True purpose of Akuma?

[Manda]

I think that the Earl was God's Chosen and God decreed that mankind was wicked and needed to be punished. The akuma are the Earl's way of repopulating the world. However, I think that pride or something twisted the EArl's original intent, turning him from well-intentioned disciple of God to power crazed psychopathic Satan.

---------- Post added at 07:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:21 PM ----------

The Akuma can't just be weapons. Look at Level Fours:

They aren't made by the Earl in the usual way; instead, they're born from a statue-thing that looks like a giant, pregnant human woman who's praying. Plus, they don't have attached souls. Wehn the Level 4 reveals itself, Allen doesn't comment on how twisted its soul has become; he refers to it as "an automated soul". So it appears the Level 4's aren't just machines powered by human souls. They are literally new lifeforms that are practically unrelated the humanity.

Interesting thought to ponder.

Your first little bit reminded me of something I had mentioned above, regarding the story of Noah's Ark. Ofcourse, I believe that this story ties in more then the author has outright shown us, and the very existance of the Noah can be explained with a certian interpretation of this story. I mean, why else would they go to such an extent to tell us this little story? We all know it, so there is a deep, underlying tie that could easily be overlooked.

What we all have to remember here, is that D.Grayman is a journey through personal faith, and remaining strong through oppression. Like the story of Jobe in the Christian Bible. Keeping this in mind, I have to wonder, who really is the true side of good? Or is it really a question of perception? God is not opposed to slaughtering his children, if he has an extremely good reason [Like the Great Flood in the book of genesis].

Assuming that the Earl is Noah, and that the remaining Noah family are his children [Where's the wife?], then I would have to assume that the Akuma are in fact some kind of extermination device to exterminate all of human kind except for God's chosen ones, just as the waters of the Great Flood. And, although this theory is one I am drawn very strongly too, it would disapoint me greatly to see this as the correct one. Because, to remain biblically correct [which I believe will happen, if simply because of the amount of research and detail that has been put into every page of the story so far], God said that he would never again wipe his children from the face of the earth like he had with the Great Flood.

Ofcourse, I have to also consider the above mentioned thought that the Earl had been sent to Earth by God with a purpose, and had been corrupted and forgotten his true purpose. This reminds me strongly of the story of Lucifer, and how he had come to reside in hell. For those of you who do not remember the story, or had no heard it, I will sum it up for you.

Lucifer was an angel, and a very important one. God had asked of him, to test his faithful servants to make sure that their piety was true and pure. In the story of Jobe, Jobes children and wife were murdered by Lucifer, his house burned, and his body stricken with desease to see if after all of this tragedy, if Jobe would not question his faith in God.

Lucifer began to become corrupt, and feel like he was easily as powerful as God, and that he should be given more power and respect. He rebelled, and God struck him down, sending him to dwell in hell for all eternity.

Hmm hmm hmm. Maybe the Earl is a mirror image of Satan himself, and he speaks about being the chosen to convince his apostles that he is every bit as good as God. This would also explain a good use for the Akuma. Taking souls.

The souls that power the akuma are ripped from heaven [or so has been said], and chained within the mechanical shell, bound forever in servatude to the Earl. [Remember from WAY, way back there. ] Not only would the Earl gain one soul [the invoker] from this exchange, but two [the akuma].

Now, this is where the twist would come in. As the akuma evolves, the soul becomes darker and more tainted. Stained with the blood of man, until it no longer posses any faith, or light. Now I will make an assumption based on paranormal science, and the name of the akuma itself.

When a spirit cannot rest, it is considered a ghost. When this ghost is tainted, or full of darkness, it becomes a demon. The direct translation of the word "akuma" is demon. Therefore as the akuma evolves, it becomes a demon [No longer human whatsoever] or a tainted spirit.

Since most very powerful demons in most mythologies all over the world resemble humans [because of the predator/prey relationship they possess with humans] it would only make sense that as they grow in power, they would also develop more sophistacated ways of blending in. All the better to kill you, m'pretty! On the flip side, the weaker the spirit/demon in most mythologies, the smaller and less frightening this creature appears.

