Tengu

are a type of legendary creature found in Japanese folk religion (Shinto). They are considered a type of '' yōkai'' (supernatural beings) or Shinto ''kami'' (gods). The ''Tengu'' were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey and a monkey deity, and they are traditionally depicted with human, monkey, and avian characteristics. Sarutahiko Ōkami is considered to be the original model of Konoha-Tengu (a supernatural creature with a red face and long nose), which today is widely considered the ''Tengu''s defining characteristic in the popular imagination. He is the Shinto monkey deity who is said to shed light on heaven and earth. Some experts theorize that Sarutahiko was a sun god worshiped in the Ise region prior to the popularization of Amaterasu.

Buddhism long held that the ''Tengu'' were disruptive demons and harbingers of war. Their image gradually softened, however, into one of protective and even manifestations of Buddhist deities, if still dangerous, spirits of the mountains and forests. ''Tengu'' are associated with the ascetic practice of Shugendō, and they are usually depicted in the garb of its followers, the '' yamabushi''.

__TOC__

Image

The ''tengu'' in art appears in a variety of shapes. It usually falls somewhere in between a large, monstrous bird and a wholly anthropomorphized being, often with a red face or an unusually large or long nose. Early depictions of tengu show them as kite-like beings who can take a human-like form, often retaining avian wings, heads, or beaks. The ''tengu's'' long nose seems to have been conceived in the 14th century, likely as a humanization of the original bird's bill. This feature allies them with the Sarutahiko Ōkami, who is described in the 720 CE text the '' Nihon Shoki'' with a similar nose measuring seven hand-spans in length. In village festivals, the two figures are often portrayed with identical red phallic-nosed mask designs.

Some of the earliest representations of ''tengu'' appear in Japanese picture scrolls, such as the , painted c. 1296, which parodies high-ranking priests by endowing them the hawk-like beaks of ''tengu'' demons.

Tengu is often pictured as taking the shape of some sort of priest. Beginning in the 13th century, tengu came to be associated in particular with yamabushi, the mountain ascetics who practice Shugendō.de Visser, pp. 55–57. The association soon found its way into Japanese art, where tengu are most frequently depicted in the yamabushi's unique costume, which includes a distinctive headwear called the '' tokin'' and a . Due to their priestly aesthetic, they are often shown wielding the khakkhara, a distinct staff used by Buddhist monks, called a ''shakujō'' in Japanese.

Tengu is commonly depicted holding a magical . In folk tales, these fans sometimes can grow or shrink a person's nose, but usually, they have attributed the power to stir up great winds. Various other strange accessories may be associated with ''tengu'', such as a type of tall, one-toothed '' geta'' sandal often called ''tengu-geta''.

Origins

The term ''tengu'' and the characters used to write it are borrowed from the name of a fierce demon from Chinese folklore called '' tiāngǒu'' though this still has to be confirmed. Chinese literature assigns this creature a variety of descriptions, but most often it is a fierce and anthropophagous canine monster that resembles a shooting star or comet. It makes a noise like thunder and brings war wherever it falls. One account from the ''Shù Yì Jì'' (, "A Collection of Bizarre Stories"), written in 1791, describes a dog-like ''tiāngǒu'' with a sharp beak and an upright posture, but usually ''tiāngǒu'' bear little resemblance to their Japanese counterparts.

The 23rd chapter of the '' Nihon Shoki'', written in 720, is generally held to contain the first recorded mention of ''tengu'' in Japan. In this account a large shooting star appears and is identified by a Buddhist priest as a "heavenly dog", and much like the ''tiāngǒu'' of China, the star precedes a military uprising. Although the Chinese characters for ''tengu'' are used in the text, accompanying phonetic furigana characters give the reading as ''amatsukitsune'' (''heavenly fox''). M. W. de Visser speculated that the early Japanese meaning for the characters used to write Tengu may represent a conglomeration of two Chinese spirits: the ''tiāngǒu'' and the fox spirits called '' huli jing'' before the nuances of meaning were expanded to include local Japanese kami, therefore the true Tengu in appearance

