The rhythm of temae

There is a regular rhythm in our daily lives. From the time we arise in the morning to when we go to sleep at night there is a certain rhythm to our day. Just as the rhythm of our heartbeat, the rhythm of our breathing regulates the processes of our bodies. The movements of our bodies, our energy, and our intention regulate the rhythm of temae.

I sometimes think of temae as a roller coaster. At the beginning, the cars start slowly climbing to the top of the first hill. The tension and excitement builds until we come to the top. For one indescribable moment at the top, the anticipation hangs before we drop down the other side.

Just as in temae during the purification of the utensils, the tension builds until the moment the guest turns the bowl to drink. The anticipation of how the guest will receive our tea hangs for a moment as the guest takes that first sip and down we go to the other side.

Then there is the build up for the next guests’ tea until all have had their bowl of tea. Up slowly, stop for a moment, down the other side, just like a roller coaster. During the closing, rinsing the bowl and whisk is going down until the anticipation starts to ramp up again as the first guest requests haiken.

The anticipation of seeing the utensils close up peaks as the host leaves the room and then haiken begins. Then we go climbing up again as the host returns to the room to tell the guests about the utensils. Down the other side as we realize the temae is coming to a close. This is a natural rhythm of temae.

Even within the high and low points of temae, there is a rhythm. For example, when whisking usucha, start slowly to incorporate the dry powdered tea into the hot water, whisk briskly to get bubbles forming and then slowly whisking across the top to pop the large bubbles before finishing in nonoji.

If the temae were all high excitement points one after another throughout the procedure, think how exhausting it would be. Taking advantage of these natural high and low points gives the guest some time to rest and recover for the next anticipated high point. Also, as the rhythm of the temae is varied, it provides more interest for the guests to pay attention as it flows from slowly to quicker to slower again.

And, Rikyu had something to say about the rhythm of temae. From the hundred poems of Rikyu:

なまるとは手つつき早く又おそくところどころのそろはぬをいふ

Namaru to wa te-tsuzuki hayaku mata osoku tokoro-dokoro no sorowanu o iu

I have a couple of translations to English:

Putting a so-called accent in (namaru) means to do the steps with uneven rhythm, fast here, slow there.
What is called namaru is the quality of making tea with varied tempo.
Namaru describes the quality of making tea in which one procedure is done quickly and another slowly.

 

So when you are practicing your next temae, think of the rhythm of it, how it generates excitement for the guests and how to allow space for the guests to rest up for the next peak.

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The resistance

The resistance is our internal inertia that keeps us from achieving our goals, dreams and all the good things we strive for. The resistance is what stops us from doing the things we need to do that we know are good for us. It is what makes us hit the snooze button when we know we have to get up to go to work. I had to overcome the resistance when I had to drive across town to go to keiko. Just the thought of sitting in my car for an hour or more, facing bad weather, traffic and stress made me want to skip it altogether and go eat ice cream.

The resistance can take many forms

  • Procrastination – like the snooze button, procrastination is a big one for me. I can always put something off for 10 minutes, an hour, a day, a month or until next year.
  • Distraction – facing a major presentation at work, I can always find something to distract me from working on it, like rearranging my sock drawer or vacuuming the closet.
  • Confusion – Another form of my resistance takes the form of confusion. How can I move forward if I don’t understand it? If I don’t understand it, or am confused, I have to wait until I do understand what is going on or what I need to do.
  • Asking questions – I have so many questions that need to be answered before I can start. What if I run into a problem? How am I supposed to proceed? What do I do if I get stuck? What is the first thing I need to do?
  • Excuses, explanations, reasons – I can always come up with good excuses for not doing something. Likewise, I can always explain why I cannot do it, or why I cannot do it now. There just are so many reasons why I can’t. I just don’t have the time, money, space or bandwidth to do anything now.
  • Feeling inadequate – You know, I am just not experienced enough to take this on. I need more training, education, or a mentor to help me. I couldn’t do that because I am not talented, rich or driven enough to achieve anything.
  • Changing goals – I really didn’t want that, my new goal is this. When I looked at how difficult, time consuming, or how much responsibility it takes, maybe what I want to do is something else.
  • Following other people’s expectations – My mother always wanted me to be a doctor so I guess that is what I want to do. My family wouldn’t put up with me going after that goal, so I will do what they want.

The antidote for resistance is persistence

One of the things I admire about Mr. Sweetpersimmon is his tenacity. He will wrestle a problem to the ground and pin it. For the past 2 years he has been building me a tea room in our spare bedroom. He did not know how to build it and had never built one before. But he has persisted in drawing up plans, and working through each obstacle as it came up, and there were many, many obstacles.

From his own skill level, to sourcing material, to making things fit, to making all kinds of mistakes, he has persisted. Almost every day for the past two years, he has worked on this project. He has rebuilt sections of walls and solved problems where there were no instructions. He researched construction methods, consulted others, figured out answers to problems, and worked and reworked to recover from mistakes. Every day, if he was not actively working on the room, he thought about how to go about moving the project forward or trying to get out of a problem if he was stuck. He persisted.

Hold the vision

There are so many reasons to quit. What can overcome the urge to give up, quit and do something else? Why do entrepreneurs invest fortunes in time and money to build a company? Why do athletes train every day, or musicians spend hours, days, years in practice? It is the vision of something better, the sense that makes all the effort worthwhile is reaching for something beyond where you are today. Holding the vision, the goal, in front of you, and keeping it bright can help you persist. It can help you move through all of the resistance.

For me, I think I need to get into the car and drive across town to go to keiko. I look forward to that sweet and bowl of tea.

