{"id":22795,"date":"2024-05-18T19:51:04","date_gmt":"2024-05-18T22:51:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gabrielpaladino.com\/?p=22795"},"modified":"2025-09-15T12:08:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T15:08:04","slug":"tengu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2024\/05\/18\/tengu\/","title":{"rendered":"Tengu"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

A familiar figure to visitors to Japanese shrines and temples, the long-nosed tengu is a supernatural being that inhabits mountainous areas<\/b>. Tengu have wings that allow them to fly like birds, as well as magical powers that they use for both good and evil ends. Beliefs about tengu have undergone numerous changes over the centuries.<\/p>\n

Since ancient times, many legends surround the tengu, and its true origin remains a mystery. The creature is believed to have roots in a Chinese folktale introduced to Japan. The name \u201ctengu\u201d is derived from Tiangou, a mountain-dwelling yokai with a dog-like appearance. Tiangou, often associated with a meteorite, fell from the sky like a shooting star, accompanied by a rumbling sound. This creature is linked to the concept of the Black Dog or the meteorite causing eclipses.<\/p>\n

According to Kujiki \u2013 an ancient Japanese historical text, Amanozako (the goddess who gave birth to the Storm God Susanoo) is the forerunner of tengu. In Buddhism, the legend of tengu is related to Garuda, the Hindu deity resembling a bird of prey.
Some people even rumored that tengu was an old Westerner shipwrecked and drifted into the waters of Japan. This is because they have large bodies, white skin, high noses, and red faces from sun exposure and often live in the mountains and forests. Therefore, when local people encountered them, they created stories about tengu.<\/p>\n

Tengu are also known as Japanese ghosts imprisoned in the underworld. They are the souls of Buddhists who can\u2019t go to hell, but because of the karma they created, they also can\u2019t go to heaven. There are different types of tengu in Japanese folklore as well. Additionally, those who died with power will become daitengu \u2013 a species with high intellectual ability; and the poor will become kotengu \u2013 the weaker species humans can easily deceive. The tengu\u2019s origin causes people to debate and speculate. However, this creature has many nuances intertwined between historical reality, fantasy, and mystery elements.<\/p>\n

Tengu\u2019s alternate name is \u201cheavenly dog\u201d because of its original form as a hybrid between humans and dogs that came to earth from a fire meteorite. Over time, they evolved into a bird-human hybrid with a beak-like nose, wings, feathers, and sharp claws. The avian characteristics also include a bird-like way of life, spawning from large eggs that nest in old trees. It seems that female tengu have never been mentioned and are primarily depicted in male form.
The human-like tengu will disguise themselves as Yamabushi, ascetic monks often living in the rugged mountains. They wear small black hats and robes, carry a staff, wear high clogs, and hold a fan made of feathers or leaves called hauchiwa that can change the length of their noses and control the weather.
The ancient image of the tengu is similar to a bird of prey with a large beak in the middle of its face. However, by the 14th century, the beak transformed into a long, prominent nose on a red face and a large body with wings on the back. This strange appearance, which has endured to this day, is decorated on masks and
statues in Japanese Shinto shrines.<\/p>\n

Thanks to its avian shape and large wings on its back, tengu can fly and move very fast. In addition, the tengu is a master of transformation, and they often use this ability to tease and deceive people. However, unlike other yokai, tengu rarely harm humans, like the kitsune (fox) or tanuki (raccoon dog).
On top of that, their power lies in other extraordinary skills, such as magic, done through chanting with its magic feather fan. Regarding fighting ability, tengu were proficient in martial arts. Additionally, they taught martial arts to ninja, samurai, and swordsmen. When facing humans, tengu\u2019s telepathic abilities also allow them to communicate without opening their mouths. They can also manipulate and read humans\u2019 minds.<\/p>\n

In the folklore and beliefs of Japan, tengu are strange creatures, symbolizing the two opposite sides of life, good and evil, or gods and yokai. The true nature of tengu is difficult to distinguish, good or bad and is probably all about concepts and stories.
Since ancient times, Buddhism has regarded tengu as a demon that causes trouble and portends war. They often kidnap, harm, or even kill monks and nuns. However, as time went by, this idea gradually changed. The image of the tengu became the guardian spirit for monks in the mountains, with past events being the inherent mischievousness of tengu.<\/p>\n

In Japanese culture, tengu are also yokai due to their aggressive and arrogant personality. People would blame tengu for the disappearance of those missing or lost at the time. However, individuals kidnapped by tengu would usually return to a location far away from where they were captured, with no memory of the event.<\/p>\n

