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According to Brown, tea is classified among the most significant non-alcoholic beverage across the globe. It has gained fame as a result of its benefits. Tea is an inclusive aspect of the daily life of the Japanese individual attributable to its ceremonial and ritual characteristics. It has been treated as a cultural beverage and consumed in a refined atmosphere. Tea drinking in Japan has undergone refinement under the support of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa. He was the regarded as the first ruler-patron of the tea ceremony. Since historical times, tea was incorporated as an element of an independent secular ceremony. Over the past 5,000 years, the Japan have consumed green tree which acts as a beverage and a medicine (121). This paper focuses on tea in Japan, with various subtopics and its relevance among the Zen.
History of Tea
According to De Bary, Keen, and Tanabe, the history of tea in Japan dates back to the early Heian period, after it was introduced by monks including Kukai and Saicho. In 815, Emperor Saga permitted the production of tea in several provinces of Japan. During this period, tea drinking was normally admired and adopted by two elite classes in Japan. First, the nobles at the emperor’s court who copied their Chinese counterparts. They commended the tea’s taste and the stylish methods of its preparation and service. Second, the monks, in Buddhist temples valued tea as a result of its medicinal value (388). Hara asserts that the Chinese were responsible for introducing tea in Japan, probably during the eighth century. In the early 7th century, Japanese monks travelled to China for educational purposes of studying Buddhism. The Chan School, which was referred to as Zen in Japan, incorporated extensive medit...
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...es of Japanese Tradition: From Earliest Times through the Sixteenth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001. Print.
Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print.
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After importing tea into Britain, the East India Company was required to auction it off to other merchants, some of whom then exported the tea to the American colonies. By law, this was virtually the only tea permitted in the colonies.
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customs and traditions hidden in the roots of the Japanese empire. The Tang Dynasty displayed a
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Greene, Carol. Enchantment of the World Japan, p. 97. 28 Pitts, Forrest R., Japan. p. 78. -. 29. Davidson, Judith.
The Tale of Heike." Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600. Ed. Haruo Shirane. New York: Columbia UP, 2007. 736-39. Print.
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The Chinese claim that the first cup of tea was brewed around 2737-2697 by Emperor Shen Nung (177). Tea would not become a domestic drink in society until the 1st century BC and cultivation for mass quantities didn’t occur until the 4th century. During this period, known as the Tang Dynasty, China found itself the wealthiest and most populated nation in the world, in part due to their openness to outside influence. It was also during this time that tea found itself as the drink of choice by the nation (179). There were many reasons why tea was such a preferred choice.
Deal, William E. 2006. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Facts on File, Inc., 2006. eBook
The Japanese Tea Ceremony originated when the Japanese adopted both the Chinese tradition of drinking powdered green tea as well as practicing Zhen Buddhist customs. In the 1500’s, Sen No Rikyu, former koji to the Japense emperor, incorporated ideas of simplicity, uniqueness, and that tea ceremonies should be a special custom. From then on, the Japanese Tea Ceremony became more than just tea drinking, but also a spiritual experience that embodies the ideas of respect, harmony, tranquility, and purity. These tea ceremonies are very intricate and nuclide many steps to be completed. They are usually held in homes, special rooms, or even outdoors. The surroundings during the ceremonies are simple and rustic and have multiple Japanese scrolls hanging from the walls if held inside. The ceremonies have tedious step by step instructions that each participant must follow. Some of these instructions are that before they enter the room, participants must wa...
Both partially in and out of the western world, Japan has undertook an appealing gastronomic diplomacy. In fact, Japan has an ancient tradition with regards to the practice of both cooking and eating. In a ceremonial fashion, Japanese commensality traditions are often linked to the shintoist heritage of Japan as well as its buddhist aspect. As a matter of fact, shintoism is centered on ritualised practices that may be linked to gastronomic practices in Japan. The “tea ceremony” illustrates this point since it is underlines a strongly ritualized conception of commensality. In a like manner, the Japanese gastronomic heritage gives a prior importance to “food education” or shokuiku. This form of education is based on the transmission