‘Berserk’ what kind of picture do you get in your mind after hearing this word? Just like the name, the storyline of this manga will make you go into berserk mode, and it is also one of the best-created ones that took over the world with its insane production. The Berserk fans have also noticed an insane Tattoo mark on the hand of Guts, so what does it mean?
Kentarou Minura was an absolute genius in creating this manga, but sadly he faced an unfortunate fate that led him to his death. His characters will always remain iconic in the manga world and the Brand Sacrifice Tattoo has also been an iconic part of guts and Berserk.
Many fans were confused with Brand Sacrifice Tattoo, if you are also searching for the meaning of the tattoo then you have arrived at the right place. Without any due, let’s dive into the world of Guts and unravel the mystery.
What Is the Brand of Sacrifice?
The Brand of Sacrifice is one of the most iconic things to be ever created in the manga. Many fans of manga know that this tattoo resembles the manga, Berserk, but do they know what it actually means?
The Brand of Sacrifice is a sign that indicates the people who have been anointed for the Invocation of Doom. The Brand of Sacrifice symbolizes the people who participate in the ceremony will need to transcend their humanity.
The ceremony results in the invention of a God Hand member or an apostle. In simple words, people like Guts will have the access to the Astral world and he’ll exit outside from the Human World, the Physical World.
“You have now been marked with the Brand of Sacrifice. The lives of those who bear the Brand, from the last drop of blood to the last moment of your agonizing death, will feed life to the new Child of Darkness.”
– Void
The people who get sacrificed, someone who is important to the summoner are offered to the creatures of Darkness and they are murdered. When a human wants to be reborn as an apostle, a sacrifice needs to be made which is usually their loved ones or family member.
What Is the Brand of Sacrifice Based On?
Berserk has never disappointed his fans and has introduced us to a world where there is only grief, and Guts teaches us how to find peace within them. Berserk is one of the most beautiful and suffering mangas you’ll ever find and even Miura stated that he was inspired to draw the manga and his characters by looking through many other animations.
The characters of Berserk are iconic. The protagonist of the franchise, Guts was inspired by Mad Max, and to draw the world was inspired by looking at Elric of Melniboné. The world of Berserk has always been ruthless and there is nothing but betrayal, sorrow, and revenge.
The Physical and Astral World of Berserk is an iconic piece of art, and that has to be because it was drawn by taking inspiration from Greek Tragedies. the manga has a ruthless theme, and a dark theme, and is considered one of the best manga with such a theme.
When it comes to the inspiration behind the Brand of Sacrifice, we can find many similarities between its art with old Norse runes. But when we take a look at how the Brand of Sacrifice actually works we can assume that Miura might have created this concept by the Christianity culture.
In the culture of Christianity, we can find that there is a concept of hell and heaven in the afterlife. Finding the origin of the concept can be difficult because Miura never gave us a statement on how he was inspired by the Brand of Sacrifice.
Nevertheless, we can be sure that he got the concept by looking at the Christianity culture because we can find many similarities like the God Hand members and apostles. Not only Christianity but there is a concept mixed with the Vikings as well.
When we unfold the book of Vikings and do a little bit of research on their culture and ancestors then we can find some pieces of information getting matched the Brand of Sacrifice.
The Vikings also used to have tattoos on their bodies, and in a glimpse, we can confirm that the pattern of that tattoo comes to match the Brand of Sacrifice.
Characters with Brand of Sacrifice in Berserk
We found out what the Brand of Sacrifice is and we also found the origin behind these tattoos, but do you know every member who has these marks on their body? We know that one of the famous characters with this tattoo is Guts, but now let’s take a look at other characters with the same mark and where the tattoo is located at.
Guts have the Brand of Sacrifice on the right side of his neck.
Casca has her tattoo located at the upper-middle part of her breast.
Judeau has the Brand of Sacrifice in the palm of his left hand.
Corkus has the Brand on his forehead.
The Egg of the Perfect World has the Brand of Sacrifice on his tongue.
Gaston has one on the left shoulder.
The Count’s Wife has a tattoo between her breasts, on the upper chest.
Corpses possess the Brand on their foreheads.
Lady Priestess of the Cherry Blossoms possesses the Brand on her right shoulder.
These characters had their own way of getting the tattoo on their body, the usual way of getting this Brand of Sacrifice is through the Eclipse that keeps on happening each time in every 216 years.
With the occupation ceremony, a new member of the God Hand is created and that is why it is one of the rare sacrificial ceremonies, and an important one as well. When Griffith, the antagonist of the franchise became the new member of God of Hand, Band of Falcons, group of Guts and Griffith got branded. After becoming the new member of the God of Hand he became the demon, an executioner of the Idea of Evil’s will.
During the time of the eclipse, many of the Band died and the only remaining alive people were Guts and Casca. We all know what fate Casca suffered at that time, it was the worst of all the characters. She was sexually abused and assaulted in front of everyone by Griffith.
It was one of the saddest and the most heartbreaking moments for the fans to watch, thanks to the Skull Knight because if he wouldn’t arrive on time and broken the eclipse, Casca and Guts would have never been alive.
“Eclipse Arc” fans will never forget this traumatizing arc. This was one of the shocking events that took place in the anime, fans still have a hard time believing that the storyline took such a turn. The story really has been traumatizing and filled with grief, but sadly they are not real, or are they?
Is the Brand of Sacrifice Real?
We found the inspiration behind the manga Berserk, and even Miura has stated and said that he was inspired by the creation of Berserk by collecting multiple pieces of information through different Fictional media. However, he has stated that the idea for the Brand of Sacrifice is his original idea.
Earlier we made some assumptions and tried to figure out the true origin of this cursed mark. Throughout that journey, we could find that the curse mark could be a piece of some history, mythology, and information that is similar to the Viking World. But, all these signs are also an assumption in the real world. We can be sure that the Brand of the Sacrifice is not actually real.
Berserk has a huge fanbase and many are inspired by the work of Muira. They have even decided to brand themselves and that must be the reason because the theme of the manga is dark, filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice, fried, and many more. These themes have inspired many people to go out and fight their problems even when they are at their lowest, just like Guts.
The Brand of Sacrifice has become a source of strength to the many fans of Berserk, they wear this band as a sign that they are mortal, and even though they are mortal they will keep on fighting till death. The Band of Sacrifice might not be real but it has inspired many people to fight for their own.
Berserk and Guts have inspired and helped many people to fight their depression and one of the signs to fight that anxiety has been “The Brand of Sacrifice”. The cursed mark has truly been a symbol, and even though it’s not real, it has been inspiring to many audiences.