Some Japanese scholars have speculated that the ''tengu's'' image derives from that of the Hindu eagle deity Garuda, who was pluralized in Buddhist scripture as one of the major races of non-human beings. Like the ''tengu'', the ''garuda'' are often portrayed in a human-like form with wings and a bird's beak. The name ''tengu'' seems to be written in place of that of the ''garuda'' in a Japanese sutra called the ''Emmyō Jizō-kyō'' (), but this was likely written in the Edo period, long after the ''tengu's'' image was established. At least one early story in the ''Konjaku Monogatari'' describes a ''tengu'' carrying off a dragon, which is reminiscent of the ''garuda's'' feud with the ''nāga'' serpents. In other respects, however, the ''tengu's'' original behavior differs markedly from that of the ''garuda'', which is generally friendly towards Buddhism. De Visser has speculated that the ''tengu'' may be descended from an ancient Shinto bird-demon which was syncretized with both the ''garuda'' and the ''tiāngǒu'' when Buddhism arrived in Japan. However, he found little evidence to support this idea.

A later version of the '' Kujiki'', an ancient Japanese historical text, writes the name of Amanozako, a monstrous female deity born from the god Susanoo's spat-out ferocity, with characters meaning ''tengu deity'' (). The book describes Amanozako as a raging creature capable of flight, with the body of a human, the head of a beast, a long nose, long ears, and long teeth that can chew through swords. An 18th-century book called the suggests that this goddess may be the true predecessor of the ''tengu'', but the date and authenticity of the ''Kujiki'', and of that edition, in particular, remain disputed.

Evil spirits and angry ghosts

The ''Konjaku Monogatarishū'', a collection of stories published in the late Heian period, contains some of the earliest tales of ''tengu'', already characterized as they would be for centuries to come. These ''tengu'' are the troublesome opponents of Buddhism, who mislead the pious with false images of the Buddha, carry off monks and drop them in remote places, possess women in an attempt to seduce holy men, rob temples, and endow those who worship them with unholy power. They often disguise themselves as priests or nuns, but their true form seems to be that of a kite.

Throughout the 12th and 13th centuries, accounts continued of ''tengu'' attempting to cause trouble in the world. They were now established as the ghosts of angry, vain, or heretical priests who had fallen on the "''tengu''-realm" (, ''tengudō''). They began to possess people, especially women and girls, and speak through their mouths ('' kitsunetsuki''). Still the enemies of Buddhism, the demons also turned their attention to the royal family. The Kojidan tells of an Empress who was possessed, and the Ōkagami reports that Emperor Sanjō was made blind by a ''tengu'', the ghost of a priest who resented the throne.

One notorious ''tengu'' from the 12th century was himself the ghost of an emperor. The '' Hōgen Monogatari'' tells the story of Emperor Sutoku, who was forced by his father to abandon the throne. When he later raised the Hōgen Rebellion to take back the country from Emperor Go-Shirakawa, he was defeated and exiled to Sanuki Province in Shikoku. According to legend he died in torment, having sworn to haunt the nation of Japan as a great demon, and thus became a fearsome ''tengu'' with long nails and eyes like a kite's.

In stories from the 13th century, ''tengu'' began to abduct young boys as well as the priests they had always targeted. The boys were often returned, while the priests would be found tied to the tops of trees or other high places. All of the ''tengu's'' victims, however, would come back in a state near death or madness, sometimes after having been tricked into eating animal dung.

The ''tengu'' of this period were often conceived of as the ghosts of the arrogant, and as a result, the creatures have become strongly associated with vanity and pride. Today the Japanese expression ''tengu ni naru'' ("becoming a ''tengu''") is still used to describe a conceited person.Mizuki 2001.

Great and small demons

In the '' Genpei Jōsuiki'', written in the late Kamakura period, a god appears to Go-Shirakawa and gives a detailed account of ''tengu'' ghosts. He says that they fall onto the ''tengu'' road because, as Buddhists, they cannot go to Hell, yet as people with bad principles, they also cannot go to Heaven. He describes the appearance of different types of ''tengu'': the ghosts of priests, nuns, ordinary men, and ordinary women, all of whom in life possessed excessive pride. The god introduces the notion that not all ''tengu'' are equal; knowledgeable men become , but ignorant ones become .

The philosopher Hayashi Razan lists the greatest of these ''daitengu'' as Sōjōbō of Kurama, Tarōbō of Atago, and Jirōbō of Hira. The demons of Kurama and Atago are among the most famous ''tengu''.

