Wakayama, Japan’s epicentre of spirituality, is just an hour’s train ride from Osaka. Its pristine forested mountains, UNESCO heritage trails, sacred shrines, beautiful beaches and onsens, or natural hot springs, offer something for everyone. Whether you seek Nature, spirituality, adventure or wellness, Wakayama offers you unique experiences to cherish. It’s an escape to heal the mind, body and soul. In this second feature in a two-part series on Wakayama, we visit the Kumano Kodo, an ancient network of pilgrimage routes that lead to Kumano’s three grand shrines, Kumano Hongu Taisha, Kumano Nachi Taisha and Kumano Hayatama Taisha.
With its imposing mountains, rugged coastline, picturesque waterfalls, scenic rivers, and huge old-growth trees, the Kii Peninsula has been considered a mystical abode of the gods since ancient times. It is here that Shinto, Japan’s age-old tradition of Nature worship, would flourish, eventually fusing with the Buddhist beliefs introduced from China and the Korean Peninsula.
The Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples that emerged in the dense forests of the Kii Mountains have attracted pilgrims from all levels of society for more than a millennium. The network of pilgrimage routes, the Kumano Kodo, or “old ways”, are the key part of the region’s UNESCO World Heritage designation, along with three revered sites: Koyasan (the centre of Shingon Buddhism), Yoshino and Omine (centres of mountain worship), and Kumano Sanzan (the three grand shrines of Kumano). The complex web of tracks and paths links the sites together as well as to the ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto.
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Denne historien er fra AG 157-utgaven av ASIAN Geographic.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Revealed Doctor Yellow
Japan Railways' special lemony Shinkansen is a rare sight to behold
The Mighty Yellow
Over 5,000 kilometres long and flowing through nine provinces and autonomous regions, the Yellow River is China's second largest, after the Yangtze, while its basin is deemed the cradle of Chinese civilisation
Wildlife Big Yellow Beauty
The popular "amelanistic" form of the Burmese python is considered among the most beautiful snakes - if that's your sort of thing
All That Glitters Is Gold
From Turkey to China, the yellow metal plays a central role in cultural practices and is coveted as a symbol of affluence and status
Chengdu Hotel Spotlight TRIKA TSANG INTERNATIONAL HOTEL
For an authentic taste of Tibet in the heart of Chengdu, the most luxurious option is the majestic Trika Tsang International Hotel.
Conservation Yellow in Peril
While the demand for use in traditional Chinese medicine is putting seahorses under pressure, it is damaging non-selective fishing that is driving depletion
History Spiritual Rebirth
During the Spanish Golden Age, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan achieved the first European navigation to Asia via the Pacific, arriving in the Philippines in 1521 and claiming the islands for Spain. But by converting the first Filipinos to Catholicism, Magellan also instigated the Christianisation of the entire archipelago, a spiritual rebirth celebrated through the two most important festivals in the Philippines - Fiesta Señor and Sinulog.
Green Dreams
With its tea plantations and rice paddies, dense jungles and expansive forests, the region is well known as a green paradise. But many of the most impressive Asian landscapes have names you may never have heard of. Journey with us as we reveal just some of the incredible locations that make the rest of the world green with envy!
Life On The Edge
In the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, in the remote northern Russian Far East, indigenous ethnic groups like the Chukchi and the Yupik live in the most extreme conditions, hunting seals in their traditional kayaks as they have for millennia
The Karakoram Anomaly Decoded
For decades, scientists have believed that glaciers in the Karakoram Range are defying the trend of those across the globe-resisting glacial melt due to human-induced global warming. But as we trek up the Karakoram's second-longest glacier in July, as the United Nations announces the world's hottest ever month on record, does the melting ice beneath our feet suggest the so-called Karakoram Anomaly is slowing? Or is there a ray of hope it will continue to delay the inevitable?
