Home - Tim Bunting

TIM BUNTING

KIWI YAMABUSHI

Kia ora koutou. I’m Tim Bunting, the Kiwi Yamabushi.

I’m a practicing Dewa Sanzan Yamabushi, a Japanese mountain ascetic based in Yamagata Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. Since 2016, I’ve trained in Haguro Shugendō under Master Fumihiro Hoshino through Daishobō, a pilgrim’s lodge on Haguro-san, and through Dewa Sanzan Jinja.

If you’re interested in experiencing Shugendō for yourself, check out Yamabushido.jp. Tell them I sent you.

In my spare time, I share stories from the overlooked corners of Japan, especially here in Tōhoku. I publish a Substack newsletter with over 1,500 subscribers, write a daily blog, and post videos on YouTube (over 1,000 subscribers). You’ll find me on most platforms as @kiwiyamabushi.

I’m currently on a mission to summit and document all 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata.

I’m available for:

Online consultation
Public speaking (in English or Japanese)
Guided experiences on the Dewa Sanzan (via Yamabushidō.jp or DewaSanzan.com)

As a Master Yamabushi and the creator of DewaSanzan.com, I believe I’m the most knowledgeable native English speaker on these sacred mountains.

MOUNTAINS OF YAMAGATA

Here are a few posts of my adventures climbing the 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata. Read about the project here, or view all articles here.

ALL

DAILY YAMABUSHI

Here are some of my Daily Yamabushi posts. Get more here.

New students and new places

Put a Japanese person in a new environment and it's amazing how disoriented they get. When I took a bunch of students to NZ earlier this year it was quite noticeable, they don't know where to stand or what to do and the end up getting in the way of other people. For a people […]

Mind Games

When I was a waterpolo player, one time I got a very good lesson from my manager during a game. I was getting my ass handed to me on the field. In retrospect it was mainly because I was allowing myself to be agitated by what the other team was doing, either through their words […]

Writing

Graded Reader Review Links EAP Class 7 Lessons Link EAP Class 8 Lessons Link Writing Development Course Worksheet Speed Writing Template Essay Template Why Write? Humans have a special advantage over computers. Humans have the ability to come up with new ideas. We are idea making machines. But these ideas are useless if they just […]

Priorities

Yamabushi training is all about priorities. It's about setting your priorities, but it's done in a very simple manner. Essentially, you are forced to consider your highest priorities, or in this case priority. That priority of course, is survival. Multiple times you come face-to-face with the transience of life. This confrontation of your highest priority […]

Zen Teachings

Hold a stone in your hand, you cannot hold anything else. Hold nothing in your hand, you can hold anything. -Zen teachings. Possessing things stops you from your potential. Being versatile gives you more ability to feel free.

Creating Space

Ive talked about my rule before that if I don't get two swims in a week in then I'm too busy. Well, recently I've been able to push them in and I was on the verge of not meeting that rule, but only because of random openings in my schedule. Anyway, the other day when […]

Audience

When my Nana passed away a few years back, I was looking through her stuff as any good grandchild would. She had actually hidden a massive pile of sentimental stuff, like family photos from more than 100 years ago, and scrapbooks of things that is grandchildren and great-grandchildren had written her. Well, in amongst it […]