Polnareff remaining as a ghost inside Coco Jumbo
“
When a person dies, they become what we call a "ghost." But although some of those ghosts are pure and noble, others are twisted by their grudges into something evil. (人は死ぬと霊体というものになる だがその霊体には清く良い霊もいるが恨みをいだいてドス黒くなった悪い霊体もいる)
”
Ghosts (幽霊, Yūrei) are sentient undead beings featured throughout the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series and other works by Hirohiko Araki. They feature prominently in Diamond is Unbreakable and Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan, generally acting either as allies to the living or vague forces that seek revenge on them.
Summary
When a person dies, their soul (魂, tamashī) passes on to the afterlife. In the case of a fundamentally virtuous person such as Muhammad Avdol, Joseph Joestar, or Bruno Bucciarati, their soul can be seen ascending to heaven as an incorporeal manifestation of themselves. Individuals whose souls are, for one reason or another, incapable of passing through to the other side are forced to wander the earth as ghosts. Entire locations and the objects therein are also capable of becoming ghosts themselves if they are fully destroyed (such as by being burned or bulldozed). Though the ghosts of people are rather common and can be found almost anywhere, most tend to remain out of sight and seek places where they are not likely to encounter the living.[1]
Spiritual Form
There is little difference in appearance between a person and their ghost, as the soul is a reflection of the person. Moreover, a ghost will generally retain the injuries they had at their time of death; these injuries are also a manifestation of the soul, however, and will not appear if the relevant memories are repressed.[2] Unlike living beings, ghosts are unable to develop physically or mentally, though they retain their personalities and are fully capable of rational thought.[3]
Ghosts are invisible to ordinary people, but not to animals.[4] However, they can still make themselves heard by normal people. Stand users are able to see ghosts automatically, and Reimi Sugimoto theorizes that their powers allow them to see and travel to ghost locations such as Morioh's Ghost Girl's Alley.[3] Due to their proximity to the spiritual realm, monks can also develop the ability to see ghosts.[1] Stand users can use their Stand abilities on ghosts, as Rohan Kishibe does against Reimi, but it is unknown whether or not a Stand could inflict pain onto a ghost or damage their spiritual form.
The ghosts of objects and locations can be felt and manipulated by the ghosts of people. These "ghost objects" are incapable of affecting other physical objects, but can be used to attack other spirits. Ghost locations such as Ghost Girl's Alley or Green Dolphin Street Prison's music room are hidden from living beings, as they are able to fit into narrow spaces such as a crack in a wall or a gap between adjacent buildings.[1]
Abilities and Restrictions
Ghosts exist under certain arbitrary rules. For instance, they can only enter a room if it is empty or if they are given permission. However, the nature of "permission" is loose: even opening a mail slot is sufficient to invite a ghost into a room. Open windows and doors also qualify as invitations for ghosts.
Ghosts can freely toggle their tangibility with the physical realm. They are naturally intangible and can freely move through objects, but retain the ability to manipulate objects, albeit without the capacity to feel them. Should someone overlap with a ghost against their will, however, the latter loses the overlapped part of their form, and so most spirits exist in hiding to avoid running into people.
Ghosts who previously had a Stand in life can still use them. Under certain conditions, however, a ghost's Stand can be destroyed after their death, as Yoshikage Kira's Killer Queen is by the spirits of Ghost Girl's Alley. This may also lead to memory loss for the affected ghost, as Kira later finds himself unable to recall the details of his life besides his name.[1]
Spirit Cleansers
As ghosts tend toward overpopulation by nature, certain entities known as spirit cleansers (魂の掃除屋, tamashī no sōjiya) exist to purge the world of any spirits that cross their path. Spirit cleansers hatch from eggs touched by a spirit. Cleansers lunge toward any ghost people or objects they detect, attempting to eat their way inside their forms; afterward, they destroy the ghost from the inside by transforming them into new lifeforms such as plants or insects. They can be killed either by cracking their eggs or inflicting damage on them with a ghost object.
Revenants
Ghosts with grudges in their hearts may become revenants (地縛霊),[3] who often linger out of sheer determination to accomplish a particular goal. Revenants defy many of the typical rules for ghosts. For instance, they are capable of appearing before ordinary people, and can also possess the bodies of others.[5] While some are bound to a specific location, others are capable of splitting their spiritual form across large distances. Additionally, some revenants display a degree of power over nature: the spirit of a vengeful vagrant is able to manipulate his killer's fortune to bring him prosperity,[5] and the spirit pursuing Sarah Winchester causes an earthquake to destroy her labyrinthine mansion.[6] Once a revenant's grudge is satiated, they are free to pass on to the afterlife.[7]
Known Ghosts
Ghosts
Related Phenomena
Burning Down the House
- Main article: Burning Down the House
Burning Down the House is a Stand that allows its user, Emporio Alnino, to interact with the ghost of Green Dolphin Street Prison's music room, as well as various ghost objects from within the room, including a computer, a piano, a gun, and food. Emporio is able to enter the ghost room through cracks in the prison walls, and even bring other people into the room by the same method.
Under the Moon
- Main article: Under the Moon
The painting Under the Moon, featuring Nanase Fujikura, was created by painter Nizaemon Yamamura with the blackest and purest ink in the world, taken from the pigment of an ancient tree's trunk. The pigment that Nizaemon extracted from the 2000-year-old tree came from insects living in the very core of the trunk. The hate in his heart during his execution was transferred and sealed within the insects, giving the painting both life and a murderous intent. The painting can sense when someone approaches it and attack them by summoning creatures similar to ghosts from the memories of both the victim and their ancestors. If a victim touches a ghost created by the painting, the victim experiences the same death as the ghost and disappears.
Gallery
Trivia
- In Deadman's Questions, Araki explains that the series's take on ghosts spawned from the idea that "in the world of the dead, if there indeed is one, it probably wouldn't be a place where everything is possible; rather, it'd be regulated by rules similar to our own world's."
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Deadman's Questions
- ↑ Chapter 438: Town Guardian Spirits
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Chapter 332: Rohan Kishibe's Adventure, Part 3
- ↑ Deadman's Questions Chapter 1
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan Episode 16: At a Confessional
- ↑ The Lives of Eccentrics Episode 5: The Mysterious Manor the Widow Kept Expanding: Winchester Mystery House
- ↑ Chapter 439: Goodbye, Morioh - The Golden Heart