Sen no Shoan (千少庵)
SEN no Shoan (1546 - October 10, 1614) was a chajin (master of the tea ceremony). He was an adopted child and son-in-law of SEN no Rikyu. He was the father of SEN no Sotan. It is said that his natural father was a Nohgakushi, (Noh actor) Saburosannyu MIYAO, but recently, there is another theory that it was Hisahide MATSUNAGA.
Because his mother Soon became Rikyu's second wife, he became an adopted son of Rikyu. His brother-in-law SEN no Doan was same age as he. He had a congenital disability in one leg, and according to documents related to inheritance, it is confirmed that his position in the Sen family was weak. His wife was Rikyu's daughter Okame (also called Ocho) and they had a child Sotan who was the heir.
After Rikyu's Seppuku (suicide by disembowelment), he was ordered confinement under Ujisato GAMO in Aizu. In the Tsurugashima-jo Castle in present Aizuwakamatsu City, there remains 'Rinkaku,' the tea room that they say was built by Shoan's order.
In 1594, he was granted amnesty thanks to mediation by Ieyasu TOKUGAWA and Ujisato GAMO, and returned to Kyoto. Then, he started Sen family (the Kyosen family) and had his son Sotan return to secular life. It is said that he retired early and was content with being a koken (guardian) of Sotan.