

In _Tokyo Ravens_ , when Kagami Reiji is dealing with the Nue when he makes
his first appearance, he utters the syllable "un" (ウン), which harms the Nue in
some way. In the manga, this is displayed as follows:

![ウン, from the manga, volume 3, p. 155](https://i.stack.imgur.com/5k7I3.png)

On the right we have furigana that read "un" (ウン), but the symbol on the left
is clearly not Japanese. What's going on here?


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2014-03-25T11:39:39.193
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2014-03-25T11:39:39.193
1908
question
tokyo-ravens
What is this strange symbol that is shown when Kagami says "un"?


In Shingon Buddhism, there is a concept known as _shuji_ (種字・種子; Sanskrit
_bīja_ or _bījākṣara_ ), which means "seed syllable". These are monosyllabic
Sanskrit-derived incantations (i.e. mantras) which are taken to hold mystical
power in and of themselves, and which symbolize a particular revered figure
(e.g. a Buddha or bodhisattva).

The symbol that Kagami is shown uttering appears to be a stylized version of
the seed syllable "हुं", transliterated as "hum", which finds its way into
Japanese as "un". This particular one symbolizes Kundali (軍荼利明王 _gundari
myouou_ ), who is one of the five Wisdom Kings.


CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-03-25T11:39:39.193
8244
2014-03-25T11:39:39.193
1908
8243
answer