Today we're going to dive into the movie analysis of "Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc"

"The Infinity Castle Arc" unfolds with three battles

They are: Butterflies Shinobu vs Upper Rank Two Doma Zenitsu vs Upper Rank Six Gyutaro Tanjiro and Giyu vs Upper Rank Three Akaza

These three scenes touch on a key theme of Demon Slayer

What does a demon actually mean?

Demon Slayer is set in Japan's Taisho era

And Muzan is at least 1,000 years old

Back‑calculating puts his origin around the 10th century AD

Muzan had already become Japan's first demon in history

That period was Japan's Heian era

It coincides with when ancient texts began recording people being eaten by demons

At the very beginning, people believed in demons

But there was no concept of demon slaying

Because they didn't even know what a demon truly was

Demons symbolize humanity's helplessness when facing unknown forces

At that time, onmyoji could only teach people how to avoid demons

But they couldn't actually exorcise or kill demons

They were more like weather forecasters

Informing people that disaster was coming

But unable to stop the disaster

In the final battle of Infinity Castle, Muzan said the following to Tanjiro:

What Muzan symbolizes is It is a destructive force beyond human comprehension

Like natural disasters, viruses, plagues

People cannot avoid it nor easily trace its origin

However, up until the 14th century Muromachi period

Japanese demons were no longer just unknown entities

But began to appear in various forms

And also began to develop demon‑slaying stories that humans could confront

In the three battles of Infinity Castle They happen to each answer the question of what a demon is

In the first battle Butterfly Ninja faces Douma

Butterfly Ninja discovers that Douma is actually the enemy who killed her sister

Her sister, before dying, told her not to avenge her

She hoped Butterfly Ninja could have happiness like an ordinary girl Live until she becomes an old woman

But why specifically emphasize “like a girl” achieving happiness?

Because in ancient Japan Men could directly seek revenge

But women were bound by family and husbands

They had to endure And could not directly take revenge on outsiders

These unresolved grudges Eventually become vengeful spirits

For example, The Tale of Heike tells the story of “Ujibashi‑hime”

She was abandoned by her husband Because of resentment she turned into a ghost

The so‑called “female ghost” In fact, it is the repressed anger of a patriarchal society and a hidden ghost story

Thus, in the Heian‑period novel “Dai Chuu Nagon Monogatari” it mentions

“Ghosts and women both possess aspects that humans cannot see”

Japanese female ghosts also have another origin

According to legend, when the Japanese emperor conquered frontier regions he discovered that some places actually had female tribal leaders, queens

If these places were pacified or chose to side with the royal family they would be praised and named “wise women” (sakasime)

However, women who defied the emperor’s orders such as Goma‑hime would be regarded as evil and wayward

In historical records they would be despised as earth spiders considered monsters that must be eliminated

Because the Japanese court did not recognize that women could hold power

Even today, some regions in Japan the locals worship earth spiders

Here, we see a contradiction

When outrageous injustice occurs if women become too angry, too powerful they will be demonized by those in power as monsters

But if they suppress their anger too much and harbor deep resentment women will eventually become monsters themselves

Shinobu the Butterfly is like a being living within this contradiction

Shinobu has always been suppressing her anger so no one can see it

Even when facing demons, she always wears a smile

Only Tanjiro noticed

Shinobu has been continually suppressing her anger

Are you angry? You always exude the scent of anger Even though you always keep a smile That's true I might have been angry all along Since my beloved sister was brutally killed by a demon

So what should we do with this power of anger?

American civil rights activist Audre Lorde pointed out

Anger actually helps our personal growth

Knowing that we have inner strength

Being able to use that power to transform society

Identifying what oppression exists in society

And who the oppressors are

Shinobu asked the demon about its characteristics before her sister died

So that her anger could find the correct target for revenge

She discovered that Douma was the enemy who killed her sister

Anger opened the part that humans cannot see

Those injustices hidden by society

In the second showdown We saw another side of the demon

Kuyue was originally Zenitsu's senior

Zenitsu regarded him as a role model for learning

Because both of them are orphans

They had no family to rely on since childhood

Their starting points are very similar

Grandfather has always treated both of them equally

He hopes they will both become heirs of the Thunder Breathing style

Because Zenitsu only knows the First Form: Thunderclap and Flash

But Kuyue has learned other forms, yet he never mastered the First Form

However, the two with similar starting points ultimately took completely opposite paths

In the match between Kuyue and Zenitsu we see the relationship Jung described as “self and shadow”

