For foreign visitors interested in Zen & Tea Ceremony
The art of tea ceremony is a ritualized, secular practice in which tea is consumed in strict and codified procedures.
Tea ceremony is deeply connected to the practice of Zen. Sen no Rikyu (利休 1522-1591), considered to have had the most profound influence on chanoyu, the “Japanese way of Tea”, said that the study of tea ceremony is to isolate oneself in a Zen temple and train rigorously.Rikyu himself followed a very strict training regimen at Daitokuji temple (大徳寺) in Kyoto.
In Japanese there is a saying:“Chazen Ichimi” (茶禅一味) – tea and Zen have the same flavor – a Zen phrase that shows the strong connection between chanoyu and Zen. The root of Tea Ceremony is WABI (侘び), representing Japanese aesthetics and Japanese world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection.
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