What Does Dragon Ball Mean to You?
Goku asks, "To train, or not to train?"
I would like to pose an open question to the Dragon Ball community.
The question is… what does Dragon Ball mean to you?
Is Dragon Ball meaningful in your life? Has it changed your life in some way? Maybe Akira Toriyama’s art, world or message of the series inspired or still inspires you. Perhaps it is important to someone you know. Did you connect with Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Piccolo or another character throughout the series?
Or is Dragon Ball not meaningful at all?
This is an open ended question with no specific criteria. Your reply can be as short or as long as you like.
Please reply in the comments below. If your comments are longer than a few hundred words, then please email them through the contact page.
If I decide to add your comment to the book, then I will contact you to let you know and will provide a special thanks in the final version.
For me, it changed my life by leading me into the martial arts and the path of the spiritual warrior, which then lead to other things, such as a bachelors degree in East Asian Studies, a study abroad tour in Beijing where I trained with the Shaolin monks, and much more.
Please speak freely and describe what Dragon Ball means to you.
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Oh Derek! You gave me such a hard task.
There is a lot I would like to say on how DB has been an influence on my life. But with my family around… I can't concentrate. I wish to write all that I want, but…
Comment by Edgar — June 25, 2010 @ 1:51 am
Honostly speaking it has helped me in my martial arts training and viewing what is important. The message of continually trying to do good for others, protect others, and achieve what you are capable of is very inspiring. I thought about that stuff on a regular basis when I was training to test for another blackbelt several years ago and it helped me through the whole thing. In fact I got a tattoo of the word for Saiyajin in small kanji as a constant reminder. Some may think it is silly, but most think it is a cool idea. Especially given the fact that it is surrounded with the UV ink and a invisble UV kanji that under a blacklight the invisible kanji and the surrounding of the saiyajin kanji glows and says super saiyan. Yeah its funny but I don't really care, the message is more important and the idea of "never give up" is more important than other people's opinions.
Comment by Gabe — June 25, 2010 @ 7:07 am
It sounds like Dragon Ball made a rather large impression on your life. Both mentally and physically.
I agree that the internal reflection of our character is the most important thing.
Comment by derekpadula — June 28, 2010 @ 4:05 am
Well, I am no expert on tattoos, so I am not sure on what to say on that
. But I love how positive it means to you, and how you want it to reach others.
Comment by Edgar — June 29, 2010 @ 5:34 pm
When I was 12 my life was at a cross road. I was a geeky band nerd with no confidence and no desire to become your typical small town girl. I stumbled across DBZ early on morning, I liked the show so if it was on I would watch it, that turned into waking up hours early just to watch the show. Next thing DBZ wall scrolls and T-shirts littered my room. My parents saw the positive turn in my attitude and for my 13th birthday enrolled me in Karate classes. The school I attended was what I call McDojo the only think of importance to the instructor was the paycheck and I knew it. I wanted a teacher like Picclo, serious about training. I took it upon myself to research Karate schools around my small Louisiana town and I found an Isshin-Ryu school owned and operated by a former Marine. After one class I was hooked, I knew I found my place, I worked hard like the DBZ characters I would push my self past the point of fatigue and then push some more. After a few years I started to work for the karate school. My Picclo like teacher became my friend and I was a happy goofy band nerd karate geek as I put it. During day camps and movie nights with my students we would watch DBZ in our down time. I would engage the students in positive activities and they would make teams according to the characters they liked. It was amazing how these kids teams would channel the characters attitude. Team Goku, team, Vajita, for most of the girls team Bulma, and I was always proud to be a part of team Picclo. DBZ helped me to get to where I am today and I used it to inspire my students as it inspired me…
Comment by Catherine — July 27, 2010 @ 6:33 am
That is exactly the type of meaningful story I am on the lookout for. And that's funny how the students would act like the characters on the show because they were a member of that team. Thank you!
Comment by derekpadula — July 28, 2010 @ 6:42 am
Honestly, Kuririn was always an inspiration to me. Powerless and knowledgable of that power; he's stronger than billions of people on the earth and it means nothing when compared to his best friend and a handful of others, some of them children. But rather than get jealous or angry, he takes it with a smile and stays loyal. He always goes to battle, even though he knows he has a great chance to die. He also takes great mercy on opponents, first Vegeta and then, more notably, number 18. In doing so, he fulfills what was his greatest dream; not strength, as with Goku, but in finding a wife. Hell, even when he first arrived at Muten Roshi's he said he was only getting into martial arts to impress girls. The most quickly reformed and dynamic of Goku's former enemies, Kuririn brings about the most humorous and heartwarming moments of DBZ. (To quote Goku "Kuririn was a good guy! A really good guy!)
