Chanoyu: Japanese Tea Ceremony

CHANOYU: Japanese Tea

Ceremony

by Christine Hansen

SUPPLIES

TEA

C E R E M O N Y Kama (Tea Pot)

Chasen (Whisk)

A Japanese tea pot, it is typically made of iron and is used to heat the water for the tea. These pots come in various styles and are generally passed down from generation to generation.

A bamboo matcha whisk, required to blend the matcha green tea powder until it froths.

Chawan (Tea Bowl) Matcha tea is typically served in a tea bowl as opposed to a tea cup. This bowl is the most essential tool in a Japanese Tea Ceremony.

The size and shape of a tea bowl can vary depending on the season and type of tea served.

Matcha Green Tea This is a special form of Japanese green tea where green tea leaves are ground into a fine powder.

Hishaku (Ladle) Used to transfer hot water from the pot to the bowl when making tea.

Chashaku (tea scoop) Chashaku tea-scoops are carved from a chashaku scoop for machasingle piece of bamboo or ivory. It is an important utensil to get the matcha proportions correct. They are used to scoop tea from the Chaire or Natsume into the Chawan.

Natsume (Tea Caddy) Tea container made out of lacquered or untreated wood. It is considered a high ranking tea utensil.

Fukusa (Silk Cloth) A square piece of silk that is used to serve tea and to clean the tea bowl after use. These are usually solid in color with women using red or orange and men using purple.

Wagashi (sweet desserts) are served prior to drinking matcha to offset the bitterness of the tea.

Teishu (host) stands up with Issokutachi, which means in one smooth movement (without the buttocks touching the heels of the feet). Teishu then walks into the room, left foot first towards the Shokyaku (main guest) without stepping on the edges of the Tatami. Arriving in front of the Shokyaku, Teishu sits down and then places the bowl close to the Shokyaku. Teishu says: “Okashi wo doozo� meaning please have these sweets while bowing. The Shokyaku usually bows back silently.

C H AWA N

JAPANESE Sw e e t s

Although most chawan are cupped there are various other shapes. Each shape has its own name and this in turn can be divided into several categories.

Common are cylindrical, flat and round shapes.

Cylindrical cups are considered “Tsutsu chawan” while shallow bowls are called “Hira chawan”.

G U E S T S

Guests that are invited to a tea ceremony will typically wait until the host formally invites them into the tea room.

The Sadouguchi (host entrance) is opened in two stages using both hands one at a time. If the door slides open to the left, it is pushed open for two-third with the left hand, then the final one-third is opened with the right hand crossing in front of the body. While pushing the sliding-door open with one hand, the other is resting on the lap sitting in Seiza position.

Before opening the door, the Teishu has to place the bowl or dish with Higashi sweets, in front of the knees on the Tatami.

After being announced, the guests will remove their shoes and enter the room. They will then proceed to wash their hands as a symbol of purifying themselves. Once the guests are seated, the host will then formally acknowledge each guest.

Guests enter the tea room through a small “crawl in� door, while the host enters from another door. This crawling in puts the guests on their knees, in essence humbling them.

First tea-utensil brought into the room is the Mizusashi (water container), held in both hands on the left and right side.

Before entering the room the Teishu sits down and places the Mizusashi in front of the knees at the Sadouguchi. At this point the Teishu announces that Usucha (thin tea), is going to be prepared. Teishu walks into the tearoom and places the Mizusashi next to the Furo (brazier).

Next, the Chawan and Natsume are carried into the room. Chawan is held in the left hand and the Natsume is held in the right hand with the palm on top and fingers in front.

The Chawan and Natsume are simultaneously placed in front of the Mizusashi. The Chawan contains the Fukin (wiping cloth), Chasen and Chashaku.

BRINGINGU TEA

Lastly the Kensui (waste water bowl) with Hishaku and Futaoki (laddle rest) is carried into the Chashitsu (tea room) with the left hand. When walking through the Sadouguchi, Teishu will turn and sit down diagonally facing the sliding-door. Kensui with Hishaku is placed in front of the knees with the Hishaku parallel to the Sadouguchi. The sliding door will be closed in the same way, two-third with one hand and one-third with the second hand. Standing up while balancing the Kensui is always challenging, don’t drop the Hishaku!!

UTENSILS

Sitting down in the middle of the Temaeza (ritual set up) before the Furo, the Kensui is placed besides the body. With the same left hand, the Hishaku is lifted and the Futaoki is taken from the Kensui with the right hand. Bring the Hishaku in front of the chest and turn it up so that you can see into the cup of the ladle, holding it with the thumb on top just under the Fushi (nodule). Take the Futaoki from the Kensui and place it left to the Furo with the right hand and place the Hishaku on top of it. The handle of the Hishaku should point between the knees.

Once Teishu is comfortable, the Chawan is picked up with the right hand, transferred to the left hand and again put down in front of the knees with the right hand. Make sure enough space is left for the Natsume to fit in between the Knees and the Chawan.

atsume

CLEANING the

Pickup the Natsume with the right hand and place it between the knees and the Chawan. With the left hand remove the Fukusa and fold it.

Hold the Fukusa in the right hand and pickup the Natsume with the left hand from the left side with four fingers at the back and the thumb at the front. Wipe the top of the Natsume in the form of the Hiragana syllable (Ko), then flow to the left side down.

Place the Natsume in front of the Mizusashi to the left.

