is a Japanese manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series written and illustrated by Hikaru Nakamura

Hikaru Nakamura (manga artist)

is a Japanese manga artist. She is mostly known for Saint Young Men and Arakawa Under the Bridge.-External links:...

. It has been serialized by Kodansha

Kodansha

, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...

 in the monthly seinen manga magazine Morning 2 since 2007, with chapters collected in seven tankōbon

Tankobon

, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...

volumes .

Plot

Jesus Christ and Gautama Buddha

Gautama Buddha

Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...

, the founders of Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 and Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...

, are living together as roommates in a Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

 apartment while taking a vacation on Earth. The comedy often involves jokes about Christianity, Buddhism, and all things related, as well as the main characters' attempts to hide their identities and understand modern society in Japan. Each chapter shows how they go about or react to an average day, though they also go sightseeing or visit amusement parks.

Characters

Jesus Christ

Jesus is portrayed as a care-free, generous, and humorous "sei-jin" (holy man or adult in Japanese). Unlike Buddha who is very strict about the relationship between him and his disciples, Jesus is very friendly to his apostles. But because Jesus is even nice to Judas

Judas Iscariot

Judas Iscariot was, according to the New Testament, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He is best known for his betrayal of Jesus to the hands of the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver.-Etymology:...

, this makes Buddha worry. The residents of Heaven

Heaven

Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...

 are overly protective of Jesus and will sometimes attempt to intervene to save Jesus if they hear his cries, even if they were from riding a roller-coaster. As a holy figure, Jesus' head will shine with a halo if he does or says something especially virtuous. Whenever Jesus' emotions are at a high or low peak (due to finding something funny or being scared), miracle

Miracle

A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...

s may happen unexpectedly. Jesus is a devout follower of drama shows, and reviews them on his online blog.

Gautama Buddha

Buddha is portrayed as a calm, rational, and kind "sei-jin". However, he tends to be very tight with money. When Buddha sees things too serious, he is often "saved" by Jesus’ care-free simplicity. But when the same care-free nature appears as Jesus being an impulse buyer, it often irritates Buddha.　When his anger shows, often as a result of Jesus' antics, his head will start to shine with a halo and increasing in brightness until Jesus either calms him down or apologizes. His head can also glow if Buddha says anything especially virtuous, upon which he will have to do something to lower his virtue. Ever since Buddha spent a night in a manga cafe

Manga cafe

A is a kind of café in Japan where people can read manga. People pay for the time they stay in the café. Most manga cafés also offer internet access like and vice versa, making the two terms mostly interchangeable in Japan. . Additional services include video games, television, snack/beverage...

, he has become a follower of Osamu Tezuka

Osamu Tezuka

was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...

's works such as Buddha

Buddha (manga)

is a manga drawn by Osamu Tezuka and is Tezuka's unique interpretation of the life of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. The critically acclaimed series is often referred to as a gritty, even sexual, portrayal of the Buddha's life. Buddha received the 2004, 2005 Eisner Award...

.

Animals

Animals of all kinds frequently appear before Jesus and Buddha due to their concerns to help the two holy figures as much as they are physically capable of, such as shielding them from rain right to the point of attempting to sacrifice themselves as food if the two are hungry much to their horror.

Reception

Saint Young Men received the 2009 Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize for Short Work Manga.

Saint Young Men was the tenth best-selling manga series in Japan for 2009 according to Oricon

Oricon

, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...

, with the four volumes selling over 2.6 million copies. Volumes three and four were among the top 25 best-selling manga for 2009. As the result of its popularity, issues of Morning 2 started selling out on newsstands; because of this, in May 2009 Kodansha began making the magazine available online the day it is published.