Reply to Tayū no Sakan
IHAVE received the bamboo container of clear sake, the tub of miso, and the basket of fresh wakame. The clear sake and miso require no comment, but this is the first time I have received a gift of fresh wakame.
Moreover, as soon as you heard of my illness, you dispatched a messenger to deliver these items without a moment’s delay. Your kind intentions are deeper than the ocean, your acts of merit more substantial than the earth. I am profoundly grateful, profoundly grateful!
Respectfully,
Nichiren
The eleventh day of the twelfth month
Reply to Tayū no Sakan
Background
Upon hearing that Nichiren Daishonin was struggling with illness, Ikegami Tayū no Sakan Munenaka sent food items that he thought would help to alleviate the Daishonin’s condition. In this reply, written at Minobu on the eleventh day of the twelfth month in 1281, the Daishonin praises Munenaka’s deep sincerity and the virtue of such acts.