Buddha

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Buddha is an epic. And by 'epic', it must not be understood as the term defined by that which appeals to those who want jaw-dropping, blood-pumping battles, or a superhero that can defeat powerful magical beings with a mind of steel. Rather, in this case, it refers to a lengthy work that follows heroic endeavors on a grand scale. As strange as this may seem, Buddha fits that definition, presenting a sublime narrative that blends elements of history, religion, politics, and mythology.

Buddha is a manga written by the famous Osamu Tezuka, and is one of his titles considered to be an epic. As the title ... might suggest, it is about Siddhartha Gautama Buddha and his undertaking of ascetic trials, embarking on a spiritual journey in which he eventually attains Enlightenment. Although the manga spans the entirety of his life, it is not just about Siddhartha. In fact, he isn’t even born into the story until late into the first volume. Needless to say, he encounters many people during his journey, ranging from kings who loathe him to slaves who seek his help. Through witnessing the suffering of these characters, Siddhartha begins to discover the facts of life. The way in which he learns about lessons that eventually develop into the religion known as Buddhism contribute to an engrossing experience.

With the characters comes a central part of Buddha’s storytelling and narrative. One of the things that make it an epic is the scope of the story in how it deals with multiple protagonists, rather than simply focusing on Siddhartha. Numerous characters are introduced over the course of the story; which may make it seem confusing to follow at first glance. Fortunately, the narrative never gets overly complicated with its execution beyond the initial hump of having a large cast of characters across multiple plot lines. What is really important with these characters, though, is the surprising amount of depth that they are given despite their number. As more is revealed about each of their motives and goals, their actions become more understandable, to the point of conveying a great deal of sympathy. It is when these developed characters interact with one another that the multiple plot lines begin to intertwine, smoothly putting everything into place and resulting in a graceful narrative that is nothing short of brilliant.

Of course, that is not to forget Siddhartha, the main character of the story who connects the others to one another. It is certainly an interesting choice to base a manga on an important religious and historical figure whose teachings have influenced millions of people. While such an attempt may raise issues for some audiences in regard to the questionable historical accuracy of Siddhartha’s life or the presence of supernatural elements in the story, Tezuka has thoroughly researched the subject. This manga is a clear demonstration that he regards the teachings of Buddha highly. Still, it should not be treated as a religious doctrine of Buddhism or a biography of Siddhartha’s life. Rather, it would be more appropriate to treat it as Tezuka’s own unique interpretations of the Buddhist teachings. Tezuka constructs a religious mythos based off the milestones of Siddhartha’s life, following him on a heroic journey. That is not to say there is nothing to be learned from this manga, because it is certainly possible with an open mindset; for example, the earlier volumes focus on the cruel caste system of ancient India, offering some insight into the theme of social injustice which is further explored in later volumes.

With that said, Buddha is highly philosophical. Not in the sense in that it delves into complex discussions of existentialism or the state of the mind, but in that the central lessons of Buddhism permeate the work. One theme that is handled reverently in this manga is the sanctity and equality of life. Sometimes, the idea is expressed explicitly through the dialogue, where Siddhartha will mention how precious an individual life is. A common trait, however, is how Tezuka expresses his themes with a degree of subtlety. The very first scene in the manga offers the perfect example: An old man, weary from his travels, is starving. He encounters a bear, fox, and rabbit, who attempt to help him find food. The rabbit is the only one to fail, and, in an act of self-sacrifice, offers itself as food by jumping into a fire.

Accordingly, the philosophy in Buddha does not try to be more than what it is. That is to say, it remains thematically focused on the ideas of Buddhism throughout the story, clarifying its themes at the beginning (such as with the above-described scene) and avoiding deviation from those themes. It also does not rely heavily on the use of obscure symbolism that hinges on poignant analysis- a problem that many often have with most philosophical works.

