THE JAPANESE TEA-DRINKING CEREMONY.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XV, Issue VIII, 24 August 1895, Page 218

THE JAPANESE TEA-DRINKING CEREMONY.

BY

J. KING GOODRICH.

IN the rush of development, progress, civilization (call it what you will) that is sweeping over Japan (and to thoroughly appreciate thecondition of affairs requires actual " presence, and opportunities of observaticn not to be gained by the hurrying tourist), many curious and interesting customs are rapidly going to decay, and from disuse on the part of the natives and ignorance on the part of most foreigners, are likely to be soon forgotten. One of these is the Cha-no-yu, or tea drinking ceremony. THE FONDNESS OF THE JAPANESE FOR PRECISE FORMALITY is epitomized in the ceremony which I am going to describe. To conform to the strictest rules, the ceremony should be held in a room specially prepared for it, called clia-no-yu, of which one, or more, is found in every large Japanese house. Frequently the cha-no-yu is a building separate from the main residence, and to reach it a pretty garden must be crossed. When not used for the cha-no-yu, the ch a-no-ma may, I believe, be turned into a summer pavilion. The dimensions of the room, wherever it may be situated, are always the same, namely four and a-half mats. These floor mats, tatami, are made of rice straw, tightly bound together and covered on the upper surface with matting ; each piece is six feet long, three feet wide and two inches thick, the edges being neatly bound with cloth. They are of uniform size throughout the empire, and are found (of varying quality) in the peasant’s hovel and the emperor’s palace serving for chairs and tables during the day, and as beds at night, when futons (thick cotton-lined quilts) are spread upon them. They are the standard of measurement for rooms and houses, so that instead of saying a room is nine feet square, the Japanese say it has four

and a half mats. In the centre of the cha-no-tna, a part of the half mat is removed to allow of a sunken fireplace being used. Even if the tea-room be in the main building, its proper approach is through the garden along a path of stepping-stones ; a stone or bronze lantern will surely be passed on the way and near the cha-no-ma the trees are likely to be trimmed into conventional forms. On reaching the rooms

the guests put off their shoes (sandals) and enter through a very low sliding door (no more than two and a-half or three feet in height) on their hands and knees, and are received bv the master of ceremonies—sometimes the host himself, but more frequently a man skilled in all the precisions of the entertainment —who kneels, rests his hands on the mat before him, bows his head near to the floor, and drawing

in his breath through his mouth so as to make an audible sound, murmurs a definite number of greetings to each guest in turn. The guests assume the same position when receiving these salutations, reply in set form and suck in their breath, this curious action being a mark of respect. From the time of entering the room until leaving it, no one is allowed to rise from the kneeling or squatting posture ; if it be necessary to move about the room, it must be done by shuffling on the hands and knees. The favourite and usual resting attitude of the Japanese is what they call * Snwari,’ A MOST DIFFICULT POSITION TO ASSUME j it is done by dropping down on both knees, crossing the feet, soles upwards, and sitting on the heels. It is simply torture to the stiff-jointed foreigner, and never becomes comfortable, but the trained native will remain in that position for hours, and then rise and walk without betraying the slightest trace of cramp. Usually' the low ceiling makes standing upright quite impossible even for the Japanese, who are not as a rule men of great stature ; indeed the average height is only about five feet three or four inches, I should say.

THE MASTER OF CEREMONIES wears, over his ordinary costume, a short jacket of gauzy black silk with wide flowing sleeves, and caught together across the breast by a silk frog, in texture the material strongly resembles grenadine. In hisbelt (obi) he thrusts a piece of silk about the size of a large handkerchief, folded diagonally and according to an exact rule ; this is used as a holder, and when the kettle lid is to be raised or anything else particularly hot is to be handled, adjusting this holder seems to be a matter of great importance, while its return to the obi in due form is vital. There ought not to be more than four or five persons present at the cha-no-yu, and settling them in place according to precedence is a matter of time and moment, for although each man knows his relative rank and just what place he will ultimately occupy, there is a long, ceremonious pretence of humility and ignorance; each one in turn takes the lowest place and only moves up a point after being urged. Truly scriptural ! When they are all settled, the distinguished guest being nearest the toko-no-ma.

THE MASTER PROCEEDS TO BRIGHTEN THE FIRE. Pulling himself over the smooth mats by his hands in a way that makes one think he cannot have legs, he shuffles into an adjoining apartment where all the necessary paraphernalia is kept, and returns with a basket containing pieces of charcoal, a single eagle’s feather for a duster, a pair of pointed iron skewers with which to lift the coal, a mat on which to rest the kettle, and a pair of open rings with which to raise it if it has no handle.

