Summary
In the Demon Slayer Corps,Hashiras are the most respected fighterswho have worked relentlessly to master a breathing style and earned the coveted title after making countless sacrifices. Most of them come from humble backgrounds and understand the responsibility they are entrusted with. Interestingly, the Hashiras often have very miserable lives and are scarred forever by some tragedy.
Gyomei Himejima, the Stone Hashira is no exception as he is unfortunately been a victim of catastrophic twists of fates ever since he was born. Although he has grown up to become a very kind and sensitive gentle giant, he hides a very painful past.Himejima is arguably the strongest Hashirain the Demon Slayer Corps, but he was not always the flail and axe-swinging warrior he is known to be.
Gyomei’s Life Before Joining Demon Slayer Corps
Gyomei was born on August 23rdin the Himejima clan on Mount Hinode. Unfortunately for him, his mother passed away apparently due to medical complications of delivery. Things did not get any better for him in the following years as he lost his father to some disease. As if getting orphaned was already not tragic enough, Himejima developed a fever one day and he ended up with vision loss because of it. Luckily, Gyomei somehow developed an unusually superhuman sense of hearing and realized that he could even discern if someone around him had malicious intent toward him. But his ability was so unconventional and unheard of that it just led to people labeling him as a liar, as a blind person should not be able to do things like that.
By the time Gyomei was a teenager, he had started living in a derelict temple. However, he was now quite happy and content with his life. After bravely coming to terms with the tragedies he faced, Gyomei adopted nine orphans and focused all his energy on raising them. Although he was himself poor, heworked extremely hardto make sure that he fed the kids. He would frequently skip meals and because of that, he was quite skinny and weak. In spite of all the challenges, Gyomei had finally found a purpose and was content with his life. But misfortune struck again in the cruelest way possible and took everything away from him.
The temple was situated in an area that was well-known for demon attacks. to ensure that everyone was safe, Gyomei used Wisteria Incense and made a strict rule for the children to never travel beyond the borders of the temple during the night. This strategy worked flawlessly until one unfortunate evening. One of the nine orphans broke the rule and was approached by a dangerous demon. In order to save his life, he decided to sacrifice everyone else. The child not only took the demon to the temple but also put out the Wisteria Incense, making the premise vulnerable to attack. Before Gyomei could make sense of what had unfolded, four children were killed.
As the orphans saw the brutal murder of their friends, they naturally panicked. Gyomei showed immense courage in the horrific circumstances and appealed to the rest of the children to stay inside the temple. But three of them ignored his orders and were killed moments later. Only a girl named Sayo listened to Gyomei’s agitated requests and trusted him. Eventually, Gyomei had to face the demon but he had never fought anyone until then in his life.
Gyomei was overcome by the ruthless desire to save Sayo to the point that he fought with all his strength. Itdid not take him long to realize that he was unusually strongand managed to beat the demon’s head until dawn. Sayo hid behind him in the meantime and when the sun finally rose, the demon’s body disappeared. When the villagers arrived at the scene, they found the dead bodies of the orphans. Gyomei was covered in blood and when Sayo was asked to explain what had transpired, she could only muster the courage to say, “That man is a monster! He killed them! He killed everyone!”
It appears that Sayo had probably misunderstood the circumstances and had erroneously assumed that a man (not a demon) had attacked the orphans that night. Naturally, the villagers concluded that she was talking about Gyomei as the demon’s body had already vanished. Therefore, Gyomei was imprisoned immediately. When the trial happened, he failed to demonstrate his innocence and was sentenced to be executed. Interestingly, Sayo who had gone into a shock following the temple incident always regretted that her testimony had led to Gyomei’s imprisonment and always wished to apologize to him. Sadly, this never came to fruition as they never got to meet again which means it became a lifelong regret for her.
Life After Joining Demon Slayer Corps
Gyomei Himejima likely felt guilty for failing to save the lives of the innocent children. He must be dying inside thinking that the orphans he had been raising met such a horrific end. As he awaited his execution,Kagaya Ubuyashiki learned about the incident. He understood the unique circumstances and made sure that Gyomei was freed before his execution. Gyomei later met Kagaya and went on tojoin the Demon Slayer Corps.
Usually, people who join the Demon Slayer Corps, take years of rigorous training and relentless hard work to become a Hashira. But Gyomei possessed such incredible superhuman abilities that allowed him to earn the coveted title in just two months. He soon became an irreplaceable member of the Demon Slayer Corps and demonstrated incredible professionalism while dealing with his demon adversaries.
As the Stone Hashira, Gyomei saved countless lives and was interestingly the one to kill the demon responsible for the death ofShinobu and Kanae’s parents. Both of them went on to become Hashiras themselves and Gyomei was the one who first introduced them to breathing-style cultivators after they successfully concluded physical conditioning under his watchful eyes. The Stone Hashira has also trainedSanemi’s younger brother, Genya Shinazugawa.
In the Hashira Training Arc, Gyomei was responsible for the muscle reinforcement training of the less experienced demon slayers. Inosuke, Tanjirou, and Zenitsu learned under his wing during this time and benefitted greatly from his guidance. In the Final Battle Arc,Gyomei courageously confronted Kokushiboalone when his comrades were injured. Despite being at a clear disadvantage at the time, he went toe-to-toe against theUpper-Rank One of the Twelve Kizuki.
When Sanemi, Genya, and Muichiro eventually rejoined the battle, the Stone Hashira fought alongside them to kill Kokushibo and deliver a devastating blow toMuzan’s hope of winning the waragainst the Demon Slayer Corps. Despite his injuries, Gyomei went on to fight against the Demon King with his friends and lost his leg during the battle. Even in his precarious state, he contributed significantly to the fight and played a vital role in killing Muzan. The injuries Gyomei sustained during the battle against Muzan and Kokushibo turned out to be fatal and he died soon afterward.
