Murase Shigeharu served as a bushō during the Azuchi-Momoyama and early Edo periods.

His father, under the surname of the Isogai clan, served Oda Nobunaga.  From his youth, Shigeharu served Oda Nobukatsu (the second son of Nobunaga) and, upon orders of his lord, changed his surname to Murase.  In 1600, when Tokugawa Ieyasu deployed for the Conquest of Aizu, Shigeharu, along with Hoshiai Tomohira, were sent as messengers by Oda Nobukatsu (who favored Ieyasu) to the eastern provinces.  While en route, he learned in Odawara of the revolt by Ishida Mitsunari.  Tomohira first returned to Nobukatsu while Shigeharu returned after meeting Ieyasu.  On the way, he converged with Mizuno Katsunari of Kariya Castle in Mikawa and served valorously in the Siege of Ōgaki Castle.  Thereafter, he served Ieyasu and received a fief of 3,000 koku.

From 1614, he served Tokugawa Hidetada as a scout and messenger, participating in the Winter Campaign of the Siege of Ōsaka toward the end of the year.  During the Summer Campaign in 1615, he joined the division led by Mizuno Katsunari.  In 1620, Shigeharu was selected as a senior retainer of Tokugawa Yorifusa and received a fief of 10,000 koku.  His former territory was allocated between his sons, Shigetsugu and Shigetoshi.  His sons began separate families, serving as hatamoto, or direct retainers, of the Edo bakufu.  After his death, stipends from the Mito-Tokugawa family were taken away.