Jung believes that the parts of self‑awareness that are rejected and repressed do not disappear

but instead form shadows in the subconscious becoming an unknown part of ourselves

The self and the shadow are like twin siblings

They complement each other, yet oppose each other

When we find someone extremely annoying, it is likely because we project our own shadow onto others

For example, Jung discovered Americans often project their inferior personalities onto Black people and Indigenous peoples considering them inferior

It appears as racial discrimination that belittles others

But actually it's projecting one's own inner darkness onto others

The same The phenomena of gods and demons are also a projection of shadows

Humans project their idealized perfect image onto others Calling them gods and goddesses

Or projecting the shadows they resist onto others Calling them demons

This explains the hostility between 獪岳 and 善逸

Because they see their own shadows in each other the parts they lack and try to suppress

Zenitsu is kind and knows how to give but often shows a cowardly side causing 獪岳 to recall the childhood memories he tried to suppress the version of himself lacking strength and only running away

獪岳, on the other hand, fears death, is selfish, and only wants to take as if a box with a hole, never able to be filled

To gain more power, 獪岳 ultimately chose to join the demons

Believing that demon power can perfect the Thunder Breathing

He was originally a senior disciple envied by Zenitsu and considered a model to learn from

Now he has become a demon

Transforming the Thunder Breathing into a kind of evil demon technique

Doesn't this mean that Zenitsu, who also inherits Thunder Breathing has become a kindred using the same breathing as demons

the demon that should have been eradicated by the Demon Slayer Corps suddenly becomes very close

As if it's a duplicate of oneself

This makes Zenitsu try to deny and suppress this shadow

Encountering the demon Koyou in the Infinity Castle It is like meeting one's own shadow in the infinite space of the subconscious

Thus the duel between Zenitsu and Koyou is actually the problem of how the self integrates the shadow

In this duel, both are familiar with the Thunder Breathing

It's as if the same breathing technique is fighting each other within a web

The opposition between self and shadow becomes an endless conflict

Jung believed that when the opposition between self and shadow is too intense to transcend this opposition one must create new symbolic forms in the mental space

to possibly break away from the original conflict pattern

And this is precisely why Zenitsu ultimately triumphs

no longer entangled with the shadow but creates a form that belongs to himself

Seventh Form: Fire Thunder God

Precisely because the "black shadow" of Koyou exists that allows Zenitsu's newly created Thunder Form to appear particularly "bright"

no longer just remains at the level of only knowing the First Form

The shadow is not the opposite of the self but a presence that lets the self stand out

And in the third duel the demon is no longer just an individual shadow

but an existence that society attempts to collectively exclude and suppress

Yorozaza was born into a poor family

To treat his father's illness, he had to resort to theft to obtain money

Later, after being caught, he was tattooed on his body to mark his crimes

In classical Japanese literature there are frequent records of thieves being considered demons

For example, it is said that the two‑faced Sukuna with four arms and four legs would rob everywhere

And the prototype of Yorozaza may be the demon Kidonmaru in the collection "Kokon Chomonshu"

It is said that he had teeth from birth

Just like Komahachi, who was born with a pair of fangs

When he grew up, he also sought revenge for his father

In the end, he was exiled due to his many crimes

Similarly, Upper Moon Four: Half Tengu also habitually stole in life, later becoming a demon

But why were thieves considered demons?

In ancient Japan people who did not submit to the Emperor were regarded by the court as dark entities

Those in power would dehumanize these people into demons

Thus they could dispatch troops to subjugate them

Many stories of slaying monsters and demons were used to reinforce the legitimacy of the samurai class

For example, people from Hokkaido were called "Ezo"

Or during World War II, Japanese were referred to by the US military as "kijuku"

portraying them as evil demons that threaten the world

This way we don't need to treat them humanely

This is precisely the treatment Koma received during his life

If we compare, we will find the people in the Demon Slayer Corps

In fact, most of them are also marginalized individuals excluded from society's framework

and they all have tragic pasts

Tanjiro's family are rural villagers who sell charcoal

Zenitsu and Inosuke are both abandoned children

The Stone Pillar is blind

Butterfly Ninja, when she was young, saw her sister being killed by Douma

Muichiro lost both parents in his childhood

His older brother was then attacked by demons

The Demon Slayer Corps formed by these marginalized people is an underground organization not recognized by the government

After joining the Demon Slayer Corps you have to constantly move between mountains and villages

This was actually quite unusual in Japan at that time

Ordinary people spend their whole lives living settled lives

Why do members of the Demon Slayer Corps have to keep moving through the mountains and forests?

