Tenjin (天神) is the God of Learning, he is one of the wealthiest gods, and one of his temple is where Yato frequently stays at during the night. He is also the new master of Mayu.
Appearance
Tenjin appears to be a middle-aged man around his late 40's to 50's, with grey hair, when down, that is shoulder length and brown eyes. He is normally seen wearing a black priest's outfit.
Personality
Being the God of Teaching, he has values for those whom pray to him, diligence as well as hard work. He is very wise and often speaks in a poetic manner. However, he has a playful side, shown when he teases Yato with a 10,000¥ bill saying that he doesn't have any change, before throwing Yato a 5¥ coin; he can also be frivolous at times and may be prone to abandon a certain task, such as restraining Yato for abusing Hiyori's body via posession, if girls nearby compliment about his appearance.
Unlike other lenient gods, such as Yato or Bishamonten, Tenjin is quick to exile any of his Shinki should they sting him. Also, like many other gods, excluding some exceptions such as Ebisu, Tenjin find Nora to be repulsive and would not take in as one of his Shinki unless, in Kugaha's case, he finds it vital in order to do so.
History
Sometime before appearing in the series, Tomone/Mayu appeared to him, asking him to make her one of his Shinki, which he did.
Tenjin summoned Yato to do a job for him, which was to exterminate some Ayakashi (Phantom), which had caused the deaths of people nearby the temple, even paying Yato upfront to make sure he would do the job. Tenjin later appears to Hiyori during the New Years festival, talking to her about Yato and Yukine, commenting that Yukine appeared to him asking if he would take Yukine as a Shinki and later on allows Mayu to goto Yato's aid to help with the purification ritual. He is then seen when Yato appears at his temple to thank him, and ask advice on how to help Hiyori. Tenjin was a murderous spirit; he was the nature of Aramitama, the soul of aggression. Out of fear, people deified him in order to calm his spirit. However, even though he became a god, Tenjin still held strong superficial feelings for the human world and despised people, which resorted to murder. Although, it is shown that he rarely kills anymore (this was stated during the time Yato was young.)
Abilities
Not much is known about Tenjin's powers, other than he is able to control how people do in anything education-related when prayed to, and gives them a nudge in the right direction to help them. However, in the second OVA, multiple bolts of lightning hit Bishamonten and Yato when they make him mad, so that means he might be able to manipulate storms and hurricanes, as when his life as a human ended, people suffered through droughts, plague and other disasters.
Known Shinki
Trivia
- Tenjin is prone to making bad jokes, however he is constantly scolded for it by his Shinki
- Ten (天) means sky and jin (神) means god or deity.
References
- ↑ Noragami Chapter 03