

In _Nagi no Asukara_ , what is exactly "the calm"?

The fisherman at the final episode rejoices because

> "the calm" has ended.

What is "the calm" referring to?


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nagi-no-asukara
What is "the calm"?


I'm quite new to StackExchange but am a Literature student and like to look at
Anime and feel very strong symbolic meanings within them.

The Calm simply refers to the lack of strong tides in the sea. Read on if
you're interested in a deeper, more wholesome interpretation of the series:

The following is an opinion piece.

**Nagi no Asukara is also known as "A Lull in the Sea".** (Google defines
"lull" as a temporary interval of quiet or lack of activity.) To me, a Lull in
the Sea is essentially what NagiAsu is literally **and figuratively** about.

In the final episode, Manaka explains the Sea God's legend behind the calming
of the Sea.

> A long time ago, the Sea God fell in love with a maiden who was a sacrifice
> in the festival, but felt guilty over separating her from his boyfriend on
> the surface. He decided to send her back up.
>
> However, her surface boyfriend already committed suicide over the incident.
> Not wanting her to grief over that, **the Sea God removed that maiden's
> ability to fall in love with anyone**. At the same time, the sea fell into a
> lull. **The Lull in the Sea _represents_ the Sea God's maiden's feelings.**

Whenever the festival is held, the sea god is reminded of his love towards
that sacrifice. The fear of loss of his love triggers him to keep Manaka (and
later on Miuna) from being stolen, by enclosing her in the lightning-
protective shell (that shocks Hikari when he tries to breach it). The Sea
God's baggages is the reason Manaka loses her memories. He does to her what he
does to his first love, as this lets Manaka become more likened towards his
first love that he longs for. Ironically, this reminds him of what he did to
his first love, and of losing her, only to make him feel requiem and loss
again. It's quite ironic when we observe it but there are people who actually
do this, which creates lots of toxic behaviours in love out there.

This is why when the sea comes back to life, the waves are stronger than ever
- it is the Sea God's consolation and realisation from Manaka and Miuna that
causes the Sea God to release his pain and baggages towards love. As this
happens, the Sea God stops casting his baggages on Manaka (that remind him of
his feelings for his first love) and she regains her ability to love people.

As for what made him realise again... I think it was Hikari's shout. Come to
think of it, I should rewatch it to know what it is.

> **" Love is like the Sea"** \- Episode 25 Title

**The calm of the sea is the apathy, the malpractice and the escapism towards
Love itself, out of the Sea God's defeatist belief that loving is a zero sum
game, that will not yield anything good**. That is why when the calm is
resolved, we also see all our main & supporting characters behaving healthily
towards love. The Japanese love to portray Gods in a way that they watch over
and guide men and women, and that is why when the Sea God is in a lull,
everyone is; and when the Sea God resolves the lull, everyone also behaves
healthily towards love.

Once again, this (other than the initial literal meaning that answers the
question) is a subjective interpretation and I hope you enjoyed it.


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