Japan Nuggets

Come to Japan, talk to a Japanese person, and you’ll quickly realize: yes, you absolutely can love a mountain.

Mount Fuji, or Fuji-san as it’s called in Japan, is not just a mountain. It’s the mountain. It’s less outdoor attraction and more national heritage and pride.

For centuries, Mount Fuji has been considered sacred because in Shinto belief, mountains are homes of gods (kami), and Fuji was worshipped as a powerful spiritual place.

Buddhism (the other big religion in Japan) also saw it as a path to enlightenment. People used to climb Mount Fuji not for fun, but as a religious pilgrimage.

Today, Mount Fuji is still a spiritual place and when traveling to its base you’ll see many shrines to worship.

Even when hiking to the summit, climbers try to complete the final stretch at night to watch the sunrise from the top – a truly spiritual experience. It’s on my list!

That said, Mount Fuji is now also a huge outdoor destination. More than 200,000 Japanese and international hikers climb it every year: for the challenge, for the views, and for the spirituality.

Very few foreigners leave Japan without catching a glimpse of Mount Fuji.

For me, it’s probably the prettiest mountain in the world. It’s so perfectly symmetrical it almost looks fake – as if it was drawn by a Japanese artist.

Fuji has also become a symbol of Japan itself, like the Eiffel Tower for France or the Statue of Liberty for the United States.  So much so, that you can find images of Mount Fuji on money, stamps, souvenirs, and even company logos.

Did you know?

• In 2013, Mount Fuji became a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, not just for its natural beauty but for its deep cultural and spiritual influence.
• At 3,776 meters (12,389 feet) Mount Fuji is the tallest mountain in Japan. It compares with Mount Etna (3,357 meters/11,014 feet) in Italy and is a bit shorter than Mount Rainier in the United States (4,392 meters/14,410 feet).
• Mount Fuji is an active volcano, even though it hasn’t erupted in a long time. The last eruption was in 1708. It’s closely monitored by scientists.