Emperor Saga

Emperor Saga (嵯峨天皇, Saga tennō) (786–842) was the 52nd imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He was the second son of Emperor Kammu, and younger brother of Emperor Heizei, his predecessor. He ruled from 809 to 823.

Saga was a scholar of the Chinese classics and, according to legend, the first Japanese emperor to drink tea. He was renowned as a skillful calligrapher. Saga succeeded to the throne after the retirement of Heizei due to illness, and soon after his enthronement was himself ill. This gave Heizei an opportunity to foment a rebellion, which Saga put down in a bloody civil war.

Saga was a supporter of the Buddhist monk Kukai and helped him to establish the Shingon School of Buddhism by granting him the Toji temple in the capital Heian-kyō (present day Kyoto).