, also known as Mikohidari Tadaie, was a Japanese statesman, courtier, politician, poet and calligrapher during the Heian period.Museen der Stadt Koln. (1975). "Fujiwara no Toshitada," in Sho : Pinselschrift und Malerei in Japan vom 7.-19. Jahrhundert, p. 84; excerpt, "... Staatsratsmitglieds (State Council Member) Fujiwara no Tadaie ...."

In 1090 he ordained as a Buddhist monk and undertook the precepts a year later. He died several months later.

Career at court He was a minister during the reigns of Emperor Go-Reizei, Emperor Shirakawa and Emperor Horikawa.

Tadaie did well at court, rising to the Senior Second Rank and the office of Dainagon (Major Counselor).Journal of Asian Culture (1989), Vol. 13, p. 166.

Poet In this period of Japanese history, the duties of Imperial courtiers included an expectation that each would create and present poems.Carter, Steven D. (2007). Householders: the Reizei Family in Japanese History, p. 374; excerpt, "... courtiers at the Palace presented poems on the idea of "Enjoying Artificial Cherry Blossoms," at the time of Retired Emperor Go-Reizei"

An incident from Tadaie's life is featured in a poem which captured a fleeting moment and a gallant gesture: RōmajiEnglishHaru no yo no Yume bakari naru

Te-makura ni Kainaku tatan Na koso oshi kereIf I had made thy proffered arm A pillow for my head

For but the moment's time, in which A summer's dream had fled, What would the world have said?Porter, William N. (1909). A Hundred Verses from Old Japan, being a Translation of the Hyaku-nin-isshiu, pp. 148-149; excerpt, "... [A] lady-in- waiting at the Court of the Emperor Goreizei ... was present one day at a long and tedious court function, and, feeling very tired and sleepy, she called to a servant for a pillow; ... Tadaie, gallantly offered her his arm, with a request that she would rest her head there, and she replied with this verse."

Calligrapher Examples of calligraphy attributable to Tadaie are identified variously by the Japanese government as a "National Treasure", as an "Important Art Object" and as an "Important Cultural Property".Tokyo National Museum, "Essay on Ten Styles of Japanese Poems" (National Treasure) n.b., the manuscript's calligraphy is attributable to Tadaie according to a curatorial note by Kohitsu Ryōsa (1572-1662) at the end of the scroll; compare "Segment from the Michinari Shu Poetry Anthology" (Important Art Object) in "Courtly Art: Heian to Muromachi Periods (8c-16c)"; compare "Record of Various Poem Contests," (Important Cultural Property); retrieved 2011-07-26.

Genealogy Tadaie's grandfather was Fujiwara no Michinaga; and his father was Fujiwara no Nagaie. The son of Tadaie was Fujiwara no Toshitada (1071–1123).Nagako, Fujiwara et al. (1977). The Emperor Horikawa Diary, p. 57; excerpt, "Toshitada was a grandson of Fujiwara no Michinaga's son Nagaie. This Nagaie had been well-known as a poet, and the poetic tradition was kept alive in the family by his son Tadaie and grandson Toshitada. Toshitada's son, Toshinari and grandson Sadaie (Teika) rank among the greatest of all Japanese poets." This lineage was identified as the Mikohidari lineage within the Hokke branch of the Fujiwara clan.

Tadaie was the grandfather of the poet Fujiwara no Toshinari (1114–1204),National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, "Essay on Ten Styles of Japanese Poems" (National Treasure) who was also known as Shunzei.Keene, Donald. (1999). Seeds in the Heart, p. 681 n2; excerpt, "... the Sino-Japanese versions of their names were used by their contemporaries, and this practice is still observed." Tadaie was the great-grandfather of Fujiwara no Sadaie, also known as Fujiwara no Teika.

Notes

References Porter, William N. (1909). A Hundred Verses from Old Japan, Being a Translation of the Hyaku-nin-isshiu. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Sato, Hiroaki. (2008). Japanese Women Poets: an Anthology. Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe.;