The Fukusa is still in the right hand, open it and fold it again. (Women should not make sound when folding the Fukusa for the second time but men should. This is called: Ototateru)

Slide back up and then one more time down cleaning the top and bottom. Place Chashaku on the Natsume. Take the Chasenfrom the Chawan and place it next to the Natsume (Men can now fold the Fukusa and attach it to the Himo of the Hakama again. Women should place it behind the Kensui and later use it to remove the hot Futa from the Kama.) With the right hand bring the Chawan closer to the knees.

Cle an

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This time hold the Fukusa in the left hand and pickup the Chashaku with the right. Place the Chashaku on the Fukusa which is held in the left hand in front of the body at heart level. Hold Chashaku at the end and slide the Fukusa forward with the left hand, cleaning the top and the bottom.

Slide back to the beginning and now wipe the Chashaku on the sides.

H

AS

HA

KU

With the left hand pick up the Hishaku and hold it at chest height so that you can see into the cup of the bamboo-ladle. With the right hand, remove the Futa from the Kama and place it on the Futa-oki.

(Women should use the Fukusa to remove the Futa because it might be hot. With the right hand pick up the Fukusa which was placed behind the Kensui after wiping the Chashaku. Place it on the knob or handle of the Futa, and remove the Futa by sliding it slightly backward before lifting it.)

Take the Fukin from the Chawan and place it on the Futa. Now take the Hishaku in the right hand and scoop a full ladle of hot water into the Chawan.

Rest the Hishaku on the Kama.

Remove Futa from the Kama

EN S A H

Take the Chasen with the right hand and stir the water in the Chawan gently from the right side down to the left and back. Put the Chasen down facing to the right. Hold the Chawan steady with the left hand. Lift the Chasen with the right hand and slowly bring it up and turning it at the same time in order to check all the tines of the whisk. Look closely to make sure the Chasen is clean and in perfect condition. Bring it down again and stir again from right to left and back. Put the Chasen down on the right for one moment and repeat two times more.

Next, whisk the water to warm up and make the tines soft so that they won’t break while whisking the powdered matcha with the water later on. Finish by drawing a (No) shape in the water and place the Chasen next to the Natsumeagain.

C

ing n a e l C

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Wa r m i nThe g CHAWAN 

Pick up the Chawan and place it on the palm of the left hand. Holding the Chawan with two hands, slowly tilt the Chawan in an anticlockwise motion three times to warm the tea bowl.

Next, discard the water into the Kensui with the left hand only. Bring it back to chest level and pick up the Chakin with your right hand, lay it over the edge of the Chawan and whipe to the right three times to come back to the starting point.

Now place the Chakin on the bottom and whipe it in a (yu) shape. Remove the Chakin and place it on the lit of the Mizusashi again. Take the Chawan with the right hand and put it down in front of the knees again.

Scoop

With the right hand take the Chashaku from the Natsume and pick up the Natsume with the left hand from the side. Bring the Natsume in front of the chest, hold the Chashaku with only the ring fingers so the other two fingers and the thumb are free to take the lit from the Natsume. Place the lit next to the Chawan on the right. Bring the Natsume closer to the Chawan and scoop one and a half spoons of powdered Matcha into the Chawan. Bring the Natsume closer to the chest again. Smoothen out the powdered Matcha in the Chawan and tap the Chashaku twice on the edge of the Chawan in order to remove some Matcha which might still be stuck to it. Put the lit back on the Natsume, place it back by the Mizusashi and the Chashaku on top of it.

MA

TC

HA

Before adding hot water to the powdered Matcha in the Chawan, the lit of the Mizusashi should be removed. With the right hand lift the lit, bring it closer to the body, and flip it so that the top is facing to the right. It is now in a vertical position. Grab it with the left hand with the thumb on the right, then with the right hand grab it above the left and place it standing against the Mizusashi on the left side.

Remove LIT from MIZUSASHI

  During the Japanese tea ceremony, there is a lot of transferring utensils from one hand to the other for aesthetical reasons.

At first, these small movements will seem unnecessary in the beginning but after becoming more familiar with the Temae one will come to realize the simplicity of it.

OYU

&

Matcha

  To take the Hishaku from the Kama, use index and middle finger to lift it from underneath. Slide these two fingers slightly forward and bring them around to hold the ladle like a pen. Take a full cup of water; pour it slowly in the Chawan.

If a full cup of hot water is scooped from the Kama, we should pour a little more than half of it to get the perfect mix of green-tea. It will take years of experience to get the correct balance of Matcha and Oyu (hot water). Return leftover Oyu to the Kama and place the Hishaku on the Kama.

W

his

Take the Chasen in the right hand and hold the Chawan with the left to make sure it doesn’t tumble over when whisking. Whisk the Oyu and Matcha to froth with about half of the Chawan covered with foam. Depending on the ceramics, a rough Chawan might require extra care when whisking, making sure Matcha doesn’t fly all over the room. When the green tea froth is well mixed, finish by drawing a (No) shape in the Chawan so that the foam floats in the center.

Place the Chasen in front of the Mizusashi again.

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Serving to Guests

Now tea is ready to be served to the guests. Pick up the Chawan with the right hand and place it on the palm of the left hand. Turn it two times about one-quarter anticlockwise so that the Shomen (front side) of the Chawan comes to face to guest when he or she comes to receive it.

With the right hand the Chawan is placed on the other side of the Temaeza Tatami border. (Women should turn about forty-five degrees toward the guest, so that the arm doesn’t need to be stretched very far to place it on the other side of Temaeza Tatami border) After all guests have sampled the thin matcha tea, the host will clean the tea set a third time.

It is common for the guest of honor to request to examine the utensils at this point to examine the craftsmanship of the tools. These can then be passed around for admiration as sometimes these tools are priceless antiques.

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