Kimbara ［金原］ (n.d.): The Dharma Bridge Kimbara (Kimbara-hokkyō). Also known as the Dharma Bridge Kanahara. A follower of Nichiren who lived in Shimōsa Province, Japan. He actively spread Nichiren’s teaching there together with Ōta Saemon and Soya Kyōshin. “Dharma Bridge” was a title established in the mid-ninth century as an official rank for priests, but later became simply a title of honor. In 1271 Nichiren addressed a letter, known as Lessening One’s Karmic Retribution, to Kimbara, Ōta, and Soya, which he wrote while being held in detention at Echi in Sagami Province prior to his exile on Sado Island.