The Kumano Kodo

For over a thousand years, people from every level of society, from emperors to peasants, have made this pilgrimage out of faith and a desire for purification. Another core guiding belief is that by making a pilgrimage to Kumano, one could entrust their happiness in the afterlife to those higher up. As such, Kumano is thought of as the dwelling place of the gods.

Whatever the reasons for one’s journey, the ancient paths through Kumano’s mountains, steeped in a sense of the supernatural, were unique, beautiful and a place for quiet reflection away from the busyness of modern life.

If your first image of Japan is the urban concrete jungle of Tokyo, it is difficult to imagine the pristine ceder pine forests of Kumano, littered with rivers and waterways, ancient shrines and quiet guesthouses in little Onsen villages.

Each night I would stay with a Japanese host, and despite the language barrier, took hospitality and hosting of foreigners very seriously. I consider myself lucky to have experienced a slice of Japan that not many foreigners see. To walk and wander across the ancient lands of Kumano, to follow in the footsteps of those hundreds of years before me, and to arrive at the end of the pilgrimage five days later, and be able to say, I walked the Kumano Kodo.