Tea Ceremony

I attended my first tea ceremony today. A student from the tea club invited me yesterday; how could I say no to such an authentic Japanese experience.

For many people around the world – Japan included, tea is a drink. For others, the making and consuming of tea is a hobby; it is a ritual; it is a pastime. In the same way that people practice Judo, painting, or playing the French horn, tea ceremony enthusiasts practice the rituals and methods surrounding tea. The ceremony itself is originally influenced by Zen Buddhism and was originally only performed by males. During the mid 19th century however, it became the exclusive domain of women.

It was in a small tatami room where I sat with four students from tea club. I expected that we would all sit and have a cup of tea together. Instead, I was the only one to have tea while the four of them served me. This was odd at first, but fascination quickly took over.

Upon removing my slippers and stepping onto the tatami, my first instruction was to sit at least 1-2 fists lengths away from the middle square that was formed by the borders of the tatami mats, in the seiza position. The seiza position is the formal sitting position for Japanese when sitting on the floor where you basically have your knees on the floor and you sit on your heels with your back straight. They said that because this is a difficult position for foreigners, I didn’t have to stay in this position if I didn’t want to. Next, the hands are supposed to rest in the lap with the right hand folded over top of the left. After placing my hands in my lap, I quietly and respectfully exited the seiza position.

To start the ceremony, one girl, who I think was the main tea-server, emerged from what seemed like a small closet in the corner of the room and, kneeling, placed a small folded fan in three incremental positions to the middle serving square on the tatami floor. Having followed each position of the fan with the sliding of her knees, she backed out of the room with three more placements of the fan in reverse order. Next, she walked into the room carrying a ceramic pot of water, which she poured into another pot for boiling. I don’t know the specifics of the motions intended when carried the water in, but I could tell that the way she carried the pot, her posture, and her foot placements, that they were very well-rehearsed. Traditionally, the boiling of water takes place over hot coals, but the school club uses electric pots. I believe that the tea still tastes the same.

The rest of the preparation and serving of the tea involved many ritual phrases and movements were a bit beyond my understanding – although, still within the realm of appreciation. Everything from the pouring of the water, to the mixing of the tea leaves, to the positioning of the ladle was very carefully performed. In most scenarios like this, I would typically feel very uncomfortable, but somehow, it was a relaxing and intriguing experience. I believe that one of the main goals of tea ceremony is tranquility.

I of course forgot to bring my camera with me and I have been hating myself ever since. I did grab a quick snapshot of the room with my phone. One of the girls also gave me some origami as a gift, which I have dutifully photographed and put on display in this post.

Also, if you have been following all-things Japan, you may have heard that there is a typhoon warning in effect for most of the country. It is supposed to hit us sometime tomorrow and many schools will be closed. I can assure you that I am taking all recommended precautions and keeping in good contact with my supervisors.

Typhoons are fairly common here in Japan. When I told one of my JTE’s that I had never been in a typhoon before, his eyes widened and he said, “you mean you only get hurricanes in Vancouver?”

“Not really. It just kind of rains once in a while.”