The teacher takes the kettle from the hibachi (brazier), places it upon the mat, and makes up the fire ; this done, he carefully brushes away any dust that may have settled on the rim of the hibachi, puts the kettle back again, and takes away the coal basket, etc. Returning, he brings a vessel containing fresh water, one or two cups, a small tea-caddy containing the peculiar powdered green tea which alone may be used in the ceremony, a long, curiously shaped spoon or ladle to dip the tea from the caddy (this is usually made of bamboo and is often elaborately carved ; it is sometimes of ivory, but I believe THE BAMBOO IS CONSIDERED MORE DE RIGUEUR), a mixer for beating up the decoction to a froth (this is made from a section of bamboo about an inch and a quarter in diameter, one end of which is carefully split into a fine fringe, which is steamed and bent into a regular shape), a slop-jar, a dish-cloth, and a small, very plain, long-handled dipper. All these articles being placed in convenient order and in conformity to the rules of cha-no-yu, the teacher draws the holder from his obi, folds it properly, and raises the lid of the kettle to see that the water is boiling. Assured of this, he lays the lid to one side, in its proper place, puts the dipper across the top of the kettle with the mouth down and the handle toward him, and proceeds to prepare the tea. First he dips a little hot water from the kettle, pours it into the cups, rinses and wipes them carefully, turning each just the proper distance as he proceeds. He then takes off the top of the tea-caddy, lays it in its proper place, and with the spoon puts Just the right amount into a cup, and then dips up just the right quantity of water from the kettle and pours it on the tea. It is an exact knowledge of all these formalities which makes a good master of the tea ceremony, and Hideyoshi used to reward liberally those men who could do them most rigidly. With the mixer the teacher then whips the tea to a froth, and when he deems the decoction in proper condition he pushes the cup over the mats to the humblest guest, who, of course,

declines to drink first and passes it on until it reaches him of highest rank, who is seated near the toko-no-ma. This person receives the cup with his right hand, raises it, and rests it upon the palm of his left hand, and holding it with his right, carries it to his mouth. If the tea be too hot to drink, he waits until it has cooled, and then drinks about one-third of the contents. He then

COMMENTS UPON THE FLAVOUR, AND COMPLIMENTS THE TEACHER UPON HIS SKILL IN PREPARING, AND THE HOST UPON HAVING SUCH A SUPERIOR ARTICLE.

It is considered a graceful thing for him to ask where such delicious tea was bought, what price was paid for it, and if more can be had. Then he shakes the cup to get all the froth on the liquor, just as a beer drinker does his mug, and finishes the contents in two more draughts, making a very decided sucking or bubbling noise as he does so. It is proper for him to wipe the rim of the cup with his finger and thumb—although it is more polite to do this with a bit of soft brown paper, which all Japanese carry in the large pockets formed by sewing up their capacious sleeves, and which paper they use instead of pocket handkerchiefs. The guest now makes a complimentary remark about the cup, gives a guess as to its age, and must be sure to say more than its probable antiquity, and may very properly express his envy. (As most of the articles used in the cha-no-you have been made by artists who devoted themselves almost exclusively to their manufacture, and bear the stamps or mark of the maker, the devotees of the ceremony can tell at a glance who made the various implements, and therefore the guess above referred to relates only to those odd ones which a man occasionally picks up.) WHEN THE CUP IS RETURNED TO THE TEACHER he rinses it and prepares tea for each of the party in turn, observing precisely the same forms in each instance and serving himself last. He then asks if he may have the honour of giving any of the guests another cup of tea. This is usually declined, and he returns the paraphernalia to the adjoining room in inverse order to that followed when bringing them in, takes off his distinctive robe, and the party indulges in friendly conversation, extemporising stanzas, puns, etc., and "refreshes itself with tobacco—for during the actual ceremony smoking is prohibited. This, I fancy, is merely for the purpose of giving it an added importance, because the pipe and tobacco pouch or cigarette case of a Japanese man or woman are always at the side, and I have never yet known any other time or place where smoking was improper.

I suspect that when the party is made up of native gentlemen only

A ZEST IS SOMETIMES GIVEN TO THE MEETING BY THE PRESENCE OF A FAIR MAIKO, DANCING-GIRL,

or a talented geisha, singing girl. It is a mark of appreciation of the success of the entertainment on the part of the grtests to request the host to show his collection of curios, and a delicate compliment for them to ask the age, value, and minute history of the various articles. At such times I have seen bits of old pottery, pieces of lacquer, samples of bronze and other metal work (in which, by the way, the old Japanese artisans really excelled), the like of which cannot be found in curio shops nowadays. After a little time has passed, soup,

fish, and one or two other dishes of food considered peculiarly appropriate to the cha-no-yu are set before the party ; and after these have been eaten the affair is considered to be ended, and the guests may take themselves home.