Mark Davis Davis 1HIST 1111H 11:00AGulloMonday, April 10, 2023

Conflict as the Catalyst for Cultural Convergence

In the beginning of time, cultures and civilizations often arose without much influence

from the outside, only coming into contact with each other once technology and therefore

prominence had advanced enough to garner a military force designed for territorial expansion.

But as civilizations became more fixed over the progression of time, religious expansion took the

focus from territorial acquisition, and civilizations blended rather than remained isolated. The

Japanese film Princess Mononoke functions as a modern retelling of how Japan combined

Chinese and Buddhist influences with traditional Shintoism and the samurai concept of Bushido,

by allegorizing many of the cultural clashes and syncretisms. The abundance of pantheistic

animism and the ensuing war with the advancement of violent technology, and Ashitaka’s inner

ethical war over siding with the human culture’s technological advancement or the spirits’

preservation of the old ways, are symbolically representative of the animistic traditions of

Shintoism melding with the technological advancement of Chinese weaponry, the Buddhist

ethical concerns of leaving this world clashing with the samurai concept of duty, and the overall

religious natures in conflict, respectively.

In the opening scene of the film, Ashitaka battles with a demonic boar, which is

identified as a nameless god of hate and rage. The giant white wolves, thousands of Kodama

(tree spirits), and ape tribe combine to identify a repetitious element within the film: that there is

a spiritual world coexisting within the physical. These manifestations of the spiritual world are

presented as the most sympathetic characters within the film, yet simultaneously are curt,

unaccommodating, and difficult. Nevertheless, their presence in the world is never challenged or

questioned, merely accepted as fact, just as human presence is undeniable. Indeed at the end of

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the film, Ashitaka identifies the Forest Spirit, or Shishi Gami, as “all life.” This pantheistic

animism is similar to the Shinto idea of kami, and even the Buddhist ideal that all humanity and

existence is not individual, but part of the grander whole. The use of spirits in nature as one of

the protagonists in the film borrows more heavily from Shintoism than Buddhism, but does in

fact meld the two, to at least some extent.

However, a secondary element exists within Princess Mononoke, functioning as part of

the conflicting force: humans and their technology. Upon having killed the demonic boar,

Ashitaka learns an iron ball inside its body was the cause of its destruction, and the men of

Irontown are shown using rifles to defend themselves against the attacking wolves. The women

and lepers of Irontown produce these weapons and the necessary ammunition for their leader,

Lady Eboshi, in the hope that she will eradicate the forest spirits to make mining the iron under

mountain easier, and make their land rich and prosperous. The monk Jiko leads a group of

hunters on behalf of the Japanese emperor in search of the Shishi Gami’s head to grant him

immortality. While these humans are the least sympathetic characters with which to identify

from the part of audience, they are the most understanding, accommodating, and their reasons

are not all evil. Yet the inability of the humans to coexist peacefully with the forest spirits causes

war, bringing most aggressively the boars against the people of Irontown.

It is this war that creates within Ashitaka, a young man from the Emishi tribe cursed by

the demonic boar, ethical turmoil. As a human he struggles with the inherent selfish qualities of

the species, yet desires to transcend the problems he faces and protect the spiritual world. His

mission to lift his curse is defined by traveling to the land of Shishi Gami and seeing with eyes

unclouded by hate; this bears marked similarity to Buddhism’s definition of life through the Four

Noble Truths. Ashitaka suffers in his very existence, particularly with his cursed arm causing

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him severe pain regularly. Nevertheless, his suffering is caused by his selfishness, the very

human quality the entire film attempts to define; selfishness to protect the things he finds most

important, such as his own village and the persons therein. His attempt to rid himself of these

human conditions, and therefore his curse, reflects the Buddhist ideal of meditation and seeking

Enlightenment.

Nevertheless, Ashitaka’s inner struggle deals not only with his own personal problems,

but in trying to find the most expedient solution to the human-spirit war. His desire for all groups

to live in peace with each other, yet inability to take a definitive side for fear of alienating one

group in favor of the other, mirrors the samurai code of Bushido and the Tale of Heike. Here, the

samurai is drawn to violence while attempting to preserve a sense of honor by restraining

himself: Ashitaka is bound to his human species, but seeks to find a place in the spiritual world

honorably. This ethical struggle not only recreates the problem of Japanese culture within the

film, but acts as a microcosm of the grander issue: amalgamating Buddhist and Shinto cultures as

a whole.

Irontown’s expansion in a never-ending search for iron causes fear and mistrust from the

spirit beings. Yet their violence in reaction only creates more violence from the humans. In the

scene when Princess Mononoke attacks Lady Eboshi within the walls of Irontown, Lady Eboshi

affirms that the humans have hurt the wolves, but accuses Mononoke of having killed the men of

Irontown; violence only begets violence. The expansion of Buddhism as a religion, without any

specific doctrinal issues, creates a conflict for traditional Japanese believers; once it has been

introduced at all they must react accordingly, oftentimes out of fear of losing the old ways.

Princess Mononoke presents a beautiful allegory of this scenario by drawing distinct battle lines

between the humans, representative in this film as the Buddhist ideal, and the spirits, indicative

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of conventional Japanese politic-religious beliefs; nevertheless, the film does so without making

either party the “good” or “bad” character, for each have their own legitimizations for their

actions and alternatively good points.

Regardless of the appropriate positive and negative reasonings behind the characters and

their actions, the audience follows the story from a single perspective, Ashitaka’s; his story

serves as an outline or miniature of the entirety of both the story and the cultural significance

behind it. At the forefront of the film, Ashitaka is determined and strong, but still inherently

selfish as a human being, because he seeks only to remove his curse. Yet his growth and travels

bring him to a position of mediator between two powerful forces and even cause him to adopt

and appreciate the ideas of each party involved in this conflict. Individuals viewing Princess

Mononoke must determine for themselves how many of the principles from traditional versus

liberal ideals to adopt for themselves. In some cases, these ideals are distinctly Buddhist, or

Shinto, or analogous to Bushido; but in others they are representative of all cultural

amalgamation. Ashitaka learns throughout his travels that no right answer exists; only the answer

that is most beneficial and productive for that particular individual holds value. He chooses to do

what it is best for the preservation of the most life, at the expense of his personal desire to act on

his love for Princess Mononoke; how shall we then accept his challenge to us, the placid and

complacent audience?