Jujutsu Kaisen's official translation makes yet another Mahoraga-Malevolent Shrine mishap

Modified Aug 20, 2024 00:30 GMT

The Jujutsu Kaisen series is inarguably one of the most popular manga series on the planet. But despite its popularity, the official English translation has faced significant criticism and backlash from fans due to numerous mistakes. The most prominent error is the routine replacement of "Mahoraga" with "Malevolent Shrine."

Chapter 266, released on August 18, 2024, marked another instance of this mistake, becoming a major point of fan discourse. The manga is currently available to read on Viz Media's official website and Shueisha's MANGA Plus platform.

Disclaimer- This article contains spoilers for the Jujutsu Kaisen series.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Mahoraga once again replaced by Malevolent Shrine

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The Jujutsu Kaisen series has long been criticized for issues related to its official translation. These problems have existed since the series' official English release, but they have become increasingly noticeable as the series gained popularity. Many fans have expressed that the official English translation of the series on certain sites falls short and is almost incomprehensible compared to fan translations.

One of the most prominent examples is from chapter 221’s last panel, where Gojo originally said "No" instead of the iconic "Nah, I’d Win." Official sources eventually corrected this in a later iteration. However, numerous other chapters, including chapter 266, have had translation errors, such as mistaking Mahoraga for Malevolent Shrine and often confusing the two.

Mahoraga as shown in the anime (Image via Studio MAPPA)

In chapter 266, Sukuna explicitly states,

"My Ten Shadows technique stopped functioning after Mahoraga was destroyed…this has to be Fushiguro Megumi’s!"

However, the official translation reads,

"Malevolent Shrine got wasted and my Ten Shadows Technique has stopped functioning, so this is Megumi Fushiguro’s."

While these translations may seem similar at first glance, the official translation's mention of Malevolent Shrine instead of Mahoraga contradicts the context and what Sukuna is actually trying to convey.

Ryomen Sukuna's Malevolent Shrine as shown in the anime (Image via Studio MAPPA)

This Mahoraga/Malevolent Shrine mistake occurred for the second time in chapter 266, with the earliest instance in the first panel of chapter 247, where Sukuna refers to "Malevolent Shrine’s adaptation" and how he paused instead of interrupting the shrine’s adaptation.

Fans initially thought this was a simple mistake, but the recurrence of the error in chapter 266 has solidified the belief that the series' official and fan translations might be telling two completely different stories. A few fans have also deemed the translation mistakes as the reason behind the numerous discussions and debates within the fandom.

Final thoughts

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Jujutsu Kaisen chapter 266 is available for reading on Shueisha's MANGA Plus platform and Viz Media's official website. The actual reason behind the translation mistakes is not yet known, even though they have been present throughout numerous chapters.

Gege Akutami's manga will have a big announcement in the last week of August 2024, so a sequel or a spin-off may be announced.

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Edited by Shreya Das