User blog:Chrono Nexus/Fundamentals of Spirit

This article is under construction.

This blog post has been created to help users become more educated about spirituality in Bleach (and the real world) and how these forces of the supernatural shape the spiritual worlds and the creative ideas within the series. Any section or block of text that is speculation will be written in italics.

Spirituality in bleach is a varied subject. On the surface, the "mechanics" of spiritual energy is very simple. A more thorough examination of these matters shows that the anatomy of a spirit in bleach, and the cultural/mythological ideas that inspire it, is actually very complex.

Spiritrons
The fundamental particle of spiritual energy. They form spiritual matter and effects. They appear to be able to emulate all of the properties of ordinary physical matter, which can also be changed according to how they are used. It appears to be able to function as both a particle and a wave.

Reishi
A collection or body of spiritrons. The atomosphere and surroundings contain "free" reishi, which can be sensed or recollected for use.

Reiryoku
Spiritual energy or reishi that is aligned with the spiritual energy of the user. In other words, any aligned spiritual energy or reishi also qualifies as reiryoku, but is not necessarily in a useful form for all characters; a shinigami would have little use for ginto.

Chain of Fate
A visualization of a living spirit's connections. The chain of fate is connected to body where the heart is.

Saketsu
The "Binding Chain" which a deceased soul (typically shinigami) possesses. It serves a boost to spiritual power in shinigami.

Hakusui
The "Soul Sleep" or source of spiritual power. Presumably, this is the location from which the power of a spirit originates.

Zanpakuto
A manifestation of the fighting will of a spirit. Typically takes the form of a sword originally, but assumes more elaborate shapes and abilities as its wielder derives a stronger connection with the spirit within.

Asauchi
The "Shallow Hilt" is a beginner weapon that all low-class shinigami wield. Since they are not able to communicate with their zanpakuto spirit, their blade resumes a generic form. All Zanpakuto, including these minor blades, are capable of performing soul burials.

Mod Soul
A soul that has been artificially created or otherwise modified. Mod souls typically have inherent supernatural powers, which they are able to use without prior training.

Hollow
Hollows are spirits that have succumbed to despair, and are driven by instinct to consume the souls of others. All hollows possess a hollow hole, typically in the chest where their heart used to be.

Plus A benign soul, often of a deceased person. Plusses can transform into hollows via the process of encroachment (the degradation of their chain of fate).

Speculation
Alright, so I've listed off a bunch of stuff you already know about. Now I'm going to try piecing this together, to provide you with a more expansive understanding of just what the heck is going on with these crazy powers and characters.

Spirit
Spirits are a huge category of creatures of many strokes and hues... but they still possess some commonalities. All spirits possess a "will", which defines the alignment of their spiritual energies. This will also determines the nature of their potentials. A spirit can manipulate spiritual energy to create supernatural effects, but doing so requires that the spiritual energy be of a particular alignment, usually the same as the user. All spirits possess a hakusei ("soul sleep") which is the source of their spiritual power. Injuring a spirit's hakusei and saketsu can completely block their spiritual power.

''Spirits also possess chakras, though any given spirit may have a specific chakra in excess, or may lack one chakra entirely (in the case of hollows with theri hollow holes). The chakras are points located along the central axis of a spirit's body, that determine how the spiritual energy within them permeates. You could say, a creature's spiritual alignment is determined by his chakras.''

Shinigami
A shinigami is a soul that has learned to establish a connection with a zanpakuto spirit, and harnesses this connection to gain greater power. Shinigami do not necessarily have to be deceased spirits, as is the case of Kurosaki Ichigo and numerous mod souls. Shinigami receive an Ausachi as part of their training, which allows them to establish a very basic connection with their zanpakuto spirit. Through the meditations of Jinzen, they eventually learn the name of their zanpakuto spirit.

''Shinigami appear to have nigh-unlimited spiritual energy, though the amount of energy they can draw out at any single time is not infinite. It appears as though, so long as they possess their will to fight, they can continue drawing spiritual energy through their zanpakutos. I'll continue this speculation in the next section.''

Zanpakuto
Zanpakuto are a type of spirit associated with shinigami's swords. Every shinigami has a zanpakuto spirit, although they are not always unique (as is shown in the case of Hitsugaya's). Every zanpakuto has a name. By knowing the name of their zanpakuto and communicating with it, a shinigami is able to draw power from the connection.

''A shinigami's connection with a zanpakuto passes through the Hakuse ("soul sleep"). Zanpakuto spirits exist in a place both beyond and within the shinigami. They exist at the wellspring of creation... the beginning of the wheel of reincarnation.''