commentary on the subject of religion and God displayed in a way I haven't thought of so thanks for that.
No problems whatsoever, thanks for the support and thanks for watching.
In Guts I stand, He defeated more God-Like creatures, He even said it himself. GOD Won't help you so you have to do what you Need to do to survive.
Believe in yourself.
So much evil exists in this world because of free will, it's the double edged sword that we always struggle to balance on
This is probably the most important berserk topic video IMO. Nice!!
Reminds me a lot of the 40K universe and its Chaos Gods.
Except less clueless.
It is said that Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver
I was looking forward for this...
Excellent video. Berserk's take on religion is another reason why I love Miura's writing. I love that the story is very much written through his unique lens. He poses questions and provides information and potential answers but he never connects the dots. He never tells the reader what to think. It always seems like he's attempting to simply broaden the horizons and introduce a new perspective and it's always fascinating. I don't think you're far off when it comes to his personal views though, he does reference Nietzsche quite a bit I believe.
Thank you very much.
Excellent video! I love seeing Berserk videos from you! Keep it up! :)
This was a very good explanation. Thank you bro
It is definitely influenced by early European Christianity from the Middle Ages. However I can’t see any signs that the berserk series are directly influencing the Christian narrative both pro or anti. Yes it does depict many ways a dark religious narrative but not in anyway specifically since extreme religious practice weren’t uncommon both Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Even some arias to this day. Christianity story vice is fascinating and I can see why many find inspiration from it wherever religious or not. Berserker series definitely gives an opening of personal interpretation based from the artistic view but nothing suddenly because it’s both philosophical but also poetic based from the simple question of what’s consider good or evil and even the stand on faith and destiny.
Oh yes!! I've been waiting for this. Thank you sir!!
No worries!
*To be fair you have to have a high IQ to understand Berserk.*
Just kidding! You're videos are always so deep and informational, and I always feel like I'm taking something great from it :)!
Thanks!
Another great video without adequate views. You deserve more fans
Eh? I just uploaded it an hour ago. I'd check back in a week or two before saying that. But I appreciate the compliment, thank you!
Aleczandxr 10 millón in the first hour! You deserve that much :D
:)
there are differences, Berserk actually put "faiths" in a more positive lights, because it takes humanity into a different level of nuances, beliefs, purposes. Meanwhile for religions, including cults, has a rather negative perspectives from the people who used it as "mere tools" for their own perversion & desires. Yes, in primordial term, RELIGION IS INDEED A TOOL.
Yo. This is brilliant and the most Nietzschean analysis I found. Very well articulated. SHARED and SUBBED
Thanks.
Maybe Griffith’s goal is to seed that idea of good?
That'd be interesting. I doubt that it is though.
megazion34 Griffith is evil dude and in it for himself
One clever thing Muira does in Berserk is use magic and alchemy (Schierke) as an analogy for science, since, although it’s very mystical and mysterious, it’s based on what physically happens as a result of a particular behaviour-with high predictability. It bolsters guts and his crew and continuously highlights throughout the story the invalidity of religion. In fact, I would suggest Muira is portraying that, even though religion has a purpose, due to its faith aspect, it is forever vulnerable to evil people and make smart people perform ridiculous acts (like the preacher in the troll incident), and that this world would be better off without it.
I'm an apatheist, but when it comes to the world of Berserk I find the whole aspects of religion fascinating.
John 3:18-21 (KJV) He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Im a christian and I LOVE this analysis.
Man I've been following you for a minute and your vids keep getting better! I love it!
Thanks!
Just my opinion, but I like these videos more when they are around 15 minutes. The 25 minute videos I find get really tedious to watch. Not that they are boring or anything, just that my interest starts to move elsewhere
I tackle each subject for as long as it needs to be tackled. It's your choice to watch whichever videos you want but nothing except my opinion of "thoroughness" dictates length.
Aleczandxr While I generally agree with the commenter above about the length of videos, I can't help but stay hanging on your every word so I don't care about the length.
Leaky Peach That's awesome to hear! I only make a video long if I'm sure that it'll be worth it/good, so that's great.
