A tengu (天狗, "tengu") is a type of mythical creature found in Japanese folklore and is also considered a type of god in the kami or yōkai. Although the creature's name is taken from a Chinese demon with the shape of a dog ("Tiangu"), the tengu originally took the form of a bird of prey (a crow to be exact), and they are depicted with of both humans and birds traditionally. At first, tengu were described as having a large beak, possessing large wings with long black feathers and sharp claws. But later often the large beak is transformed into an unusually long nose. The tengu's long nose is arguably the most common and characteristic feature of the creature's image today.
Tengu are a type of yokai but they are sometimes seen as divine. Tengu live in mountainous areas.
Tengu are very good at fighting techniques, so they are often associated with war images. They can fly from place to place in the blink of an eye. They always fly from tree top to tree top or perched high to observe. Different from other youkai. Tengu rarely eat people or kill people but only intend to tease them, they kidnap people to play with and then return them, but alas, Tengu will not return you to the correct home but far from the place of kidnapping. Tengu are masters of transformation, so they often turn into wandering monks to deceive and tease people. In Japan, in order not to be teased by Tengu, people often offer food to them.
Tengu are masters in the art of transformation. Like many other "youkai" species, they like to use this ability to tease and deceive people but rarely kill people who eat meat.
Despite having a human-like appearance, Tengu has a bird-like way of life. They hatch from very large eggs and nest in ancient trees in the high mountains.
📚 Explore more of the Mystical Creatures series here: Dive into the Enchanted Realms of Mythology
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