The idea of taming Mahoraga is Jujutsu Kaisen's biggest plot hole

Modified Nov 08, 2024 14:30 GMT

Jujutsu Kaisen and why trying to tame Mahoraga fails as a concept (Image via MAPPA).

Jujutsu Kaisen is a series with several interesting concepts and the Divine General Mahoraga might be one of the most fascinating. Despite being the ultimate Shikigami and one of the strongest entities in the manga, he still needs to be tamed so the Ten Shadows user can get the most out of this being, however, that is impossible to achieve.

Leaving aside exceptions such as Ryomen Sukuna taking over Megumi Fushiguro's body, there is no way for a Ten Shadows user to tame Mahoraga with the tools they have available in Jujutsu Kaisen. When considering the degree of power and ability to adapt that this creature has, the other Shikigami don't have a chance even if the user has managed to tame the rest of them.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda as a publication.

Explaining why is nearly impossible to tame Mahoraga in Jujutsu Kaisen

Megumi Fushiguro would be the best example for this discussion (Image via MAPPA).

The main challenge in taming Mahoraga is that the user can only rely on their current Shikigami, without other Cursed Techniques to fall back on. Unlike Ryomen Sukuna, who has Cleave and Dismantle, or Satoru Gojo, who could defeat the creature with his Cursed Technique and Six Eyes, Megumi Fushiguro doesn't have those advantages.

Even combining all his Shikigami wouldn't be enough to defeat Mahoraga. Although one of the ten Shikigami, Tiger Funeral, was never shown in the manga, the Divine General is considered the strongest, so it's unlikely to make a significant difference.

There are examples such as the merge known as Agito, Sukuna's combination of Nue, Great Serpent, Tiger Funeral, and Round Deer, which could be a great asset but Mahoraga's raw strength and ability to adapt still surpasses it. Some fans have theorized that people without Cursed Energy could enter the area and assist the user, so someone with a Heavenly Restriction, like Maki Zen'in, could help but is difficult to see a flat-out physical fighter changing the outcome.

A theory about taming Mahoraga

Gojo and Sukuna were the only ones who managed to overpower Mahoraga (Image via MAPPA and Shueisha).

There has been a running theory in the Jujutsu Kaisen fandom that Mahoraga’s wheel handles represent the eight moves that the creature can adapt to, so if it loses the earliest current adaption when it gets a new adaption. When considering that the Ten Shadows user could have nine other Shikigami at their disposal if they had tamed the rest, that could mean that the Divine General was conceived as the ultimate test for the Zen'in clan.

If a Ten Shadows user managed to tame all nine other Shikigami and come up with different styles involving each of them, this would always leave Mahoraga with one adaptation that it couldn't deal with. That would mean that this ultimate Shikigami would have been tamed by someone who mastered this Cursed Technique and got its full potential, which would make a lot of sense from a narrative perspective.

Sadly, this is merely a fan theory and was never confirmed that Mahoraga's wheel works that way. However, this creature clearly needs a certain time to adapt so perhaps the best way to defeat it is through the mastery of the remaining Shikigami but author Gege Akutami never explored this concept in the Jujutsu Kaisen manga.

Final thoughts

Mahoraga is always going to be one of the most fascinating pieces of lore in Jujutsu Kaisen and rightfully so when considering its imposing nature and the place it has in the Zen'in clan. However, the very idea of taming this Shikigami seems to be impossible, at least when considering canon evidence.

Related articles

Edited by Divya Singh