When Kiuchi had been brought down from the temple roof, he fainted, and remained in a swoon for three days. At length, gaining consciousness, he gave the following account of his strange adventure:
"The evening when I disappeared I heard some one shouting my name over and over again, and going out I discovered a black-robed monk, bawling 'Heizayemon!' Beside the monk stood a man of great stature; his face was red, and his dishevelled hair fell upon the ground. 'Climb up on yonder roof,' he shouted fiercely. I refused to obey such an evil-faced villain, and drew my sword, but in a moment he bent the blade and broke my scabbard into fragments. Then my girdle was roughly torn off and cut into three pieces. When these things had been done, I was carried to a roof, and there severely chastised. But this was not the end of my trouble, for after I had been beaten, I was forced to seat myself on a round tray. In a moment I was whirled into the air, and the tray carried me with great speed to many regions. When it appeared to me that I had travelled through space for ten days, I prayed to the Lord Buddha, and found myself on what appeared to be the summit of a mountain, but in reality it was the roof of the temple whence you, my comrades, rescued me."
A Modern Belief in the Tengu
Captain Brinkley, in Japan and China, informs us that as late as 1860 the officials of the Yedo Government showed their belief in supernatural beings. Prior to the visit of the Shōgun to Nikko, they caused the following notice to be exhibited in the vicinity of the mausolea:
TO THE TENGU AND OTHER DEMONS
"Whereas our Shōgun intends to visit the Nikko Mausolea next April, now therefore ye Tengu and other Demons inhabiting these mountains must remove elsewhere until the Shōgun's visit is concluded.
"(Signed) Mizuno, Lord of Dewa.
"Dated July 1860."
The local officials were not content with a notice of this kind. After duly notifying the Tengu and other demons of the coming of the Shōgun, the exact mountains were specified where these creatures might live during the ruler's visit.
The Mountain Woman and the Mountain Man
The Mountain Woman's body is covered with long white hair. She is looked upon as an ogre (kijo), and, as such, figures in Japanese romance. She has cannibalistic tendencies, and is able to fly about like a moth and traverse pathless mountains with ease.
The Mountain Man is said to resemble a great darkhaired monkey. He is extremely strong, and thinks nothing of stealing food from the villages. He is, however, always ready to assist woodcutters, and will gladly carry their timber for them in exchange for a ball of rice. It is useless to capture or kill him, for an attack of any kind upon the Mountain Man brings misfortune, and sometimes death, upon the assailants.