, also known as Minamoto no Raikō, served the regents 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 ...

along with his brother Yorinobu, taking the violent measures the Fujiwara were themselves unable to take. He is one of the earliest

Minamoto was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during the ...

of historical note for his military exploits, and is known for quelling the bandits of Ōeyama. His loyal service earned him the governorships of

Izu Province was a province of Japan in the area of Shizuoka Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Izu''" in . Izu bordered on Sagami and Suruga Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . The mainland portion of Izu Province, comprising the ...

, Kozuke and a number of others in turn, as well as a number of other high government positions. Yorimitsu served as commander of a regiment of the Imperial Guard, and as a secretary in the Ministry of War. When his father

Minamoto no Mitsunaka was a Japanese samurai and court official of the Heian period. He served as ''Chinjufu-shōgun'' and acting governor of Settsu Province''.'' His association with the Fujiwara clan made him one of the wealthiest and most powerful courtiers of his ...

died, he inherited

Settsu Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises the southeastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture and the northern part of Osaka Prefecture. It was also referred to as or . Osaka and Osaka Castle were the main center of the province. Most of Settsu's ...

. Yorimitsu is usually accompanied by his four legendary retainers, known as the Shitennō (The Four Heavenly Kings). They were

Watanabe no Tsuna (953–1025) was a Japanese samurai, a companion in arms of Minamoto no Yorimitsu (also known as Raikō), one of the earliest samurai to be famed for his military exploits in a number of tales and legends. Watanabe no Tsuna was the first pers ...

Sakata no Kintoki Sakata may refer to: People * Jeanne Sakata, American actress and playwright * Lenn Sakata (Lenn Haruki Sakata) (born 1954), former American professional baseball player * Harold Sakata (Toshiyuki "Harold" Sakata) (1920–1982), American Olym ...

Urabe no Suetake was a samurai of the Heian period (794 – 1185) in the service of Minamoto no Yorimitsu (948 – 1021), a regent of the Fujiwara clan. Suetake was formally known as , and also appears in literature as and . Suetake assisted Yorimitsu t ...

, and

Usui Sadamitsu was a warrior of the mid-Heian period. His official name was . According to Otogizōshi stories compiled several centuries later, Sadamitsu was a retainer of the Japanese legendary hero Minamoto no Raikō. Sadamitsu is known as one of The Fou ...

Legends

Yorimitsu featured in a number of legends and tales, including the

legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

Kintarō is a folk hero from Japanese folklore. A child of superhuman strength, he was raised by a yama-uba ("mountain witch") on Mount Ashigara. He became friendly with the animals of the mountain, and later, after catching Shuten-dōji, the terror of t ...

(Golden Boy a.k.a.

), the legend of Shuten Dōji, and the legend of

Tsuchigumo is a historical Japanese derogatory term for renegade local clans, and also the name for a race of spider-like yōkai in Japanese folklore. Alternative names for the mythological Tsuchigumo include and . In the ''Kojiki'' and in '' Nihon Shoki ...

. The ''

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 ...

'' (long sword) 'Dōjigiri' owned by

Tokyo National Museum The or TNM is an art museum in Ueno Park in the Taitō ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the four museums operated by the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage ( :ja:国立文化財機構), is considered the oldest national museum in Japan, ...

and selected as a

National Treasure The idea of national treasure, like national epics and national anthems, is part of the language of romantic nationalism, which arose in the late 18th century and 19th centuries. Nationalism is an ideology that supports the nation as the fundame ...

and ''

Tenka-Goken The are a group of five Japanese swords. Three are National Treasures of Japan, one an Imperial Property, and one a holy relic of Nichiren Buddhism. Among the five, some regard Dōjigiri as "the yokozuna of all Japanese swords" along with Ōkanehi ...

