was an '' Ō-muraji'', a high-ranking clan head position of the ancient Japanese

Yamato state The was a tribal alliance centered on the Yamato region (Nara Prefecture) from the 4th century to the 7th century, and ruled over the alliance of noble families in the central and western parts of the Japanese archipelago. The age is from the ...

, having inherited the position from his father

Mononobe no Okoshi Mononobe no Okoshi (物部尾輿) was a Japanese minister during the Kofun period, and the chief of the Mononobe clan. According to the '' Nihon Shoki'', during the reign of Emperor Ankan, a necklace belonging to Mononobe was stolen by the daught ...

. Like his father, he was a devoted opponent of

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, which had recently been introduced to Japan from the continent. Alongside Nakatomi no Katsumi, Moriya worked to counteract the efforts of

Soga no Umako was the son of Soga no Iname and a member of the powerful Soga clan of Japan. Umako conducted political reforms with Prince Shōtoku during the rules of Emperor Bidatsu and Empress Suiko and established the Soga clan's stronghold in the govern ...

, another high-ranking noble who supported the adoption of Buddhism. Though Mononobe and Nakatomi saw brief success under the reign of

Emperor Bidatsu was the 30th Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')敏達天皇 (30) retrieved 2013-1-31. according to the traditional order of succession. The years of reign of Bidatsu start in 572 and end in 585; however, there are no c ...

(572-585), his successor,

Emperor Yōmei was the 31st Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 用明天皇 (31)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Yōmei's reign spanned the years from 585 until his death in 587. Traditional narrative He was cal ...

, became Buddhist and so Mononobe's fortunes turned. Following the death of Emperor Yōmei in 587, Mononobe's party and Soga's each sought to influence the succession. The dispute quickly erupted into outright battle, in which Mononobe no Moriya is credited with setting fire to the first Buddhist temples in Japan, and tossing the first images of the Buddha, imported from

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

, into the canals of the city of Naniwa (now Osaka). The conflict culminated in the

Battle of Shigisan A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. There, the Soga were victorious, and Mononobe no Moriya was killed, along with Nakatomi no Katsumi and the young prince they sought to place on the throne.

References

*Papinot, Edmond (1910). "Moriya." Historical and geographical dictionary of Japan. Tokyo: Librarie Sansaisha. Vol 1 p402. Critics of Buddhism Buddhism in the Asuka period People of Asuka-period Japan Aristocracy of ancient Japan 587 deaths Year of birth unknown {{Japan-noble-stub