On Monday May 11, Soshimsa abbot the
Venerable Myong-Ahn Sunim offered the Korean tea ceremony workshop at
the Soshimsa Zen Center in Plainfield, NJ.
In a light yet serious atmosphere,
accompanied by soothing Korean flute music, attendees had the
opportunity to, first, view a demonstration of the ceremony with
commentary by V. Myong-Ahn Sunim.
Then, using their own (SZC provided)
utensils, attendees attempted to reproduce the graceful ordered
motions pf preparing and pouring in a “dry run” before actually
making tea. A helpful “cheat sheet” was provided as an additional
guide.
Throughout the seminar, education was given on many aspects of
tea preparation; history, fable, water sources, heating of water,
utensil type, grip, pouring technique, and timing of movements were some.
Then, body and spirit were united as
each attendee added purified water to cha (second flush green
tea, hand-harvested from the slopes of volcanic Jeju Island off the
coast of South Korea). Pale, jade-green liquid appeared in the cups,
the aroma filled the air, and instruction was provided on appreciation
through eye, nose and
mouth sense consciousnesses.
Finally, a challenge in the form of a
question, to be answered at some time in the future, was directed to
the audience.