magan 魔眼

In Japanese, magan 魔眼, "magic eye," or "demon eye," also called "evil eye," jagan 邪眼, or satirically jakigan 邪気眼, is an eye that has some sort of magical power or ability. Sometimes a cursed, evil, demonic one.

Character: Ryougi Shiki 両儀式
Anime: The Garden of Sinners: Overlooking View, Kara no Kyoukai: Fukan Fuukei 空の境界『俯瞰風景』 (Movie)

• Meaning
• Examples
  
  • Pair
  • Single
  • Extra
  • Fake
    
    • Imaginary

Meaning

In general, magan, or jagan, tend to refer to:

1. Eyes that can see something normal eyes can't. For example, eyes that can see the future.
2. Eyes that affect the things they're looking at. For example, Medusa's, which turn people into stone.
3. Eyes that are the physical manifestation of some sort of curse or power. The eye itself doesn't do anything optical, but it being there means its owner has some sort of ability.

Although it would make perfect sense for magical eyes to have a single optical ability, it's often the case that the magical eye is absolutely loaded with all sorts of random powers, each having less and less to do with eyesight.

The eye-power creep is real.

In general, magan tend to grant its bearer improved vision. Like, just seeing better than normal, average human eyes.

Examples

Pair

The simplest magan comes in pairs. After all, you have two eyes, so it's only natural both eyes become magical.

Character: Ryougi Shiki 両儀式
Anime: The Garden of Sinners: Overlooking View, Kara no Kyoukai: Fukan Fuukei 空の境界『俯瞰風景』 (Movie)

• chokushi no magan
  直死の魔眼
  Magic eyes of direct death. Known in English as the "Mystic Eyes of Death Perception."
• Allows the bearer to see the "lines of death," which subsequently allows the bearer to kill virtually anything.

Character: Leonardo Watch レオナルド・ウォッチ
Anime: Blood Blockade Battlefront, Kekkai Sensen 血界戦線 (Episode 2)

• kamigami no gigan
  神々の義眼
  Prosthetic eyes of the gods. Artificial eyes of the gods. Known in English as the All-Seeing Eyes of the Gods.
• Allows the bearer to see through illusions. Can see extremely small things. Can project what they see into other people's sight. Can do a whole lot of things, to be honest.

Single

Some magan manifest as a single eye. Usually, it's because the bearer wasn't born with magical eyes, and acquired a single one of them somehow. Consequently, the magan tends to be a different color from their natural eye, and the character ends up with different-colored eyes.

Character: Lelouch Lamperouge ルルーシュ・ランペルージ
Anime: Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch, コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ (Episode 3)

• zettai junshu no giasu
  絶対遵守のギアス
  Geass of absolute obedience.
• The target must obey any order the bearer gives them.

Anime: Gekijouban Naruto: Dai Koufun! Mikazuki-jima no Animaru Panikku Datte ba yo!, 劇場版 NARUTO -ナルト- 大興奮！みかづき島のアニマル騒動だってばよ (Movie)

• sharingan
  写輪眼
  Copy-wheel eye.
• A wheel-shaped eye that allows the bearer to copy the jutsu 術 the target uses, and use genjutsu 幻術, illusory techniques.

Character: Sariel サリエル
Anime: Nanatsu no Bitoku 七つの美徳 (Episode 7)

• Sariel's right eye is a jagan that brings upon destruction when activated.

Extra

Some eyes manifest as an extra, third eye, instead of replacing the owner's natural two ones.

Character: Hiei 飛影
Anime: Yū☆Yū☆Hakusho 幽☆遊☆白書 (Episode 8)

• Hiei's jagan grants him several abilities, for example: telekinesis.

Fake

Infatuated with characters that have special eyes, chuunibyou 中二病 characters will sometimes pretend to have special eyes, too.

In fact, the term jakigan 邪気眼, although meaning "evil-feeling eye," normally refers to the sort of chuunibyou that pretends to have dark, demonic powers, demonic eyes, demons sealed in their arms, and all that sort of edgy stuff.

Character: Takanashi Rikka 小鳥遊六花
Anime: Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! 中二病でも恋がしたい！ (Episode 1)

Imaginary

Iin Steins;Gate, Okabe Rintarou 岡部倫太郎, an extreme chuunibyou, claims to have a magan called "Reading Steiner," which allows him to observe certain things normal people can't. Although he does have that ability, his eyes are utterly normal.