, called ''Tajima the arrow-cutter'', was a

sōhei were Buddhist warrior monks of both classical and feudal Japan. At certain points in history, they held considerable power, obliging the imperial and military governments to collaborate. The prominence of the ''sōhei'' rose in parallel w ...

(warrior monk) from Mii-dera who fought alongside the

Minamoto clan was a Aristocracy (class), noble surname bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the Imperial House of Japan, imperial family who were excluded from the List of emperors of Japan, line of succession and demoted into the ranks of Nobili ...

forces, and many of his fellow Mii-dera monks at the Battle of Uji in 1180. The bridge over the Yodo River was torn up by Tajima's fellow ''sōhei'', but the attacking

Taira clan The was one of the four most important Japanese clans, clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period, Heian period of History of Japan, Japanese history – the others being the Minamoto clan, Minamoto, the Fujiwara clan, Fuji ...

forces were still shooting arrows, and were still threatening to cross the river. Tajima is said to have stood upon the bridge and, spinning his naginata, deflected many if not most of the arrows that came his way. According to '' The Tale of the Heike'',

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References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gochin no, Tajima Japanese warrior monks Buddhist clergy of the Heian period Samurai People of the Heian period Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 12th-century Japanese people