Full disclosure: This book was written by my brother-in-law Brian Warchol, and I had the pleasure of reading and making copy editing notes on a print-out of an almost final draft (in layout – layout by my sister Colleen McKim). Mum and Dad have kindly purchased copies for the family for Christmas, so I’m looking forward to reading it again, in its final form.
Part memoir, part travelogue, Brian Warchol’s self-published Bumping Into Buddha: Wandering the Shikoku Trail is an insightful, hilarious, and at times harrowing and poignant journey. On an island in Japan, the Shikoku pilgrimage comprises 88 temples over a 1,200-kilometre trail. Some do the pilgrimage by bus, others on foot, and – understandably – relatively few do it on foot all in one go. Warchol (being Warchol) decided to go for the gusto, planning a two-month-long hike of all 88 temples. He’s not a Buddhist or even religious – and part of the book is about the ‘why’. Why put himself through such an extreme physical, psychological and emotional endurance challenge?
Broken out chronologically, told through emails and texts to friends and family, journalled thoughts, photographs and illustrations, as well as references to memories that surface along the way, Warchol takes us through his best of times and worst of times. His resilience and resourcefulness are remarkable, to say the least. Most memorable are the stories of funny, moving and gratitude-inducing connections made with other henro (pilgrims), supporters (often strangers, offering osettai: food, money, rides, etc., out of deep respect for the henro’s undertaking), hotel hosts, citizens, artisans and shopkeepers he encounters along the way. The reader becomes a confidante of sorts as he reveals his hopes, fears, setbacks and triumphs. Will he make it – and in one piece? And what’s it like to bang a temple gong that’s also a rock?
life with more cowbell 
Leave a comment