Certainly, it seems as if Buddha is an extremely serious work. Inevitably, those who prefer a more serious approach will find themselves disappointed, as part of Tezuka’s writing style is the inclusion of the sense of humor typically found in his works. Buddha is no exception from this, containing the use of anachronisms, slapstick, references to his other works, and fourth wall breaking. Some audiences will find the humor jarring and unnecessary, while others will find it highly entertaining and refreshing. The humor contrasts with the serious nature of the story, but it does not go so far as to ruin the coherency of the narrative. Ultimately, this is an issue that deals more with personal preferences concerning Tezuka’s writing rather than the content of the narrative.

Likewise, the outdated art may pose another subjective issue for some. Tezuka’s trademark art style places cartoony and stylized character designs against a highly detailed landscape- a type of contrast similar to the juxtaposition between humor and seriousness. Regardless of the designs, however, there is a great deal of realism that is depicted with these characters. In accordance with all the suffering that Siddhartha witnesses, there is a number of graphic scenes and panels that are shown throughout the story, and they are fairly explicit in terms of violence and nudity. It is highly appropriate, though, given the context of the social injustice in relation to the caste system of the time period. Slaves and pariahs, who were on the lowest social status according to the system, were the target of constant humiliation and mistreatment.

Despite the possible preferential differences with the art, the composition of said art remains excellent. The panels are used to great effect via different techniques, such as slowly presenting a scene by splicing it into a series of vertical columns across the page, or by using large panels to effectively convey the scenery in greater detail. These techniques make the transitions clear and present the story in a dynamic manner. Praise can also be given to the remarkable two-page spreads, which serve to emphasize the scale of an event. A noteworthy example of this is when it is used for an image representing the birth of Siddhartha. Returning to the scene with the man, bear, fox, and rabbit, there is an impressive display of the manga’s composition at work. The one aspect that makes this scene noteworthy is actually its execution, in that it is told without a single line of dialogue. The visual narrative is an element that is central to the nature of the medium; this scene is an exemplification of this. With Tezuka having pioneered the medium, it shouldn’t come off as a surprise that his techniques can be seen in most modern manga.

Tezuka is undoubtedly an influential figure in both anime and manga. As Buddha is considered by some to be his magnum opus, it is difficult find reasons to not make a recommendation for this work. If you haven’t read any of Tezuka’s work yet, you cannot go wrong by starting with one that has such a well-crafted story and visuals. The religious narrative it presents is definitely a unique journey in itself.

And at the end of that journey, Buddha is certainly an enlightening experience- perhaps even one beyond that.

First stab at reviewing, let's have a go.

Buddha was an odd choice for me at the time because it was against what used to be something I used to hate in choosing Manga; an overhyped series/mangaka and strong religious overtone. But as I wanted to branch out with my choices a little more at the time this seemed a great choice.

Being my first (and only at the time of this review) Osamu Tezuka manga I had at the time I was attempting to go in with as little a critical mind as possible. So in a nutshell I loved this manga but of course no ... one reads a review for a nutshell so I'll get into meat of things.

We'll start with the artwork as this is the first thing noticed by most people and I must say that I think it is an excellent example of the style of manga art done during the time it was published. The art is serious when it needs to be and comical when the situation demands. What can be seen often in Manga is that there is such a radical shift between the art of the comedy and drama parts that the can conflict, but Buddha shows an excellent example of the neutral style which allows itself to both without the aforementioned conflict. The content of the art varies from people, animals and landscapes and each is handled in a beautiful style. Unknown to most fans is what is known as establishing shots and these are featured primariy in manga novels and aren't seen as often in western comics. These shots are drawn in such skill that allows the imagery of the world presented to glued into the mind of the reader, with the story following and becoming an equal part of the world.

The story is fantastic following the life of Buddha and the trials he faced aswell as the people around him and the story takes the reader to a India, which is both believable and intriguing, replicating the problems of the day with the story unfolding. The story actually gave me an appreciation of the caste system of India in history and how each caste had their problems. The characters entrall one to an extant that you feel a genuine connection with them and it is sad to see them die or struggle but equally joyous to seem them prevail. What struck me most about reaching the end of the books was the feeling of "wow" I felt as I had a genuine desire to learn more about the original Buddha and see which of the characters were real.

