Sakanoue Tamuramaro

Sakanoue Tamuramaro (758–811) was a court noble and military official of the early Heian period and one of Japan's most renowned Seii Taishogun. He served under four successive emperors—Emperor Kanmu, Emperor Heijō, and Emperor Saga—and achieved major accomplishments in suppressing the Emishi in the northeast.

In Enryaku 20 (801), he undertook an eastern campaign as Seii Taishogun and brought the Emishi chieftain Aterui to submission. Through this accomplishment, he was promoted to Daijōin and concurrently held the position of Major General of the Right Imperial Guards, becoming the military mainstay of the imperial court and protector of Heian-kyō.

Regarding swords, the Important Cultural Property "Sohaya" (housed at Kiyomizu Temple in Harima Province) is traditionally said to be a daitō dedicated by Tamuramaro; after defeating a demon-deity, it was enshrined at the temple. Similarly, the Important Cultural Property "Black-Lacquer Sword" in the collection of Kurama Temple in Kyoto is known as a daitō dedicated by Tamuramaro. A gold-copper-mounted daitō (housed in the Kyoto University Museum) unearthed during excavation of his tomb has been designated a National Treasure and serves as evidence of early Heian forging standards and the imperial court's trust in Tamuramaro.

He is also traditionally credited with founding Kiyomizu Temple. The military renown of the Sakanoue clan continued through his son Hirono Maro's generation. In later ages, he was deified as a symbol of the war god and martial fortune, becoming an object of veneration among warriors at temples and shrines throughout Japan.