Tengu

''Tengu'' ( ; , , ) are a type of legendary creature found in Shinto belief. They are considered a type of ''yōkai'' (supernatural beings) or Shinto ''kami'' (gods or spirits). The ''Tengu'' were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey and a monkey deity, and they were traditionally depicted with human, monkey, and avian characteristics. Sarutahiko Ōkami is considered to be the original model of Konoha-Tengu (a supernatural creature with a red face and long nose), which today is widely considered the ''Tengu''s defining characteristic in the popular imagination. He is the Shinto monkey deity who is said to shed light on Heaven and Earth. Some experts theorize that Sarutahiko was a sun god worshiped in the Ise region prior to the popularization of Amaterasu.

Buddhism long held that the ''Tengu'' were disruptive demons and harbingers of war. Their image gradually softened, however, into one of protective, if still dangerous, spirits of the mountains and forests. ''Tengu'' are associated with the ascetic practice of Shugendō, and they are usually depicted in the garb of its followers, the ''yamabushi''.

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