Tea Ceremony

Hello, this is Chiaki from J-hoppers Hida Takayama.
Now it's getting hot like summer. I'm almost melting :(

By the way, from this April, I started to have "tea lesson" every week.
My aim is to be "real" Japanese girl.
I mean "tea ceremony" is  one of symbols for Japanese culture, but most of Japanese people don't know how to behave in a tea room recently.
Thus I started to have the lesson to learn more about our own culture.

Long time ago, there is "Samurai" who have a sward all the time for a battle.
Even in those era, a tea room is the only place that Samurai put their sward away from them. That is to say, a tea room is the only peaceful place for everyone.

In a tea room, there is so many rules.
It's not just for memorize, but it's consideration for other people. We call it "Omoiyari" in Japanese. We need kind and thoughtful mind to make or have a green tea.

Since a long time, mother has told "Omoiyari" spirits to their children through teaching how to have a tea ceremony. That's why Japanese people are recognized  as very polite people by many foreigners.
However, the times have changed, and the habit has also changed. Children are not told about tea ceremony by their parents anymore. (some parents still do probably) I think that's why selfish and inconsiderate people has increased. It's my personal opinion though...

I think learning about tea ceremony is very important option for Japanese. I cannot believe why we cut the important habit from our lives.
We need a lot of time to learn how to behave in a tea room, but I think tea ceremony is the most precious culture for Japanese.

If you come to Japan, please try it.
Then you will experience the depth of Japanese culture.












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