Oda Nagamasu, later known as Oda Urakusai, was born in 1547 as the 11th son of Oda Nobuhide. His childhood name was Gengo (or Gengoro), and he was 13 years younger than his older brother, Oda Nobunaga.

From historical materials dating back to about the Tensho era (1573-1592), referring to his participation in various important rituals, and other matters, it is known that Nagamasu was an influential military leader in the Oda Family.

However, Nagamasu’s destiny took a dramatic turn when, on June 2, 1582, Akechi Mitsuhide stirred a rebellion that led to the death of Nobunaga at Honno-ji Temple. At the time of this Honno-ji Incident, Nagamasu relocated with Oda Nobutada to what was then Nijo Gosho (Imperial Palace), the residence of Prince Sanehito, where they were attacked by rebel forces. After evacuating Prince Sanehito, Nobutada committed ritual suicide. Nagamasu, though, escaped and, according to one story, made his way to Gifu via Azuchi (in today’s Shiga Prefecture). Having fled disaster after the master he served had killed himself, Nagamasu was later labelled ‘the guy who ran away’, in a number of history writings from the Edo Period. He had acquired an uncomplimentary assessment, but was it in fact warranted?

On that basis, in this chapter, we aim to revisit the real image of the military leader Oda Nagamasu through historical materials. What was the mindset of the true Nagamasu? What did he achieve? We wish to trace his path using original source materials wherever possible.

After the Honno-ji Incident, Nagamasu served Toyotomi Hideyoshi and received an estate with an annual stipend of 2,000 koku (value counted in quantity of rice), in the Shimashimo district of Settsu Province (now Settsu City, Osaka Prefecture).

When Hideyoshi died, Nagamasu strengthened his relationship with Tokugawa Ieyasu. Nagamasu’s achievements in battle against the forces of Ishida Mitsunari during the Battle of Sekigahara not only enabled him to retain his earlier domain, but also earned him an estate in Yamato Province. Entering Osaka Castle after that battle, as uncle to Yododono (concubine to Hideyoshi), he served as an adviser to Yododono and her son, Toyotomi Hideyori. Always maintaining due consideration for the Tokugawa factions during the winter campaign in the siege of Osaka Castle.

Amid the turbulent time from the Warring States Period and into the Edo Period, Nagamasu established a presence as a capable daimyo. However, before the summer campaign in the siege of Osaka Castle, he moved to Nijo Castle in Kyoto, and set about restoring the Kennin-ji Temple’s subtemple Shoden-in. This became a place of secluded retirement. Regarded as a tea master by Sen no Rikyu well before then, Nagamasu continued to dedicate himself toward tea ceremony even after taking Buddhist vows and receiving that name Urakusai. In that position, he held tea gatherings while building ties with many renowned priests and military leaders. Numerous writings, documents and journals associated with those activities are still retained by Shoden Eigen-in Temple, and they clearly illustrate Urakusai as a tea master.

In this chapter, we hope to shine a light on activities of Urakusai, the tea master and man of culture, through his writings and other documents.

Through the medium of tea ceremony, Urakusai strengthened ties with other daimyo and with townspeople. By the time he established Shoden-in Temple as his place of retirement, he had already performed an important role in development of tea ceremony at the time.

After his death, the teahouse (Jo-an) he built in Shoden-in, and the tea utensils collected over a long period of dedication to tea ceremony, were taken over by his grandchild, Oda Sangoro (Nagayoshi). Some of these were later distributed through Nagayoshi’s will, while the rest were donated to Shoden-in Temple. Regrettably, almost all of Shoden-in artifacts relating to Urakusai have since been dispersed or lost.

Even so, we are fortunate to be able to connect today with the sense of beauty held by Urakusai as a man of refined tastes, through tea utensils held by Urakusai himself and other renowned items to which he was said to have been drawn. Therefore, this chapter introduces diverse tea utensils imbued with the distinction of once having been part of the Urakusai collection, and others. Together, they enable us to gain a better understanding of the nature of Urakusai.

Shoden-in Temple, where Urakusai resided, was originally situated northeast of the main temple, Kennin-ji Temple. Stone monuments to Urakusai and his wife, Reisenin, grandchild Nagayoshi, and others, were located within the Shoden-in Temple precincts. Since then, they have all been relocated to directly north of the main temple, within the grounds of the former Eigen-an Temple. Although Shoden-in and Eigen-an were ordinally separate temples, their merger dates back to the Meiji era, as a consequence of the Haibutsu kishaku (Abolish Buddhism & Expel Buddha) phenomenon. Being uninhabited, the order was given to dissolve Eigen-an immediately. Shoden-in then relocated to the Eigen-an buildings. Apart from items and facilities that could be moved, Shoden-in Temple land and structures were dispersed. However, around the start of the Meiji era, some 150 years ago, the Shoin room found use as an exhibition hall, receiving new life as a center of culture for the Gion district.

The temple name in use today resulted from involvement of a hereditary lord. Begging with the founder of the Hosokawa clan, Hosokawa Yoriari, Eigen-an was the family temple for eight Hosokawa generations. The Meiji-era Hosokawa lord offered a Shoden Eigen-in Temple Preservation Fund on the condition that the Eigen name is preserved. In view of the history of continual change, we cannot say with certainty that the temple treasures retained by Shoden Eigen-in today were all held by Urakusai. Nonetheless, priceless images and brushwritings of Urakusai and others, partition paintings by Kano Sanraku, and other items still held by the temple, are treasures that draw a direct and vibrant line from the Momoyama Period to the present day. This chapter focuses mainly on history after the death of Urakusai.

Oda Urakusai continues to be held in high regard by people still now. A ceremony commemorating 400 years since his death in 1621 took place at Shoden Eigen-in Temple in 2022. The Uraku-ryu School of Tea Ceremony is being handed down at Shoden Eigen-in Temple, and disciples of this school held a great commemorative ritual.

A form of haiku, written for the ceremony, may perhaps reflect the thinking of Urakusai, who had long been thought of in terms both positive and negative. The words refer to the lesser cuckoo, but the idea presents us with the opportunity to reexamine and reframe the various images of Urakusai that have been passed down through the years.

　Nakanu nara ikiyo sono mama hototogisu
　[If you will not sing, I will let you be, little bird.]

Urakusai received life in a world of civil war. Born into the Oda family line, he was used by politics but survived in a competitive society as a military leader and a man of refined tastes, creating a new culture along the way. The tea style handed down to the present is considered to be a highly flexible ceremony, far apart from that of the samurai world. This style embodies an absence of strict formality, as promoted by Urakusai, and focuses on hospitality extended toward guests in a natural manner.

An item relating to Urakusai was returned last year to Shoden Eigen-in Temple, where the spirit of Urakusai lives on. It is a stone monument dedicated to Takeno Jo-o, who Urakusai regarded with the highest esteem as a tea master. The monument was removed from this location early in the 20th century, and returned after an absence of some 100 years. The gravestone of Urakusai was carved as a likeness of the monument and, though on a smaller scale, is very similar. Yet another item treasured by Urakusai has been returned, and the means for gaining a better understanding of the man continue expand.

In this chapter, we hope that this view of Oda Urakusai and Shoden Eigen-in Temple today, may also turn your thoughts toward whatever promise tomorrow might reveal.