Close Encounters of the Tengu Kind
Encountering Japan's Most Fearsome Foe on Tengu-yama
Kia ora Koutou, Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi here bringing you concepts, life advice, and hiking guides straight from the mountains of Japan.
Close Encounters of the Tengu Kind
I knew the risks.
I knew the reputation.
Mountains and other sacred areas in Japan are known for being the abode of the kami, buddha, and many other creatures.
Including the bad kind.
Like the Tengu.
Judging by name alone, it’s obvious Tengu-yama is the sort of mountain you need some form of protection on.
Tengu.
Yama.
The mountain of the Tengu. One of Japanese folklore’s most fearsome characters.
For the uninitiated, Tengu are Buddhist monks or Yamabushi that were so self-conceited they fell straight from the Buddha realm, into the magical realm. Inhabiting mountains all over Japan, much like us yamabushi, there are two main types of Tengu: Karasu Tengu, and Hanadaka Tengu.
Simply ‘Raven Tengu’ in English, Karasu Tengu are known for their birdlike traits. However, Karasu Tengu are:
“men, but not men; bird, but not bird; dog, but not dog; they possess the hands of a human, the head of a canine, a pair of wings, and are capable of both flight and walking.” — Yokai Attack.
In saying that, perhaps the Tengu this yamabushi needs to be most weary of is the Hanadaka Tengu, the ‘long nose’ Tengu.
According to Yokai Attack (check out the author’s Substack!), the distinctive features of Hanadaka Tengu are an enormous nose (much like this yamabushi, thanks Dad), large feathered wings (well, not so much), bright red skin (you try climbing Haguro-san in the height of summer), and lastly, going around barefoot, or wearing single-toothed Geta (we Kiwi are famous for going everywhere barefoot).
It’s unknown which type of Tengu inhabits Tengu-yama, or how many Tengu there are at that.
Frankly, I’d rather not find out.
I didn’t need locals to tell me the creature on this mountain has caused all manner of mischief and mayhem over the centuries.
That much I knew.
That much I prepared for.
Naturally, whenever yamabushi enter sacred sites such as Tengu-yama, we always wear some form of protector, such as a Shime necklace. When I knew I was going to be climbing this peak, I came prepared.
Or so I thought.
I packed my Shime especially for this trip. Only, the hike seemed much shorter than what I was used to. At the last minute, I decided to switch to a lighter bag.
My first mistake.
Of course I forgot to put my shime in the new bag. This was the first clue something was up. This was the first clue the Tengu already had my number. Off to a good start.
So, like the truly brave yamabushi I am, I set off knowing fully well what I was potentially in store for.
And then it happened.
I like to film a lot of my hikes up the mountains of Yamagata. The mountains here are always much more beautiful, and much more intriguing than I could ever imagine.
Tengu-yama was no different.
This tiny mountain on the edge of Nishikawa Town is known not only for the mythical creature(s?) that inhabits its slopes, but also the ease at which you can get panoramic views at the summit. When I did eventually make it there, after hiking for all of about 30 minutes, I was greeted with a tiny shrine, a random bell, and some of the best views of Gassan, Murayama Hayama, Nishikawa, and Sagae this side of the Mogami.
And on the way back I found a part of the mountain to film; a long set of stairs along the dense forest of Tengu-yama with an interesting curved section fans of solo hike videos would be sure to enjoy.
So I did what I always do.
I set the camera up, and set off.
Usually, it’s about 20 or so seconds walking in one direction, turning around, and about the same time walking back to pick up the camera until I find the next spot to film.
That much I’m used to.
However, this was Tengu-yama, and these weren’t any ordinary stairs. These stairs were steep. They were built for Tengu after all.
After about two or so minutes of labouring up the steep slope, I eventually reached the top, the part still visible on the camera.
Or so I thought.
As I turned around, I looked for my camera to make sure I had gotten the shot.
That was when I realised,
My camera had disappeared.
I hastily made my way down the stairs, and began a frantic search for my camera. I went to the spot where it should have been, to no avail.
Until, I noticed some of the grass had been disturbed. Turns out my camera had first fallen over (read: been pushed), and then slid down the mountain a bit (read: been thrown).
I carefully picked up the camera, and checked the footage for traces of supernatural beings.
Nothing.
No traces of the mythical creature.
Or maybe there was.
At the end of the video, I did see something picking up the camera. Something with an enormous nose, a bright red face, and a proclivity for going around barefoot…
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Ka kite ano.
Tim.
You got tricked by tengu! :p It's interesting you found a Kumano shrine. Do you know how old it is?