“Tengu”: The Birdlike Demons that Became Almost Divine

Dec 2, 2022

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. 

Probably just about everyone in Japan knows what a tengu looks like—but unlike kappa, these long-nosed goblins have never made the transition into cute and cuddly popular characters. Tenguhave a more forbidding appearance. Closely linked with the mountainous ascetic practices of the syncretic shugendō religion, they are often regarded as semi-divine creatures. Perhaps this is part of the reason why they have not found the same place in people’s hearts as kappa and many other yōkai. There is something intimidating about them.

They also have an image problem. Blame it on the nose.

The protuberant noses that are the tengu’s most obvious features are commonly understood as symbolic of a haughty attitude of snooty self-satisfaction. When someone in the public eye experiences a surge in popularity, it is common to hear other people muttering disapprovingly: “He’s turned into a real tengu recently.” It’s a common expression in Japan: to “act like a tengu” means to be conceited or arrogant.

In Demon Slayer, Urokodaki Sakonji, the master swordsman who instructs the hero Kamado Tanjirō, always wears a tengu mask, because he doesn’t like being teased by demons for his gentle face and good looks. In former times, if a person went missing, it was often said that the person had been “spirited away” or taken away by the gods (kamikakushi). Tengu were widely believed to be responsible for these abductions.

A tengu’s nose juts straight out from his face like Pinocchio’s. They are generally shown with red faces, and dress in the garb of yamabushi ascetic priests. They have a pair of large wings on their backs, and often hold a large, feathered fan. This is the image of tengu in most people’s minds. The prominent nose and ruddy complexion have led to a popular belief that the tengu might have been inspired by the unfamiliar appearance of the first foreigners to arrive in Japan centuries.