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What is the Tea Ceremony?
The Tea Ceremony is the ritualized preparation and serving of powdered green tea in the presence of guests. The host engages his whole being in the creation of an occasion designed to bring aesthetic, intellectual and physical enjoyment and peace of mind to the guests.
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Art Integrated with the Japanese Traditions
To achieve the hospitality for guests, the host may spend a lot of time mastering not only the procedures for serving tea in front of guests, but also learning to appreciate art, crafts, poetry and calligraphy, and learning to arrange "Ikebana" (Flower arrangement), cook and care for a garden, at the same time learning to behave in grace, selflessness and attentiveness to the needs of others.
Though all efforts of the host are directed towards the enjoyment of the participants, the Tea Ceremony is equally designed to humble participants by focusing attention on the profound beauty of the simplest manifestations of nature, such as light, the sound of water, the glow of a charcoal fire- which are emphasized in the setting of a simple tea-room- and also manifestations of the creative force of the universe through human endeavor, for example beautiful objects.
Conversation in the tea-room is focused on these subjects. The guest will not engage in small talk or gossip, but limit their conversation to a discussion of the origin of utensils and praise for the beauty of natural manifestations.
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