Oe no Takachika (大江挙周)
OE no Takachika (date of birth unknown - July or August, 1046) was a nobility who lived in the Heian period. He was a son of OE no Masahira, who belonged to Shikibusho (the Ministry of Ceremonial). He was Shoshii (Senior Fourth Rank) in the Shikibusho.
He pursued Kidendo (the study of the histories) like his father, Masahira, and passed the Horyakushi (exam for selecting government officials). After working as Monjo hakase (professor of literature), he served as Jidoku (Imperial tutor) of Emperor Goichijo and became Shikibu no taifu (Senior Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Ceremonial). On the other hand, he successively held posts of governors of Tamba Province, Mikawa Province, and Izumi Province as chihokan (a local official).
Anecdote
When Takachika's advancement was not going well, his mother, Akazomeemon, sent a poem to FUJIWARA no Michinaga's wife, MINAMOTO no Rinshi:
"Omoheki mikashira no yuki wo uchiharai kienusakini to isogu kokoro wo"
(As I brush off the snow falling on my head, my mind is full of concerns about my body vanishing like snow before [my son is promoted]. Pease consider my feelings.)
Snow on her head: Refers to her hair turning white; the poem reflects the aging mother's concerns for her son.
Reading this poem, Michinaga sympathized with Takachika's mother and appointed Takachika the governor of Izumi Province. However, Takachika fell ill during his service as a governor. Since his illness only took a turn for the worse, Akazomeemon arrived from Kyoto immediately and prayed for her son's cure at Sumiyoshi-jinja Shrine.
The following poem was attached to her gohei (a wooden wand used when performing exorcism):
"Kawaramu to omou inochi wa oshikarade satemo wakaremu hodozo kanashi"
(I would gladly give my life for my son, but then if I have to part from my son as a result, that would be sad, too.)
The poem expressed her desire to sacrifice her life only to save her son.
Eventually Takachika made a full recovery, but when he heard about his mother's actions, he went to Sumiyoshi-jinja Shrine like his mother and prayed: 'I cannot live if my mother died, so please replace her life, which she sacrificed, with my life.'
In addition to being recorded in "Akazomeemon Shu" (an anthology by Akazomeemon) and "Konjaku Monogatari Shu" (The Tale of Times Now Past) Vol. 24, the above anecdote was also recorded in collections of anecdotes such as "Jikkinsho" (Miscellany of Ten Maxims) Vol. 10 and "Kokon Chomonju" (A Collection of Tales Heard, Past and Present) Vol. 5 and circulated widely.
(The poems in this article are taken from the text of "Konjaku Monogatari Shu.")