In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, tengu came to be feared as the vigilant protectors of certain forests. In the Sanshu Kidan (三州奇談, Sanshu Kidan), a collection of strange stories first circulated in 1764, one finds the tale 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 tengu live, and that anyone who takes a single leaf from that place will surely die. In the Sōzan Chomon Kishū (想山著聞奇集, Sōzan Chomon Kishū), 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.[41] 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.[42]
Tengu God Of Mischief Full Versionl
Early tengu stories share many characteristics with other yokai tales. In the 9th and 10th centuries, demons living in the mountains play tricks, cause mischief, and do what yokai usually do: they lure people into the woods with music, throw rocks at homes, and make stealthy appearances like will-o'-the-wisps.
Considered the patron saint of the martial arts, the mythic tengu is a mischief-maker, especially with Buddhist priests. In the past, they also inflicted their punishments on vain and arrogant samurai warriors. They dislike boasters and those who corrupt the Dharma (Buddhist law).
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 Sanshu Kidan (三州奇談), 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 Sōzan Chomon Kishū (想山著聞奇集), 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.[28] 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.
The long-nosed tengu glares at a solitary traveler from the branches of a tree. Below the mountain, a web-fingered kappa lurks in the dark water beneath a bridge. Downstream, there's a rustling sound in a garbage dump as discarded items eerily come to life as tsukumogami. And on city streets, a seemingly ordinary woman known as Kuchisake Onna uses a cold-sufferer's sanitary mask to hide a gaping mouth full of sharp teeth... Each of these entities is a yokai.[Source: Tom Baker, Daily Yomiuri, December 2010]
Guhin are, to borrow from Shakespeare, but deities of the working day. Their existence is intimately intertwined with human lives, and they exist on the earthy not heavenly planes. They are said to be servants of the mountain kami, and their primary task is to inspire in humans proper fear and awe of the mountain realms. Guhin are said to be the cause behind such mischief as tengu taoshi, an auditory phenomenon where you hear the crashing of a tree falling when no tree actually fell, tengu tsubute, a rain of gravel thrown from nowhere, tengu warai, a mysterious laughter heard deep in the woods, and tengubi, mysterious lights that drift through the forest.
Some people also believe that tengu are just misunderstood and not actully evil at all. They point out that while tengu may sometimes get up to mischief, they rarely do so with malicious intent. Rather, it is believed that their pranks are more like playful jests meant to teach people valuable lessons about life or alert them to dangers ahead.
The traditional belief is that both types of tengu may cause mischief in human society or interfere with religion, but they are not known to physically harm humans. In some stories, they can be helpful to humans and provide guidance or spiritual protection. While it is possible that they may occasionally steal food or other items from people, thee is no evidence to suggest they eat humans. 2ff7e9595c
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