#inverted len'en

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inverted ems

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Any thoughts on melon-chama? (What the hell is that nickname my brain just vomited Tenkai's not even young)

Ahh, Tenkai, known by many titles: The "Melon of Terror", the "Terrifying Flying Death Melon", the "Flying Melon of Terror"... "Melon-chama", apparently (It's fine Tenkai can get a little baby talk, as a treat for babysitting Sukune and Sese)

I'll admit I tend to overlook Tenkai themself as a character, treating them more as a lore expositor, but that's absolutely not all they are. Let's dig into One of the Old Dictators—Tenkai Zuifeng

Behind the Melon

Tenkai (天堺 heaven border) is based on the 14th-century Japanese Buddhist monk "Tenkai" (天海 same pronunciation, different kanji).

Tenkai's (the monk) first Buddhist name was actually Zuifuu (随風), which is again similar in pronunciation to Tenkai's surname, Zuifeng (瑞風 lit. fresh, vibrant wind, taken to mean "auspicious wind"). Although Zuifeng takes a Chinese pronunciation of 風 rather than a Japanese one, a reference to the association between the concept of barriers (結界) and the Chinese philosophy of the Five Phases (五行 wǔxíng).

In addition to being a high-ranking Buddhist priest, Tenkai also served as the advisor to the shogun at the time, the great unifier of Japan, Tokugawa Ieyasu (on whom Tsurubami is themself based). This is the basis upon which Tsurubami's relationship with Tenkai comes from.

While the monk's later life is well documented, his early life actually remains an overall mystery. Perhaps similar to how Tenkai's own backstory is unclear, other than that they're related to a famous barrier builder and came from the outside world.

Tenkai's Designs

I'm not usually all that good at talking about the visual side of things, but Tenkai does have some unique points that I'd like to touch on

Tenkai's outfits are often compared to melons, specifically the Yubari King melon, which is hilariously enough Tenkai's favorite food. They are the only character so far to have actually received three distinct designs, aside from Sese Kitsugai:

There's their work outfit, which they wore in RMI and as a boss in BPoHC (the latter, funnily enough, has the words yuubari (夕張) on a sleeve)

Their casual outfit, which they wore as a playable in BPoHC

Their melon outfit, which they showed up in as Tenki [Melon] in BotC

In addition, Tenkai's headband is a part of a running gag from JynX, where they insist that they do not remember what they based it on. (Even though I myself confirmed with them what it was once lol)

Pixiv FANBOX 29 April 2022 — Donors-Only Article "By the way, I still haven't recalled what that stick on Tenkai's head was supposed to be. I'm sure it was based on something related to their character basis, but what was it...? Eh, let's just say that it's a melon's vines, alright?" — JynX

It is, in fact, based on nokimarugawara (軒丸瓦), a style of roof tiling in Japanese architecture. (As a bit of a side note, Len'en seems to view barrier building as they do any other type of normal building, making Tenkai somewhat of an architect themself)

Spell Cards

And we come to my absolute FAVOUITE part about analyzing Tenkai: their spell cards. There's honestly something to say about every single one of them, but here I'll focus on a particular set with a common theme: The Nikkō Tōshō-gū Shrine.

The shrine is a marvel of Japanese shrine and temple architecture, and is where Tokugawa Ieyasu was buried and enshrined, who, if you'd recall, is who Tsurubami themself is based on.

Here I'll go over a few notable locations and features of the Nikkō Tōshō-gū Shrine, and point out how they influenced Tenkai's spell cards:

The Shrine's Main Gate — Youmeimon Gate (陽明門)

It's directly named in the spell Youmei "Higurashi-no-mon", where Higurashi-no-mon (日暮ノ門 gate of the sunset) is another name for the gate, as it is so beautiful that one could spend the whole day staring at it.

The spells Inverted Pillar "Guri Carving" and "Reversed Second Pillar Among the Twelve" also reference the gate, "guri carving" refers to the swirling pattern on the white pillars that support the gate. (One may note that this pattern is also what Tenkai's shot options are like!)

While the "inverted/reversed pillar" refers to a particular pillar that's erected inversely to all the other ones, which can be distinguished by the very guri pattern on them. (Leftmost in the first image) This was done to counteract a superstition at the time that since completed buildings will one day break down, an imperfection should be left to leave it "incomplete".

The spell "Dragon Head Tiles" likely references the dragon head carvings on the gate as well.

The corridors on the two sides of the gate feature extensive and ornate carvings of birds and flowers, referenced in the spell Calm "Sparrow in the East-West Corridor".

Shrine Carvings — Nemuri-neko, Three Monkeys, and More

The card Closed Eyes "Nemuri-Neko" references the carving of the same name, which simply means "sleeping cat". Said to represent the peace that Tokugawa's reign brought to Japan.

Behind Nemuri-neko is a carving of several sparrows, to remind us that even in times of peace, we mustn't lose vigilance. This was referenced again in Calm "Sparrow in the East-West Corridor", the hard/unreal version of Closed Eyes "Nemuri-Neko".

Three Monkeys "The World is Impure; Shut Everything Out" references this carving of the three wise monkeys.

It always seemed, at least to me, that by basing so many spells on the shrine, that Tenkai is simultaneously paying homage to other architects of the past and thematically mourning the (seemingly permanent) departure of Tsurubami. A most beautiful collection of references.

And I think, that makes for a fairly nice stopping point this time, I know I haven't gone much into the in-universe side of Tenkai this time, but maybe that can be the topic of yet another deep dive :)

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critters

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art dump

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inverted shitodos for my inverted len'en au

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me and my employer

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