A section of the ''Tengu Meigikō'', later quoted by Inoue Enryō, lists the ''daitengu'' in this order:
* of Mount Kurama
* of Mount Atago
* of the Hira Mountains
* of Mount Akiha
* of Mount Kōmyō
* of Mount Hiko
* of Mount Daisen
* of Mount Ueno ( Ueno Park)
* of Itsukushima
* of Mount Ōmine
* of Katsuragi
* of Hitachi Province
* of Mount Fuji
* of Mount Takao
* of Shiramine
* of Mount Iizuna
* of Higo Province

''Daitengu'' are often pictured in a more human-like form than their underlings, and due to their long noses, they may also be called . ''Kotengu'' may conversely be depicted as more bird-like. They are sometimes called , or .Mizuki 2001 Inoue Enryō described two kinds of ''tengu'' in his ''Tenguron'': the great ''daitengu'', and the small, bird-like ''konoha-tengu'' who live in '' Cryptomeria'' trees. The ''konoha-tengu'' are noted in a book from 1746 called the , as bird-like creatures with wings two meters across which were seen catching fish in the Ōi River, but this name rarely appears in literature otherwise.

Creatures that do not fit the classic bird or ''yamabushi'' image are sometimes called ''tengu''. For example, ''tengu'' in the guise of wood-spirits may be called , but this word can also refer to ''tengu'' with canine mouths or other features. The people of Kōchi Prefecture on Shikoku believe in a creature called , but this is a small childlike being who loves '' sumō'' wrestling and sometimes dwells in the water, and is generally considered one of the many kinds of ''kappa''. Another water-dwelling ''tengu'' is the of the Greater Tokyo Area. This creature is rarely seen, but it is believed to create strange fireballs and be a nuisance to fishermen.

Protective spirits and deities

In Yamagata Prefecture among other areas, thickets in the mountains during summer, there are several tens of tsubo of moss and sand that were revered as the "nesting grounds of tengu," and in mountain villages in the Kanagawa Prefecture, they would cut trees at night and were called "tengu daoshi" (天狗倒し, tengu fall), and mysterious sounds at night of a tree being cut and falling, or mysterious swaying sounds despite no wind, were considered the work of mountain tengu. It is also theorized that shooting a gun three times would make this mysterious sound stop. Besides this, in the Tone District, Gunma Prefecture, there are legends about the "tengu warai" (天狗笑い, tengu laugh) about how one would hear laughter out of nowhere, and if one simply presses on further, it'd become an even louder laugh, and if one tries laughing back, it'd laugh even louder than before, and the "tengu tsubute" (天狗礫, tengu pebble) (said to be the path that tengu go on) about how when walking on mountain paths, there'd be a sudden wind, the mountain would rumble, and stones would come flying, and places tengu live such as "tenguda" (天狗田, tengu field), "tengu no tsumetogi ishi" (天狗の爪とぎ石, tengu scratching stone), "tengu no yama" (天狗の山, tengu mountain), "tengudani" (天狗谷, tengu valley), etc., in other words, "tengu territory" (天狗の領地) or "tengu guest quarters" (狗賓の住処). In Kanazawa's business district Owari in Hōreki 5 (1755), it is said that a "tengu tsubute" (天狗つぶて) was seen. In Mt. Ogasa, Shizuoka Prefecture, a mysterious phenomenon of hearing the sound of hayashi from the mountains in the summer was called "tengubayashi" (天狗囃子), and it is said to be the work of the tengu at Ogasa Jinja. On Sado Island ( Sado, Niigata Prefecture), there were "yamakagura" (山神楽, mountain kagura), and the mysterious occurrence of hearing kagura from the mountains was said to be the work of a tengu. In Tokuyama, Ibi District, Gifu Prefecture (now Ibigawa), there were "tengu taiko" (天狗太鼓), and the sound of taiko (drums) from the mountains was said to be a sign of impending rain.

The ''Shasekishū'', a book of Buddhist parables from the Kamakura period, makes a point of distinguishing between good and bad ''tengu''. The book explains that the former are in command of the latter and are the protectors, not opponents, of Buddhism – although the flaw of pride or ambition has caused them to fall onto the demon road, they remain the same good, ''dharma''-abiding persons they were in life.