Overall this is a great book, spread over 8 volumes and has fantastic pacing. Osamu Tezuka is hailed as a god for a reason and I would gladly read more of this work.

Thank you for reading and expect more from me in the future.

Buddha is the story of siddhartha, a prince who with days to come become the famous buddha that we all know and talk about until this day.

The thing that great about the story of buddha that it covers a lot of subjects and themes such as war, love, nature, human society and classes, slavery, suffering, fate. And above all-life and death and the connection between them. All of this presented in the manga and the philosophical ideas passed in a very easy to understand way, making the reader learn and think about it.
But not only it's very thought provoking and deep, it's all done in ... a very interesting way-we don't just "sit" for a lecture of 66 chapters, we can see the life of many people, slaves and kings, suffering, and learning about life through their hardships. Buddha meets a lot of people, and their stories are all connected in some way, while being very entertaining. Like one of the first stories, of chapra who rose from a slave to a great fighter. The only thing I didn't really liked was the vague sense of time, sometimes years went in a blink of an eye, which was kinda confusing.

The characters are all interesting and human. They suffer, they are afraid from death. Sometimes, they try to fight their fate and sometimes they are accepting it. You wouldn't always agree with the deeds of one character, but they all have reasons for what they do, even if we don't always understand the reasons (because of difference of time and society). A lot of them encounter siddhartha. Some find his teaching meaningful and try to change their ways, not always they can because as I said, they are all human and can't always fight their desires. Sometimes they fight him and try to resist his teaching.

Siddhartha himself is a interesting guy. Born a prince he tried to understand why human suffer, why there are slaves and how they are different from himself. Until the end siddhartha doesn't stop learning. Whether it's from the people around him, or from the nature and the beasts.

The art in the story is your regular osamu tezuka art. I think it's pretty good, but I don't really like his character design, which is rounded in a way (although I did liked the design of adult tatta) I have no complains about it but I can understand why it would turn people off.

In conclusion, buddha is a wonderful manga, one of the best I read. It has great themes and philosophical ideas, while not being very complicated. It does a good job in showing us human nature and teach us about it. Honestly, I didn't even though that I would like this that much, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who want to read good manga.

It's completely impossible to take this manga seriously, as all of its elements (from the drawing style to the characters' behavior) are those of an old children's cartoon.

Any interest and depth that a story about Buddha's life (and the history/mythology of the region) could have is ruined by elements like constant references to modern things (Cola, New York, autographs...), fourth wall breaks (characters claiming they are in a comic or literally crashing into the edge of the panel), use of cartoonish resources (like a head turning upside down in confusion, faces falling off in surprise, teeth becoming pointy of falling out in extreme anger...), use ... of what I assume are bad "Japanese dad jokes" in the dialogues, the author inserting himself as a cameo character into the manga, absolutely childish behaviour from grown adult characters (not just in what they say, you can also see them literally throwing a tantrum on the floor)...

Even if you only consider this work as a comedy for children, I would say it's pretty mediocre / inappropriate: the pacing might be too slow to hold a child's interest, and it includes some scenes of extreme violence (like people having their eyes burned out).

If I were forced to say some positive things about this manga, I guess the plot is easy to follow (it's not a confusing mess like some other mangas I've read), and the drawing style of the natural landscapes is pretty good (I suspect they were copied from photographs, since the drawing style of the characters and all the other elements is way worse).

Summarizing Osamu Tezuka’s Buddha, it is a historical epic with biographical and some supernatural elements (connected to Vedic religions and mythology), on Siddhartha Gautama‘s lifework. Not a biography though; some characters are fictional, the story starts before Siddhartha’s birth and Tezuka also took another kind of artistic license.

However, the manga never deviates from Buddhist teachings. Also, Tezuka’s storytelling was straightforward and easy to grasp, for all its philosophical, societal and religious themes, with fine balance between narration, dialogue-based storytelling and visual storytelling wherever needed.


