‘These women have paid a lot to make their offerings to the deities,’ says my guide, Midori. ‘They are praying to the gods for good luck in business.’

Midori bows deeply and I follow her back through the trees. As we walk, she explains that the temples here are rebuilt every 20 years, according to Shinto tradition. ‘The offerings of the women in kimonos and many others help to fund the maintenance of this sacred space,’ she says.

Ise-Shima’s traditions don’t just start and end with Ise-Jingu and the Ama. Late that night, after deciding against heading for the overwhelming light and din of Osaka, I sit back in an onsen at an old-style ryokan in the coastal town of Toba. Snow falls as I soak my bones after a day of immersing myself in local culture. Japan’s respect for the old, for its traditions, runs deep here. The further you get from the city, it seems, the more its ancient rituals reveal themselves. But as a cold wind whips in, I give a small nod of thanks to the gods at Ise that, instead of making me dive into the icy waters, they’ve led me here to this warm outdoor bath in one of Japan’s most overlooked outposts.

Hold your breath…

The art and science of freediving

Japan’s Ama divers are part of a broad fellowship who seek their livelihood beneath the waves, from the sponge divers of ancient Greece to the Bajau sea gypsies in Malaysia and Indonesia.

More recently, a way of life has segued into a sport, taken up by those who fully realise that freediving goes hand in hand with hazard.

It’s all possible because of something known as the mammalian dive reflex. When submerged in cold water, a series of automatic adjustments kick in: the heart rate drops to 30 per cent of normal and metabolism slows to maximise the available oxygen in the lungs.

During a descent, water pressure places the lungs in a vice, but on the way back up they expand, dissipating the remaining oxygen. If levels drop too low, and not enough moves into the bloodstream, unconsciousness swiftly follows.

Nobody knows better than Austrian Herbert Nitsch. In June 2012 he plunged 253.2 metres off Santorini, a world record. But his moment of triumph bordered on tragedy as he was stricken by decompression sickness, and had to be rushed to a decompression chamber, narrowly escaping severe brain damage.

Fellow free-diving champion Natalia Molchanova was not so fortunate, vanishing off Ibiza during a recreational dive three years later. However she is still widely remembered for her pithy verdict on her chosen career: ‘Freediving is not only a sport; it’s a way to understand who we are.’

Dive in deeper

For more information on organising a trip to Japan, visit the Japan National Tourism Organisation website. www.jnto.go.jp

Sea-Folk Museum, Toba

A museum dedicated to the area’s fishing history – including Ama diving – displayed through six buildings set on a beautiful seaside hill.
umihaku.com

Ama divers hut, Osatsu

This old-style divers’ hut in the town of Toba offers regular tours, with the chance to try on traditional costumes and eat fresh seafood cooked on hot coals.
amakoya.com

Todaya Hotel, Toba

With traditional tatami rooms, private onsen baths and chefs crafting fresh sushi from fish caught in the waters around Mikimoto Pearl Island, Todaya is perfect if you want to try something more local.
todaya.co.jp

Hero image: Yoneo Morita/ Sebun Photo/ Amanimages/ Argusphoto