The ''tengu's'' unpleasant image continued to erode in the 17th century. Some stories now presented them as much less malicious, protecting and blessing Buddhist institutions rather than menacing them or setting them on fire. According to a legend in the 18th-century , a ''tengu'' took the form of a ''yamabushi'' and faithfully served the abbot of a Zen monastery until the man guessed his attendant's true form. The ''tengu's'' wings and huge nose then reappeared. The ''tengu'' requested a piece of wisdom from his master and left, but he continued, unseen, to provide the monastery with miraculous aid.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, ''tengu'' came to be feared as the vigilant protectors of certain forests. In the 1764 collection of strange stories , a tale tells of a man who wanders into a deep valley while gathering leaves, only to be faced with a sudden and ferocious hailstorm. A group of peasants later tell him that he was in the valley where the ''guhin'' live, and anyone who takes a single leaf from that place will surely die. In the , written in 1849, the author describes the customs of the wood-cutters of Mino Province, who used a sort of rice cake called ''kuhin-mochi'' to placate the ''tengu'', who would otherwise perpetrate all sorts of mischief. In other provinces a special kind of fish called ''okoze'' was offered to the ''tengu'' by woodsmen and hunters, in exchange for a successful day's work. The people of Ishikawa Prefecture have until recently believed that the ''tengu'' loathe mackerel, and have used this fish as a charm against kidnappings and hauntings by the mischievous spirits.

''Tengu'' are worshipped as beneficial ''kami'' (''gods'' or ''revered spirits'') in various Japanese religious cults. For example, the ''tengu'' Saburō of Izuna is worshipped on that mountain and various others as , one of the primary deities in the ''Izuna Shugen'' cult, which also has ties to fox sorcery and the Dakini of Tantric Buddhism. Izuna Gongen is depicted as a beaked, winged figure with snakes wrapped around his limbs, surrounded by a halo of flame, riding on the back of a fox and brandishing a sword. Worshippers of ''tengu'' on other sacred mountains have adopted similar images for their deities, such as or of Akiba and of Saijō-ji Temple in Odawara.

In popular folk tales

''Tengu'' appear frequently in the orally transmitted tales collected by Japanese folklorists. As these stories are often humorous, they tend to portray ''tengu'' as ridiculous creatures who are easily tricked or confused by humans. Some common folk tales in which ''tengu'' appear include:

* : A boy looks through an ordinary piece of bamboo and pretends he can see distant places. A ''tengu'', overwhelmed by curiosity, offers to trade it for a magic straw cloak that renders the wearer invisible. Having duped the ''tengu'', the boy continues his mischief while wearing the cloak. Another version of this story tells of an ugly old man who tricks a tengu into giving him his magical cloak and causes mayhem for his fellow villagers. The story ends with the tengu regaining the coat through a game of riddle exchange and punishes the man by turning him into a wolf.
* : An old man has a lump or tumor on his face. In the mountains he encounters a band of ''tengu'' making merry and joins their dancing. He pleases them so much that they want him to join them the next night, and offer a gift for him. In addition, they take the lump off his face, thinking that he will want it back and therefore have to join them the next night. An unpleasant neighbor, who also has a lump, hears of the old man's good fortune and attempts to repeat it, and steal the gift. The ''tengu'', however, simply gives him the first lump in addition to his own, because they are disgusted by his bad dancing, and because he tried to steal the gift.
* A scoundrel obtains a ''tengu's'' magic fan, which can shrink or grow noses. He secretly uses this item to grotesquely extend the nose of a rich man's daughter and then shrinks it again in exchange for her hand in marriage. Later he accidentally fans himself while he dozes, and his nose grows so long it reaches heaven, resulting in painful misfortune for him.
* : A gambler meets a ''tengu'', who asks him what he is most frightened of. The gambler lies, claiming that he is terrified of gold or ''mochi''. The ''tengu'' answers truthfully that he is frightened of a kind of plant or some other mundane item. The ''tengu'', thinking he is playing a cruel trick, then causes money or rice cakes to rain down on the gambler. The gambler is of course delighted and proceeds to scare the ''tengu'' away with the thing he fears most. The gambler then obtains the ''tengu's'' magic gourd (or another treasured item) that was left behind.