Aleczandxr Yeah! Though that could be because I'm trying to become a writer, so I try to analyze stories I witness as well (I can't help it). But you definitely fill in the blank spots that I either missed or interpreted differently. So while we may not agree on some of your views, I can't help but hear what you have to say.
Dude I love your videos! Favorite youtuber for sure keep up the great work man! :D
Thanks so much!
I want a brain like yours. I'll give u my love in return
I really like how this video turned out. I think that the story Berserk tells about religion adds a whole new dimension to the already very layered narrative.
so the idea of evil is basically a chaos god
Berserk is anti faith but pro religion.
How do you come to that conclusion? I had the impression that religion as an institution was put in a rather negative light in berserk.
I think its the other way around. Organized religion and its followers are put in a bad light, while faith is not.
ִ Ending of Monster explained. Lol
Haha yes
ִ it's definitely not pro-religion. Neutral? Maybe. Pro? Definitely not.
Oh man, love this video, great job! :)
Thanks!
Aleczandxr your welcome man
Q: "Is the Idea of Evil canon?"
A: www.reddit.com/r/Berserk/comments/3fekzt/is_idea_of_evillost_chapter_canon/
Yeah, although removed from the Volume releases, it is still hinted at in certain moments throughout the series. Like when Flora goes in to detail about the Astral Realm.
Theres an article where he explains he makes it up as he goes and bases alot of things off of world events but the story is very japanese in itself.
I think it decided to retcon the idea of evil because he came up with a better idea for the story.
It does limit the story. It retroactively makes all characters choices passive. If a character dies, causality
If a character gets raped, causality.
If a character wins, causality.
Its so passive, it becomes borings. I think miura understood that.
Good video by the way. Its always fun hearing your opinion.
+Kenneth Forman
Everything is in the flow of causality.
Bormin Clase see. Thats boring if thats the answer. Its so vague it can mean anything.
But vague enough for a video. ;) wink wink nudge nudge
Dude you are an artist
That's more than I deserve, but thank you so much!
My interpretation before the video: Religon is an effective smokescreen for the most corrupt individuals known to man. Many in Berserk use Religon as an excuse to do some of the most F'ed up things imaginable. Farnese, for example.
My interpretation after the video: Pretty much the same.
Amazing video, cant wait for the next
Thank you!
Berserk is pro paganism
Couldn't be further from the truth
Bullshit. In what way?
Elves, Witches, Spirits, all come to the aid of guts throughout the story. When they are defending the small village Schierke calls upon the ancient pagan spirit lying in the pagan shrine that the Holy See had built a church upon. Not to mention all the other times she has called upon old spirits for help. And while you may say that there are a lot of antagonists that could be portrayed as rooted in paganism like the trolls, they are still not absolutely evil more just uncontrollable beast, paganism doesn't have true evil or good, and I'd argue that the Idea of Evil and the God hand are more a representation of christian thought, not mention of course the entire arc where the Holy See is killing heretics and burning witches
You're confusing fantasy with paganism. By your logic, every single fantasy literature endorses paganism, simply because it contains magical creatures, which is just nonsense. In fact, Berserk makes a pretty clear distinction, namely when it portrays the pagan goat cult that is actually practised by a following. Tell me, is that goat cult shown as something good? lol
Fantasy takes inspiration from paganism but berserk especially promotes it because it is shown as the true belief, the Holy See is portrayed as naive to the point where they cannot see the magical creatures in the world around them, Farnese especially could only see Puck once she was exposed to it, there is definitely anti- Christian pro pagan concepts going on here, as for the goat cult I think it was more trying to the corruptability of masses of people, notice how the goat man was only turned into a pseudo apostle by the god egg not one of the original spirits shown that have helped guts,
I think this also needs to discussed in context to Od/witchcraft/Schierke. Contrasting the two viewpoints, it gets towards the debate of order vs. balance, society vs nature.
Where religion strives to put a moral rubric on actions- virtuous vs. blasphemy, which innately is tied to power dynamics- establishing just versus profligate, witchcraft can be used by humans to strike balance, but only through recognizing and drawing on the forces of nature, not through subversion but affinity.