Sōjōbō is a specific type of tengu called daitengu and has the appearance of a yamabushi, a Japanese mountain hermit.

Sōjōbō is perhaps best known for the legend of his teaching the warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune (then known by his childhood name Ushiwaka-maru or Shanao) the arts of swordsmanship, tactics, and magic.

[1] The name Sōjōbō originated in a text called Tengu Meigikō, which dates back to the middle of the Edo period in Japan.

The first two characters of Sōjōbō's name,sōjō (僧正) mean "Buddhist high priest" in Japanese.

[6] Shugendō (修驗道, "way of cultivating supernatural power") incorporates elements of many religious traditions, including Buddhism.

Yves Bonnefoy suggests that this contributed to the folk belief that yamabushi and tengu were identical or at least closely connected.

[13] Now is the time, to show the world those arts of war that for many months and years upon the Mountain of Kurama I have rehearsed Sōjōbō is known for his relationship with the Japanese warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune in legend.

[16] For example, in the war epic Heiji monogatari (The Tale of Heiji) it is said that the training young Yoshitsune received "was the reason why he could run and jump beyond the limits of human power"[17] In the tenth and eleventh centuries, de Visser says that tengu were thought to be "a mountain demon" that caused trouble in the human world.

[20] In the Gikeiki, a text concerning the life of Yoshitsune, Sōjōgatani or Bishop's valley is described as being the location of a once popular temple that is now deserted except for tengu.

[20] According to the text, when evening approaches "there is a loud crying of spirits" and whoever visits the valley is seized by the tengu and tortured.

[21] Foster quotes dialogue from a work called Miraiki (Chronicle of the Future) to demonstrate the idea of the tengu being portrayed in a more benevolent way.

[24]The portrayal of the tengu, and Sōjōbō specifically, as sympathetic to the young Yoshitsune and his desire to avenge his father, is also shown in the Noh play Kurama-tengu.

Not only does he help Ushiwakamaru by training him to become a great warrior and defeat his enemies, he also promises to protect him and support him in future battles.

Sōjōbō is a tengu, which are a type of nonhuman creature in Japanese folklore and mythology with supernatural characteristics and abilities.

[29] While the kotengu or bird type of tengu came first, the daitengu with the long human nose is more common in modern Japanese culture.

Frederick Hadland Davis describes Sōjōbō as having both “bird-like claws, and feathered wings” and "a long red nose and enormous glaring eyes".

The dress of the yamabushi includes formal robes, square-toed shoes, a sword, a scroll, a fan, and a distinctive headdress.

A common style of tokin, worn from the start of the Edo period, is a small hat that resembles a black box.

[3][4] According to de Benneville, this area was thought to be "the haunt of tengu, even … the seat of the court of their goblin-king".

[42] In Kurama-Tengu, Sōjōbō is initially disguised as a mountain priest and befriends the young Yoshitsune (called Ushiwakamaru at this age) at a celebration of the cherry blossoms on Mount Kurama.

Mount Kurama, who has lived in this mountain for hundreds of years.After his true identity is revealed, the Great Tengu says he will “hand down the secret of the art of war” to Ushiwakamaru.

Ushiwakamaru then becomes extremely skilled, as demonstrated by the words of the reciters who say that "even the monsters in the heavens and the demons in the underworld will be unable to beat his elegance with braveness".

The legend of Yoshitsune learning martial arts from the tengu is also featured in another genre of Japanese drama called kōwakamai.

He meets the Great Tengu and his wife, who tell him that his father "has been reborn as Dainichi Buddha in the Pure Land of Amida".

[46] Sōjōbō is not the protagonist of the story The Tale of the Handcart Priest but is mentioned when a group of tengu notice his absence from their gathering.

[47] The legendary relationship between Sōjōbō as instructor and the young Yoshitsune as student serves as the basis of many Japanese woodblock prints.

Related figures to Sōjōbō include the other two famous tengu, Zegaibō of China and Tarōbō of Mount Atago.

[52] Secondly, Sōjōbō and daitengu in general are depicted in a similar way to a kami or Shinto deity called Sarutahiko.

[14] Ashkenazi says descriptions of Sarutahiko present him as being very tall, having an extremely long nose, and with "mirror-like eyes" that "shone cherry-red from inner flames".

Tengu have become a common subject in different forms Japanese media including film, video games, manga, and anime.