High in the cedar-covered mountains of Wakayama Prefecture sits Mount Koya (Koyasan), the headquarters of Shingon Buddhism. It is a sacred sanctuary shrouded in towering 500-year-old trees and quiet stone lanterns.
Staying at a Shukubo (temple lodging), we woke up at 5:00 AM in the freezing morning mist. The only sound was the deep, resonant ring of the bronze temple bell calling us to the Okunoin cemetery morning service.
“Waking up at 5:00 AM with Buddhist monks in Japan's sacred mountain to experience forest silence and fire rituals.”
We sat on tatami mats as the monks began their low, rhythmic chanting. The crackle of the sacred fire ceremony, Goma, was the only heat in the dark hall, casting dancing shadows across golden altars.
Walking back through the towering cedar forests in the crisp morning air, we felt a deep sense of peace that only sacred, silent spaces can provide.
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