Japanese Tea Ceremonies
While green tea in China is celebrated for its medicinal values, in Japan it forms the center of highly important cultural rituals known as tea ceremonies. These ritualistic occasions developed through Zen Buddhism, which has a heavy influence on many aspects of the tea ceremony. The ceremonies are known as chaji or chakai, with chaji being a formal gathering which usually also includes a full meal, and chakai referring to a more relaxed social gathering.
The Japanese tea ceremony traditionally sees the preparation, serving and drinking of matcha, which is the popular powdered green tea that was first used in Buddhist monasteries during religious rituals. It is prepared in one of two different ways – either as koicha, which is a thick mixture of the tea powder with hot water, or usucha, a much thinner tea, where the matcha is whipped into water using a tea whisk. Koicha, on the other hand, uses a method more similar to kneading in order to blend a smaller volume of water with a much larger quantity of powder, forming a smooth paste-like liquid which is generally shared among guests in one communal bowl – usucha is served in individual cups.
Tea drinking had caught on in all levels of Japanese society by the 16th century, when the tea ceremony's most well known historical figure, Sen no Rikyu, developed his teachings on “the way of tea”. Based on the concept that each meeting needs to be treasured in light of the fact that it can never be repeated, (ichi-go ichi-e), he set out principles that are still central to the tea ceremony as it exists today: harmony, purity, respect, and tranquility. There are even a large number of schools specifically dedicated to teaching Japanese tea ceremony!
The specifics will vary from one type of occasion to the next, but a number of general rituals are traditionally performed. Guests at the ceremony stat by purifying and cleansing themselves by washing their hands and rinsing out their mouths, and must remove their footwear before entering the tea house and sitting in order of social status or prestige. Often, the host will build the fire for heating the water in front of the guests, and then, if food is to be served at the ceremony, guests will be served either tenshin (a light and simple meal) or kaiseki (a full course meal). If there is to be no food, small sweets will be given instead.
Next, every utensil that is to be used in the tea making will be cleaned in front of the guests, following very specific rules and order. They are then put into place, and the host will set about making the tea. Matcha powder is placed in the tea bowl and whisked together with hot water to prepare the tea. It will then be served in cups to each guest by the host, or the bowl will be fetched by each individual in order of seating.
The host and the guest must first bow to each other before the guest receives the tea. Bowing must be performed at very specific points in the process as the bowl is passed from guest to guest, and a certain number of sips must be taken before wiping the rim and passing it on. This is common practice for the sharing of a thick tea, which will normally then be followed by the preparation and serving of a thin tea in a rather more relaxed manner, when casual conversation becomes acceptable. The ceremony can typically last for around four hours.
Useful Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_tea_ceremony
http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/culture/japanese_tea_ceremony.html
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