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Passing on the spirit of tea

I am again writing with a heavy heart, in that long time head of the Urasenke Tankokai Portland Association, Wako Henjyoji Sensei has passed away. Condolences to her daughter Florence Harada and all the family members at this difficult time.

Henjyoji Sensei was a teacher of not only Chado, but also a Sensei of Ikebana, and a supporter of Shodo and all Japanese culture in Portland. We thank her for the privileges we enjoy in doing tea at Kashintei, the tea house at the Portland Japanese Garden. We also thank her generosity in allowing us to use the Henjyoji Temple as a venue for larger events such as Hatsu chakai and Rikyuki. And we thank her for all her contributions to the tea community in Portland and keeping the principles of wa, kei, sei, and jaku alive and flourishing.

Henjyoji Sensei’s legacy is written in her students who are now leaders of the Tankokai and members of Kashinteikai. I hope that when my time comes that my students will become the next generation of teachers and make me as proud of them as I am sure Henjyoji Sensei is of her students.

It is such a loss to the tea community in Portland and I know that this is not the last entry I will be writing, but to honor her memory I will strive to do my best to pass on the spirit of Chado to a new generation of students.

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Host and guest as one

It was a very busy month for me in January.  I hosted an informal chakai, a hango chaji, helped at a student chakai, and was part of the group hosting the Hatsu chakai for the larger Tankokai group.  I also attended a student chaji, had 3 presentations of Chado and led a listening to incense workshop.

Host preparation

Through all the preparations for each event, I am thinking about the experience of the guest.  Preparation for a chakai is more than picking the toriawase (utensils used in the procedure).  I also think about how the guests will approach the tea space, the order of the guests, who knows more and who knows less about etiquitte, and the sensory perceptions the guests will have as they move through the event.  If the guests have difficulty sitting, have I provided for that?

I will often visualize myself as a guest and think about what they will perceive and pay attention to in the course of the chaji, chakai or presentation.  By putting myself in the guests’ place, it gives me empathy for what they may experience and as a host, pay attention to areas or times to be aware of the guests’ feelings and moods.

Of course, I cannot predict what will happen with the guests, especially when doing presentations as I do not know who will attend.  In that case, I remind myself to be present and pay attention to what is happening in the moment.  I think we often forget that Chanoyu is a human interaction and not a structural or technical endeavor.  Conversation flows naturally, I make mistakes in temae, things happen out of order.  Sometimes magical things happen that could never be planned for.

Participation

Sensei once told me that a chaji is an encounter where you set the stage for a meeting of host and guest to have a deep communication and understanding as human beings.  I once went to an early morning “silent” chakai where the host had requested no talking.  It was on a weekday, and the host served soup and noodles, a sweet and then tea.  Because there was no talking, guests had to pay much more attention to what was going on.  Body language, gestures and even just a look or eye contact became much more significant.  Everyone was participating and working together to make it a success.  By the end of it, I was nearly in tears. It was a very moving experience.  The chakai took about an hour and a half, and we were finished so everyone could leave in time for work.

Second Seki

Guests and hosts

When participating in a chaji, guests need to work hard to help the host.  Wanting to be entertained, being critical of the host, wandering attention or trying to control the flow, are things that kill the mood of the chaji.  In large events, sometimes you can even feel the energy of the guests as they try to help a nervous host calm down and do a good job.

Then there are those special moments where the host and guests become one.  Time seems to stand still.  Heart to heart communication is going on without even gestures or eye contact.  The whole world slips away and the universe is aligned for this very special moment. It cannot be planned for, or forced, but takes place naturally as both host and guest become completely open and merge. It doesn’t happen very often, but to experience the beauty and connection, not just with the people, but all of the universe is profound and has been life changing for me.

I want everyone to be able to experience this and that is one of the reasons I want to share Chado with as many people as I can.

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The attitude of gratitude

When we receive a bowl of tea, the etiquette is that we say “osaki ni” to the next guest, thank the host for making the tea, and lift the bowl in “kansha” or gratitude before we turn the bowl and drink the tea.    

This kansha is not just gratitude for host making tea.  It is also gratitude for the person who grew the tea, the person who picked the tea, the person who processed the tea, packaged the tea, and transported the tea.  It is also gratitude to the person who made the charcoal to boil the water to make tea, the person who harvested the wood to make the charcoal, and built the kiln, cut the charcoal, packaged it and shipped it.  It is also gratitude to the person who made the tea bowl, fired it, built the kiln and dug the clay.  It is also the person who made the tatami on which we are sitting, the person who harvested the grass, wove the mat, installed the tatami.  Gratitude also for the kettle maker, the architect who designed the tea house, and people who built it.  

In fact, kansha for everyone who made it possible for me to drink and enjoy this bowl of tea. The more I think about it, the more people I have to thank to make this moment possible. Even for something as simple as enjoying a bowl of tea, so many people contribute to it.   

Here is a book about One man’s journey to thank everyone for his morning cup of coffee. It is amazing how many people he found to thank on this journey and the lessons that he learned from it.

It is like pulling a thread in a cloth that leads to more threads.  And like the fabric, I see that people are interconnected and woven into my life at this moment.   The act of kansha and acknowleging the role people play in my life has made me a more empathetic and generous person.  We can simply acknowlege people by being present and thanking them sincerely.  The receptionist who checks you in, the bank teller, the waitress, or grocery clerk are all woven into your life, if only for a moment.

I don’t know how many times people have said it made their day when I have looked them in the eyes and (called them by name if possible)  sincerely said thank you.

So the next time we stop and think about our lives, Kansha, in gratitude for all the people who made this moment possible

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