When Is InuYasha’s Birthday?

When is InuYasha’s birthday?

I’ve been seeing everyone sharing that InuYasha’s birthday is April 1st 1479.

Let me first explain how that is wrong.

In 1996, Kagome traveled 500 years in the past to 1496. 1496 InuYasha had already been pinned to the tree of ages for 50 years.. 1479 was during the time he was pinned to the tree. How was he born while under Kikyou’s spell?

Lets break it down to something easier to believe.

The series starts off in 1996 Tokyo Japan, Kagome goes down into the well making that 500 years off of 1996, which leaves us at 1496 in Feudal Japan - The Sengoku Jidai.

When you remove the 50 years from 1496, that means InuYasha was sealed in 1446. Debunking “April 1st 1479”.

Did I mention that’s something that someone posted on a publicly edited website for April Fools? DEBUNKED. Even more so as we continue on in this post. You’ll see why -

No where in the series, the anime, manga, novelization, video games, Drama CD Audios, Artbook, and not even the InuYasha Profiles Book state any type of information as to what InuYasha’s birth date is. Until we look at one of the movies, which has the closest evidence for this and will help us be as accurate as possible to what InuYasha’s real date of birth is.

Looking towards the third installment of the InuYasha movies - “Swords of an Honorable Ruler” We get to see the beginning of InuYasha’s life. During this day it was snowing with a full moon, where InuYasha’s half brother Sesshoumaru and their father the Inu no Taishou are talking right before he runs in order to save Izayoi from Takemaru of Setsuna. With that we know that it takes place in Winter, and on a Full Moon leading onto a Total Lunar Eclipse.

In which even Takemaru of Setsuna says, and I quote directly:

“The night of a lunar eclipse. Excellent. It is the perfect time to slay a demon.”

During the viewing of the film we are granted with a few exchanged lines between Saya, Toutousai and Myouga in regards to the passing of InuYasha’s father, stating it had happened 200 years ago.

The same night that InuYasha is born, his father dies.

Taking off of what we have currently: 1496, reduces it down to the year 1296.

UPDATE:

In InuYasha Wide Edition 4, InuYasha is said to have taken place during the 1540s but that wouldn’t make him born around the 1340s and here’s why - As of Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon - Episode 21 - “Secret of the Rainbow Pearls” Summary from Animedia March 2021 added weight to this. It states that Taishou died in the Kamakura Period, which takes place during the years of 1185-1333.

Making it also Historically Accurate.

Now we have the following evidence in place

- The starting year for the series is 1996

- Traveling around 500 years back in time to the Sengoku Period during the 1540s

- The 200 years ago when the Inu no Taishou’s passes during the Kamakura Period is 1296

Making us closer to the most accurate answer for InuYasha’s date of birth.

I’ve compiled down this information from various Almanacs, which is an annual calendar containing important dates and statistical information such as astronomical data and tide tables. Meaning there was so much in terms of lunar cycle to sift through before I could get even far enough as to establish a definitive date. The one benefit here that we have, is that Japan is a small island and lunar eclipses only happen so often.

Narrowing it down to a handful of dates that the moon was visible enough to even see, let alone during a celestial event such as a lunar eclipse.

We were left with the most realistic date given that it’s winter in the area of the years around 1296, and on the correct moon cycle in Japan -

Total Lunar Eclipse of March 29th 1298

Partial Lunar Eclipse - October 2nd 1297

Partial Lunar Eclipse of May 18th, 1296

Total Lunar Eclipse - May 30th 1295

Leaving us with a total eclipse of the Moon occurring on December 4th 1294 with maximum eclipse at 10:44 UT. A dramatic total eclipse lasting 1 hour and 38 minutes plunged the full Moon into deep darkness, as it passed right through the centre of the Earth’s umbral shadow.

The penumbral eclipse lasted for 5 hours and 59 minutes. The partial eclipse lasted for 3 hours and 45 minutes. The total eclipse lasted for 1 hour and 38 minutes.

If we convert the 10:44 Universal Time to Japan time, that made it 7:44 PM. That would be the time that InuYasha was born. In the movie we hear his crying as soon as it becomes a Total Lunar Eclipse.

A Total Lunar Eclipse on a snowing night.

December 4th 1294

Japanese calendar: 11/09/1294

Senkachi, 9th Shimotsuki 1294 (1294年霜月9日先勝)

➸Kagome➸ 💘-かごめ-