Emperor Saga Explained

Emperor Saga
Succession:Emperor of Japan
Reign:May 18, 809 – May 29, 823
Coronation:May 30, 809
Cor-Type:Enthronement
Predecessor:Heizei
Successor:Junna
Posthumous Name:Tsuigō


Emperor Saga (Japanese: 嵯峨天皇)

Spouse:Tachibana no Kachiko
Issue:
Issue-Link:
  1. Consorts and children
Issue-Pipe:more...
Royal House:Imperial House of Japan
Father:Emperor Kanmu
Mother:Fujiwara no Otomuro
Birth Date:October 3, 784
Burial Place:Saga no yamanoe no misasagi

was the 52nd emperor of Japan,[1] according to the traditional order of succession.[2] Saga's reign lasted from 809 to 823.[3]

Traditional narrative

Saga was the second son of Emperor Kanmu and Fujiwara no Otomuro.[4] [5] His personal name was .[6] Saga was an "accomplished calligrapher" able to compose in Chinese who held the first imperial poetry competitions .[7] According to legend, he was the first Japanese emperor to drink tea.

Saga is traditionally venerated at his tomb; the Imperial Household Agency designates, in Ukyō-ku, Kyoto, as the location of Saga's mausoleum.

Events of Saga's life

Soon after his enthronement, Saga himself took ill. At the time the retired Heizei had quarreled with his brother over the ideal location of the court, the latter preferring the Heian capital, while the former was convinced that a shift back to the Nara plain was necessary, and Heizei, exploiting Saga's weakened health, seized the opportunity to foment a rebellion, known historically as the Kusuko Incident; however, forces loyal to Emperor Saga, led by taishōgun Sakanoue no Tamuramaro, quickly defeated the Heizei rebels which thus limited the adverse consequences which would have followed any broader conflict.[10] This same Tamuramaro is remembered in Aomori's annual Nebuta Matsuri which feature a number of gigantic, specially-constructed, illuminated paper floats. These great lantern-structures are colorfully painted with mythical figures; and teams of men carry them through the streets as crowds shout encouragement. This early ninth century military leader is commemorated in this way because he is said to have ordered huge illuminated lanterns to be placed at the top of hills; and when the curious Emishi approached these bright lights to investigate, they were captured and subdued by Tamuramaro's men.[11]

Eras of Saga's reign

The years of Saga's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name (nengō).[13]

Legacy

In ancient Japan, there were four noble clans, the Gempeitōkitsu (源平藤橘). One of these clans, the Minamoto clan are also known as Genji (源氏), and of these, the Saga Genji (嵯峨源氏) are descended from 52nd emperor Saga. Saga's son, Minamoto no Tōru, is thought to be an inspiration for the protagonist of the novel The Tale of Genji.[14]

Emperor Saga played an important role as a stalwart supporter of the Buddhist monk Kūkai. The emperor helped Kūkai to establish the Shingon School of Buddhism by granting him Tō-ji Temple in the capital Heian-kyō (present-day Kyoto).[15]

Daikaku-ji

is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Ukyō-ku in Kyoto. The site was originally a residence of the emperor, and later various emperor conducted their cloistered rule from here. The artificial lake of the temple, Ōsawa Pond, is one of the oldest Japanese garden ponds to survive from the Heian period.[16]

The Saga Go-ryū school of ikebana has its headquarters in the temple and is named in his honour.

Kugyō

is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras.[17]

In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Saga's reign (809–823), this kugyō included:

Consorts and children

Saga had 49 children with at least 30 different women. Many of the children received the surname Minamoto, thereby removing them from royal succession.

Ancestry

[20]

See also

References

嵯峨山上

External links

Notes and References

  1. [#Kunaichō|Emperor Saga, Saganoyamanoe Imperial Mausoleum]
  2. Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, pp. 63–64.
  3. [#Brown-Ishida|Brown and Ishida]
  4. Varley, p. 151.
  5. [#Brown-Ishida|Brown and Ishida]
  6. Titsingh, p. 96; Brown and Ishida, p. 280.
  7. [#Brown-Ishida|Brown and Ishida]
  8. Julian dates derived from NengoCalc
  9. Titsingh, p. 96; Brown and Ishida, p. 280; Varley, p. 44; a distinct act of senso is unrecognized prior to Emperor Tenji; and all sovereigns except Jitō, Yōzei, Go-Toba, and Fushimi have senso and sokui in the same year until the reign of Emperor Go-Murakami.
  10. Titsingh, p. 98; Varley, p. 151.
  11. Boroff, Nicholas. National Geographic Traveler Japan, p. 156.
  12. [#Brown-Ishida|Brown and Ishida]
  13. Titsingh, p. 97.
  14. Book: Bargen . Doris G. . Mapping Courtship and Kinship in Classical Japan: The Tale of Genji and Its Predecessors . 2015 . University of Hawaii Press . 978-0-8248-5733-2 . 230 . en . he has often been seen as a historic model for Genji.
  15. Web site: About To-ji Temple . 2023-02-19 . www.toji.or.jp.
  16. Young and Young, The Art of the Japanese Garden, pg. 72
  17. Furugosho: kugyō of Saga-tennō
  18. Ponsonby-Fane, p. 319.
  19. Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, pp. 318–319.
  20. Web site: Genealogy. Reichsarchiv. April 30, 2010 . 28 January 2018. ja.

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