The Benibana Museum (The Safflower Museum)
21.Anrakuji Temple Documents of Benibana Donation (紅花志納の安楽寺文書)
Anrakuji Temple Document
At about the same age of Nobunaga Oda and Juro Shiratori, the rare documents are preserved the Anrakuji Temple (安楽寺) to show Kahoku people donated benibana to the head temple of the Shinshu Sect (真宗本山).
These documents were discovered by the priest and Mr. Isao Suzuki while they were restored the old documents in 1978 to show the devotees' gift to the head temple mentioned above. (In those days the money or articles were donated for gratitude.) One of the five documents is decoded below.
The flower mentioned here is , needless to say, benibana. The devotees were Josin (浄心) who opened this temple and other common devotees who lived in Iwaki Village (岩木村). The priest was Sosuke Nawa (名和宗介) as a layman and was a descendant of the famous Nagatoshi Nawa (名和長年), who closely connected in this village and opened the temple. This document tells that benibana cultivation already started in this part of the areas. The documents are the oldest one to have the relation with benibana and are designated the cultural property of Kahoku Town.