Prince Sawara

Prince Sawara, born around 750, was a son of Emperor Kōnin and Takano no Niigasa, and a younger brother of Kammu. He spent part of his early life in a Buddhist temple. When Kammu became emperor in 781, Sawara became crown prince. His role included routine government business alongside the court official Fujiwara no Tanetsugu; being heir involved work as well as a place in the succession. [S01]

After Tanetsugu was shot in 785, confessions obtained in the investigation implicated Sawara. He was deposed and confined at Otokuni-dera, a temple near Nagaoka, the new capital. Accounts describe him refusing food while maintaining his innocence. He died during transfer toward exile on Awaji, an island in the Inland Sea. The punishment is clearer in the surviving record than his personal part in the murder. [S01, S02, S03]

Later illnesses in the imperial family and other calamities were attributed at court to Sawara’s angry spirit. Kammu’s government sponsored religious observances and care of his grave. In 800, it honoured him as Emperor Sudō, although he had never reigned. This reversal belonged to the court’s efforts to respond to fear and loss after his death. It records a change in his treatment, without establishing that a spirit caused the disasters. [S01, S02]