When it comes to akuma, you also have to remember that the shape represents the level of Akuma that it is. The level is just a reflection of how tainted the soul inside of the shell is. The darker, and more tainted it becomes, the more human like it becomes. This could be a trade off, possibily, between appearance and essence. The more human the shell becomes, the more demonic the soul becomes. Just a thought.

[KidWicked13]

As of the latest vol, we know the Earl is just another Noah. He specifically tells the others that he is the first. So it appears he is just another piece of the puzzle. Maybe the most important piece of the puzzle on the Noah side, but nonetheless a piece. Plus, he can't put whatever his plans are into effect until all of the Noah are reborn. Which begs the question "Why?"...

Something I've recently discovered is that when Noah gets off the Ark (in the Biblical version), God specifically makes a point to tell Noah that consuming blood is a very bad thing. He (God) goes on to say:

"For your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from every man... Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his own blood be shed, for God made man in His own image..."

So God makes a point of specifically mentioning blood's importance. Remember the akuma? How their blood is toxic to humans and the fact that an Akuma's bullets are explicitly referred to as being made of the Akuma's blood? Not sure what it means, but I'm fairly certain the connection is intentional...

[KidWicked13]

Not to be rude, but personal faith doesn't seem that important to the plot...Lavi is only fighting the Earl to better record the war, Allen has said several times that he doesn't give a damn about God and that he fights for mankind and the Akuma, and Lenalee outright hates God for putting her and her loved ones through hell.

The series seems to be focused more on the fact that the world isn't black and white...what we thought was a group of valiant heroes fighting against evil has done atrocious experiments on its own people, routinely uses children as soldiers and has even violated the laws governing death that God Himself presumably set forth. And the evil villains out to destroy all mankind have turned out to be an apparently loving family that seems to actually believe what they are doing is good and just.

The Christian themes seem to be a means to convey that. And given that the author is Japanese, she probably doesn't have the same taboos against portraying accepted Western doctrine in non traditional ways...it's not like she portayed Noah and his family as a group of superhumans that use an army of robot monsters powered by human souls that...oh wait...see it's funny because that's pretty much what she's done...

I'm sorry if that sounded snarky...I'm just...tactless sometimes. My apologies.

[KidWicked13]

The Akuma seem almost angelic to me. I'm talking old school, Jewish and Biblical angels. In the bible, angels are at best freakish seven face, twenty limbed monsters. At worst, the very sight of them drives people insane. The only reason they appear as humanoids is to avoid sending mortals into a catatonic stupor.
Plus, they have basically no free will to speak of. They're just God's servants who can't go against God's direct command. According to some traditions, they're personality-less emanations of God's own being.

Contrast how the Earl calls the Akuma extensions of himself and how they not only cannot disobey him, but his fellow Noah. It fits with his whole mission to kill God/free mankind from God's influence and set himself up as the new ruler to have angel-like servants right? Then there's the child-like angel form the Four's take...

Anyway, just some thoughts...

[kalla]

Bumping this because I think it will become an important theme soon...at least if the chapters keep coming. I see a couple of possibilities. I think it is important that we also analyze why the Earl creates them and what his true intentions are as I think they are related.

One thought it could be a way to create a new Noah. Perhaps once evolved enough they create a way for a new Noah to "be born" into a human. The Earl would see it as procreation. Maybe their ultimate "birth" awakens the Noah genes in one person or something. Not a great idea, but an idea.

They could be a distraction to prevent the world from seeing his true intentions. I think, whether intentional or not, this happens but I don't personally believe it to be the sole purpose of akuma.

They could be designed strictly to create human suffering which the Earl needs to fuel some part of his plans. In this scenario it could even be that the exorcists themselves are the ones whose suffering he is targeting. Perhaps he, or some power of his, gains power from their suffering. The exorcists carry innocence so perhaps it is through their struggles from being a host that the most power is gained. It could also be the exact opposite. Perhaps the Earl sees humans as weak and hopes to strengthen them through their suffering. Or perhaps he is strengthening the innocence itself by forcing the exorcists to battled repeatedly. This would especially make sense if the Heart was a highly evolved innocence rather than just a typical fragment. (Meaning it is the fragment, but it will not transform into the "Heart" until it and the host have evolved enough to wield it properly.)