If demons are symbols of natural disasters and plagues

then wherever demons go the Demon Slayer Corps must go there to dispel the disaster

to deal with bodies discarded in the mountainous regions

This mobile nature suggests that they are like a homeless group roaming the mountains

This type of population living in the mountains without household registration is called “mountain dwellers” (サンカ)

According to estimates During the Meiji period, mountain dwellers numbered at least 200,000

Folklorist Yanagita Kunio believed

that Japan has a type of mountain people living in the hills they are actually Japan's true indigenous people

Originally lived on the plains but were later driven out and moved to the mountains leading a hunting-and-gathering lifestyle

This was the inspiration Yanagita Kunio got after reading material on Taiwan's indigenous peoples

The ancient Han–indigenous conflicts that occurred in Taiwan which caused indigenous people to move to the mountains

Similar events may have also occurred in ancient Japan

When lowland people encountered mountain people they described them as yokai resembling tengu

and even believed they possessed supernatural powers beyond those of ordinary humans

This leads us to an interesting conclusion

In the eyes of lowland people the Demon Slayer Corps and the demons they kill are not separate entities

instead they are seen as the same kind of being

both are mountain people who have left lowland society

both are outcasts excluded from social order

The pairing of Tanjiro and Nezuko are people who were almost turned into demons

I was lucky enough to keep my human body If we were unlucky, both of us might have become demons

In the Entertainment District arc the demon formed by the sibling duo Jifutarō and Daki

just like the mirror image of Tanjiro and Nezuko

reflecting the fate they could have originally taken

Thus the story of Demon Slayer becomes a battle between two groups of outcasts not recognized by society

Both sides share tragic pasts

Some choose to join the Demon Slayer Corps

but some choose to join the Twelve Kizuki

as if it's the hidden dark side of Japanese history a history belonging to demons

Wait So what exactly is a demon?

I’ll tell you why you’re missing that final step and can’t reach the highest realm Because you are human Because you will age, because you will die Become a demon then, Kyojuro In that case Whether it’s a hundred years or two hundred years you can keep training and become stronger

In this confrontation with the Flame Pillar Kyojuro Akaza pointed out the biggest difference between humans and demons

Humans, unlike demons, don't die

Demons can have hundreds of years to train

Continuously improving their abilities

For Akaza The duty of the strong is to become stronger

And becoming a demon is the ultimate means to become stronger

Likewise, Before Kokushibo became a demon He was originally an outstanding swordsman from the Warring States period

But he felt inferior because he could not defeat his younger brother

He wanted to become the strongest samurai

He longed to reach the highest level

Thus, he accepted Muzan's proposal And became a demon

Hoping to become a being that surpasses humanity

For Akaza and Kokushibo In order to become stronger They can even abandon their humanity

This strength‑first value system reflects the late 19th century a major challenge faced by Japanese society

which was the need to keep up with the prevailing international values of the time: Social Darwinism

It stems from the ideology of survival struggle promoted by the British philosopher Spencer

Using Darwin's theory of evolution to promote survival of the fittest, the unfit are eliminated

Because that’s how natural law works

This is exactly the principle that Yewaza and Black Death believe

Yewaza If you’re not convinced then propose a deadly battle to change the rankings

What the winner says is justice

Power is the principle

Relations between nations are just an amplified version of relationships between individuals

Japan wants to join the ranks of the strong so it must conquer outward

win the Russo-Japanese War colonize Korea and Taiwan

so it won’t be seen as weak or a loser internationally

This philosophy of eliminating the unfit swept Japan in the late 19th century

Spence’s work became a bestseller at the time

Japanese intellectuals even debated whether Japanese should intermarry with white people to obtain the blood of a higher race

so they could become stronger and more superior

Diplomat Kaneko Kentarō and Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi both consulted Spence

hoping to use eugenics to turn the Japanese into a dominant race

This is exactly what in Demon Slayer some people choose to become demons

Obtain the blood of a powerful group and become stronger

Thus, demons become the desire of humans to surpass human abilities

But in the Flame Pillar we see a counter to Akaza’s “the strong are supreme” doctrine

Decaying, aging, moving toward death It is the brevity of human life that brings beauty Precisely because humans age, because humans die Only then are people so lovely, so noble

Humans are fleeting and fragile beings

But this is not a flaw of humanity

Indeed, because of human finiteness Therefore everyone has someone they must protect

