Theory and Analysis:Rei's Monologue

Rei's Monologue occurs during the second half of episode 14, while Rei Ayanami is present in Eva-01 during the interchangeability test. Rei's vision may be brought on by contact with the resident soul of Eva-01, Yui Ikari.

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Mountain... Heavy mountains. Things that change over time. 山。重い山。時間をかけて変わる物。

Sky... Blue sky. What your eyes can't see. What your eyes can see. 空。青い空。目に見えない物。目に見える物。

Rei compares Earth and Sky, these are other terms for earth and heaven, terrestrial and the celestial, body and soul. One is visible to the eyes and the other isn't.

Sun... A unique object. 太陽。一つしかない物。

Water... Something comforting. Commander Ikari. 水。気持ちの良い事。いかり司令。

Mountain, Sky, Sun and Water. Rei has listed the four classical elements of Earth, Air, Fire and Water under different names, the elements that compose the universe. The higher aspects of these elements are reflected in Qabalah in the Four Worlds, as well as the in the trigrams of the Book of Changes which share the same names.

Flowers... So many of the same... And so many unneeded. 花。同じ物がいっぱい。要らない物もいっぱい。

Sky... Red, red sky. The colour red. I hate the colour red. 空。赤い、赤い空。赤い色。赤い色は嫌い。

During episode 26 Rei uses the image of the setting sun and the red sky: "Sunset... vanishing life... My wish... I don't like it."

Water flowing. 流れる水。

Blood... The smell of blood. A woman who never bleeds. 血。血の匂い。血を流さない女。

Rei lists Flowers, Sky, Water and Blood, which partake of Fire, Air, Water and Earth respectively.

Man made from red soil. 赤い土から作られた人間。

See Genesis (בראשית) ii:vii.

Man made from man and woman. 男と女から作られた人間。

See Genesis (בראשית) iv:i.

City... A human creation. 町。人の作り出した物。

See Genesis (בראשית) iv:xvii.

Eva... A human creation. エヴァ。人の作りした物。

What is a human? A creation of God? 人は何？神様が作り出した物者？

Is man a human creation? 人は人が作り出した物者？

"Man made from red soil" to "Is man a human creation?" describes a six-fold process of creation that is akin to the Lesser Countenance, making "the woman who never bleeds" Aima.

The things I possess are a life and soul. I am a vessel for a soul. 私にある物は命、心、心の入れ物。

Following on from the above interpretation the vessel is allotted onto Kingdom, where the soul intersects the vessel.

Entry plug, the throne for a soul. エントリー?プラグ、それは魂の座。

The Entry Plugs act as a throne for the soul of the Lilim as the Evangelions are the highest forms of life on the planet besides Adam and Lilith.

Who is this? This is me. これは誰？これは私。

At this point we see Rei's left eye, as we see in the opening credits. The left eye is associated with the moon.

"Who is this who is thinking these thoughts?" I think therefore I am, Rei says to herself, yet Rei is not satisfied with this answer and goes on to ask more directly:

Who am I? What am I? What am I? What am I? What am I? 私は誰？私は何？私は何？私は何？私は何？

I am myself. This object is me. 私は自分。この物体が自分。自分を作っている形。

Rei has another shot at it, instead of the "I think therefore I am", she now goes for "I am that I am."

Yet Rei mistakes her form that is the result of the bonds between herself and others for her soul, she mistakes the veil for the tabernacle itself, and so goes on to say:

This is the me that can be seen, yet I feel as though I am not myself. 目に見える私。でも私は私で無い感じ。

Rei recognises her previous mistake and that the visible "this object is me" isn't her self, and that there's something beyond it, which is her unseen soul. Rei peers past the veil:

Very strange. I feel as if my body is melting. とても変。体が溶けて行く感じ。

I can no longer see myself. My shape is fading. 私が解らなくなる。私の形が消えていく。

I feel the presence of someone who is not me. 私でない人を感じる。

Is someone there, beyond this? 誰かいるのこの先に。

After recognising that her self is not merely "this object is me," her form melts away, revealing something that at first appears to not be part of herself, "I feel the presence of someone who is not me," as it is not the result of the bonds between her and other people. This is her soul, or Rei's true self as Lilith.

Ikari? 碇君？

I know this person. Major Katsuragi. この人知ってる。葛城さん。

Doctor Akagi. 赤木博士。

Everyone. Classmates. 皆。クラスメート。

The pilot of Unit 02. 二号機パイロット。

Commander Ikari? 碇司令？

Who are you? あなた誰？

Who are you? あなた誰？

Who are you? あなた誰？

Rei lists the bonds she shares with other people in order, she feels closest to Shinji, then Misato, then Ritsuko, then the world "the Eva is a bond with all people," with Asuka and Gendo at the bottom of the heap. Even though Rei seems closest to Gendo in the show, at least to begin with, she now recognises that he is in fact the furthest person away from her, so far away that she doesn't even know who he is, as Rei openly says in the next episode:

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Shinji: Say, what kind of person is my father? Rei: I don't know.

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