The Concept and Essence of Chinese Tea Culture
Chinese tea culture originated in China and flourished during the Tang, Song, and Ming dynasties, but declined in modern times. After the Song Dynasty, Chinese tea culture spread to Japan and Korea, where it underwent new developments. Many people today are familiar with Japanese tea ceremonies but know little about the Chinese tea culture, which serves as the source and has a history of over a thousand years for both Japanese and Korean tea cultures. The word "道" (dào) in Chinese has various meanings, such as path, morality, method, technique, principle, ethics, and ultimate reality, making interpretations of "茶道" (chá dào or tea culture) diverse.
In my view, Chinese tea culture aims at the practice of attaining the Way (道 dào) through the art of tea consumption, with the purpose of refining one's mind and body, understanding the greater truth, and elevating one's life.
Chinese tea culture is an organic combination of "the way of tea" (饮茶之道), "cultivating the way through tea" (饮茶修道), and "tea is the way" (饮茶即道). "The way of tea" refers to the art of tea consumption, where "道" (dào) denotes the method and technique. "Cultivating the way through tea" involves using the art of tea to practice respect, moral integrity, self-improvement, and the pursuit of virtue, with "道" referring to ethics, truth, and the source. "Tea is the way" signifies that the Way exists in everyday life, and drinking tea is a form of practicing the Way, where "道" represents truth, reality, essence, and source.
1. Chinese Tea Culture: The Way of Tea
Tea culture in China started to take shape around the middle of the Tang Dynasty. Lu Yu, a native of Jingle in the Former Shu, wrote in his book "The Classic of Tea" (茶经) that tea had been considered a precious beverage for a long time. Lu Yu's book, which consisted of ten chapters, covered topics such as the origins, utensils, production, tea-making, and tasting of tea. Among them, "production" discussed tea farming, while "tea-making" provided a detailed guide to the preparation of tea. The book was a comprehensive treatise on tea that laid the foundation for Chinese tea culture.
The Chinese tea culture, as advocated in "The Classic of Tea" by Lu Yu, is essentially an artistic way of tea consumption. It includes various rituals and rules, such as tea assessment, water selection, appreciation of teaware, kindling the fire, roasting tea, grinding tea leaves, boiling water, brewing tea, decanting tea, and tea tasting.
2. The Development of Chinese Tea Culture in Song and Beyond
Apart from "The Classic of Tea," other tea-related writings like Cai Xiang's "The Record of Tea" (茶录), Emperor Huizong of Song's "Treatise on Tea" (大观茶论), Zhu Quan's "Tea Manual" (茶谱), Qian Chennian's "Tea Manual," Zhang Yuan's "The Record of Tea" (茶录), and Xu Cishi's "Tea Annotations" (茶疏) contain valuable information about tea culture in China.
In modern times, the "Gongfu Tea" tradition, particularly in the Chaoshan region of Guangdong and the Wuyi Mountain area in Fujian, is considered a continuation of the ancient "way of tea." Gongfu tea involves a specific sequence of steps and rituals, such as inviting the guest to the main seat, offering incense, enjoying the tea leaves' aroma, preparing hot water, appreciating the tea leaves, brewing the tea, serving it with respect, and savoring its flavors.
This sequence captures the essence of the Chinese tea culture, where every step is a delicate art form, reflecting a deep respect for the tea and the guests. It is about making the best tea possible, creating a peaceful and harmonious environment, and enhancing the appreciation of tea as a journey of the senses.
These traditions are an integral part of Chinese culture and history, offering a profound understanding of the art and philosophy of tea that goes beyond a simple beverage.
In his poem "Toasting Prefect Cui with New Tea" ("饮茶歌诮崔石使君"), Jiaoran, a close friend of Lu Yu, wrote, "One sip washes away drowsiness, and my thoughts become clear and expansive; another sip cleanses my spirit, like a sudden rain refreshing the light dust; a third sip, and I attain the Way, with no need to worry about troubles... Those who truly understand the way of tea are rare, only the immortal Danqiu grasps it so."
Jiaoran believed that drinking tea could clear the mind, lead to the Way, and bring enlightenment, with the immortal Danqiu deeply understanding this path. This is one of the earliest records related to the "Way of Tea."
In the Tang Dynasty, the poet Lu Tong became famous for his poem "Seven Bowls of Tea," which is still celebrated today. Lu Tong and Lu Yu are often mentioned together. The poem goes: "The first bowl moistens my lips and throat; the second bowl breaks my loneliness; the third bowl searches my barren entrails, but to find therein some five thousand scrolls; the fourth bowl raises a slight perspiration; all the wrongs of life pass out through my pores. At the fifth bowl, I am purified; the sixth bowl calls me to the realms of the immortals. The seventh bowl—ah, but I could take no more! I only feel the breath of the cool wind that raises in my sleeves. Where is Horaisan? Let me ride on this sweet breeze and waft away thither."
Tang poet Qian Qi wrote in his poem "Tea Banquet with Zhao Ju": "Beneath the bamboo, we forget our words, sipping purple tea; we surpass the guests of Yuke by getting drunk on the beauty of clouds and shadows." The Tang poet Wen Tingyun wrote in "The Daoist's Tea Song at West Ridge": "The sparse fragrance and white teeth leave an aftertaste, and I feel my spirit open up to the boundless void." These poems suggest that drinking tea can lead to an elevated state of being, a connection with the transcendental, and a cleansing of the mind, surpassing the effects of alchemical elixirs.