Comment by Kelley — August 21, 2010 @ 6:58 pm
I've heard that Krillin was also an inspiration to the creator of Naruto.
"Hell, even when he first arrived at Muten Roshi's he said he was only getting into martial arts to impress girls."
In the dub of Mexico, he says that he wants to be trained in order to protect his brothers. Never saw any brother of him, unless he refers to those monks who picked on him. Usually, the mexican dub is way more faithful to the original japanese one than the US one. Wish I could hear the original one.
Comment by Edgar — October 22, 2010 @ 6:06 pm
Krillin had two primary reasons he sought to learn the martial arts under Master Roshi. The first was to seek revenge against his temple brothers because they always picked on him for being weak. The second was to impress girls.
Edgar, who was that quote from, and do you know where it was said? I'd like to find the source. Thanks.
Comment by derekpadula — October 22, 2010 @ 6:48 pm
Well, I quoted a line from what Kelley said to separate to what I was going to say. Sadly, I can't find any video with the mexican spanish dub, of the episode where Krillin first appears. But while looking for it, indeed came many info stating that he wanted to train to stand up to the shaolin monks and not defend them.
While I said that the mexican dub is usually more faithful; sometimes errors are made. In DBZ when Goku asks everyone to help with the genkidama to defeat Buu, Android 17 says that it had been a long time since he heard Yajirobe's voice… that is an error.
And in someother series, the same thing happens. In the dub for The Simpsons, in the episode where Homer becomes a "monk" and refuses to go to church; after his house burns down, Barney comes over and talks to Chief Wiggum calling him dad… because of this; many in Latin America believed both were related.
Comment by Edgar — October 31, 2010 @ 7:44 pm
Actually DBZ has been very influencial to me as a point of reference for metaphysical principles. To start off the 7 dragon balls are your 7 chakras, the dragon represents your spinal column and your physical kundalini energy. Once you begin to analyse the show it bcomes clear that the Z fighters are all different aspects of the same entity. Goku is the monkey king from Journey to the West. He represents the physical body and the alchemetic process one goes through in thr transmutation of oneself from the base to their high aspects. The Namekian people are very important. The concept of Kami is important not just to the show but from Shinto culture. Piccolo actually represents mastering the heart chakra.
Comment by TMS Samurra — December 14, 2010 @ 10:18 am
That is an interesting point you made about the relationship between Goku and Sun WuKong as the most physical of the pilgrims. The fact that Sun WuKong goes through the alchemical process literally, while Goku does so superficially (as in, it's never explicitly explained), is a topic with a lot of depth. I had never looked at Piccolo in terms of mastering the heart chakra, but it definitely makes sense!
Comment by derekpadula — December 16, 2010 @ 4:05 pm
I think this was awesome and that whoever created this show should make way more episodes
Comment by Sona — May 5, 2011 @ 6:45 pm
The characters in dragonball are such archetypal characters. They are the extremest of the various personalities they represent. It's a frame of reference for what I deem to be The Highest and Lowest of moral standing and character for any person, including myself.
It's also what took me from being a hobby martial artist to a serious practitioner. Not because I wanted to shoot energy beams out of my hand (though we all do!) but because it showed me the importance of being physically and mentally prepared for all tasks.
Comment by Cob — October 28, 2011 @ 4:36 pm
Right. Some people think that the characters in Dragon Ball are shallow, and maybe some of them appear that way, but I think it's because Akira Toriyama presents them in simple ways. Their existence, in relationship to one another, paints a broad spectrum of the human mind and its capabilities.
I also find Goku to be a far more complicated individual then he appears at first glance. He essentially has two personalities. One, his Saiyan primal self, that is the source of his great power. And two, his human raised self, obtained when he hit his head on a rock. He actually killed his adoptive father unknowingly, while transformed into a primal great ape. He savagely crushed his own dad, then went on living the next decade or so of his life completely unaware. Fascinating, and it opens up some interesting philosophical questions.
Glad to hear that Dragon Ball inspired you to become more serious with the martial arts. The more I work on this project, the more I find people like you (and I), and from across the world who received the same inspiration.
Comment by derekpadula — October 29, 2011 @ 2:29 am
The interesting thing about Goku's Paradigm is that the only internal struggle he faces is fighting his instinct to maintain a high level of moral character. It's quite reflective of Buddhism in that sense, fighting what comes naturally to a human in order to develop the strength to overcome anything. Conquering the truly self is the hardest challenge one can undertake, as I'm sure you're well aware.
