TIM BUNTING

KIWI YAMABUSHI

山伏

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi on Mt. Gassan

キウイ

DAILY YAMABUSHI


Don’t make it perfect.

February 15, 2026

Just make it.

Not just sometimes

February 14, 2026

There’s not much else you can do but accept

The Real Investment

February 13, 2026

Prioritise time

Hard to put off

February 12, 2026

Get them out of the way

Leave Some for ‘Ron

February 11, 2026

Leave Some for Later

After the Fact

February 10, 2026

Though.

Making Things Easier

February 9, 2026

Doesn’t necessarily work

FEATURE ARTICLES

Here are a few samples of what you find in The Kiwi Yamabushi Newsletter.

The Town of Dual Dragons

And the legends they created.

Mountains and Moments

Focus on the step in front of you, not the mountain in the distance.

The Badass Fudomyo’o: Your new Favourite Buddhist Deity

You’ll find him near waterfalls all over Japan.

Mt. Chokai
Falling for the Gaijin Trap Trap

That is not a typo. Everyone has to fall in sometime...

This Yamabushi Brought Me To Tears

A story from yamabushi training

The Land of The Rising Moon-Sun

How Japan switched from a Lunisolar to a Gregorian Calendar. Or tried to, at least.

Japan’s Two Biggest Obsessions

Starbucks is decidedly NOT a Kissaten

It’s eel day. Don’t mow your lawn.

And the Japanese Colonel Sanders’ golden idea

Autumn’s Peak Ritual 2024

Joining a Yamabushi Initiation Ritual

Uketamo and What The Mountains Teach You

Stop for a moment to be in the moment

Dragons and how they protect my house in Japan

One major role for dragons in Japan (besides protecting my house)

Mt. Chokai above the sea of Japan
The Creepy Legend of the Yokai of Chokai-san (Mt. Chokai)

The creepy legend of how Chokai-san (Mt. Chokai) got its distinct shape, and how Yamagata Prefecture's only inhabited island was formed.

A Coffee Lover’s Guide to Sakata

The Best Coffee Spots in Sakata, and what I really think of them

Hand holding chopsticks drawing, vintage
Why we eat what we eat at Obon

How to prove you are smarter than a Japanese person.

Why do Japanese Shrines have lightning-bolt tassels?

Plus the scientific basis behind it all.

MOUNTAINS OF YAMAGATA

Here are a few posts of my adventures climbing the 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata.

Venerable Old Man Mountain — The Mist and Mystery of Okina-san (Mt. Okina)

 Legends and landscapes on an epic hike along the Ou Mountains

Bananas and Cokes, Leaches and Pit Vipers

How a group of elderly Japanese men saved our arses

The Autumn Leaves of Mount Taizo
The Epitome of Autumn Leaves in North Japan: Taizo-san (Mt. Taizo)

Mount Taizo all but single-handedly confirms why autumn is by far the best season for hiking in Japan.

Close Encounters of the Tengu Kind

(Murayama) Tengu-yama is a 403-m high peak in Nishikawa town that is home to a Tengu, a yokai or supernatural being.

Sanze village near Mt. Fujikura surrounded by green mountains and the blue Sea of Japan can be seen through the trees in the distance through the trees of Mt. Fujikura
Sanze’s Little Helper: Fantastic Fujikura-yama (Mt. Fujikura)

Fun little peak in the tiny fishing village of Sanze, Tsuruoka City

I found an abandoned ski field in Japan

Short and quick hike with views of Chokai-zan and near the Mogami River, Shiraito Falls, and Genso no mori, the Forest of Illusions.

Yamagata’s Secluded Secret: Takatori-yama (Mt. Takatori)

Small peak on the edge of Nakayama Town famous for its Kannon Temple and the views it commands.

Mt. Yudono Shrine Gates during the autumn
The Dewa Sanzan’s Mountain of Rebirth: Yudono-san (Mt. Yudono)

Yudono-san is the final Dewa Sanzan peak in the middle of Yamagata Prefecture that has been a central destination for millions over the centuries

Kurosawa Akira, Abe Shinzo, The Kami of War, and a flock of geese?

Mountain that marks the entrance to the Kamuro Alps

Mt. Haguro's Five Story Pagoda
Why This Tiny Mountain MUST be on Your Japan Itinerary: Haguro-san

Home to Haguro Shugendo and the Dewa Sanzan Yamabushi mountain monks

Mother. Hunter. Mountain. Hokari-yama (Mt. Hokari)

Kinbo Shugen Mountain with a strange name and amazing trails amongst the autumn leaves

Hiking Japan’s Forgotten Highway: Sabane-yama and Ushu-Kaido (Mt. Sabane)

The odd connection between Osaka castle, the Shinkansen and Shinjuku, and the mountains of Yamagata.

The sun sets over the ninth station of Mt. Gassan
Gassan, the Dewa Sanzan’s “Mountain of Death” (Mt. Gassan)

The tallest Dewa Sanzan peak with a thriving Haguro Shugendo Yamabushi culture.

Panoramas and picnics under the Sakura: Kita-yama (Mt. Kitayama)

Former ski field turned into a Sakura-lover’s paradise on the outskirts of Murayama City

Zao-san and Why We Climb Mountains (Mt. Zao)

Zao-san: Snow monsters, ski fields, mountain hags, multi-coloured crater lakes, hot springs, and more.

Yamabushi

Here are some blog posts about yamabushi.

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi looks out over Mt. Chokai from Mt. Gassan
Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi at Yamadera in Yamagata Prefecture
YAMABUSHI

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