He held Buddhist mass and built temples as the head priest of the Tendai sect; politically, he acted as a guardian for Michiie KUJO (a grandson of Kanezane) and expected that FUJIWARA no Yoritsune (a son of Michiie) would go to Kamakura as the shogun, having the ideal of cooperation between the Imperial Court and the military government.
天台座主として法会や伽藍の整備のほか、政治的には兼実の孫九条道家の後見人を務めるとともに、道家の子藤原頼経が将軍として鎌倉に下向することに期待を寄せるなど、公武の協調を理想とした。