Tradition in Fukushima or Japan

Sado, Tea Ceremony
Shodo, Calligraphy

Sado, Tea Ceremony

		History In the 12th century, the original form of drinking tea was brought to Japan from China. In the 16th century, Sen Rikyu established the foundation of Sado, Tea Ceremony, as we know today. After the death of Rikyu, his descendants established three Sen houses, which have passed on his Way of Tea.
Cha-shitu

Thoughts
Chado has been deeply influenced by Zen, a sect of Buddhism. The basic principles of Sado are expressed in the words, "Wa, Kei, Sei, and Zyaku" in Japanese. Each means harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. By learning it, we try to obtain an ultimate peace of mind. In the Tea Ceremony, we should respect eachother regardless of social status and rank.
There is an interesting saying about Tea Ceremony,
" One opportunity, one encounter."(Ichi-go, Ichi-e in japanese).
This phrase means an encounter might happen once in our lifetime. We should value every moment of our life. This is the Sado spirit.

Tea
Fresh green leaves are steamed, dried, and ground into fine powdered tea using tea mill. It's not fermented like black tea.

"Temae" : the procedure for making the tea

fold the fukusa		make the tea		serve the tea

Procedure for drinking the tea.

1. Place a tea bowl in front of you inside the tatami edging.
2. Bow and say "Osakini."(Excuse me for going before you to the next guest of you. (Bowing is essential to do when meeting, greeting, and thanking.)
3. Take the tea bowl with your right hand and place it on your left palm.
4. Bow your head slightly to express thanks.
5. Turn the tea bowl clockwise three times to avoid its front of the tea bowl before you drink.
6. Drink the tea to the last sip with making a sound.
7. Wipe the place where you drink from with your thumb and index fingers.
8. Wipe your fingers with Kaishi, special paper.
9. Turn the tea bowl counterclockwise so that the front faces you.
10. Place the tea bowl in front of you outside the tatami edging.

If you are interested in Sado and want to know more, I recommend you to read "The Book of Tea" written by Tensin Okakura. He wrote about Sado in English for western ppeople.

Shodo, Calligraphy

Shodo, calligraphy, is taught in elementary and junior high schools as part of Japanese language class. But Shodo is not common these days except on New Year's cards, or writing one's name at formal parties or meeting. Now Shodo is one of the Japanese traditional arts and one of the fine arts.

Shodo, which originated in China, is the art of writing pictographic characters characters with an ink-drenched brush and a focussed mind. This is considered an artistic accomplishment and something quite apart from ordinary penmanship. Particular attention is paid to the shades of ink, the combination of brush strokes and the movement of the writing brush. The beauty of calligraphy is full appreciated when it expresses spiritual nobility. Namely, when they are written with the whole mind and body.

Character Forms and Style

Contemporary Calligraphy

In post-World War2 Japan, avant-garde calligraphy (zenei shodo) was born-a genre in itself. You will enjoy the modern calligraphy where there is just a single character like "happiness" or "dreams" or "pleasure" because it really makes the image of the word come to life.

Implements

Sumi, or Chinese ink, is usually made of soot from burned wood or oil mixed with fishbone or hide glue and dried into a stick. To make liquid the stick is rubbed on an ink-stone or suzuri.The suiteki, or small water dropper, is either ceramic or metal.