OKAY OKAY ILL GET TO THIS CAUSE NOW I GOTTA SEE WHY HE SAID THIS WHEN BITCH KNEW HE WAS GONNA LIVE

i just realized that dazai is still hooked to that heart monitor while all this resurrection business is going on lmao

Finally cracked what was going through their minds in these panels

AND IF I SAY ATSUSHI NAKAJIMA

I love that it lives on this site still!! The resurrection of Christ in 2024

Imagine not being in the bsd fandom for like a week and you come back to it and you see this

If there isn't a kunikidazai interaction in the next few chapters I will RIOT

Bonus:

Fyodor's Last Words in Bungou Stray Dogs

Hello! I know I've been saying I was gonna do this for a long time, and I really did try to find my notes quickly, but I'm here now. This post is meant as a Religious Studies Analysis. As such I would like to state that I was a dual major in Religious Studies and History to qualify myself for this discussion.

I am also going to be writing this post for accessibility, that is to say I am going to assume the reader has little to no knowledge about the New Testament so I will be explaining or giving context to a lot of things, even things that may seem obvious.

What Were Fyodor's Words?

Eli, Eli, Lema Sabachtani which as I'm sure you know is the Arameic version of Christ's cry to God as he was on the Cross in the Book of Matthew. The Book of Matthew is one of the four gospels in the New Testament. The Gospels (which translates to Good News) tell the life story of Jesus.

In the King James Version of the Bible these words are said, "And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46)

A disclaimer, I am using the King James Version of the Bible for its importance to the English Language. If you want to see Matthew 27:46 translated differently please check Bible Gateway.

The Significance of Matthew 27:46

Let's talk about the context of Matthew 27:46. Now, this line comes during the Crucifixion of Jesus. This was the ninth hour of Jesus being on the cross, or around 3 in the afternoon, and is said following a period of darkness from noon to three.

Now many scholars and theologians have tried to understand why Jesus would have said God had forsaken him, and this is the same for Fyodor too.

However, I would like to talk about Matthew 27:46 in the context of prophecy. Now, for many Christian scholars the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) contain several prophecies which Jesus later fulfills. In Psalms 22:1 "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" is said once again. Therefore, a popular interpretation of Matthew 27:46 is that Jesus is emphasizing how his death and eventual resurrection were all proclaimed long ago and fated to happen.

In short: the quote illustrates the prophetic nature of Jesus and how he is the Messiah.

And How Does Fyodor Connect?

Well, I believe that Fyodor's last words were a warning. A warning to Dazai that Fyodor knew he would "die" and come back, just as Jesus did when he said it on the cross. Maybe he planned this all out or views his life as some sort of prophecy to eliminate all ability users.

If we take the quote and apply the Psalms connection to it, it becomes evident that the "sacrifice" Fyodor took was fated to happen and he knew it. He knew he was going to come back, he possibly knew this was going to happen.

Moreover, this quote may also have something to do with his resurrection. Later in Matthew (Matthew 27:50-53), Jesus calls out and an earthquake happens, "and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose." (Matthew 27:52). Right after Jesus calls out to God, the saints rise from the dead and go to heaven. The quote is intimately tied with resurrection, and I don't think that's a coincidence that Fyodor said it and then comes back. I think Asagiri took this into consideration too.

Most people would think that "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" would be a plea of a man caught in a trap with no way out. But, this interpretation does not make sense with Fyodor or his "death". Therefore, understanding Matthew 27:46 has both a line connected with the resurrection of saints and prophecy is crucial to understanding why Fyodor said it during the helicopter crash. He knew he was coming back. I think it was a warning and to illustrate how "ordained by God" his mission is. There's probably more context to add, but it's late and I am sleepy now.

I know this all kinda confirms what we already know, but I think it really illustrates the depth of Fyodor's planning and that he might have known how Mersault was going to go the whole time. Which is terrifying if you think about it.

As always feel free to add things, ask questions, etc. If you disagree just keep it civil. There's probably some things manga wise I didn't add so if you have things to add please do.

This is how I look when people like my history analysis of chapter 113. It made me smile you guys are the best!

I really want to share this theory with as many as I can so I appreciate you all!

In unrelated news I did delete my twitter. There was a lot of arguing and I felt like I was starting on season 17 of a soap opera and know nothing about the plot or people

I was basically watching, and confused. Oh well. Can spend more time here then

Rather than catastrophizing instances when Dazai isn't mentioned by name or physical presence in references to the Agency, consider:

that he fluidly moves between, shares unique and independent connections with, and influences each of the three pillars of the tripartite framework;

that when he isn't physically there, the others still feel his presence and are guided by his influence on them, strategies that he's relayed to them, and their trust in him; and

that the Agency as it is when they've reunited in Poe's book or in Fukuzawa's memory are together because of Dazai, as in he literally, in-text coordinates with Ango and Ranpo in regards to the former and he also recruited multiple members of the Agency, having brought in Atsushi and coached Kyouka through her entrance exam, in regards to the latter. I didn't even notice he wasn't there at first because I saw his shape in the shadows of the silhouettes of those who were.

That Dazai is there even when he isn't is an ongoing motif: Mori maintains Dazai's seat among the five executives; Chuuya enters Corruption despite Dazai's apparent death in Dead Apple; Chuuya, in part, resists Verlaine's nihilism because it reminded Chuuya of Dazai's, and even though Dazai was late in finding him, Chuuya wasn't in any danger of being lost with Dazai already so palpably there; Akutagawa understanda Kyouka has found her reason for living because it echoes what Dazai gave him through the Port Mafia, with Dazai appearing only as an impression and in implication; Ango explicitly defies Taneda's orders and his hierarchal obligations to the Special Division because he trusts Dazai enough to follow Dazai's heart on the matter (literally and figuratively); Atsushi visualizes Dazai when he's alone and paralyzed by internal conflict and when he does, the others appear around him too; while imprisoned, Kyouka was so alone there wasn't even anyone captaining the drone she was in until Dazai's voice cut through her isolation to relate to her and coach her through her entrance exam; etc., etc.

It's why Fyodor can't outmaneuver Dazai. Dazai tells Fyodor that Fyodor failed because Dazai had allies and Fyodor didn't. The guards physically present in Meursault with them were under Fyodor's control, while Dazai had no one in the prison with him except for a fellow inmate he could not access or speak to directly. Everyone Dazai relied on, he relied on without being able to see or hear or touch them, while physically surrounded by the presence of Fyodor's vampires.

But it didn't matter because Dazai's bonds aren't so weak that he needs to see them to know they're there, nor are they limited by organizational affiliation. The truth of the matter was that Fyodor had no one, and Dazai was surrounded by his people in substance if not in form— meaning only Fyodor tried to play chess in a game of Go.

Dazai does not have to be physically there to be present, anymore than the others have to be with him in Meursault for him to see them and rely on them and know they are supporting him as much as he's supporting them. Dazai's home and place of belonging also isn't limited to the Agency; he's theirs, but they share him with the Port Mafia and the Special Division.

He's like Natsume in that way, and like Natsume, he's uniquely capable of weaving between the tripartite framework's three pillars to remind them of and coordinate their efforts towards their shared goal of protecting Yokohama.

Thus, if you want to know where he is in a scene, sometimes you have to look for him in the connective tissue rather than the organ. Or, in more literary terms, what is essential is invisible to the eye.