A novel by Daisaku Ikeda on the theme of friendship.
333 BC. Alexander the Great, on his conquest of the East, contracts a severe illness. No one among the wise men in his retinue can find a cure to save him from death. But in the nocturnal quiet of the camp, as the disease slowly consumes his body, a tormenting doubt tears at his soul. Is the potion prepared for him by Philip, his loyal childhood friend and personal physician, a medicine or a poison? As swift as the wind, sent by one of his generals, a messenger on horseback arrives to deliver the letter containing the answer: Philip is a traitor. The young and invincible king will thus have to wonder whether to trust the messenger and disown his lifelong friend, or bring the cup to his lips and risk his life. The classical world meets Buddhist teachings and offers Master Ikeda the opportunity to celebrate, in a compelling and precious book, the value of loyalty and friendship.
True friendship is not based on calculation. Gold and wealth cannot buy it. It makes us better: it brings out our qualities, helps us make others happy, and while we strive to do so, it gives us joy. Therefore, a friend is like a second self; in friendship two people become one, and a bond of this kind can be defined as life itself.
