Five iconic sites along the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage routes, a Unesco World Heritage Site, for an immersion in Japan's nature and a journey into Shintoism and Buddhism.
If walking in forests is good for the brain, walking the Kumano Kodo is good for the spirit too. This network of routes is the only one, alongside the Camino de Santiago in France and Spain, to have been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site, and for over a thousand years it has been leading pilgrims from every corner of Japan (and the world) and every social class — from the humblest people to the imperial family — to the sacred sites of the Kii Peninsula in the south of the country, such as the Kumano Sanzan and Ise shrines. According to the Kojiki, the country's oldest literary and historical document, Japan's very roots lie in the mountains of the Kumano region.
Valleys, forests, rivers and coastlines that for centuries have been home to Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples form a natural landscape that overlaps with a cultural one shaped by the ancient fusion of Shintoism, the Japanese religion based on the veneration of nature, and Buddhism, which reached Japan from China and the Korean Peninsula in the sixth century. Walking the kilometres of trails of the Kumano Kodo means not only immersing oneself in nature but coming to understand, at close quarters, the reverence for all its manifestations. Here, the distinction between nature and culture and the distance between human beings and the natural elements no longer exist.
The backdrop to the Kumano Kodo is Yoshino Kumano national park, created in 1936 to preserve a vast area south of Osaka, the main city of the Kansai region and Japan's second largest. The park extends over 60,000 hectares and encompasses a great variety of landscapes, from the Omine mountains — the region's "rooftop" — to rivers carrying vast quantities of water from the peaks to the sea, through to the Pacific Ocean coastline, which is marked by an impressive variety of geological formations.
The five main routes of the Kumano Kodo are a coveted destination not only for pilgrims and enthusiasts of Japanese history and culture, but also for travellers and trekking lovers. Whatever the reason one has chosen to walk the long and winding trails, in watching the mist rise from the steep, lush valleys and catching sight of Kumano's dramatic yet tranquil landscapes, the syncretism of nature, culture and spirituality reveals its mysteries.
Hongu Taisha is one of the three Shinto shrines of Kumano Sanzan, the principal shrines of this region and of 3,000 other sacred sites scattered across Japan where the faith of Kumano is practised, based on the veneration of nature, Shinto deities and Buddhist earthly manifestations.
Nestled in the forest, the shrine's structure in the soft tones of cypress wood and thatch is characteristic of the early Shinto period. Here, Amaterasu is venerated — the sun goddess and one of the most important Shinto deities. Following a flood, at the end of the nineteenth century Hongu Taisha was moved from its original location to about one kilometre away, where the world's largest torii gate now stands — marking the passage into a sacred Shinto area — at 33 metres tall and 42 metres wide.
Relaxing in a wooden canoe gliding silently along the blue Kumano river is an excellent way to rest one's legs and enjoy nature from a different perspective. Boat tours follow in the footsteps of the traditional pilgrimage from the Hongu Taisha area to the river mouth, where Hayatama Taisha stands — another of the Kumano Sanzan shrines, likewise not to be missed. The river is considered sacred and a key stretch of one of the main Kumano Kodo routes, Nakahechi.
Local guides steer the boats using both engine and oars, sharing local stories and details about this river, which has historically served as a thoroughfare for travel. They also delight passengers with brief performances on the shinobue, a Japanese flute. As well as the rocks lining the riverbanks and the dense forest climbing up the valley sides, from the canoe one can also spot a wide variety of birds.
Beside a small structure in orange, green and yellow wood — the colours characteristic of Shinto shrines — sits an enormous boulder, Gotobiki Iwa, where one of the deities of the Kamikura Jinja shrine resides. To reach this unique formation and the spectacular view of the area below and the coastline that the shrine affords, one must first climb 538 stone steps that make this stretch of Mount Gongenyama accessible, albeit not without considerable effort.
Every year on 6 February, those same steps — worn smooth by centuries of use — are descended at a run by around 2,000 men dressed in white, each carrying a flaming torch. A race as wild and perilous as it is sacred and ancient, for it marks the highlight of the Oto Matsuri festival.
This site perfectly embodies the fusion of Shintoism and Buddhism that defines the Kumano region. Within a matter of metres of each other stand Nachi taisha, one of the Kumano sanzan shrines, and the Seigantoji temple; nowhere else in Japan are Shintoist and Buddhist places of worship (respectively) so close together. It is thus easy to compare Shintoist architecture, rituals and atmosphere on the one hand with Buddhist on the other, and to witness the harmony between these two religions.
A short walk then leads to the Nachi waterfall, which plunges 133 metres down a rock face — the tallest vertical waterfall in Japan. Iconic is the photograph of the waterfall in the background with the three-storey pagoda of Seigantoji in the foreground. As in ancient times, Nachi is venerated today as the dwelling of a Shintoist deity.
As well as crossing the Kii Peninsula through valleys and mountains from north to south and from west to east, the Kumano Kodo routes follow the coastline of the Kumano-nada Sea, part of the northern Pacific Ocean. Geological shifts and the sculpting effect of sea and wind have created imposing and evocative rock formations: at Onigajo, the tuff appears carved, like a work of art. Along this one-kilometre stretch of coast, the arching shapes of the rock seem to engulf those standing beneath them like waves frozen in time, while straight, severe lines sharpen the tuff into fang-like edges — perfectly evoking the name of this area: "demon's castle".
Onigajo is easily walkable along a path and can also be reached from the entrance to Matsumoto toge, a section of the Kumano Kodo where the stones laid 300 years ago to repair the trail after a spell of bad weather are still intact. And where the scent of the forest that has accompanied pilgrims, travellers and walkers for over a millennium still lingers in the air.