According to the old legend, tengu only punishes people when they encroach on the territory, forest, or nature they protect. Those who violate or insult them will receive a terrible punishment that causes the whole nation to live in misery. That\u2019s why humans fear and respect this creature. Nowadays, shrines often have tengu statues to convey the locals\u2019 desire<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc7a Location<\/a><\/b> | Osaka, Japan<\/p>\n

Photo Taken: April 04, 2024<\/p>\n

High resolution<\/a>
Flickr Gallery<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Did you like this post?<\/b><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A familiar figure to visitors to Japanese shrines and temples, the long-nosed tengu is a supernatural being that inhabits mountainous areas. Tengu have wings that allow them to fly like birds, as well as magical powers that they use for both good and evil ends. Beliefs about tengu have undergone numerous changes over the centuries. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2],"tags":[3,16,966,1015,1024,1482,2380,3642,3643,3667,4009,4010,4122,4219,5092,5167,5355,5356,5608,6818,6820,6840,6978,7104,7296,7437,7690,8115,8996,9011,9013,9398,10549,11080,11084,11125,11675,11956,11958,12140,12665,12674,12923,13217,13286,13339,13467,14768,13795,14208,14265],"class_list":["post-22795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-related-posts","tag-animals","tag-travel","tag-art","tag-asia","tag-asiaoriental","tag-belief","tag-canon","tag-creativity","tag-creature","tag-criatura","tag-demon","tag-demonio","tag-diossintoista","tag-dotonbori","tag-flickr","tag-folclore","tag-gabrielpaladinocom","tag-gabrielpaladinoibanez","tag-giant","tag-japan","tag-japan2024","tag-japon","tag-kami","tag-konohatengu","tag-landoftherisingsun","tag-legendary","tag-longnose","tag-mask","tag-nihon","tag-nippon","tag-nipponkoku","tag-osaka","tag-popular","tag-reddemon","tag-redface","tag-religioso","tag-sarutahikookami","tag-shinto","tag-shintokami","tag-sobrenatural","tag-sunorigin","tag-supernatural","tag-tengu","tag-tourism","tag-travelling","tag-trip","tag-turismo","tag-updated","tag-viaje","tag-yamabushi","tag-yokai","has-post-thumbnail"],"tags_input":"#animals,#travel,art,asia,asiaoriental,belief,canon,creativity,creature,criatura,demon,demonio,diossinto\u00edsta,dotonbori,Flickr,folclore,gabrielpaladinocom,gabrielpaladinoiba\u00f1ez,giant,japan,japan2024,Jap\u00f3n,kami,konohatengu,landoftherisingsun,legendary,longnose,mask,nihon,nippon,nipponkoku,osaka,popular,reddemon,redface,religioso,sarutahiko\u014dkami,shinto,shintokami,sobrenatural,sunorigin,supernatural,tengu,tourism,travelling,trip,turismo,Updated,viaje,yamabushi,y\u014dkai","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/shjlBv-tengu","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":22853,"url":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2024\/05\/22\/onigawara-%e9%ac%bc%e7%93%a6\/","url_meta":{"origin":22795,"position":0},"title":"Onigawara \u9b3c\u74e6","author":"Gabriel Paladino Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez","date":"May 22, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Onigawara are decorative features found most often on Buddhist temple roofs, though sometimes also on shrines or residences. Kawara is the word for ceramic roof tiles that were introduced into Japan along with Buddhism and temple architecture from the Korean Peninsula in the 6th century during the Asuka Period of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Related posts"","block_context":{"text":"Related posts","link":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/category\/related-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":24778,"url":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2024\/12\/12\/%e9%ac%bc%e7%93%a6-onigawara\/","url_meta":{"origin":22795,"position":1},"title":"\u9b3c\u74e6 Onigawara","author":"Gabriel Paladino Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez","date":"December 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Onigawara are decorative features found most often on Buddhist temple roofs, though sometimes also on shrines or residences. Kawara is the word for ceramic roof tiles that were introduced into Japan along with Buddhism and temple architecture from the Korean Peninsula in the 6th century during the Asuka Period of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Related posts"","block_context":{"text":"Related posts","link":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/category\/related-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7632,"url":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/2020\/12\/14\/solar-eclipse-2020\/","url_meta":{"origin":22795,"position":2},"title":"Solar Eclipse 2020","author":"Gabriel Paladino Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez","date":"December 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Partial Solar Eclipse December 14, 2020 | 13:54 - 15:35 Canon 77D & Sigma 150-600mm | 1\/4000 f\/20 ISO 100 Taken from Solymar, Canelones, Uruguay via Flickr https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/2kh2rKE Support my project","rel":"","context":"In "Related posts"","block_context":{"text":"Related posts","link":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/category\/related-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22795","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22795"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22795\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34482,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22795\/revisions\/34482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22795"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22795"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pelecyphora.ddns.net:60123\/GabrielPaladino.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22795"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}