The strong have a duty to protect the weak

The strength of the strong becomes meaningful

Helping the weak anytime, anywhere is your duty as someone born strong

In the clash with Akaza the Flame Pillar acted to consider Tanjiro, the weak one and became distracted during the fight

ultimately losing to Akaza

After being wounded, the Flame Pillar could not recover because he is a flesh-and-blood human

but Akaza, being a demon, can continuously regenerate without worrying about birth, aging, illness, or death

And when fighting Akaza in the Infinity Castle Tanjiro presented a rebuttal argument different from Kyojuro's

The strong should support the weak

Because no one can grow up alone without needing others' care

Everyone is a baby at birth

In the eyes of adults, they are all weak

They must be cared for by others in order to gradually grow and become strong

If we follow Akaza's “survival of the unfit” logic

Then we should let all infants fend for themselves

This would cause human societies to be unable to continue

The reason human societies can continue is because the strong are willing to help the weak

Akaza firmly believes in the superiority of the strong, precisely because he has forgotten that when he was vulnerable, he too was someone who needed to be cared for

That allowed him to survive to today

His existence is proof that the strong should protect the weak

Tanjiro's mutual aid theory In the eyes of modern people might be seen as too naive, too simple

But in the Taisho era setting of Demon Slayer it was actually a once‑popular social trend

Especially in rural areas mutual aid remains a common traditional virtue

The Russian thinker Lev Mechnikov when he visited Japan in 1874

found that the rural environment was harsh Frequent encounters with natural disasters and anomalies

Farmers must cooperate to survive together

Otherwise there is only a dead end

This scene of mutual aid Makes him reconsider another possibility of humanity

The progress of human civilization is not about the strong surviving and the weak being eliminated

But building a community of collective mutual aid

Both the strong and the weak can contribute

Historian Koshihara Sho calls this Japanese rural spirit “Cooperatism” (cooperatism)

Just like Rintaki Sakonji said

Although each person is just a small gear in society

But when placed together They can set the gears of fate in motion

Propelling human history forward

Every person's life is brief and fragile

But even if a single demon hunter dies The will to slay demons will be passed on to the collective

Allowing this gear system to keep turning

One does not need to become a demon And can achieve the “eternity” that Muzan dreamed of

Because humanity can pass its will down through generations

Humanity's will is eternal

After Lev Mechnikov returned to Russia He wrote a book on Japan's cooperatism

Inspiring an entire generation of Russian intellectuals

From Tolstoy to the anarchist father Kropotkin, all were deeply inspired

Later, Kropotkin even teamed up with the famous Taishō‑era Japanese novelist Takeo Arishima

They organized a transnational network Practicing this grassroots mutual aid through action

To improve the lives of Japanese farmers

Arishima Gorō converted his land in Hokkaido into a shared farm

Open free to all tenant farmers for cultivation

Advocating the union to share all land

Arishima Gorō wrote the four characters “mutual assistance” on a local monument

This spirit is precisely the mutual aid theory that Tanjiro believes in

etc. But people inevitably distinguish between you and me

Isn’t this mutual aid theory an overly naive ideal?

On this issue Tanjiro gave us the final answer

The “mutual aid theory” must be paired with the sudden enlightenment of “selflessness”

In the climax of the showdown with Akaza Tanjiro recalled his father’s words

Control your breathing Close specific bloodlines Breathe with your body Your mind becomes transparent

You will see the “clear world” and enter a selfless state

In Vipassana meditation There is a technique called body scanning

It can lead a person into a similar state

The so-called “inner observation” is to see clearly the nature of reality

What is the nature of reality?

It is that the self does not exist

We all assume that whatever arises in the mind must be my thoughts and feelings

But why do we think the mind is the boundary of the self?

When we become overly immersed in a movie's plot we unconsciously place ourselves into the characters

as if the protagonist's emotions are “mine”

Similarly Our mind is actually like a little inner theater

Many thoughts and feelings aren't actually yours

they just happen to appear in your mind seeking to capture your attention

making you think they are your own thoughts and feelings

The “body scan” in insight meditation trains people to focus their attention on the breath

instead of on thoughts or feelings

Pay attention to the air of your breathing as it flows freely between the various boundaries of the body

Visualize the pain leaving the body with each breath

This kind of body scan is like the breathing technique in Demon Slayer

Even if pain exists in the body you can remain indifferent to it

and not feel the pain

Because one's own feelings are themselves an illusion

The pain is not mine

Thus a person can eliminate his own fighting spirit

Because the fighting spirit is not mine

Tanjiro likens this state to a “plant”

