The Way of Tea

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.

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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.

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Japanese aesthetics inspires 2010 fashion design

Blake Harvey — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 04:23:01 +0000

Italian-born, Paris based designer Maurizio Galante uses the Japanese concept of Wabi-Sabi for the inspiration behind his fashion designs.

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Annual tea science symposium

Blake Harvey — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 07:33:34 +0000

The Lipton Institute of Tea has been investigating the scientific basis for traditional beliefs about the health benefits of tea, through its own internal research as well as collaboration with universities around the world. The institute has organised a series of tea science symposiums to provide experts an opportunity to share findings from new studies and discuss their clinical relevance, identify future research opportunities, and foster valuable networks and collaborative partnerships. This article includes discussions from the third annual tea science symposium organised by the Lipton Institute of Tea held in Bangkok, Thailand, early October last year.

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Mega-rich export plan down to a tea

Blake Harvey — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 07:26:28 +0000

Forget about selling ice to Eskimos, how about exporting green tea to Japan? That’s the aim of an ambitious project on the Central Coast of Australia that could create a new export market worth millions of dollars a year.

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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.

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Murin-an: A delicate balance

Blake Harvey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:07:24 +0000

If you need convincing as to the benefits of the colour green, even the briefest study of the Japanese garden will reveal its importance in landscape design. Holly Kerr Forsyth from the Australian explains key elements of Japanese garden design using Murin-an garden in Kyoto as an example.

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Cub Scouts participate in Japanese tea ceremony

Blake Harvey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:42:25 +0000

WARWICK, NY – When Warwick resident Alicia Tate, a Den Mother with Cub Scout Pack 177, met Michael McKenna, an expert on Japanese culture, it occurred to her that her scouts might benefit from his experience.

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Urasenke Holds its 2010 Hatsugama-shiki (New Year’s Tea Celebration)

Blake Harvey — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 05:43:13 +0000

Beginning on January 16 and lasting 5 days, Urasenke held its annual New Year’s Tea Celebration at Urasenke’s Tokyo Branch headquarters.

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Read about the 2008 Hatsugama in English (Similar utensils, scrolls, and flowers are used from year to year. This should give English readers a better understanding of Urasenke’s Hatsugama-shiki.)

Intricate Japanese tea ceremony meditative, calming

Blake Harvey — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:52:36 +0000

PITTSBURGH – Tea has slowed Sally Schurko down.Mrs. Schurko used to work 80-hour weeks in her job in corporate finance. Now, she spends hours performing a leisurely — almost meditative — traditional Japanese tea ceremony.”I was like a spinning top. This has calmed me down,” she said.

Mrs. Schurko and Yoko Motoyama spread that calm to a dozen eighth-graders recently when the Brookline Regional Catholic School students spent an hour at South Park Library learning the history and etiquette of a basic Japanese tea ceremony. The students branched out from their usual Spanish language class to learn some Japanese language and customs.

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