A True Japanese TEA CEREMONY

The true"Chan-oyo"- Tea Ceremony or, as the Japanese have called it, "Sado"- or ‘the way of Tea’ was our privilege at a Tokyo home while touring through Japan.

The person hosting us began by relating one of many stories about the ceremony. Her story centered on a Buddhist monk named Daruma, who was on a 9-year quest to experience complete meditation which was, for him continuously interrupted when his eyes
 popped open each time he slipped into a trance.

Angry because he kept falling asleep, Daruma cut off his eyelids and
 threw them down on the grass. Watching this was Quan Yi, a 
spirit god. When she saw how hard he struggled and his great sacrifice, she cast 
a spell over the discarded eyelids transformed them into strange shaped tea 
leaves. Daruma picked up the leaves and tossed them 
into his boiling kettle. The water turned a pleasant green and from it came a pleasant aroma. The flavor of the tea became so delightful that Daruma drank first a full cup, then the full pot. To Daruma’s pleasant surprise, he not only could attain a trance-like being, so he was able to experience the satisfaction of complete meditation. Thanks to “Sado”

The Daruma Doll

By the 1500’s, tea drinking had become so popular that the Japanese
 wealthy class begin to drink tea at social and business events.

It wasn’t long before merchants were wagering on the taste of their tea. For judges normally ship captains were hired. Unfortunately, the captains knew little of tea quality, so their vote was often bought. The scandal was exposed when one Fuedal Lord down on his luck made a “loaded” bet before as they said, “he tossed the tea”, meaning he chose
 the tea he had bet on.

One entrepreneur merchant, Senno
 Rikyu, knowing he couldn’t compete with the wealthier merchants went a different way; knowing that famed Samurai warriors were so busy fighting they had
 little free time to enjoy their tea, he wrapped his purest form of "Chan-oyo” in what he claimed to be Japan’s most spirit uplifting, medicinal value tea and served only that brand in his tea room; invited visitors to 
take the time to fully enjoy the tea’s superior quality. Musicians and Geisha entertainers were greater inducements. Rikyu described the moment of drinking Tea as a truly spiritual moment; when life should experience the essentials of natural beauty, food and drink.

After our story, we were invited at sit cross legged at a floor table. Her first step was boiling the water. When the temperature was exactly right, she meticulously ladled it one by one into the tea bowls with a long wooden spoon., setting the steaming bowls in front of us. Then we were told to add a small spoon of powdered green 'Chai' into our bowls. Performing the step with great patience.

When each of us had finished pouring our green powder, we were invited to extend a gracious head nod to our cross table 
partner. Next, we learned where to place our hands and how to 
lift the Tea bowl top face the person across 
from us.

From the beginning of the ceremony start until we completed enjoyed our first sip of Tea took a half hour. We were instructed
 to relish the moment our lips received the liquid with thoughts of beauty and reverence. For each of us it had a different meaning. Each was special.