People in the Legends
Fujiwara no Hidesato was a warrior of the mid-Heian period. Based in Shimotsuke Province (today’s Tochigi Prefecture), he is known for killing Taira no Masakado, who rebelled in the Kanto region in 940.
Also known as “Tawara Toda,” he is famous for the legend in which, at the request of the dragon god of Lake Biwa, he slew the giant centipede coiled around Mount Mikami in Omi Province. The story is told in the Taiheiki and the otogizoshi tale Tawara Toda Monogatari.
The legend of the vengeful spirit of Taira no Masakado, who rebelled in the Kanto region in the Heian period and was killed. His head, displayed in Kyoto, is said to have flown east in search of its body, and the Masakado head mound in Otemachi, Tokyo, is still carefully tended.
A centipede yokai so huge it could coil seven and a half times around Mount Mikami in Omi Province. It is known for the legend in which Fujiwara no Hidesato (Tawara Toda), at the request of the dragon god of Lake Biwa, shot it down with an arrow wet with his saliva.