'' ("Five Swords under Heaven"), and 'Onikirimaru' owned by Tada Shrine, have a legend that Yorimitsu beheaded Shuten Dōji. Also, three swords of the same name, 'Hizamaru' owned by

Daikaku-ji is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Ukyō-ku, a western ward in the city of Kyoto, Japan. The site was originally a residence of Emperor Saga (785–842 CE), and later various emperors conducted their cloistered rule from here. The ''Saga Go-ry ...

Temple,

Hakone Shrine The is a Japanese Shinto shrine on the shores of Lake Ashi in the town of Hakone in the Ashigarashimo District of Kanagawa Prefecture.Kotodamaya.com"Hakone Jinja" retrieved 2013-1-27. It is also known as the . Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2 ...

and an individual, have a legend that Yorimitsu beat off Tsuchigumo.Tsumugu Japan art & culture.

Yomiuri shimbun The (lit. ''Reading-selling Newspaper'' or ''Selling by Reading Newspaper'') is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five major newspapers in Japan; the other four are t ...

. The

Karatsu Kunchi Karatsu Kunchi (唐津くんち; the suffix "kunchi" simply meaning festival) is a Japanese festival that takes place annually in the city of Karatsu, Saga Prefecture, on Japan's island of Kyūshū. About The festival, which begins on the eve ...

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

in Karatsu City,

Saga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasak ...

, features a large

float Float may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Albums * ''Float'' (Aesop Rock album), 2000 * ''Float'' (Flogging Molly album), 2008 * ''Float'' (Styles P album), 2013 Songs * "Float" (Tim and the Glory Boys song), 2022 * "Float", by Bush ...

inspired by the

helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protect ...

of Minamoto, being partially devoured by the

oni An is a kind of ''yōkai'', demon, orc, ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. Oni are mostly known for their fierce and evil nature manifested in their propensity for murder and cannibalism. Notwithstanding their evil reputation, oni possess i ...

Shuten Douji

File:NDL-DC 1310286-Tsukioka Yoshitoshi-頼光四天王大江山鬼神退治之図-元治1-cmb.jpg, An

ukiyo-e Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surfac ...

Yoshitoshi Tsukioka Yoshitoshi ( ja, 月岡芳年; also named Taiso Yoshitoshi ; 30 April 1839 – 9 June 1892) was a Japanese printmaker.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric. (2005)"Tsukoka Kōgyō"in ''Japan Encyclopedia,'' p. 10 ...

depicting Minamoto no Yorimitsu's retainers,

, and

and aristocrat Fujiwara no Yasumasa fighting

Shuten-dōji Shuten-dōji (, also sometimes called , or ) is a mythical ''oni'' or demon leader of Japan, who according to legend was killed by the hero Minamoto Raikō. Although decapitated, the demon's detached head still took a bite at the hero, who avoid ...

on Ōeyama. File:土蜘蛛退治図鐔 Tsuba with design of Minamoto no Yorimitsu confronting the Tsuchigumo.jpg, Two

tsuba Japanese sword mountings are the various housings and associated fittings ('' tosogu'') that hold the blade of a Japanese sword when it is being worn or stored. refers to the ornate mountings of a Japanese sword (e.g. ''katana'') used when the ...

(Sword guard) depicting Yorimitsu trying to cut a

tsuchigumo is a historical Japanese derogatory term for renegade local clans, and also the name for a race of spider-like yōkai in Japanese folklore. Alternative names for the mythological Tsuchigumo include and . In the ''Kojiki'' and in '' Nihon Shoki ...

with a

named 'Hizamaru'. made by Unnno Yoshimori I (left), Gochiku Sadakatsu (right).

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...

