Japan’s hidden treasure trove of outdoor adventure — A yamabushi’s role is simple: Lead others into nature. Part of that is showing you the beauty of nature in Japan, starting with my own backyard, Yamagata Prefecture. Made of Mountains: Yamagata Prefecture

The ancient mountain dwellers of Japan For starters, the only way to really understand what a yamabushi is, is to become one yourself. However, I understand this isn’t exactly practical for most people, so I will give a rudimentary introduction of my understanding of the yamabushi from my perspective as a Dewa Sanzan Shrine Yamabushi. …

Be generous and hard on yourself at the same time. — Doing something daily is how you give yourself a backbone. It’s the foundation of a whole lot of other powerful habits, and therefore should be highly encouraged. Get your daily routine down to a t and there’s nothing you can’t do. Or so they’d have you believe. A lot of…

Make them owe you everything — They owe you nothing. They are not obliged to give you anything in return. That work you put in? If it could be done by someone else, it wouldn’t make a difference to them. That’s why the work you do needs to be Your work. It needs to be stuff only you can do, so that instead of owing you nothing, they owe you everything. YAMABUSHI MAILER

Have faith in yourself to see a better future — Self belief and acceptance of ourselves is the first step in getting past where we’ve never been before, and in overcoming and achieving the as yet unknown. To get there we need discipline,. Self-conviction without discipline is a recipe for disaster. We need to be able to follow through with…

Aiming to never be satisfied? — Perfection is boring. It’s a good aim to have, but predictability isn’t always as fun as you’d like. Shoot for perfection, you always need something to work towards. But be satisfied with what you’ve already achieved at the same time. If anything, it keeps things interesting. YAMABUSHI MAILER

The big difference — It’s that you thought to do it, and then you acted on that thought. Big difference. YAMABUSHI MAILER

You’re going to have to anyway — Your experience of the world is yours. It’s no one else’s. Your realisations are yours. No one else’s. Take what others say on board. Just be weary of taking it to heart. Make your own conclusions. Let others guide you, but give yourself the permission to have the final say. You’re the one who has to live with the outcome either way. YAMABUSHI MAILER

Is it you? — Who are you prioritising in that decision? Is it you? Should it be? YAMABUSHI MAILER