But back to DBZ, Goku faces such a unique struggle, where most of the characters fight an aspect of their personality, a conscious phenomenon, Goku must fight a subconscious conflict, as you said, his saiyan primal self. It would be like fighting the reptilian brain to a human which includes such important features as the brain stem and the most basic physiological understandings. It's the part of us that allows us to know how to feed as newborns and the part that tells us we need to sleep.
I agree, it's wonderful that Dragonball could inspire so many people to take the martial arts seriously. I live in Vegas currently and let me tell you, the MMA scene isn't what I would consider serious martial arts training. But Dragonball brings it out of people! I think it's the dream that one day, we will attain that level
Speaking of philosophy, I would like to pose the following question:
Many cultures throughout history were cultures strictly of martial combat: The Shaolin, Ninja, Spartans, Illyrians, and Countless Others. Had those societies become the dominant empires of their time (though true warrior cultures generally had no will to conquer), where would evolution have taken us? Had we evolved to fight rather than debate, would we be at the level of the warriors we see in Dragonball? And to what extent? Where would our power levels be and how close to the energy waves in the series would we be?
Comment by cob1 — October 29, 2011 @ 7:41 pm
Dragon Ball has really changed me. I joined 3 karate classes 2 Takwondo classes and 1 kung fu class. I am a lot like Goku now. My biggest dream now is to be like a Z fighter. Dragon Ball is very meaningful to my life.
Comment by Spike — March 30, 2012 @ 8:50 pm
That's awesome, Spike. How old were you when Dragon Ball inspired you to begin the martial arts? And how old are you now?
That's a lot of traditional East Asian martial arts. Did you find any similarities between DBZ and your martial arts training? I'd love to hear more about that. Did it ever serve as inspiration to push yourself harder?
These are the types of stories I'm most interested in, personally, because I followed a similar path. Thanks!
Comment by derekpadula — March 31, 2012 @ 8:45 pm
Dragon Ball has been one of the most important stories in my life. It has affected my personality, my interests, and my awareness of other cultures.
Goku's attitude of constant positivity, working hard to get what you want, and never letting anything get him down no matter how large the obstacle, was something I had never really seen before. Here was Freeza, this character that had been built up as the ultimate badass. Whom nobody had defeated; whom nobody had even seen the full potential of. And Goku wasn't afraid despite that. He didn't know if he would win but that didn't scare him. It excited him. It was a test he was giving himself for the only sake of self-improvement. Which was so important to him, that he was willing to put his life on the line. That was such a unique perspective that I had never been exposed to and it really changed the way I see the world, my problems, and myself. Goku taught me not to be a sissy.
That of course, was part of a larger perspective that I have grown to really adore and adopt in some ways. Goku's ambition is, as I have come to learn, very entrenched in the Japanese culture. The reason I had never seen it is because it doesn't seem to be as much of a valued character trait in the modern Western world. Which I find to be a shame. As I watched the show, I became completely wrapped up the wacky and fun Dragon Ball World. But there was so much I didn't understand. Why does Tien have three eyes? Why are there dots on Krillin's head? Just what the heck is wrong with Vegeta anyway? So I turned to the Internet. I found some great communities online with answers to my questions and more questions I had never thought of. I found out about the third eye meditation imagery and about implications of a character having three eyes that were lost on me. I learned about the Shaolin practice with the incense burns on the forehead, like Krillin. And I learned about the Japanese value of pride, hard work, and dedication. Because so much of Dragon Ball is intrinsically Japanese and Asian, by learning more about this silly story, I learned about another culture. I have also learned a little bit of the Japanese language, Japanese folklore, and a world view that I would have never known without Dragon Ball.
Since finishing the entire animated series, and revisiting it a few times in various forms, I have developed a wide array of interests that have shaped the person I am today. I am very interested in animation now, and I know the entire process from beginning to end. I am interested in international trade as I learned more about the process of bringing the show over to the United States and dubbing it in English. I am interested in martial arts and meditation now. I discovered podcasting by listening to the Daizenshuu EX podcast which lead me to listen to other podcasts. A collection that now include World News and Economics, of which I had an interest in as I learned about the production of Dragon Ball. I grew closer to my best friend as we shared Dragon Ball together for the first time and we still keep in touch today.
Dragon Ball has really, really changed my life. If I could go back, I would do it all over. I am interested in things I would have never discovered if it weren't for this goofy childrens cartoon. I am proud to be a Dragon Ball fan. And I look forward to sharing it with my own children one day.
Comment by Dustin — March 31, 2012 @ 10:56 pm