At one point the Earl comments on the hatred in Allen's eyes and Cross tells him he cannot win against the Earl like that. I think the same philosophy goes with the innocence and akuma. If the evolution goes to the point where the soul inside transcends the machine, the innocence will not be able to win. Perhaps the evolution itself will give birth to a new "innocence" to fight the darkness in people's hearts similar to Allen's sword of exorcism.

If you want a more religious standpoint, perhaps they are purgatory for the souls themselves. Perhaps after all the suffering they have been through they are finally released at the end and able to go to heaven rather than hell. Or perhaps it gives them another chance, a reincarnation of sorts, without the burden of their being an akuma. (This could be the real agreement with the Earl; to exchange your life to truly bring back your loved one--but the loved one would ultimately not remember.) The Earl could very easily argue that this soul would be born out of the love. Perhaps they two souls would be reunited at some point. This could even be a world the Earl hopes to create--not one of destruction and suffering, but one of peace, strength, and love. Maybe he sees this as the only way to achieve that.

Still, I think something more happens as the akuma evolves. It is obvious that as well as getting stronger it looks more and more human. I could see it ultimately becoming a new soul, human, or angel. (And I agree with the comments about angels being described as looking like what we would consider monsters.) The reason I lean towards this is because when the Level 4 was first born it seemed unsure of what its purpose was for a moment. While it quickly remembered, previous evolution (like when Allen and Kanda were fighting at the start) I don't remember it having even a moment of question. Perhaps the soul trapped inside begins to gain power over the machine at some point. Eliade was able to feel more than a machine would at some point in her evolution. What if as it evolves it loses more and more of its akuma self and becomes more angelic in response to the human soul inside? (Think like a human soul egg that evolves into an angel.) It could explain why the powers are so much more difficult for the innocence to fight. Which would then make me ask what the innocence was evolving into. If what we have seen continues, the result could be an extremely powerful entity that may not remember its original purpose and possibly be blissfully ignorant of its own birth. The Earl might see the humans as mud and the soul within the akuma as the lotus. As if the akuma and its destruction were a purifying machine for the human race. Not that even if the Order or exorcists found out this was the Earl's view that it would change anything. Killing innocent lives is still murder no matter why you are doing it.

Yet another idea that builds upon that, what if the soul/heaven/goal of the akuma's evolution can only be achieved with the evolution of innocence. Perhaps it is the battle itself and when the two finally collide at their ultimate limit will this goal finally be realized. Perhaps the birth of the soul/heaven/goal needs both parts in order to truly be born, the spark of life so to speak.

[Heart]

YO! me thinks that since earl said the akuma are extensions of himself what if they are the next earl? ya no? like a replacement, back up, that sorta thing. AAAAnd the 14 wanna help akuma right? so I got 2 thoughts for that.
1. since he wanna become next earl he wants to kill off all his competition
2. since he's still brothers with earl and the akuma are another part of him (?) and 14th wanna save akuma so hes trying to save the earl? like turn him into human or something? (if that happens maybe we'll get a flash back, maybe the earl and 14th were friends in life before they became noah and were happy but when they turned things changed and the earl wasn't happy so the 14th wants to help the earl become human again or atleast cleanse the earl's soul or something, and if that's true the fact the earl still wants to be with the 14th will make sense)
<I don't really get half of what I wrote but I think it makes sense... somewhat>

[scarlet_moon]

Here are my thoughts on this:
1) Since the Noah have each have a specific memory of Noah, and since Noah was around when God cleansed the Earth of mans wickedness with the flood, maybe they feel that man is still wicked and the need to continue to destroy man with akuma, and akuma will take the place of man when all of mankind is destroyed.
2) Akuma are the vessels used to perfect the soul. THe level 4 appeared similar to what we think of as an angel, so maybe beyond that level it appears more and more devine? Also, when Allen looks at the level 4s soul he says it hard to bear and the soul isnt really there anymore. Maybe after level4 the soul turns into something else.
Im relying mostly on the anime since Im not very far at all in the manga (Im reading it though dont worry) so I might be a little off on the level 4 stuff.