mysterious falling rocks in the mountains
Folkloric term for rocks or stones that seem to fall from nowhere in mountainous areas, traditionally attributed to tengu.
I heard a story about encountering mysterious falling rocks on a mountain trail.
People long ago thought that tengu-tsubute were the work of tengu.
Standard kanji spelling. 礫 is a non-jōyō kanji meaning 'pebble' or 'gravel'.
Mixed kanji-kana spelling that makes the reading clear; useful for learners.
Compound of 天狗 (tengu, a mythical mountain goblin) and 礫 (tsubute, a thrown stone). The term reflects the folk belief that tengu cause stones to fall in the mountains.