[1. Beginning with the story…]

The first chapter mentions the Indo-Aryans of the Vedic period, who introduced exploitative and oppressive discrimination with four ... social classes: brahmin (priest class), rajanya/kshatriya (ruler class), vaishya (merchant class) and shudra (laborer class), thus initiating readers to social injustices and hardships of ancient India and how these pushed people towards alternative paths for spiritual enlightenment.
Immediately after this introduction, the story shifts to a magnificent sample of purely visual storytelling: an old monk collapses on a snowy mountain, and a bear, a fox and a rabbit seek food for him. The rabbit fails to do so, and after the old man lights a campfire, it throws itself into it to offer itself as food.

And right after this iconic scene, the narrative shifts to the tale of a shudra boy who after certain circumstances is raised and trained as a kshatriya. Its importance permeats the rest of the narrative, and also introduces the “untouchables” outside the “varna” system, and showcases social injustice being the root of many evils. After this interjecting tale, the rest of the narrative continues with the birth and growth of Siddharta, and ends at the Mahaparinirvana.

More and more characters are introduced and recurring ones are developing accordingly, interconnected to the narrative. More details will be noted on [2.], the character section. And one closing note: Osamu Tezuka’s artistic license was highly connected to visual storytelling. He included certain comedic, metafictional and intertextual elements typical of his writing style, that contrasted heavily with the mature and often dark story; this is one of the aspects that might make-or-break the show for a reader. More details will be noted on [3.], the artwork section.


[2. Continuing with the characters…]

Although Siddhartha is born a kshatriya according to the varna system, he could not understand why humans must suffer and on what basis social classes and untouchables must exist to begin with. After eventually rejecting his varna, homeland and family, he sets out on a journey as a travelling monk. From the journey’s start and up until Mahaparinirvana, his character is constantly dynamic: he observes nature and mankind and introspects. He suffers and witnesses suffering in equal measure. He is tempted yet never yields to base nature, and gradually learns more and more on nature and life, culminating in receiving enlightenment. But his struggle does not end, he devotes the rest of his life into teaching.

Let’s retrace to how I mentioned that social injustice was the root of MANY evils, tied to material hardship. The other side of the evils is connected to spiritual hardship: suffering (dukkha) according to Buddhism originates from being unsatisfied because of desire/greed, distress due to pains of living (e.g. aging and dying) and distress due to impermanence. Siddhartha advocates bringing dukkha into an end, by renouncing desire and embracing truths of the world, and ourselves as threads of a grand tapestry.

Siddhartha attracts people from all walks of life, including “untouchable” bandits and shudras desperate for spiritual guidance to brahmins who antagonize him to kshatriyas in fear and denial of death. Some embrace his teachings and attempt to change their lifestyle and mindset, whereas others deny his teachings and/or act antagonistically towards him, and fall into tragedy. They are not always complex characters (some are rather flat) and often act immorally, but their struggles are (mostly) tied both to values dissonance and to the hardships they endure. Their interactions with the Buddha and each other drive the narrative together in perfect harmony.


[3. And concluding with the artwork…]

From the point of manga history, Buddha is considered a sample of the gekiga movement. Unlike Astro Boy that catered towards children during the 50s and 60s, Buddha is a sample of early 70s that catered towards older teenager and adult audiences, some of whom might have grown up reading early manga.

Before building on this statement, I must describe how Buddha remains a “Tezukan” work. Character designs remain cartoony (strongly influenced by Disney), as is the case with the e.g. Astro Boy and Dororo, contrasting with the mature story.

Second, let’s retrace to the end of section [1.]: an aspect of visual storytelling can be a hit-or-miss element. To elaborate, quite some designs are caricatural and there are visual anachronisms (e.g. cigarettes flying), direct references on media/producers/works (e.g. ET the Extra Terrestrial) and fourth-wall breaking (e.g. an avatar of Tezuka self-deprecating, or panel-connected humor). To be honest, I had a mixed-negative opinion on this aspect occasionally, for it caused mood dissonance and excessive contrasts with the mature tone. However, Buddha’s narrative is by no means undermined, and if this aspect is overlooked or embraced, one may even appreciate Tezuka’s visual craftiness.

