Japan offers a wide variety of lodgings, including Japanese-style inns and western-style hotels. Choosing accommodations is part of the fun of traveling, and one type of accommodation has attracted the attention of tourists from inside and outside Japan recently. They have been looking at shukubo, which are lodgings within temples and shrines. What kind of experience can they expect to have there?

How Does a Shukubo Differ from a Traditional Japanese Inn or a Hotel?

Shukubo often get exceptional praise from their guests, who have made remarks like "I felt completely refreshed, as if my spirit and body were washed" and "I was able to get from my experience the feeling of Japanese culture from long ago." Shukubo are lodgings located on the premises of temples (Buddhist places of worship) or shrines (places for worshipping gods specific to Japan). In the old days, Buddhist priests receiving training at temples, Shinto priests serving at shrines and visiting worshippers stayed there. Lately, however, more and more of them are accepting general tourists.

The greatest fascination that people have with shukubo in temples particularly is that they can easily get to experience the normal everyday training of priests. Some shukubo allow their guests to experience zazen, which is seated Zen meditation, and shakyo, which is the transcription of sutras containing Buddhist teachings. The guests staying at some shukubo can eat shojin ryori, which is the Buddhist vegetarian cuisine that priests eat every day.

Up-Close at a Shukubo – An Extraordinary One-Day Experience

How would you spend one day at the shukubo of a temple? Let's give you a taste of the shukubo experience at Taiyoji, a temple surrounded by mountains at an altitude of 800 meters in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture. Your day starts below.

<Day 1> 15:30: Check-in

Taiyoji is about a three-hour train ride from Tokyo. Upon arrival at the shukubo, you are given an orientation of the facilities and then guided to your room. Men and women are divided into separate rooms, with four to six people per room.

<Day 1> 16:00: Shakyo or zazen

Training begins immediately after you put away your belongings in the room. Guests have the choice of shakyo or zazen, so you can participate in the one you like.

<Day 1> 18:15: Sutra chanting (Participation optional)

Sutra chanting is the chanting of sutras in the main hall, which is the building at the center of the temple. The sound of everyone's voice joins together with the priest's ringing bell to resonate and reverberate pleasantly throughout your body.

<Day 1> 19:15: Supper

Priests have done their best to cook a shojin ryori supper for you. They have made delicious and nutritious dishes from tasty vegetables. One popular dish is kenchinjiru, which is a soup containing tofu and seasonal vegetables.

<Day 1> Stargazing / Going to bed

If the weather is nice, you can enjoy a sky full of stars. This fun show is something that only Taiyoji does. In the shukubo, you are basically supposed to take care of things yourself. You lay out your own futon and go to bed before 22:00.

<Day 2> 6:45: Wake-up / Morning training (Participation optional)

After getting up, you gather with others and chant sutras in the main hall. You then listen to a priest's sermon. It would have been even better if you woke up earlier to breathe in the fresh morning air during a walk around the temple.

<Day 2> 7:15: Zazen (Participation optional)

As you practice zazen again, you hear birds singing. Some people say, "It's difficult to think of nothing." But the trick is to look from a distance at thoughts that come across your mind.

<Day 2> 8:30: Breakfast

The long-awaited time for breakfast has arrived. Most shukubo breakfasts are simple, consisting of okayu (rice porridge), oshinko (pickled vegetables) and other dishes. Let's chew well to enjoy the original taste of the ingredients.

<Day 2> Priest's sermon / Check-out

Your stay at the shukubo ends after you listen to a priest's sermon. Before leaving the shukubo, you express your gratitude to the priests and temple.

Let's Go to Koyasan and the Unique Shukubo Gathered There

Shukubo are scattered all over the country but those in Koyasan, which is designated as a World Heritage Site, in Wakayama Prefecture are particularly well known. Koyasan has 52 shukubo. Let's take a look at some of them.

First, there is Ichijo-in, which is reputed for its shojin ryori. Many people seem to think that the portions in shojin ryori meals are small. The meals are bountiful, however, with brightly colored and gorgeous dishes placed side by side on tray tables. The dishes are cooked with plenty of seasonal ingredients.

Next, if you are interested in Japanese gardens, a visit to Saizen-in is recommended. Visitors to this temple are welcomed by an exquisite garden designed by Mirei Shigemori, a prominent Japanese landscape architect who worked about six decades ago. Tourists come from abroad just to see this garden.

For people who want to experience a more authentic form of Buddhist training, they should go to Joki-in. A two-day one-night stay includes proper zazen practice, meditation and shakyo that are the same as what priests do. They also join in temple cleaning activities.

Shukubo are immensely popular for both Japanese and international tourists. What you can expect from a stay at one is the hearty hospitality of priests and a rich experience to relax and ease your body and mind. Which shukubo do you want to stay in?