Why Ten Shin Han has three eyes in Dragon Ball

 

In the history of Dragon Ball we can find hundreds of characters who have been able to stand out in various ways in the franchise, either thanks to their skills, their powers, and even some of them due to their peculiar and characteristic physical appearance they display; thus becoming, in addition, one of the favorites of the followers.

Great examples of characters who have a rather peculiar appearance, with somewhat unusual characteristics and physical traits that distinguish them from the rest, are Piccolo, Majin Buu, Frieza, Cell, and, of course, Ten Shin Han.

Regarding the latter, it is well known that Ten Shin Han is distinguished by having a third eye located on his forehead, which, for a long time, has made fans wonder why Toriyama decided to apply this feature to his character. That is why, below, we will explain to you the reason why Ten Shin Han has a third eye in Dragon Ball.

Why does Ten Shin Han have three eyes in the Dragon Ball story?

Among the best and most outstanding characters that exist in the history of Dragon Ball, we find none other than Ten Shin Han, a character who has been able to stand out in history not only because of his great power but also thanks to his particular appearance.

And, in the same way, that happens with Krillin, who for some reason does not have a nose, Ten Shin Han also has a quite particular face, but not because of the lack of any of his features, but, on the contrary, because of the fact that he has one eye “leftover”, so to speak, located right in the middle of his forehead.

By virtue of this, many fans have had a big question about why Ten Shin Han is the only relevant character with three eyes that appear throughout the entire Dragon Ball chronology. Regarding this mystery, Akira Toriyama offered an answer in the Dragon Ball Daizenshu collection, a series of volumes that were edited and published by Shueisha between 1995 and 1996, which brings together curiosities regarding the series.

In this work, Toriyama explains that the reason why Ten Shin Han has three eyes is because he is a descendant of the Three-Eyed Clan, an ancient alien clan that went into exile on Earth, and eventually ended up mixing with the human race. , resulting in hybrids like Ten Shin Han, with human appearance, but with three eyes.

Although this has been the official explanation by Akira Toriyama, creator of the entire Dragon Ball franchise, for many fans this is not a very convincing reason, and they have the theory that in reality, the mangaka did not put the third eye just because.

In fact, it should be noted that many of the franchise's followers have leaned towards the theory that, in reality, Ten Shin Han's third eye is a reference to the concept of the Third Eye that can be found in various Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Taoism, where the third eye is seen related to clairvoyance, intuition, and spiritual perception.

This theory partly makes sense, taking into account the great influence that Chinese literature had on the first part of Dragon Ball, so it could be that, coupled with the fact that his eye is due to being the descendant of a clan alien, the Third Eye of Ten Shin Han is related to the meaning this has in Buddhism, Taoism, and other Eastern religions.