Towards the end of the Tang Dynasty, Liu Zhenliang introduced the concept of the "Ten Virtues of Tea," stating that tea disperses melancholy, dispels sleepiness, nurtures vitality, removes sickness, promotes courtesy, expresses respect, stimulates the taste buds, facilitates the pursuit of the Way, and allows for artistic refinement. Drinking tea makes people respectful, courteous, compassionate, and encourages the pursuit of higher ideals and the Way.
Emperor Huizong's "Treatise on Tea" emphasized that tea "dispels emotional burdens and clears stagnation, promotes purity and harmony, inspires scholars to aspire to clarity and purity, and is used as a pastime for idle moments." Zhu Quan's "Tea Manual" mentioned that he and his guests would engage in clear discussions, explore abstract concepts, appreciate nature, and purify their minds while savoring tea.
From the above, it becomes evident that drinking tea can lead to respect, compassion, purity, harmony, self-improvement, and a connection to the transcendental. In essence, Chinese tea culture is about "cultivating the Way through tea."
"Laozi believed in 'The Way of Nature,' Zhuangzi saw 'The Way' as universally internalized in all things, 'ubiquitous' and 'inescapable.' Master Mazu Daoyi advocated that the 'ordinary mind is the Way,' while his disciple Pang Yunju said, 'Divine abilities and marvelous functions are moving water and carrying firewood,' and another disciple, Chan Master Dahui Huixian, believed that the practice of the Way was in 'eating when hungry and sleeping when tired.' Yixuan, the third-generation disciple of Dao Yi, the founder of the Dao Yi school, stated, 'The Buddha's Way has no useful places, it's only in the ordinary, trivial matters. You excrete waste, urinate, put on clothes, and eat, and when you're tired, you sleep.' The Way is not separate from everyday life; the practice of the Way does not require effort in daily routines. The natural way of living, doing things naturally, carrying water and chopping wood, getting dressed, and having meals—all of these contain the Way, no need for cultivation, and yet, cultivation occurs.
In the "Record of the Transmission of the Lamp" (五灯会元), during the fourth generation of the Southern Peak Monastery (Nanyue) lineage, Monk Zhaozhou Congshen asked a newly arrived monk, 'Have you been here before?' The monk replied, 'Yes.' Zhaozhou said, 'Go have some tea.' Then he asked another monk, who replied that he had not been there before. Zhaozhou said, 'Go have some tea.' The abbey's steward asked, 'Why do you say "Go have some tea" to those who have been here and to those who haven't been here?' Zhaozhou called the steward and said, 'Go have some tea.'"
Zhaozhou Congshen was a disciple of Nanyue Huairang, who, in turn, was a dharma heir of Mazu Daoyi. While Nanyue and Zhaozhou may not have founded their own sects, they had a significant influence in Zen Buddhism. The "Go have some tea" approach, integrating the Way into the everyday act of drinking tea, became a widely recognized Zen technique and a common "koan" passed down the Zen tradition.
In the fifth generation of the Southern Peak Monastery lineage, Monk Wuyue Mugu was asked by a visitor if he still observed precepts and sat in meditation. Wuyue replied, 'I don't observe precepts. I don't sit in meditation.' After a pause, the visitor asked, 'Do you understand?' Wuyue answered, 'I don't understand.' The visitor then recited a verse: 'Without observing precepts, without sitting in meditation, sipping three or four cups of tea, the intention is to grasp the source.' Wuyue Mugu and Wuye Huiji jointly established the Weiyang School, one of the five houses of Zen Buddhism.
The way is natural, and the practice of the Way is in drinking tea. The great Way is simple; boiling water and brewing tea are no different from the Way. Drinking tea is the Way, the result of practicing the Way, the wisdom gained after enlightenment, the highest state of life, and the ultimate pursuit of Chinese tea culture. Go with the flow, act without striving, drink when you want, and follow your heart's desires. Do not be bound by the procedures, rituals, or rules of tea drinking; value simplicity and plainness. Find harmony with the natural act of tea drinking, and you will align with the great Way."
In summary, Chinese tea culture embodies three dimensions: the Art of Tea Drinking, the Art of Cultivating the Way through Tea, and the Idea that Tea Drinking Is the Way.
The Art of Tea Drinking encompasses the artistic aspects of tea consumption, forming a comprehensive art form that combines with poetry, literature, calligraphy, architecture, and the natural environment. It elevates tea drinking from mere material sustenance to a spiritual and cultural experience.
The Art of Cultivating the Way through Tea incorporates the practice of self-improvement into the art of tea consumption. Its emphasis lies in nurturing the body and mind and gaining insight into the great Way.
The Idea that Tea Drinking Is the Way represents the highest pursuit and the ultimate state of Chinese tea culture. The act of boiling water and brewing tea is no less than a profound Way.
In Chinese tea culture, the Art of Tea Drinking serves as the foundation, the Art of Cultivating the Way through Tea is the objective, and the Idea that Tea Drinking Is the Way is the core. The Art of Tea Drinking emphasizes aesthetic and artistic qualities, the Art of Cultivating the Way through Tea centers on moral and practical aspects, and the Idea that Tea Drinking Is the Way delves into religious and philosophical dimensions.
Chinese tea culture harmoniously integrates elements of religion, philosophy, aesthetics, ethics, and art. It represents the fusion of art, practice, and spiritual enlightenment. In the realm of tea culture, the art of tea is intricately tied to the pursuit of the Way, and the distinction between art and Way dissolves.
Chinese tea culture is not merely the art of tea drinking; it is the art of living and the art of life itself.
