Tea Ceremony

One of the most outstanding things in japanese culture has to be the tea ceremony.. Where else would you follow such a long, complicated procedure, just to get a cup of green bitter tea?

So we attented a Cha-do, (literary “the way of tea") tea ceremony today (after playing football with primary school kids for two hours-fun). The tea ceremony, a tradition that started around 700 years ago and that comes from buddhism, takes place in a japanese tatami room (bamboo floors and origami paper walls). The guests are required to take off their shoes (you are not allowed to enter a tatami room with shoes or slippers anyway) and in some occasions it is required to wear white socks (the color of purity) and purify yourself by washing your hands and your mouth (the same happens before entering temples).

The tea ceremony is performed by a tea ceremony master. This particular master was my host grandmother (the mother of my hostdad), who claims she has been studying the chako (the art of tea) for 35 years.. and for 20 of those years she was just a trainee! So basically, it took her 20 years to learn the cha-ko (its a long term goal i suppose!) And she is still learning it, she takes classes with a Buddhist monk twice a month!

Anyway, the tea ceremony master prepares for the arrival of the guests before hand. The room is decorated with a flower arrangement, there is an appropriate for the occasion japanese calligraphy on the wall and everything is super clean and tidy. the calligraphy and flower arrangement have to match the theme of the season, which is now the cherry blossoms (sakura), since its spring. In Japan, in general, people live the four seasons with all their senses. If its spring, you have to wear spring clothes, bright colors, and cherry blossoms food products are everywhere (sakura madness! its a reeeaally big thing).

Guests sit on the floor, on their knees (in a very formal and painful way), forming lines and the tea master makes the tea in front of them, in a hole on the floor where a fire can be lighted. Before the tea is served, the guests have (and you MUST eat it) a very sweet dessert made of sticky rice and sweet beans. The dessert also follows the seasonal theme, so in our case, it was sakura flavour, pink with a cherry blossom flower on the top. Each guest passes and receives the plate with the desserts in a very ceremonial way. When you get the plate you bow to it, to thank it for being there (hilarious!), you get it using chopsticks in a special, elegant way, you put a special napkin in front of you and when you pass the sweets to the next person, you bow to them and say “osakini”, which means smth like “Im sorry Im being served before you”. (That is so japanese). After you are done eating your dessert (that you absolutely must eat, i repeat), you fold the napkin and put it in your pocket, cause you will need it later. The dessert is served before to sweeten the bitter taste of the tea that you are about to taste.

When you are done with your sweet thing, the tea master serves you the tea. The cups are hand-made, special and very expensive (so you better be careful!). The master puts the tea in front of you, bows and says smth (didnt really get what,,). The cup has a good side, and that side is towards you when you are served, but as a sign of respect and gratitude to the master, when you drink your tea, it should point at the master. So you lift your cup with both hands and elegantly turn it two times clockwise so that the good sign is towards the audience. Then you finish your tea in three sips and again, elegantly turn the cup anti-clockwise so that the good side is towards you. The master ceremoniously (and always bowing) takes the cup and says something that means “Im sorry if it wasnt good” and moves on the next guest.
Quite a procedure isnt it? I was very impressed. The worst thing is that you have to sit on your knees all the time, it really hurts! But apart from that it was a lot of fun, and a very educational experience.. Everything that happens in the tea ceremony has a reason behind it and everything is ceremonious and respectful and I liked the spirituality behind it.. Its very japanese!

Thats all for the tea ceremony. I might host one at home sometime!