, was a ''

kuge The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese Imperial Court in Kyoto. The ''kuge'' were important from the establishment of Kyoto as the capital during the Heian period in the late 8th century until the rise of the Kamakur ...

'' (court noble) of tenth century

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

Japan. He is famous for his military exploits and courage and is regarded as the common ancestor of numerous clans, including the

Ōshū Oshu or Ōshū may refer to: *Another name for Mutsu Province, a former Japanese province *Ōshū, Iwate, Japan, a city *Northern Fujiwara The Northern Fujiwara (奥州藤原氏 ''Ōshū Fujiwara-shi'') were a Japanese kuge, noble Japanese c ...

branch of the

Fujiwara clan was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since the ancient times and dominated the imperial court until th ...

. Hidesato served under

Emperor Suzaku was the 61st emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 朱雀天皇 (61)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Suzaku's reign spanned the years from 930 through 946. Biography Before his ascension of the Chrys ...

, and fought alongside

Taira no Sadamori Taira no Sadamori (平貞盛)(10th century) was a samurai of the Taira clan who was involved in suppressing the revolt of Taira no Masakado in the 930s-940. He was the son of Taira no Kunika and grandson of Taira no Takamochi, the founder of the ...

in 940 in suppressing the revolt of Taira no Masakado. His prayer for victory before this battle is commemorated in the Kachiya Festival. Hidesato was then appointed '' Chinjufu-shōgun'' (Defender of the North) and Governor of Shimotsuke Province. He was also nicknamed Tawara Tōda, and according to romance he destroyed a giant centipede in Ōmi Province that plagued the

Dragon Palace A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted a ...

Family

* Father: Fujiwara no Murao (藤原村雄) * Mother: daughter of Shimatsuke-no-jō no Kashima (下野掾鹿島女) ** Wife: daughter of Minamoto no Michi (源通) of the

Board of Chamberlains The is a department of the Imperial Household Agency of Japan. History According to Taihō Code around the 8th century, it was presupposed that a chamberlain belonged to the Ministry of the Center. When the was installed during the Heian era, ...

(侍従). *** Son: Fujiwara no Chitsune (藤原千常) ** Children by unknown mother: *** Son: Fujiwara no Chitoki (藤原千時) *** Son: Fujiwara no Chiharu (藤原千晴) *** Son: Fujiwara no Chikuni (藤原千国) *** Son: Fujiwara no Chigusa (藤原千種) *** Daughter Hintia no Chigusa (藤原千種)

Descendants

Many samurai clans claim descent from Hidesato, including the

Northern Fujiwara The Northern Fujiwara (奥州藤原氏 ''Ōshū Fujiwara-shi'') were a Japanese noble family that ruled the Tōhoku region (the northeast of Honshū) of Japan during the 12th century as their own realm.

(

branch of the Fujiwaras). Some of the others are the , Ōtomo, , ,

Iga Iga may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Ambush at Iga Pass, a 1958 Japanese film * Iga no Kagemaru, Japanese manga series * Iga, a set of characters from the Japanese novel '' The Kouga Ninja Scrolls'' Biology * ''Iga'' (beetle), a gen ...

, , , Yūki and Shimokōbe clans.

Hidesato in legend

Hidesato, also known by the moniker Tawara Tōda or Tawara no Tōta, is known in legend for his exploit of slaying the giant centipede ('' mukade'') of

Mount Mikami Mount Mikami (, pronounced "Mikami Yama", meaning Mikami Mountain) is a mountain, above sea level, located in Yasu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. In spite of its relatively low altitude, it is also called "Ōmi Fuji", that is Mount Fuji of Ōmi P ...

. Hidesato was recruited to this task by a giant dragon-snake which was, in fact, a resident of the

Ryūgū-jō or is the supernatural undersea palace of Ryūjin or Dragon God in Japanese tradition. It is best known as the place in fairytale where Urashima Tarō was invited after saving a turtle, where he was entertained by the Dragon God's princess Oto- ...

(Dragon Palace). Hidesato meets the Dragon King and is showered with rewards, which included an inexhaustible rice-sack (), from which he allegedly earned his nickname. A more rational explanation is that Tawara, also written differently as "田原", represents either a surname or a place name. This centipede story (cf. "

My Lord Bag of Rice My or MY may refer to: Arts and entertainment * My (radio station), a Malaysian radio station * Little My, a fictional character in the Moomins universe * ''My'' (album), by Edyta Górniak * ''My'' (EP), by Cho Mi-yeon Business * Mark ...

") together with a romanticized account of his Masakado expedition comprise the ''Tawara Tōda monogatari''. The ''monogatari'' texts have been copied and printed profusely in picture scrolls and illustrated books throughout the

Edo Period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

Legendary arms

The Ise Shrine's houses two swords that allegedly once belonged to Hidesato. One is the , a ''

tachi A is a type of traditionally made Japanese sword (''nihonto'') worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. ''Tachi'' and ''katana'' generally differ in length, degree of curvature, and how they were worn when sheathed, the latter depending on t ...

'' of the or "tweezer" type. According to tradition, it was the sword obtained by Hidesato from the

, which later became an heirloom of the . After changing hands several times, it came into the possession of the shrine in 1793. Although the Hidesato

provenance Provenance (from the French ''provenir'', 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody or location of a historical object. The term was originally mostly used in relation to works of art but is now used in similar senses i ...

is unverifiable, this sword is dated to be of the correct period. The other alleged Hidesato sword at the museum is called "Centipede-cutter". Although its inscriptions claim it to be the work of the swordsmith from the 8th century, the sword has been dated to the 14th century. There is also another "tweezer" type sword alleged to have belonged to Hidesato held in Chikubu Island, the .

Explanatory notes

References