Sugawara no Michizane
The scholar-statesman who proposed halting the embassies to Tang, was later exiled, and is revered as the "god of learning."
Life
Family of scholars
Sugawara no Michizane came from a family of scholars and was a master of Chinese poetry and prose. Favored by Emperor Uda, he rose all the way to Minister of the Right, an extremely rare achievement for someone not of the Fujiwara clan.
Halted the envoys to Tang
In 894 he was appointed ambassador of the embassy to Tang, but he submitted a memorial recommending that it not be sent, on the grounds that the Tang dynasty was in decline and turmoil and the sea route was dangerous; the embassies to Tang ceased from then on.
Died wrongfully in exile at Dazaifu
In 901 he was falsely accused by the Minister of the Left, Fujiwara no Tokihira, and exiled to the Dazaifu in Kyushu, where he died two years later. Afterward Kyoto suffered a string of natural disasters and lightning strikes, which people attributed to his vengeful spirit; the court restored his honor and built the Kitano Tenmangu shrine to worship him.
Legacy
Sugawara no Michizane is worshipped as "Tenjin" and the god of learning; every exam season, Tenmangu shrines across Japan are crowded with students praying for good results.
Major works & achievements
- "Kanke Bunso"
Did you know? When he left Kyoto, he composed a poem bidding farewell to the plum tree in his garden; legend says the tree flew to Dazaifu overnight.
Key dates
- 886Became governor of Sanuki
- 894Proposed halting the embassies to Tang
- 899Became Minister of the Right
- 901Demoted and exiled to Dazaifu
- 903Died