. File:四天王剿盗異録, A Strange Account of the Destruction of the Bandits by the Elite Four.jpg, "A Strange Account of the Destruction of the Bandits by the Elite Four" (Yorimitsu, Watanabe no Tsuna, Urabe no Suetake, and Fujiwara no Yasumasa.),

Yomihon is a type of Japanese book from the Edo period (1603–1867). Unlike other Japanese books of the periods, such as kusazōshi, they had few illustrations, and the emphasis was on the text. In storylines, Buddhist ethics such as karma are often pre ...

book by

Utagawa Toyokuni Utagawa Toyokuni ( ja, 歌川豊国; 1769 in Edo – 24 February 1825 in Edo), also often referred to as Toyokuni I, to distinguish him from the members of his school who took over his ''gō'' (art-name) after he died, was a great mas ...

and

Takizawa Bakin (), a.k.a. (, 4 July 1767 – 1 December 1848), was a Japanese novelist of the Edo period. Born (), he wrote under the pen name (). Later in life he took the pen name (). Modern scholarship generally refers to him as , or just as n. He is ...

Family

*Mother: Daughter of Minamoto no Suguru *Father:Minamoto no Mitsunaka *Wife:Daughter of Fujiwara no Motohira **1st son : Minamoto no Yorikuni *Wife:Daughter of Taira no Koretaka **2nd son : Minamoto no Yoriie *Wife:Daughter of Yoshishige no Tamemasa **3rd son:Minamoto no Yorimoto **4th son: Eiju **5th son:Minamoto no Yoriaki **daughter:Fujiwara no Michitsuna's wife

Poetry

Yorimitsu wrote a

renga ''Renga'' (, ''linked verse'') is a genre of Japanese collaborative poetry in which alternating stanzas, or ''ku (''句), of 5-7-5 and 7-7 mora (sound units, not to be confused with syllables) per line are linked in succession by multiple poets. ...

with his wife, which appears in the

Kin'yō Wakashū The , sometimes abbreviated as ''Kin'yōshū'', is a Japanese imperial anthology of waka whose two drafts were finished in 1124 and 1127. It was compiled at the behest of the Retired Emperor Shirakawa, by Minamoto no Shunrai (~1055–1129; somet ...

(nos.703-704):
''tade karu fune no suguru narikeri''
''asa madaki kararo no oto no kikoyuru wa''
This translates as:
a boat harvesting smartweed is passing by
I thought I heard someone rowing smartly before dawn

In popular culture

*Appears in the video game ''

Nioh 2 is an action role-playing video game developed by Team Ninja for the PlayStation 4. It was published by Koei Tecmo in Japan and Sony Interactive Entertainment worldwide on March 13, 2020. It is both a prequel and sequel to ''Nioh'' (2017). Versio ...

'' as a female yokai hunter. She is voiced by

Yūko Kaida is a Japanese actress and voice actress who is affiliated with Ken Production. Her most known roles include Shimei Ryomou in ''Ikki Tousen'', Tsukuyo in ''Gintama'', Kyō Takamimori in ''Potemayo'', Amane Ootori in ''Strawberry Panic!'', Minak ...

. *Appears as a summonable character in the mobile game in ''

Fate/Grand Order is a free-to-play Japanese mobile game, developed by Lasengle (formerly Delightworks) using Unity, and published by Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The game is based on Type-Moon's ''Fate/stay night'' franchise, and ...

''. She is voiced by

Haruka Tomatsu is a Japanese voice actress and singer, employed by Music Ray'n. She received the Rookie of the Year award at the 3rd Seiyu Awards and the Synergy Award at the 9th Seiyu Awards. Tomatsu voiced Asuna Yuuki in ''Sword Art Online'', Zero Two in ...

. *Appears as the protagonist in the

Otogi , is a 2002 action video game developed by FromSoftware and published by Sega. It was released for the Xbox in Japan in December 2002, by Sega in North America in August 2003, and Europe in September 2003. ''Otogi'' follows former execution ...

game series. *Appears as the ancestor of the Minamoto clan in the manga and anime series

Toilet-bound Hanako-kun is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by AidaIro. It has been serialized in Square Enix's magazine ''Monthly GFantasy'' since 2014. It has been collected in eighteen ''tankōbon'' volumes as of August 2022. The story follows Nen ...

. *Appears as a character in the RPG game Onmyoji.

Notes

References