When the mind enters a transparent world It becomes like a plant

1963 Vietnamese monk Thich Guangde publicly protested the government's persecution of Buddhists

He set himself on fire with gasoline on a Saigon street

According to a reporter who witnessed it on site Thich Guangde did not twitch a single muscle

He was unusually calm As if nothing had happened

It was as if a plant was sitting there

Perhaps at the moment of his death Like Tanjiro Entered a selfless transparent world

This selfless realm Not only allowed Tanjiro to defeat Akaza

But also let the boundaries between self and others gradually disappear

You helped me, so you are already a part of me I will fight in your place

Selflessness instead makes one feel a new connection with fellow humans

It can be said to be the philosophical foundation of Tanjiro's mutual aid theory

At the end of the Infinity Castle showdown Tanjiro's theory of mutual aid awakens Akaza's forgotten past

When the memories slowly surface Rinsetsu asks back: Why are you so obsessed with becoming stronger?

At that moment, Akaza finally recalls his past memories

In this respect, Akaza is very similar to Muichiro Tokito

Both have lost their past memories

And they hold a belief in the superiority of the strong

Even if you save an immature swordsmith apprentice, it's useless Helping others In the end, it will also help yourself

It wasn't until Tanjiro emphasized the importance of mutual assistance that Muichiro slowly recalled his past memories

When Muichiro was trapped in the Water Prison bowl by the jade vessel when he was on the brink of death

the swordsmith, originally considered weak instead gave Muichiro more oxygen

allowing him to use his breathing technique again

Eventually, Muichiro finally awakened his forgotten memories

It turns out Tanjiro's mutual aid theory is the belief he himself held in his childhood

Acting to help others In the end, it will also help yourself Dad has said it before

Similarly, Akaza's desire to become a stronger version of himself It is to facilitate theft so he can help his seriously ill father

It is also to protect the one he loves

Because he had already promised Ren Xue on the night of the fireworks He will protect her for a lifetime

Akaza wants to become strong In fact, it is precisely to protect the weak around him

In this way, Akaza is no longer Tanjiro's opposite

And it happens to embody the idea of the strong protecting the weak

Just because he forgot why he fights

That leads him to become the opposite of Tanjiro

This type of memory‑losing demon also appears in the “Natagumo Mountain” arc

Even after becoming a demon, Rui remains attached to the family bonds from his life

He demands that the demons he controls pretend to be his family

Yet he himself does not know why he does this

The original desire has been forgotten

Yet the subject still enacts this desire

In the examples of Akaza and Rui We see what psychoanalysis calls the “repetition compulsion” (repetition compulsion)

When a person experiences overly stimulating or traumatic events the past memories cannot enter the conscious system

The person cannot recall what happened in the past

Yet the body continuously repeats past behavioral patterns

Because the memory has not actually disappeared but is retained in the subconscious

driving the body to constantly repeat the past

But I don’t even know what I’m repeating

Whenever Akaza recruits strong individuals to join the demons In fact, it’s just repeating helping my master’s dojo recruit newcomers

Whenever Akaza launches a fireworks‑like attack It reenacts the night of fireworks when I made a promise with Renkyu

Whenever Akaza attacks the weak whom I disdain It repeats the attack on the weak who slipped poison into the dojo that day

Whenever Akaza uses the Compass perception It recalls once more the hair accessory on Renkyu’s head

Akaza’s Compass can sense everything

But it cannot sense the memories hidden in its own subconscious

Thus The existence of demons takes on a completely different meaning

Demons are actually people who have lost their memories and keep repeating the past

Because their memories have been replaced by Muzan’s cellular memory

When they recall, they see Muzan’s memories Not their own memories

Demons are no longer beings that must be defeated

But rather existences yearning to alleviate their symptoms and attain redemption

Tanjiro’s job is not just killing demons

It is more like that of a psychoanalyst

Helping demons retrieve their memories from when they were alive

Recall the past Express the regrets they never had time to voice while alive

In the moment of confronting the past The ghost turned back into a human

The ghost is no longer a being different from humans

Because anyone could unknowingly become a ghost

Only yearning to constantly become stronger

Obsessively clinging to a certain path, a certain destination

Yet forgetting what they are fighting for Why we have come to today

Demon Slayer is like a collective psychoanalysis therapy

Let the amnesiac modern people Recall a hundred years ago The mutual humanity people once possessed

That makes the modern society constantly yearning to become richer and stronger

Before we are about to lose ourselves Able to pause and ask ourselves what it all is for

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