Shinrin yoku is from Japan and literally means 'bathing in the forest'. In English it is often referred to as ' forest bathing ' or ' forest therapy '. You don't really take a bath in the forest, but you immerse yourself in the green. You do this by slowing down your pace, opening your senses consciously and allowing the healing atmosphere of the forest to flow into your body and mind, as it were. As a result, you experience a deep relaxation and space is created to 'get out of your head'. You are completely in the here and now and you become silent.
Shinrin yoku is an individual experience, but just like yoga or meditation, you can also do it in a small group.
Learning about
Forest Bathing
ARTICLE: NEW YORK TIMES
Take a Walk in the Woods. Doctor’s Orders.
“Forest bathing,” or immersing yourself in nature, is being embraced by doctors and others as a way to combat stress and improve health.
ARTICLE: THE ATLANTIC
'Forest Bathing': How Microdosing on Nature Can Help With Stress
The practice, long-popular in Japan, is gaining traction in the U.S. as a way of harnessing the health benefits of being outdoors.
ARTICLE: the New yorker
A Japanese Photographer Captures the Mysterious Power of Forest Bathing
The Tokyo-based photographer Yoshinori Mizutani routinely practices a kind of photographic version of shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing."
ARTICLE: TIME
‘Forest Bathing’ Is Great for Your Health. Here’s How to Do It
The sounds of the forest, the scent of the trees, the sunlight playing through the leaves, the fresh, clean air — these things give us a sense of comfort. They ease our stress and worry, help us to relax and to think more clearly. Being in nature can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, refresh and rejuvenate us.
BOOK: DR. QING LI
Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness
Notice how a tree sways in the wind. Run your hands over its bark. Take in its citrusy scent. As a society we suffer from nature deficit disorder, but studies have shown that spending mindful, intentional time around trees--what the Japanese call shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing--can promote health and happiness.
TEDX TALK: FLORENCE WILLIAMS
TEDx: Making Spaces of Awe and Restoration
This TEDx talk discussed the benefits of nature and how it can make us healthier, happier and more creative.
Florence Williams is a contributing editor at Outside Magazine and a freelance writer for National Geographic, the New York Times, The New York Review of Books, Slate, Mother Jones, and numerous other publications.
New York Times: GRETCHEN REYNOLDs
How Walking in Nature Changes the Brain
A walk in the park may soothe the mind and, in the process, change the workings of our brains in ways that improve our mental health, according to an interesting new study of the physical effects on the brain of visiting nature.
Japan travel:
Guide to Shinrin-yoku
Spending time in nature, away from modern technology and big cities can improve your physical and mental health by reducing the effects of stress on your body.
Shinrin-Yoku Organizations
PORTLAND, OR USA: PDX FOREST BATHING
Throughout our walk I may pause the group so that we may all focus on one of the five senses. It is purposeful to close our eyes during these pauses, breathing and then re-Opening our eyes.
THE NETHERLANDS: SHINRIN-YOKU ACADEMY
Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness
Notice how a tree sways in the wind. Run your hands over its bark. Take in its citrusy scent. As a society we suffer from nature deficit disorder, but studies have shown that spending mindful, intentional time around trees--what the Japanese call shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing--can promote health and happiness.
TEDX TALK: FLORENCE WILLIAMS
TEDx: Making Spaces of Awe and Restoration
This TEDx talk discussed the benefits of nature and how it can make us healthier, happier and more creative.
Florence Williams is a contributing editor at Outside Magazine and a freelance writer for National Geographic, the New York Times, The New York Review of Books, Slate, Mother Jones, and numerous other publications.
ARTICLE: TIME
‘Forest Bathing’ Is Great for Your Health. Here’s How to Do It
The sounds of the forest, the scent of the trees, the sunlight playing through the leaves, the fresh, clean air — these things give us a sense of comfort. They ease our stress and worry, help us to relax and to think more clearly. Being in nature can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, refresh and rejuvenate us.