Home - Tim Bunting

TIM BUNTING

KIWI YAMABUSHI

Kia ora Koutou, I'm Tim Bunting, The Kiwi Yamabushi. I am a practicing Dewa Sanzan Yamabushi Japanese mountain ascetic (What's a Yamabushi?). I have been living in Yamagata, Tohoku, north Japan, since 2010. Since 2016, I have trained as a yamabushi under Master Fumihiro Hoshino through Daishobo pilgrim's lodge on Haguro-san, and through Dewa Sanzan Jinja. If you want to find out more about how you too can train in the ways of Shugendo, check out Yamabushido.jp (tell them I sent you).

In my spare time I write stories about the overlooked side of Japan, namely up here in the Tohoku region. I write a daily blog, have a newsletter with over 1,000 subscribers, have a YouTube channel also with over 1,000 subscribers, and am on most socials as @kiwiyamabushi.

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

I am available for online consultation, public speaking in both English and Japanese, and I am able to guide you on The Dewa Sanzan mountains by working through Yamabushido.jp or DewaSanzan.com. As a Master Yamabushi and the creator of Dewasanzan.com, I believe I am the most knowledgable native English speaker on these three 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.

Local business, local knowledge

In the middle of the rice fields on the edge of Tsuruoka City in the Shonai region of Yamagata, Japan, lies Suiden Terrasse, a newly built hotel designed to blend into the surrounding rice paddies. It was designed by world-renown architect, Shigeru Ban, who also designed Christchurch's Cardboard Cathedral, and was won numerous awards for …

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The pure desire to play

遊び心 asobigokoro. The pure desire to play. This morning I had the privilege of attending a talk where a representative of the Japan Deaf Football team, Takumi Matsumoto, and the first, at least in Japan, wheelchair-bound paraglider, Kenji Kato, were presenting. Both of the presenters were quite remarkable to say the least. Often when I'm …

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We are all opportunists.

We are all opportunists. If an opportunist is someone who takes advantage of the chances that are presented to them, we are all opportunists. Whenever, wherever, however you live, you are taking advantage of the situation, you are taking the opportunity, to survive. We are all opportunists.