This site was launched in 2016 to introduce Suwa’s grand festival to a wider international audience. I lived in the Suwa area from 2004 to 2016, and participated in Onbashira with Minato’s Haru-yon pillar (Shimosha) in both 2010 and 2016. Part of the motozuna-shu ropes crew during both festivals, I’m one of the few non-Japanese to have had the honor of an active role.
More About Chris Gladden
Originally from Southern New England’s Connecticut River Valley (USA), I’ve lived in central Japan’s Nagano uplands since 2004 and am a permanent resident of Japan.
The cross-cultural perspective of my anthropology studies, extensive travels, and long familiarity with Japanese culture all inform my writing.
I’ve been leading guided walks on Nagano’s historic trails since 2017. In January of 2025, I launched Mindful Japan Tours, helping travelers explore the prefecture in a more connected way, with tours rooted in nature, local culture, and Japan’s spiritual traditions. Visit the Mindful Japan Tours website to learn more about our walks, including the Nakasendo Trail in the Kiso Valley, the Ontake Pilgrimage Trail on sacred Mt. Ontake, the Zenkoji Kaido pilgrimage in nearby Matsumoto, and Shimosuwa with its living Onbashira tradition.
Onbashira forms the backdrop of The Pillar Festival, my novel about community, environmental peril, and the One Heart of the people and the land. To be notified when it’s published, sign up to my Substack Walking on Earth, or send me an email and I’ll put you on the list.
About my Substack: Being based in Japan, naturally, it’s often the focus of my articles, with special attention to life in the countryside. That said, it’s more generally about place, encountering the world on foot, and seeking ways forward in our increasingly disembodied times. I hope it will provide inspiration for connecting more deeply to wherever you call home. With the Substack, the blog here is now redundant. Sign up at Walking on Earth for Onbashira updates, new tours, and other developments here in the mountainous heart of Japan.
In October 2022 our daughter Hana came into the world. These days, I spend most of my non-work time dadding and learning to dad this amazing, action-packed, bilingual preschool kid. We currently live in Matsumoto, a historic castle town in central Nagano at the foot of the Northern Japanese Alps.
