Couple about to get married Walking along the Kumano Kodo to deepen their understanding of each other [Journey to think about life on the Kumano Kodo / Monitor tour].

SEN.RETREAT organised a monitoring tour in December 2023 as part of the full-fledged launch of the ‘Journey to Think about Life’ tour, a three-day, two-night walking and reflection tour along the Kumano Kodo path.
People facing milestones in their lives, such as career, marriage, second life, separation, etc., were recruited and analysed through interviews as to what changes would occur inside them as a result of walking the Kumano Kodo, in an attempt to develop the actual tour. In this article, we interviewed participants in the monitoring tour about how their feelings changed when they made a pilgrimage along the Kumano Kodo.

Participants.
Ms Iida (26, photo left) Mr Tsuji (26, photo right)　
A couple who are getting married a few weeks after walking the Kumano Kodo. They live in Chiba Prefecture.

-What are the ‘life milestones’ you are currently facing? In addition, please tell us why you decided to take part in this tour

Iida: We are about to get married within a month, and we are still in a situation where we have not yet decided on our two ideas about our future lifestyle and life event choices. Both of us live far away from each other, and we are vaguely considering whether it would be better to move to a place where our parents can support us in raising our children in the future.
I hope that walking the Kumano Kodo will deepen my thoughts in this area.

Tsuji: As well as my future married life, I am also facing a milestone in terms of my work.
I work for an SEO consultancy company, but I’m not sure whether I should go freelance in the future or change to another company. I am in a managerial position at my current company, but I am also finding it difficult to manage my subordinates, and I would like to spend some time at Kumano Kodo to sort out my worries and thoughts about my career.

I have a habit of thinking negatively, so I would like to break away from my daily routine and refresh myself. I came to Kumano Kodo because I was looking forward to seeing how I could change.

-can you look back on your three-day, two-night trip?

Tsuji: Before I came to the Kumano Kodo, I was in a situation where my worries were going round and round in my head, but as I walked along, I naturally became less concerned about them. I used to try to control my feelings, but in front of the overwhelming nature, I got the feeling that I was liberated.
On the first day, I first refreshed my body and mind, and from the second day I felt like I stepped up to the next level.

Iida: It was refreshing to make connections with people I didn’t know. I spoke to a lot of people from local restaurants, and they were very friendly, and I was happy to have a closeness that I don’t have in Tokyo.

-What was impressive to you during your walk?

Tsuji: I felt that ‘knowing what is enough’ was something that I felt throughout the journey. Just by looking at what I have now, I found that I am fulfilled and my worries became lighter. I also started to think, ‘It might be okay to live a little more appropriately.’

Iida: When climbing steep mountain paths, feelings of ‘toughness and hardness’ sometimes arose, but I was impressed by the fact that I was able to do my best because I thought, ‘I have to accept it because it is my choice’. There are similar situations at work and in everyday life, so I want to remember them when I do that.
Also, my sense of self-esteem increased and I felt the value of my own existence. I have heard that when you are surrounded by nature, you feel your own insignificance, but in my case, I was able to think that I am not tiny.

-How do you feel after the walk?

TSUJI: I was surprised at how much more fulfilled I felt just by walking. Unlike the satisfaction you get from the luxuries of everyday life, only the Kumano Kodo can give you a sense of spiritual fulfilment.

I have a habit of thinking negatively about things, but walking the Kumano Kodo helped me change my thinking to positive. I realised that I can live more comfortably if I think this way, and I want to keep this in mind in the future. I no longer worry about the worries about work that have been in my head for a long time.

Iida: By placing myself in nature, I felt that my body was happy. I had a sense of being accepted by nature, or rather, I had a sense of being fully affirmed by nature, as if it was telling me that it was okay to live.

TSUJI: By walking the Kumano Kodo, I got to know my fiancée, herself, in depth. I think it was precisely because we put ourselves in an unusual environment that we were able to have a dialogue that we had never had before.
Once again, I felt that even if two people do the same thing together, they feel and think differently, and I was glad that I invited her to walk the Kumano Kodo with me this time.

Iida: I realised that even though we live together in everyday life, we have different feelings, which made me realise that we are strangers in a good sense. It is normal for married couples to have different opinions, and now that we have acknowledged our differences, I think I will be more generous in my acceptance of him.

*A journaling sheet (Encounters section) to aid reflection, developed through this monitoring tour, is available for download. Please print it out, take it with you and make use of it when walking the Kumano Kodo.