Do you think it's possible that there are other pocket dimensions like Gensokyo? Like maybe Europe or Africa have their own versions of Gensokyo? I know it has its fair share of Western youkai but there must be more than one place like it.
Do you think it's possible that there are other pocket dimensions like Gensokyo? Like maybe Europe or Africa have their own versions of Gensokyo? I know it has its fair share of Western youkai but there must be more than one place like it.
Considering Gensokyo was specifically created by Yukari, with the aid of a few other people, and it's specifically described as the last true home for youkai in a world that has forgotten magic and faith, I very much doubt there's anywhere else like it on Earth.
Considering Gensokyo was specifically created by Yukari, with the aid of a few other people, and it's specifically described as the last true home for youkai in a world that has forgotten magic and faith, I very much doubt there's anywhere else like it on Earth.
But there's Makai isn't there? It's described a world completely separated from Gensokyo created by Shinki. If she can create Makai then a powerful foreign God should be able to create their own world to contain beings for the creatures of their mythologies.
But there's Makai isn't there? It's described a world completely separated from Gensokyo created by Shinki. If she can create Makai then a powerful foreign God should be able to create their own world to contain beings for the creatures of their mythologies.
Makai is another world entirely, and it's not a pocket dimension like Gensokyo but more like its own thing. If I understand it right, it's a problem of pressure : the outside world's unbelief crushes pocket dimensions one after another, and Gensokyo is the only one who survives because it's made and maintained by a lot of very powerful entities. If humans were to rebel, the balance would be broken, and Gensokyo would collapse. For all the youkais living off belief, it would be like a giant acid bath that utterly destroy them until nothing is left but the remains of their frenzied carnage as they murder and slaughter to create fear.
But there's Makai isn't there? It's described a world completely separated from Gensokyo created by Shinki. If she can create Makai then a powerful foreign God should be able to create their own world to contain beings for the creatures of their mythologies.
Makai is completely unrelated to Gensokyo or Earth, it's an entirely separate world created and controlled by Shinki. It's not a pocket dimension, pocket dimensions are connected to a larger one, Makai is its own dimension. The problem is that there are no powerful Earth born gods left, because science has replaced faith in the outside world, and gods can't survive without faith. Shinki has no relation to Earth and her power is entirely her own, so she has no such concerns.
Gensokyo is still part of Earth. It overlaps with a real world physical location. Outside of Gensokyo, almost all gods, monsters, and myths have ceased to exist. Some, like Mamizou, are still able to survive, but Kanako and Suwako were on the verge of fading away before moving to Gensokyo as a last resort. If there were other places like Gensokyo, such as in Europe, then there wouldn't have been any reason for clearly European originating groups like the SDM to come all the way to Japan.
Makai is completely unrelated to Gensokyo or Earth, it's an entirely separate world created and controlled by Shinki. It's not a pocket dimension, pocket dimensions are connected to a larger one, Makai is its own dimension. The problem is that there are no powerful Earth born gods left, because science has replaced faith in the outside world, and gods can't survive without faith. Shinki has no relation to Earth and her power is entirely her own, so she has no such concerns.
Gensokyo is still part of Earth. It overlaps with a real world physical location. Outside of Gensokyo, almost all gods, monsters, and myths have ceased to exist. Some, like Mamizou, are still able to survive, but Kanako and Suwako were on the verge of fading away before moving to Gensokyo as a last resort. If there were other places like Gensokyo, such as in Europe, then there wouldn't have been any reason for clearly European originating groups like the SDM to come all the way to Japan.
On the flip side, it could be that SDM simply isn't welcome in other places. I mean given the trouble it stated in Gensokyo I would not be surprised that if there were other mythical realms cut off from the earth that SDM was either forcefully removed from or turned away from them.
On the flip side, it could be that SDM simply isn't welcome in other places. I mean given the trouble it stated in Gensokyo I would not be surprised that if there were other mythical realms cut off from the earth that SDM was either forcefully removed from or turned away from them.
They only caused trouble in Gensokyo, by stirring up the at the time very frustrated and desperate youkai, because there was no system in place to stop them. Before the spellcard rules were established, it was probably only a matter of time before someone else did the same thing. Not to mention that considering the highly coincidental nature of the events leading up to the establishment of the spellcard rules, you wouldn't be out of line to imagine at least some of it was a setup.
You also have to consider just how Gensokyo works, and how delicate a balance it maintains. A god, or group of gods, would first need the power to create a pocket dimension, then they need a sufficiently large number of humans to relocate there(remember that the Human Village is actually the size of a city) in order to supply them with faith. They then must keep those humans in a constant state of fear/reverence without the humans turning on them.
There's also the fact that Yukari created Gensokyo for all magical beings to live in. Gods historically are much more self centered, and most that could have enough of a following to actually make this work probably wouldn't allow anyone but themselves to benefit from it.
They only caused trouble in Gensokyo, by stirring up the at the time very frustrated and desperate youkai, because there was no system in place to stop them. Before the spellcard rules were established, it was probably only a matter of time before someone else did the same thing. Not to mention that considering the highly coincidental nature of the events leading up to the establishment of the spellcard rules, you wouldn't be out of line to imagine at least some of it was a setup.
You also have to consider just how Gensokyo works, and how delicate a balance it maintains. A god, or group of gods, would first need the power to create a pocket dimension, then they need a sufficiently large number of humans to relocate there(remember that the Human Village is actually the size of a city) in order to supply them with faith. They then must keep those humans in a constant state of fear/reverence without the humans turning on them.
There's also the fact that Yukari created Gensokyo for all magical beings to live in. Gods historically are much more self centered, and most that could have enough of a following to actually make this work probably wouldn't allow anyone but themselves to benefit from it.
I don't disagree with anything you are saying here but I still don't think we can discount the possibility that there are other mystical realms out there. I doubt that if they exist they are common or necessarily as large or well developed as Gensokyo. However, if Gensokyo was the only one in existence I would expect that there would be more western refugees than there are now. Now admittedly here we run into the very meta-problem of Authors tend only to work with what they know and Zun may not be all that familiar or interested in other Nation's and Culture's mythical creatures so that's why we don't see them.