Tea briefing # 2 : what does it mean to practice of tea ?

The seven rules of Tea : 

“First you must make a delicious bowl of tea; lay the charcoal so the water boils; 

arrange the flowers as they are in the field; 

in the summer suggest coolness, in the winter, warmth; 

do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain; 

and give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.”

— Sen no Rikyu 

(who liked to improvise such sayings)

In any tea ceremony, there are at least three steps : purification of the ustensiles, preparation of the actual tea and the cleaning of the ustensiles. To my knowledge, these are the incompressible steps that any tea practice include, even for a minimal tea event.

Broadly speaking, what is a « tea ceremony » ? It is an event organized by a host in a place that is adequate or not for tea and to which the guests attend generally with some preparation. A great deal of codes govern over the behavior of the host and his way of serving tea (and, sometimes, to serve a meal). Almost as many codes govern over the behavior of the guests. Why are there so many codes ? Some would say that it makes the ceremony "beautiful", others would say that it makes it easier to practice tea as a kind of "meditation in action" if you know what you are supposed to do in advance. But I could not answer that question with a single answer.

The occasion of the tea ceremony are as flexible as any social practice : a new year or a birthdays, a desire to see each other or to have a serious conversation — these are just examples. The atmosphere of the ceremony, of course, must vary depending on the occasion and it is the host’s duty to consider it.

As for how the ceremony actually takes place, one can only say that it is generally quiet, sometimes meditative, and it requires above all a sense of preparation. The host, just like the guests, must have a good knowledge of what they are supposed to do so that everything unravels smoothly with no stumbles nor embarrassing moments.

In case of a tea ceremony with non-practitioners, the host must act with consideration to that fact. If you are a guest in such case, do not let that bother you : just do what you think is best and don't stress : you are here to relax and enjoy.

A more complete presentation of the Tea Ceremony can be found here.