Mount Takao

Takao-san has a permenant resident...

Last weekend we were supposed to brave the outdoors once more and climb another mountain! Seeing as I had conquered Mount Fuji a few weeks ago and am still sore :) it had to be a small and easy climb! We settled on Mount Takao as it is located not far from Tokyo and only 560m high. It is also surrounded by lovely views, lots of trees and nice clean air!
http://www.takaotozan.co.jp/takaotozan_eng1/course/index.htm.
However, the weather over the weekend was horrible and I threw my hiking shoes back into the cupboard and opted for a weekend of baking and television!

The reason for this post is to discuss a small part of Japanese culture which I stumbled upon whilst researching Takao-san. This mountain is associated with Japanese mystical creatures known as Tengu, which translates roughly to Heavenly dogs. They belong to Japanese folklore and are also minor Kami-sama. I was told that they are thought to be the ghosts of Buddhists who have fallen off the road of righteousness. As they are Buddhists, they can go to Hell but as they are no longer pure, they can not go to heaven. Therefore, they get trapped as ghosts in these forms known as tengu. There are different forms of Tengu depending on whether the person was educated or ignorant during their life on earth. Those that were well educated such as Buddhist priests, nuns or scholars are known as Daitengu (big; powerful) whilst those who were uneducated are known as Kotengu (small).These creatures take the form of bird of prey with large, long noses and red faces. However, Daitengu are usually depicted in a more human-like form.They have a human body attached to a head which is red and has a large nose.

The Tengu that inhabits Mount Takao is a Daitengu. It is famous and powerful and known as Naigubu. It is said that Naigubu can create strong winds which can be dangerous for hikers climbing the mountain. Therefore at the foot of the mountain, vendors sells fans in the shape of leaf with the tengu image imprinted on either side. This fan acts as an amulet to protect the bearer from the anger of Naigubu. When the wind blows, one has to fan once to ward off evil spirits and then a second time to welcome good luck.

An interesting point to make is that the Tengu are not only seen as evil spirits but also as Gods. Buddhist books distinguish between evil and good Tengu beings, where the Good dominate the evil, acting as protectors.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tengu

Hopefully, if the weather clears up soon I can actually climb Takao-san and wave my fan in Naigubu's direction!