Martial arts

During the 14th century, the ''tengu'' began to trouble the world outside of the Buddhist clergy, and like their ominous ancestors the ''tiāngǒu'', the ''tengu'' became creatures associated with war. Legends eventually ascribed to them great knowledge in the art of skilled combat.

This reputation seems to have its origins in a legend surrounding the famous warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune. When Yoshitsune was a young boy going by the name of Ushiwaka-maru, his father, Yoshitomo, was assassinated by the Taira clan. Taira no Kiyomori, head of the Taira, allowed the child to survive on the grounds that he be exiled to the temple on Mount Kurama and become a monk. But one day in the Sōjō-ga-dani Valley, Ushiwaka encountered the mountain's ''tengu'', Sōjōbō. This spirit taught the boy the art of swordsmanship so that he might bring vengeance on the Taira.

Originally the actions of this ''tengu'' were portrayed as another attempt by demons to throw the world into chaos and war, but as Yoshitsune's renown as a legendary warrior increased, his monstrous teacher came to be depicted in a much more sympathetic and honorable light. In one of the most famous renditions of the story, the Noh play ''Kurama Tengu'', Ushiwaka is the only person from his temple who does not give up an outing in disgust at the sight of a strange ''yamabushi''. Sōjōbō thus befriends the boy and teaches him out of sympathy for his plight.

Two stories from the 19th century continue this theme: In the ''Sōzan Chomon Kishū'', a boy is carried off by a ''tengu'' and spends three years with the creature. He comes home with a magic gun that never misses a shot. A story from Inaba Province, related by Inoue Enryō, tells of a girl with poor manual dexterity who is suddenly possessed by a ''tengu''. The spirit wishes to rekindle the declining art of swordsmanship in the world. Soon a young samurai appears to whom the ''tengu'' has appeared in a dream, and the possessed girl instructs him as an expert swordsman.

In popular culture

''Tengu'' continue to be popular subjects in modern fiction, both in Japan and other countries. They often appear among the many characters and creatures featured in Japanese cinema, animation, comics, role-playing games, and video games.

The Unicode Emoji character U+1F47A (👺) represents a ''tengu'', under the name "Japanese Goblin".

Nuzleaf and Shiftry from the ''Pokémon'' franchise are based on the ''tengu''.

"Tengu Man" is one of the eight Robot Master bosses in '' Mega Man 8'' (1996) and '' Mega Man and Bass'' (1998). He also has a Netnavi counterpart, present in ''Mega Man Battle Network 6'' (2005), although only in the "Cybeast Falzar" version. He is substituted by Slashman in the opposite version, "Cybeast Gregar".

The Touhou Project series of games have various characters based on tengu, most notably Aya Shameimaru from Phantasmagoria of Flower View (2005) and Momiji Inubashiri from Mountain of Faith (2007).

The ''tengu'' featured in the 2013 movie ''47 Ronin'', with their Lord played by Togo Igawa.

In the Dead or Alive video game series, most notably ''Dead or Alive 5'' (2014)'', Dead or Alive Xtreme 3'' (2016)'','' and ''Dead or Alive 6'' (2019), the playable character Nyotengu is based on Tengu, the name Nyotengu literally meaning "Female Tengu" when translated in English.

"Karasu Tengu" is an enemy present in the video game '' Nioh'' (2017) and its sequel '' Nioh 2'' (2020). They are depicted as a ''yōkai'' with crow-like wings who wield the power of the wind.

Kujou Sara, a crow ''tengu'', is a playable character in the 2020 game '' Genshin Impact''.Mentioned i
New Version Special Program , Genshin Impact
by Xiao Luohao, Head of the Creative Concept and Writing Team, while talking about Kujou Sara's design.

'' Sakonji Urokodaki'', from the anime '' Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba'', wears a ''tengu'' mask and he is the Mentor of ''Tanjiro Kamado''.

'Tengu' is a boss in the game '' Pixel Dungeon''.

See also

* Eboshi-ori
* Matsuyama tengu
* Tiangou (China)

References

Citations

Bibliography

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

External links

{{Authority control

Japanese gods
Shinto kami
Yōkai
Goblins
Shapeshifting
Legendary birds
Mythological human hybrids
Shugendō
Oni
Demons
Devils
Avian humanoids