WELLNESS: JAPAN
Find Zen in the country’s timeless onsens, peaceful temples and dappled forests
Japan The land of green tea, hot springs and Zen retreats didn’t invent wellness but it has refined it, writes Kirsty Munro.
Life is fast in Japanese cities: bustling crowds, bullet trains, long workdays and 24-hour everything. But where the pace of daily life is frenetic, the desire to slow down grows stronger. In this land of ancient traditions and cutting-edge innovation, wellness culture runs deep – from soaking in the mineral-rich waters of hot springs to seeking solace within a primeval forest. For many, meditation is both a daily practice and a reason to escape the city on weekends, when salarymen and women retreat to live the simple life at Buddhist temples. And forest bathing? The stress-busting custom is now an international phenomenon – it’s even practised in New York’s Central Park. Ready to relax? Here’s a guide to the way of wellness in Japan.
Temple stays
THE pHonE is always on, work disturbs your downtime and stress simmers in your subconscious. It’s time for a digital detox and in Japan that means more than just switching your smartphone to flight mode. Enter shukubo, Buddhist temple lodgings originally meant to accommodate pilgrims that are now an appealing off-grid option for weary office workers and travellers seeking a more modest way of life.
Rooms are basic but comfortable (most have no TV or wi-fi) and visitors are free to take part in the daily activities of the temple – waking at sunrise for morning prayers, watching fire rituals full of chanting or joining silent meditation and shakyo (tracing Buddhist scriptures with a calligraphy brush). You don’t need to understand what you are writing – the meditative act itself clears your mind. Like any trip to Japan, the highlight of a shukubo stay is the food: traditional Buddhist vegetarian dishes called shojin ryori are prepared with local produce. The meals are elegantly simple and you won’t go hungry.
Mount Koya in Wakayama Prefecture, just south of Osaka, is a holy city dotted with temples and their attached shukubo lodgings. One of the best for first-timers is Eko-in Temple (ekoin.jp), which has cosy rooms overlooking traditional gardens. Don’t miss the night-time tour of the nearby cemetery at Okunoin Temple, where more than 200,000 tombstones are lit by lanterns. It’s a beautiful, eerie place to stroll.
Closer to Tokyo, Taiyōji Temple in Saitama Prefecture (459 Otaki, Chichibu; +81 494 54 0296) is hidden deep in the forest, two hours north of the city. You can practise silent yoga, Zen meditation or shakyo here. And guests are able to wander the surrounding gardens and bathe in the outdoor onsen. You can participate as much or as little as you like – that’s the beauty of staying at a shukubo.