Pilgrimage on Shikoku Island

{Shikoku Hachijūhachikasho Meguri}

CLEANLINESS
Keeping clean is of the utmost priorities. This is especially true in the summer when the temperature is over 30°C (86°F) everyday. If you notice a 'ripe' henro, you think maybe there is something not quite right. If you don't wash yourself and your gear and clothes, you will quickly find your condition growing worse. Sometimes when you are exhausted, and all you can do is lay out your mat and sleep at night, you will wake up the next morning all the worse. Walking in dirty clothes, or with sweat-caked skin is not only uncomfortable, it is detrimental to mental and physical health. CLEANING IS A MUST in order to maintain a healthy mind and body.

As for LAUNDRY, I tried washing clothes in a river once. As romantic as it seems, this is a very bad idea for several reasons. First, it is not really good for the environment, regardless of what your soap promises about being environmentally friendly. Second, rivers almost always contain sediments which are not very conducive to cleaning clothes. Third, rivers often contain toxins regardless of how clean they appear. Fourth, their are mamushi (a short, brown and very poisonous snake I encountered many times) lurking in and near rivers. Fifth, washing in a river is a pain in the ass; there is the current, rocky banks, insects, and so on. Bathing in rivers is also not recommended for many of the same reasons.

I don't recommend washing clothes in swimming pools either, as chlorinated swimming pools are simply not a sound way of cleaning anything. Most Nojuku Henro are also by nature thrifty, so very few if any Nojuku henro I met, including myself, would ever consider a laundromat as a regular option for washing clothes. It's expensive and contrary to the idea of living a simple, modest existence. Of course all offers of Sentaku-settai (offers to do your cleaning) are readily accepted, but not sought per se. Occasionally, when it was raining buckets, I exhausted and in need of clean clothes I turned to the comfort of the coin laundry, but not as a rule.

Clothes can be washed by hand easily and nearly as clean as a machine in rest stop bathroom sinks. So when searching for a good place to sleep, a sink in a relatively unused toilet was always one of my priorities. If possible, it is advised to wash everday to minimise the dirty clothes one carries, and also as a point of discipline. There is something immensely satisfying about finding a good nojuku place, setting up good sleeping space, stringing up lines, then soaking and washing clothes in the sink with detergent, hand-wringing thoroughly, hanging to dry, then moving on to the next tasks.

For those who have never washed in a sink, here is a quick tutorial:

Put a few articles of clothes in the sink, not too many, add water, and poor in a very small amount of detergent. (I could wash everyday for a week with one small packet meant for one load in a machine)
For best effect, leave filthy clothes in soapy water for as long as you can.
Leave, do some other chore in camp.
Return and marvel at how the water has become black with your grime.
Then knead the clothes as you would bread.
Drain the offending water. Refill basin, and continue this process until there are not so many suds, and the water has returned to a clear color.
Next wring the clothes thoroughly dry until you develop callouses, and even blisters, on your hands over the weeks.
Next hang your clothes to dry on the line you have already strung up near your camp.

Give up notions of waking up to fresh clean clothes. They will still be damp and even wet the next day, depending on where you hang them. In the morning lash your clothes to your pack, and marvel at how the sun and wind dry them by lunch time.

Sometimes, on nice days, if the occasion presented itself, I would find a nice beach or rest area, wash clothes and hang them to dry in the sun, while resting, eating, writing, etc. Always, I would empty my pack and air out the contents including sleeping bag, and then even I would wash my sweat-laden back pack and allow it to dry in the sun. This is always a pleasant experience, as you leave refreshed with a clean batch of clothes, backpack, and stomach full of hot tea and whatever food you ate. I highly recommend this kind of break from week to week.

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