Karura, the Celestial Fire Eagle

The myth

Karura is the Japanese name of Garuda, the divine bird of India that Buddhism carried into East Asia. In Japan he is one of the Hachibushū, the eight beings who protect the Buddha and his teaching. He has a human body, a bird's head and sometimes wings, and is known for devouring serpents and dragons, the nāga, a symbol of victory over poisons and passions. Some images show him breathing fire. The dry-lacquer Karura statue at Kōfuku-ji temple in Nara, made in 734, is a national treasure. Many scholars see him as one of the origins of the tengu figure.

Why it has this power

A Rare level-6 Fire Bird with 2250 ATK and 1800 DEF, fusion only: a Sacred-Mountain Yamabushi joined with any Bird. It fits, since the mountain ascetics absorbed much Buddhist iconography. Fire is the sacred flame; Feather and Crown, the wings of the king of birds. A natural hunter of the archipelago's serpents.

Did you know

Kōfuku-ji's Karura has neither wings nor talons: he is a young armored warrior with a bird's head, very unlike India's giant Garuda.

Connections

• Born from the fusion of: Sacred-Mountain Yamabushi + Bird

Where to get it

• Born from the fusion of: Sacred-Mountain Yamabushi + Bird
• It never joins the collection: you summon it mid-duel, by fusion or ritual.

Sources

1. Garuda — Encyclopaedia Britannica — The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
2. Naga — Encyclopaedia Britannica — The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
3. Tengu — Encyclopaedia Britannica — The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica