Way of Tea » Top Stories

Tea Links & News — Feb 2012

Blake Harvey — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:22:21 +0000

The essentials of The Way of Tea

Kohei examines Rikyu’s seven essential practices when following The Way of Tea.
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Omotesenke guide to Tea Ceremony

The Omotesenke Tea School has a great online guide to Tea Ceremony covering everything from history to etiquette to tea utensils.
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British ‘rakugo’ artist helps Tohoku smile

When the March 11 tsunami wiped out Tohoku coastal towns, British “rakugo” comic storyteller Diane Orrett was at home in Osaka, watching TV footage of the waves obliterating places she had visited and crying, not knowing what to do. But she was immediately presented with a chance to help survivors in the devastated northeast, as organizers canceled all her bookings the day after the Great East Japan Earthquake, deeming rakugo performances to be inappropriate at a time when the whole nation was in a state of shock and bewilderment. Finding her schedule suddenly empty, Orrett, who goes by the stage name Diane Kichijitsu and is also a balloon artist, headed to Miyagi Prefecture in early April for a five-day visit armed with lots of balloons, hoping to use them to put a smile on children’s faces.
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What is Rakugo? →

Matsue’s sweets makers take wares to New York

A project launched in 2004 by the city of Matsue, on the Sea of Japan, to promote its local specialty in New York City, is finally bearing fruit. Local businesses and the city’s chamber of commerce recently took a long-awaited step to sell traditional Japanese sweets by launching their second and third outlets in New York.
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Ochamori Tea Ceremony

All the tea utensils are giant! I haven’t heard or seen this type of tea ceremony before!
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New Arts of Japan Gallery at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

The new, permanent Arts of Japan Gallery at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will open to the public on Sunday, February 19. The Japan gallery will be the final installation in a suite of permanent Arts of Asia galleries surrounding Cullinan Hall in the Caroline Wiess Law Building, culminating an effort begun in 2007 to expand the presentation of Asian art at the museum.
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Urasenke Grandmaster performs Tea Ceremony at USS Arizona Memorial

Blake Harvey — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 05:56:17 +0000

In July, Urasenke Grandmaster, Sen Genshitsu, performed a tea ceremony at the USS Arizona World War II memorial to honor all soldiers who fought and died in the war. Sen Genshitsu actually fought in WWII as a Japanese soldier. He said this tea ceremony in particular was the most memorable of his life.

Sen Genshitsu mentions in his book — Tea Life, Tea Mind — that his goal over the past 50 years as Grandmaster has been to promote “Peacefulness through a Bowl of Tea.” This tea ceremony serves as a powerful example of the peace and reconciliation that is possible when we lay our differences aside and embrace what it means to be human.

Watch an ABC news clip of the event on YouTube!

5 Great Interviews with Chanoyu (Tea Ceremony) Practitioners

Blake Harvey — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 05:22:09 +0000

I recently found a very nice blog “Tea and Travel” written by Deborah Huff. Over the past couple of months, she has interviewed 5 practitioners of Japanese tea ceremony. I always appreciate reading how people first became interested in chanoyu and the unique perspectives they have on the different facets of studying Tea. Below are links to all 5 interviews. Be sure to read them all!

Part 5: Interview with Drew Hanson – Drew is an Urasenke instructor in the Philadelphia area and has studied Chado for over 15 years.

Part 4: Interview with Michael Ricci – Michael is an Urasenke instructor in Boulder and Fort Collins Colorado area.

Part 3: Interview with Gabriel Cacilua – Gabriel is an Urasenke instructor in Brussels, Belgium and has studied Chado for over 20 years.

Part 2: Interview with Morgan Beard – Morgan is an Urasenke instructor who lectures and performs demostrations in the Philadelphia area.

Part 1: Interview with Rebecca Lynn Craig – Rebecca is a student of Omote-Senke and owner of a tea shop in Ottawa, Canada.

Practicing the Way of Tea

Blake Harvey — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 04:44:37 +0000

Mikael Zaurov of www.teamuse.com has written a wonderful article on the philosophical and symbolic attitudes that accompany Japanese Tea Ceremony. While he never addresses Tea Ceremony explicitly, many of the ideas he presents lead straight to the essence of practicing Tea Ceremony. He begins with an insightful Buddhist koan by Zhao Zhou and finishes by telling us how drinking a bowl of tea can influence and change our daily life.

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Tea Gathering at San Francisco’s Urasenke Society

Blake Harvey — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 18:51:43 +0000

Christie Bartlett, Founding Director of Ursaenke Society, San Francisco talks about the history of Urasenke, why tea gatherings matter today, and the ripple effect of “peace through a bowl of tea.”

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Artisans hand down tea-whisk tradition

Blake Harvey — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 03:36:11 +0000

This year marks the 1,300th anniversary of the relocation of the capital to present-day Nara, then called Heijokyo. And while tourists may flock to anniversary events, temples and shrines renovated for the occasion and to special public viewings of Buddhist statues and treasures, Nara has another treasure to be proud of. It is Takayama chasen, tea whisks used in traditional tea ceremonies. Read full article

Video of a Tea Ceremony at Nezu Garden

Blake Harvey — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:22:17 +0000

An excellent video from “Let’s Visit Tokyo” provides a detailed look at what really happens during a private tea ceremony in a small tea hut in Nezu Garden in Tokyo. The video shows the whole “light-tea” portion of a tea ceremony. Be sure to check this one out! View article and tea ceremony video

Our ugly beautiful world

Blake Harvey — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:00:49 +0000

A scene of the Chapter "SEKI YA"(Gate Hut) of Illustrated handscroll of Tale of Genji (written by MURASAKI SHIKIBU).

BY AMIN GHADIMI – We live in a beautiful world. Or do we? Every day the evidence to the contrary seems to mount, and to make such a sweeping claim in the face of so much national and global adversity feels fatuous, even callous and perhaps cruel. But “everyone recognizes beauty / only because of ugliness,” claims the second verse of Jonathan Star’s translation of the Tao Te Ching. Perhaps we can sift through our ugly world and, despite ourselves, despite everything, winnow out all the dross that defiles it. Read full article

Mid-Winter Wagashi: Red Plum Blossom with Frost

Blake Harvey — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:00:03 +0000

A wagashi confection that was created in 1699 by Toraya is a beautiful and unmistakable expression of a mid-winter plum blossom. It is called Shimokobai 霜紅梅, or red plum blossom with frost. Read full article

What’s really happening during a tea ceremony

Blake Harvey — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:06:43 +0000

HIROSHIMA – by Courtney Coppernoll – There’s an unfortunate misconception going around that tea ceremony is a very serious, very rigid sort of practice. However, there’s a great deal more to the art than the formal presentation most people are familiar with. Read full Article