Japan is a country of many mysteries and to westerners the sacred mountain of Koya and the surrounding area of Koyasan is probably one of the least publicised in the land.

Mount Koya is a rare and ethereal place. It is the Mecca and sanctuary of the Shingon Esoteric tradition of Buddhism. The Esoteric tradition is a way of discovering the mysterious kingdom within our human structures and creating the harmony between man and nature. This way of life has had an intrinsic appeal to the Japanese people throughout the ages.

Koyasan has been sanctified since the early 9th century, with more than 100 temples scattered among primeval groves of cedar, cypress and pine. The founder of the Shingon sect, Kobo-Dashi Kukai was a leading scholar of his time. On his return from China in 805AD he brought Buddhism with him. He initiated the Buddhism mission in Koyasan in 816AD, which he operated for 30 years until he went into eternal Samadhi (meditation) at the present site of the Okunion (cemetery) at the age of 62.

The legend is he attained immortality, when he was sealed into his cave for his final meditation, it was winter, and when the monks reopened the cave to attend to his body there was no signs of mortification. A natural deep-freeze?

Kukai’s memory lives on, even today; his name Daishi is a household word, as a saint, scholar, and saviour, a Buddhisattva, an inventor of the Japanese alphabet, a pilgrim, spiritual healer and a calligrapher. More than 10 million followers believe that Daishi is still alive in this world and saving them through the time of history.

Each year, on the 15th June, they people come from all over Japan to celebrate Aoba Matsuri, Daishi’s Birthday Festival. This is a unique experience for a westerner to enjoy; I was one of only four non-Japanese in the town. Sects form very colourful pageants as they parade from the Okunion (cemetery) and through the village.

Visiting the Okunoin is a wonderful and emotional adventure, as you walk the one and a quarter miles, from the entrance to the Okunion Gobyo (where Daishi is enshrined), you will be totalled moved by hundreds of thousands of old tombstones and monuments of the passed famous elders and dignitaries. Side by side you will find Emperors, Shoguns, Samurai warriors, Daimyo, landlords, poets and religious seers and founders.

Even in bright sunlight, the paths appear misty, so thick are the pines, cedars and cypress trees. The occasional shower covered the mountaintops and the gently swirling mist would often blanket out the pathways, creating eerie but calming effects.

There are more than 2,000 temples, shrines, towers, stupas and assembly buildings inside the mountain, surrounded by eight petalled lotus peaks. There is no other place in Japan with such religious significance that has been preserved for a thousand years.

The accommodation is very traditional, of the 115 Buddhist temples, 53 of them offer lodgings. There are no western facilities, you sleep on a futon on the floor, bathrooms and toilets are communal, the meals are vegetarian, no alcohol is served and, as nearly everywhere else in Japan, street shoes are left at the porch and soft slippers are supplied.

Koyasan can be reached from Oaska, Kyoto and Nara by train, with a cable car for the last bit up the mountain. For local travel there is a regular bus service around the village. But the best way to really come to terms with the peace and tranquillity of the ‘Sacred Mountain’ is to walk. The lodging temples provide guests with umbrellas, being mountainous it usually rains several times a day. They will also advise you of bus timetables and the variety of meals available in the local restaurants.

Koyasan – A most rewarding and interesting destination.

The author visited Japan as a guest of the Japan National Tourist Organization, and chose to stay at the Renge Join Temple.