Cycle of Souls

This article, Cycle of Souls is considered to be canon material as it contains only information related to the original Bleach series and does not contain fanon or fan fiction elements.

Souls circulate from life to death during the process of reincarnation, analogous to grains of sand filtering through an hourglass.

The Cycle of Souls (転生輪廻, Tenshōrinne, alt. 転生の輪, Tensei no Wa, "Transmigration Cycle" or "Circle of Reincarnation") refers to the flow of human souls through the Three Worlds: the Soul Society, Human World, and Hueco Mundo.

Overview

The Cycle of Souls refers to the transfer of souls between states of existence. That is, when a person dies in the Human World, their soul (in the form of a Plusses) can enter the afterlife by two primary means: Either they are guided into Soul Society by a Shinigami or they experience Encroachment and are Hollowfied. Since Shinigami are beings who are tasked specifically with the governance of the cycle of souls, all soul-related jobs fall under their jurisdiction. Typically, this duty is carried out by moving and managing the total number of souls in the Human World, and occasionally the afterlife. For this reason they were known in ancient times as Balancers (調整者 (バランサー), Baransā; Japanese for "Regulators"). Shinigami maintain the balance of souls through means such as Konsō (魂葬, Soul Burial), which sends wandering Plusses in the Human World to the Soul Society, and the sublimation of Hollows via their Zanpakutō.

The Human World and Soul Society are parallel to each other and are described as two sides of the same coin. In contrast, Hueco Mundo could be interpreted as a "purgatory" of sorts, as the souls bound up within Hollows are trapped there until they are purified by a Shinigami. (Hueco Mundo was also described as a "paradise" for Hollows). A soul that dies in the Soul Society is reincarnated into the World of the Living as a new human with no past memories. Unless they possess the Reiatsu required to become Shinigami, souls that live in Soul Society are normally reborn again into the Human World after a period of about 60 years. Kaien Shiba offered a different explanation for the souls of Shinigami, stating that when they die, their bodies become part of the Reishi that forms the Soul Society. This holds true except in cases where the soul of a Shinigami possesses a Spirit Class ranking of three or above.

Maintaining Balance

If the Shinigami do not maintain the balance of souls, the result would be the end of existence as it is currently known. According to Ichibē Hyōsube, Vasto Lorde-class Hollows pose a unique challenge to maintaining the balance, as the sheer number of souls bound up within them would cause the balance between the three worlds to collapse if they were carelessly purified. However, the greatest threat to the balance of souls are arguably the Quincy, who completely extinguish the soul of a Hollow as opposed to purifying it. Because of this, the human souls that form Hollows do not return to the Soul Society when they are killed by Quincy. If this were allowed to progress, the souls would increase only on the side of the Human World, creating a vacuum which would cause the Soul Society to spill over into it, mixing life and death and resulting in chaos and the end of the world. Thus, when the balance of souls between the World of the Living and the afterlife is endangered, the Shinigami can request permission to kill citizens in the Rukongai to compensate. For example, after the Wandenreich destroyed a large amount of Hollows, captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi ordered the members of the Twelfth Division to kill 28,000 Rukongai residents without first attaining permission from Central 46 in order to restore the balance of souls.

Ironically, a collapse would presumably result in a reality very similar to the one that preexisted the Cycle of Souls and separation of the three worlds at the hands of the Shinigami. As such, Yhwach's goal is to restore the Quincy to their rightful place within reality by creating an existence free from the control of the Shinigami and the "fear of death."

Removal from the Cycle of Souls

There are several known ways that a soul can be removed from the cycle of reincarnation:

• When a Hollow is killed by a Quincy, their souls are completely extinguished, and they do not re-enter the cycle of reincarnation.
• Souls who have been condemned to Hell are removed from the cycle of souls, as they are trapped within Hell, where they are continuously killed and reborn without ever passing on to the Soul Society.
• If a soul becomes lost while passing through the Dangai and is subsequently trapped within a Valley of Screams, the Wandering Spirit World, or another pocket dimension, they do not pass on to the Soul Society or reincarnate into the Human World normally.
  • In Bleach: Memories of Nobody, Blanks are detached from the cycle of souls when they lose their memories, and cannot undergo Konsō.

Notes

• In the Bleach movie, Memories of Nobody Jūshirō Ukitake tells Ichigo Kurosaki when the latter asks if it is possible for a Shinigami to recall their life as a human after they have passed on to become souls that this is unlikely. However, this contradicts the case of Yūichi Shibata, who retained memories of his past life in the Human World after passing on.
  • In the same movie, after a father and son reunite in Plus form, they are able to pass on to the next life peacefully without the need for Konsō. In every canonical case, Konsō is needed before a Plus can pass on to the Soul Society.