Retracing to gekiga; the visual storytelling also remains true to the movement by being highly cinematic and more "adult”. For example, paneling is connected to meta jokes, but also to some of the smoothest scene transitions, I could always tell how parts of the narrative are interconnected without ever being confused. Panels don’t follow the same format and depending on their size and patterns, important parts are highlighted in juxtaposition to the rest of the scene. Close-ups and powerful visual shots (e.g. Siddhartha’s birth) are presented at perfect timing to make for memorable scenes.

Last but not least be warned: there are many graphic scenes (e.g. burnt corpses or showcasing smallpox), female nudity is commonplace (different modesty standards) and for all the occasional goofiness, Tezuka pulled no punches in viscerally portraying cruel aspects of nature and life, such as drought and starvation.

Hope you enjoyed my review!

Even though Buddha may seem like a single-character story based on its title, it is actually a collection of mid-length and short stories. The manga focuses on the people Buddha encounters while seeking enlightenment on his path. Approximately every one or two volumes center on a different main character, while Buddha’s own story continues in the background.
Because of this semi-stand-alone structure, the manga struggles with pacing issues. Almost every story has an interesting beginning, and the narration itself is not bad, but the way these stories are concluded lacks emotional impact. Only a few stories have both strong beginnings and satisfying endings; most notably Chapra’s ... story (volumes 1-2) and Assaji’s story (volumes 3-4). Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the rest.

As the series progresses, it increasingly focuses on Buddha spreading his teachings and preaching to others. Some of these characters commit terrible acts, yet their eventual enlightenment did not affect me emotionally at all. I definitely did not feel any genuine sense of regret from them. Moreover, many of the later stories deal with serious topics such as war and slavery, but these themes are handled very weakly. I wish Tezuka had spent less time on unnecessary and illogical modern Western jokes and instead focused on portraying these subjects in a more impactful way. At times, it feels as if major events happen through just a few conversations.
I especially enjoyed Chapra’s and Assaji’s stories. Chapra’s story effectively shows how merciless the caste system is. As a Shudra (a slave) born to a slave woman, Chapra has no chance to change his position in society. His story is heartbreaking and immediately pulls the reader into the manga. In this arc, we also encounter Tatta, a character I personally found unnecessary. While he may be conceptually important, weak character development and poor storytelling significantly reduce his value.
This first story also depicts the birth of Siddhartha, who later becomes Buddha. As he grows up, Siddhartha decides to become a monk after questioning death and equality, and his journey begins as a result of these realizations.

In the second story, Siddhartha meets Assaji, who has a profound influence on him. Siddhartha spends much of his time in the Ordeal Grove, where ascetics torture themselves in the belief that by doing so, they can free themselves from bodily desires such as love and envy. The ending of this arc impressed me greatly. The visual portrayal of the concept of “rebirth” was just as fascinating as the opening volume that depicted Siddhartha’s birth. When you look at those panels, you can truly feel that “a prophet has been born.” The background artwork itself communicates meaning, almost speaking directly to the reader. These panels deserve high praise, even if the rest of the writing falls short.
The remaining volumes did not leave much of an impression on me. They mostly focus on Buddha reaching large numbers of people, turning them into disciples, and eventually achieving final enlightenment.

Overall, the manga suffers from three major problems.

First, the constant use of nonsensical Western jokes. Serious discussions -such as a neighboring country attacking the border- are suddenly interrupted by McDonald’s or Disneyland jokes. These interruptions completely undermine the gravity of the themes. I could not understand why the fourth wall is broken so frequently. Even if one wants to break the fourth wall, there are far more effective ways to do so than relying on irrelevant jokes.

Second, the cartoonish art style often fails to convey emotions properly. When the background art is detailed and well-composed, the emotional weight comes through; however, combined with shallow storytelling, many scenes fail to evoke any real feeling.

Third, and finally, there is the pacing problem, which I mentioned earlier.

I genuinely debated whether I should drop this manga or not. While it contains a few beautiful chapters, the majority of the series felt exhausting rather than rewarding.