There are rituals that make life richer and richer, rituals that require special knowledge and a responsible approach. Such rituals include the tea ceremony, which no quick-brewed tea bag can replace, because, you must agree, the whole philosophy of life cannot be simplified to the usual intake of liquid.
The tea ceremony is a very common phenomenon in Asian countries. Its peculiar canons are traditionally observed in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, however, ancient China is rightfully considered the true ancestor of the great tea culture, in which the brewing process was extolled to the level of knowledge and a sense of the taste of life itself.
Peace in every tea leaf
It is believed that this rite appeared in the fifth century AD thanks to a Buddhist monk trying to fight sleep during another meditation by brewing tea leaves.
According to another version, Lao Tzu, an ancient Chinese philosopher, became the founder of the ancient tradition. The culture of drinking a golden medicinal drink has traditionally been used by monks as a special spiritual ritual available to anyone, regardless of status in society. Since then, the tea ceremony has acquired numerous poems and paintings dedicated exclusively to this rite. Tea itself was perceived by the Chinese as a kind of pharmaceutical elixir, about which many treatises and other documentary evidence have survived.
The peak of the formation of the tradition of drinking tea dates back to the 7-11 centuries, associated with the years of maximum popularity of Chan Buddhism, which considered tea drink to be an elixir of health, a panacea for diseases of the digestive system, a means of relieving headaches, joint pain, malaise and an excellent way to immerse yourself in the process of night meditation.
The stages of the ceremony
All stages of the tea ceremony are described in the "Book of Tea", which belongs to the same era and is the creation of the Chinese poet Lu Yu. It is devoted to the basics of self-education of internal morality, morality and culture. The book describes the main methods of collecting, processing and further brewing and drinking tea using 18 basic tools.
As the tea drink became available to the masses and the spread of Buddhism, the tea ceremony gradually reached the borders of Tibet and ancient Japan, and by the 13th century it had become a symbolic rite of the samurai, nobility and common people. Over time, special "Tea Houses" began to appear, equipped with special ceramic dishes, and by the 16th century, drinking tea had become a special ritual of any spiritual practice, endowed with a certain secret meaning.
It is interesting that in the 18th century in Japan, special "Tea Schools" became widespread, in which, under the strict guidance of masters, they learned the skills of organizing a complex tea ceremony. Through many centuries, 7 basic types of rituals have come down to us, which must be known to everyone who wants to fully master the ancient art. These include special manipulations at dawn, in the morning, at noon, rituals performed at night, out of time, drinking tea with sweets and brewing for guests who suddenly appear.
