Tengu, The Japanese Demon has Returned

天狗，日本恶魔回来了

2023 marks the return of the Tengu, the ‘celestial dog’ known as a Demon in Japanese & Chinese mythology.

Tengu, known to be a disruptive evolving legendary creature with bird like features. Tengu resembles the form of many different living beings, such as birds, dogs, monkeys & humans and is known to shapeshift to fit in with their current environment.

Throughout history, Tengu has shown a wide variety of behaviors, resembling a specific animal and attacking humans and locations of spiritual practices, primarily in Japan. Buddhism long held that the Tengu were disruptive demons and harbingers of war. In some of the earliest tales of the Tengu, they were known as troublesome opponents of Buddhism, who mislead the pious with false images of Buddha, carried Monks and dropped them in remote places and possess women in an attempt to seduce holy men and rob them. Those who worship the Tengu were able to achieve an unholy power, granting them an abundance of wealth and a better quality of life.

Described as being red-faced and long-nosed, the Tengu can take two different appearances.

1. Daitengu
The Great Daitengu is a semi-human being, with the ability to fly through the use of their wings. Known to live deep in the mountains, and forests the Daitengu possesses powers to control wind, fly and have mastered the art of swordsmanship. Daitengu often abducts humans, with the goal to torment them or sometimes to teach them magic.

2. Kotengu
The second type of Tengu is the Kotengu, a less powerful creature known to resemble a crow. The Kotengu dresses in monk’s robes and carries more animalistic behaviors than the Daitengu. Kotengu is not as adamant on disrupting human life and religion, however they are known to swoop down, abduct humans and eat them. Not being as intelligent as the Daitengu, Kotengu’s can easily be fooled by humans making them not as frightening as their counter-part. In today’s mythology the Kotengu is known to be a servant of the Daitengu, perhaps due to the fact that they are much better fed when executing orders from the more intelligent being.

Once illiterate, the Tengu was not able to write. However that quickly changed as it was observed they had adapted and learned to write in Kanji. In their earliest day’s they were easy to defeat, and had been by ancient Buddhists, however through the centuries their talents and power grew with their role of being an enemy to faith. Causing mass confusion between Buddhist villages in the 11th century as many believed they were being tricked by groups of shapeshifting Tengu’s to alter the faith being practiced. Confusion was one of their main tactics when deceiving humans of faith, along with the use of fire and natural powers to burn and destroy religious buildings and sanctuaries.

The essence of disruption and evolution carries on through the Tengu spirit as the Japanese Demon returns through modern day forms of communication and technology. The year 2023 mark’s their attempt at once again gaining power over humans, and teaching them the way’s of the dark arts. Those who chose to worship the Tengu, and partake in the community will be given the power of the unholy, offering success in the materialistic world of today’s society.