PHILOSOPHY AND ARCHITECTURE OF TEA HOUSES IN JAPAN
Tea ceremonies have evolved a great deal since they first got their start, and as the ceremonies have grown and shifted in purpose, so have the tea houses that hold them. Japanese tea house, Chashitsu in Japanese, is where chado, the tea ceremony takes place, which expresses Japanese sentimentality and aesthetics through the act of drinking tea. Chashitsu is truly the product of all of the traditional Japanese crafts combined and sophisticated.As tea began to grow in popularity, tea ceremonies became a source of entertainment for members of the upper class who could afford to gamble, read poetry and attend tea parties in extravagant pavilions. The design of free-standing tea houses is heavily influenced by Zen philosophy. In an attempt to escape from the material strains of daily life, Shukō removed tea parties from the formal setting and instead held the ceremonies in simple grass-thatched huts, like the Tai-an Teahouse. His goal in doing this was to transcend the complex distractions of the world and find enlightenment in everyday life. Another important procedure initiated by Shukou, was that he himself would serve the tea to his guests. He preferred the intimate and personal atmosphere of a small room which could fit five to six people. The four-and-a-half-mat room that he had devised to create a more tranquil atmosphere during the tea ceremony had its origins in the Zen philosophy. In front of the traditional teahouse is a garden referred to as the roji. Guests traverse it on a path of stepping stones, admiring the plants and trees, before washing their hands at a stone basin in preparation for entering the teahouse building. One of the chief characteristics of the thatched hut teahouse begun by Rikyū is the guest entrance, or nijiriguchi. The square door is so low and small that guests can’t move through it without stooping and curling up as they crawl through. When guests enter the tea house, they first proceed to the alcove, tokonoma, to admire the decoration. There is no furniture, except for that which is required for the preparation of tea. Usually, there will be a charcoal pit in the center of the room by cutting a piece of the tatami is used to boil water. Object used in the tea ceremony included special porcelain or ceramic bowls, a cast-iron kettle with bronze lid, freshwater water jars, ceramic of lacquer container for powdered tea, and tea caddies. There are four main principals defining the way people and tea objects interact: wa (harmony); kei (respect); sei (purity) and jyaku (tranquility). Having got everything right in terms of setting and paraphernalia, one then has to do what all this has been leading up to: make tea. The exact movements of the host are vital but depend on which school of tea ceremony one favours. The important thing is to only make the minimum of movements which should be precise, graceful, and restrained. Further, one should be silent when actually preparing the tea. All thenecessary equipment should have already been laid out before the guests, and only the kettle is hidden from their view. The tea caddy and bamboo scoop are first cleaned with a cloth. When ready, the hot water is poured into the tea bowls but only enough to warm them. Powdered tea is then added to the bowls, which are then topped up with hot water, and the mixture is whisked to make a frothy drink. The tea should be drunk in small sips. When everyone has finished, the implements and bowls are cleaned and removed from sight leaving only the kettle before the hopefully now well-satisfied guests. Finally, some of the finer implements may be returned in order for the guests to discuss their appreciation of them.The simplicity of modern teahouses is meant to emphasize the importance of breaking down boundaries that exist among people, objects and ideas. Taking the idea of tea houses designed to mesh with their natural environment to a whole new level, Terunobu Fujimori created the Takasugi-an, which translates to“a tea house too high.” He built the compact teahouse to appear as though it was resting between two chestnut trees, and although the only way to reach the tea house is via ladder, the view from the top gives visitors a perfect view of Chino, Japan. Instead of displaying the picture scrolls of traditional tea houses that indicated the time of year, Fujimori used the building’s windows to achieve the same effect while also allowing visitors to observe the profound changes that were happening in the world around them. Simple materials such asplaster and bamboo were used to construct the interior of the tea house.Modern tea houses still have strong roots in the traditional purposes of tea ceremonies.Today, many practice tea ceremony and enjoy its benefit innumerous types of tea rooms from traditional ones to innovative ones. Both the ceremony and the Japanese tea houses have evolved since the earliest days, and they continue evolving so that they can adapt to the rapidchangesinmodern society.
