Inu-Yasha Why did Inuyasha get the sword that kills and Sesshomaru get the sword that heals?

Why do you think Sesshomaru got the weaker sword and Inuyasha get the sword that is stronger?

 

This was stated somewhere around the episode involving Totosai and Tensaiga's first appearance in battle. The Tetsusaiga, a sword intended for fighting, was bestowed upon Inuyasha, a hanyou who would require its aid for survival in an enviornment of bloodthirsty demons. Sesshomaru's inheritance, on the other hand, was the sword of healing, for Inutaisho probably speculated that a full blooded demon with ample capability of defending himself would prefer a sword with alternate intention.

 

Other than the facts that Kagome's Arrow posted. I believe that their father also intended it so that the brothers would not be able to kill eachother with the two swords. If Sesshomaru wielded the Tetsusaiga, He would probably have killed Inuyasha long ago. I think their father knew even with Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha would be unable to defeat his half brother.

 

I would not say that Sesshoumaru got the weaker of the two swords. Tessaiga definitely has the greater destructive power, but Tenseiga has an equally powerful healing ability (and it works wonderfully against undead things).

It is my impression that the two swords are intended as teaching tools for the brothers. Sesshoumaru needs to learn compassion in some form, and Inuyasha needs to learn to protect others. And honestly, both of them need some lessons in dealing with humans. Sure, Inuyasha is a hanyou, but what was his goal for the longest time? Not to become a full human, but to become a full youkai. So Inuyasha needs Tessaiga to better accept his human side and humans in general. Sesshoumaru needs something that can't kill humans and that may force him to, at some point, start accepting them as beings worthy of love and protection. I think he's getting somewhere with Rin.

~Shadrach Anki

 

i think that the tenseiga and the tessaiga are equal. but if sesshoumaru didn't have the tenseiga, rin would've died... can't really think what to say but hey, at least sesshoumaru has the tokijin thing.

maybe inutaisho left the tenseiga for sesshoumaru because he wanted to teach him something. like how to love or forgive or something... i don't know?!

 

i agree completely.
they are for teaching, and sesshomaru really needs to learn that love and healing are important and humans especially but also youkai and hanyou are worthy of love and healing.

 

actually they were both given the swords so that they would work together. The Tensaigas power is also the power to dissipate the power of anything it wishes. While the tetsaiga's power is to kill. So when Sesshoumaru uses the sword to dissipate an enemies pwer Inuyasha uses the Tetsaiga to finish the opponent. this happens in an episode where they fight the "King" of cat demons.

 

I agree with that. I believe, in the early episodes, that it actually states that InuYasha makes the Tetsaiga (sp) change through the strong need or want to protect the humans. Is that right?

 

I'm not so sure about that alternate power of Tenseiga, but you are correct that the swords work well together (and against each other, as has been mentioned before). What happened in the cat-demon episodes was that Tenseiga returned the souls of the dead (which was giving the cat-demon king his power) to their bodies. With the cat-demon king thus weakened, Tessaiga could finish the job.

As for them working against each other, if you haven't heard the explanation yet, here it is in short: Tenseiga can't kill, so Sessh can't kill Inuyasha. Tessaiga's power is negated by Tenseiga so long as Sessh wears Tenseiga, so Inuyasha can't kill Sessh.