My Cup Tea of Wisdom

On my path to listen to my inner wisdom, I have found clarity through tea culture and ceremony, and wish to share this gift with others.

 Tea is not a drink. Tea culture is Buddhism, is Daoism, is Zen tranquility. As we, or at least I, explore the depth of tea culture, I am not drinking tea. I am absorbing the wisdom of millennium. I am going inward in self-reflection. 

I am growing outward, reaching to the very boundaries of the universe. Inward and outward become one. I am one with everything; everything is within me.

This journey, this quest for unity, is what I wish to share with others.

Tea is the heart of the Chinese tea ceremony and plays a central role in Chinese culture. When sharing tea, the host and ceremony participants smell the tea, taste it and enjoy the many layers of taste discovered with every mouthful.

The tea ceremony reflects the search for beauty in every object of the world, in accordance with the Chinese Dao philosophy. To be one with tea is to be in harmony with nature, with oneself reflecting Buddhist and Daoist teachings.

 Sharing tea is part of everyday life — to say hello, to thank someone, to apologize to them, to honor them. When you pour tea for somebody, you humble yourself before them.

“Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves – slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.”

Second Note:

Chinese scholars prefer the idiom or words - Chan Cha Yi Wei(禅茶一味), a philosophical definition to combine the tea culture and zen philosophy. It was firstly mentioned by Buddhist Master Yuanwu Keqin(圆悟克勤,1063-1135) in Song Dynasty. His book Biyan Collection written in Jiashan Temple in Hunan province is accepted as the NO.1 Marvelous Book of the World in Southern Korea. His calligraphy masterpiece - Cha Chan Yi Wei, was preserved by Monk Yixiu Zongchun, a respected monk of Japan,and later became the national treasure of Japan as well.

Chancha Yiwei tells us that the Zen share the same taste as the Tea, and deeply speaking, they share the same life philosophy. To be a highlighted part of Chinese culture, Chancha culture is the specific embodiment and show of traditional spirituality of Chinese people in daily life. The core philosophy of Zen and Tea Culture is summarized into four Chinese characters - Zheng (正, Justification), Qing (清, Purification), He(和, Peace) and Ya (雅, Elegance). 

All of which show three main philosophical essences of three spiritual pillars - Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. Zheng or Honesty is emphasized by Confucianism. He or Peace is emphasized by Buddhism, and Qing or Purification emphasized by Taoism. Ya or Elegance is the typical characteristics of traditional well-cultivated elites of culture and academics. Drinking tea when talking about the Zen culture is an enjoyment and surely an improvement of life.

The root of Zen is spiritual edification or enlightenment. It is a long-term self-cultivation from the misunderstanding to total enlightenment, and from vulgarity to elegance. Zen & Tea culture is a special form to cultivate the nature and temperament of people. To the popular explanation of Chan Cha Tea Culture, four aspects will be included - gratitude(感恩), tolerance(包容), sharing(分享) and relationship establishment with benevolence, friendship and Buddhism(结缘).

Explained scientifically, drinking tea is much beneficial to health. Good for digestion, wiping off the flood flat and promoting the secretion of saliva or body fluid. However, the light taste and the elegance of tea are an important embodiement of tea culture for life cultivation.
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