Born in 1563 into the household of a retainer of Niwa Nagahide, he eventually came to serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi directly as a warrior. He studied tea under both Sen no Rikyu and Furuta Oribe, and was known as a man accomplished in both arms and culture who practiced tea even while achieving military distinction with the spear during the Bunroku-Keicho campaigns (invasions of Korea). In the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 he fought with the Western Army but was pardoned afterward, subsequently entering the service of the Asano clan as a senior retainer of Hiroshima Domain. After settling in Hiroshima, he devoted himself to tea and founded "Ueda Soko-ryu," fusing a warrior's bold spirit with a tea practitioner's refined sensibility. He is also credited with deep involvement in designing Shukkeien Garden, a famous scenic spot of Hiroshima Domain. He died in 1650 at the age of 88.