Most commented posts

  1. Heart to heart connection — 8 comments
  2. April update, a Midorikai interlude — 6 comments
  3. Making a good bowl of koicha — 6 comments
  4. It is harder than it looks — 6 comments
  5. Seeing things as they are — 6 comments

Author's posts

Seeing things as they are

With the worldwide pandemic, staying home has been a hardship for many.  Fortunately, I am in a secure financial situation, and staying home this past year and a half has been a pleasure for me.  Seeing the seasons change through the garden has brought me great joy this year.  I have also been teaching myself …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://issoantea.com/seeing-things-as-they-are/

Tea Reflection

Guest Post by Andrew Nguy.  Andrew was in China on a Fulbright scholarship when Covid broke out. Andrew studied with me online through the Covid pandemic. He is now off to Yale for East Asian graduate studies.

One wintry morning as I roamed the halls of a temple in China’s historical southern capital, I received …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://issoantea.com/tea-reflection/

Book Review: Pearl Among the Clouds

Book review: Pearl Among the Clouds, Daily practices inspired by the Japanese Tea Ceremony,

By Ueda Sōkei, 16th Grandmaster of the Ueda Sōko Tradition of the Japanese Tea Ceremony. Translated into English by Adam Sōmu Wojcinński.  123 pages and illustrated.  Purchase here

It seems lately that there are not many books published about the …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://issoantea.com/book-review-pearl-among-the-clouds/

Chakai at the Tea House of the Winter Moon

It is not often that I get to be a guest at a Chakai.  So when I was invited by my friend Christopher Ezzell to a Chakai, I was thrilled and delighted.  Christopher lives on Vashon Island in the Puget Sound, about a three hour drive from my house.  Since I had not been …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://issoantea.com/chakai-at-the-tea-house-of-the-winter-moon/

What’s not there

There is a painting I encountered recently titled “Butterfly.” It depicts foliage and cat, but no butterfly can be seen in the painting. However, the cat is looking up at something off the paper. One can imagine that the butterfly had just flown out of the scene before the artist could paint it, but still …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://issoantea.com/whats-not-there/