Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo (1530 – 1578), a renowned general of the Sengoku period , was deeply religious from a young age. He built a Bishamondo (hall dedicated to Bishamonten) within his Kasugayama Castle (Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture) and recited sutras daily without fail. In contrast to his quiet prayers, he was famously a warrior feared throughout the country on the battlefield, even being considered an incarnation of Bishamonten, the god of war.

The statue is believed to have been created during the Kamakura period and is characterised by a small head, broad shoulders, thick chest, slender waist, thick hips and toned expression with moderately defined muscles which is typical of the works created by the school of Kei (慶派) during that time.  The fine patterns on the armor, created with a nanako chisel, are also meticulously rendered, making it a fine example of early Kamakura period bronze statues. Unlike typical statues of Bishamonten, this statue does not hold a stupa ( reliquary ), but instead stands with a trident, hands on its hips, and tramples on a demon (jaki). It is cast in copper apparently using a two-part (front-and-back) mold. The demon was cast separately and is now fixed in place, but was originally inserted by means of tenons on the feet (ashi-hozo).

According to legend, when Kenshin, who had been constantly engaged in battles, returned to Kasugayama Castle for the first time in a while and went up to the Bishamondo Hall, he was surprised to find muddy footprints leading all the way to the statue of Bishamonten inside the hall. Kenshin rejoiced, saying, “Bishamonten has been running around the battlefield with me,” and this statue of Bishamonten came to be called “Mud-Footed Bishamonten.”

The statue through the passage of time had deteriorated and been damaged by fire in December 1849. Thankfully some of the damaged parts were restored in the Showa era by Takamura Koun in 1928.