GRAND MASTERS First-Generation Rikyu-Soeki (1522-1591) Second-Generation Shoan Sojun (1546-1614) Third-Generation Gempaku Sotan (1578-1658) Fourth-Generation Senso Soshitsu (1622-1697) Fifth-Generation Fukyusai Joso (1673-1704) Sixth-Generation Rikkansai Taiso (1694-1726) Seventh-Generation Chikuso Soken (1709-1733) Eighth-Generation Yugensai Itto (1719-1771) Ninth-Generation Fukensai Sekio (1746-1801) Tenth-Generation Nintokusai Hakuso (1770-1826) Eleventh-Generation Gengensai Seichu (1810-1877) Twelfth-Generation Yumyosai Jikiso (1852-1917) Thirteenth-Generation Ennousai Techu (1872-1924) Fourteenth-Generation Tantansai Sekiso (1893-1964) Fifteenth-Generation Hounsai Genshitsu (1923- ) Sixteenth-Generation Zabosai Soshitsu (1956- ) |
about us |
| U R A S E N K E SEATTLE BRANCH Transmitting the living art of Chado, the Way of Tea, through harmony, respect, purity and tranquility |
The Urasenke Tradition of Tea originated with Sen no Rikyu, the 16th-century
tea master who perfected the Way of Tea. Urasenke Chado has been transmitted
to the present by sixteen generations of grand masters dedicated to preserving
the teachings of Rikyu.
A student once asked Rikyu to summarize the most important teachings of tea,
hoping for a glimpse of some secret teaching he had not yet learned. Rikyu
responded, “ First you must make a delicious bowl of tea; lay the charcoal so the
water boils; arrange the flowers as they are in the field; in the summer suggest
coolness, in the winter, warmth; do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain;
and give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.” The student
was disappointed with this response, and said he already knew all that. Rikyu
told him if he could do all that well, then Rikyu would be his student. This
teaching is known as Rikyu’s Seven Rules. If we explore each of these rules in
some detail, we can understand a little better how the study of Tea can help us
in our daily lives.
Make a delicious bowl of tea.
Of course the primary purpose of making tea is to serve a delicious bowl of tea
to the guest, and on one level that means ensuring the water and tea are fresh
and good tasting, that we pay attention to the temperature of the water and the
proportions of tea and water, and that we whisk the tea thoroughly. But Rikyu
encourages a deeper level of engagement when we make a bowl of tea. Our
heart must be in it. We must prepare the tea wholeheartedly, with the simple
desire that the guest will find it delicious, and with no added attachment to the
guest’s recognition of the effort we have put into preparing the tea. Not so easy!
How often do we do something for someone, and hold back a bit in our giving,
waiting to hear their thanks? How often are we disappointed if they don’t give us
what we hoped for? Whether we are making a bowl of tea, responding to an
inquiry, or helping someone at work, be wholehearted.
Lay the charcoal so the water boils.
To lay the charcoal fire is not easy to do without wasting charcoal or making a
mess in the pristinely beautiful tearoom. It can be daunting, but this is an
essential task to do, and do well, in order to prepare a bowl of tea. How often do
we hold back from a task because we find it difficult, or we want to do
something else right now, or we’ve felt stung by criticism, or our ego is otherwise
stuck on this task in one of any number of ways. In the Zen meditation hall we
are told: just bow, just chant, just have some tea. It’s the same in the tearoom:
just place that utensil there, just fold the wiping cloth, just lay the charcoal. And
it’s how we need to be in our daily lives: just sweep, just make breakfast, just
mow the lawn, just help your child with the homework, just clean up after
yourself. This is a lifetime practice, of simply doing what needs to be done,
letting go of our opinions and attitudes, and performing our tasks with a lightness
of spirit.
Arrange the flowers as they are in the field.
Flower arranging for tea is somewhat different from the formal arrangement of
flowers known as ikebana. Rikyu encouraged his students to place one or two
flowers in a simple container – he often carved rough containers out of bamboo
– and to arrange them in one movement, without adjusting them once they are
in the container. But how does one ensure that they look good? Again, this is
not so easy. First of all, arranging the flowers as they are in the field requires that
we pay attention to them as they are growing, and not just cut them without
regard for their natural habitat and growth patterns. Which ones are tall or short?
Do they droop down or stand up straight? What are they growing near? If we
respect these attributes of flowers as we observe them, cut them, and bring them
to the tearoom, then placing them in the vase becomes much simpler.
The same is certainly true in our daily lives. If only we would learn to pay
attention, to observe what is going on, without judgment or opinion, how much
closer we would be to a simple appreciation of things as they are. That is the
key to flowers “looking good” in a vase, just as they are placed. And if it’s true for
flowers, how much more true is it for people at home, or in our workplace? If we
pay attention to people, observe and get to know them, without immediately
adding a layer of opinion about how we want them to be, how much more able
we will be to appreciate them and their own unique qualities, just as they are.
In the summer, suggest coolness; in the winter, warmth.
In the tearoom we devote a lot of our attention to creating an atmosphere in
which the guests can enjoy themselves. This does not mean that the heat or air
conditioning is adjusted to make a perfect climate, but that we celebrate the
unique aspects of each season. For example, we may hang a scroll in the
tearoom that speaks of cool mountain breezes during the summer, or serve warm
sweets with the tea in winter. A portable brazier is used in summer and placed
as far from the guests as possible, to prevent them from feeling its heat. In
October it is moved closer to the guests, and then in November it is put away in
favor of the sunken hearth in the middle of the tearoom, where guests can feel
the warmth of the charcoal fire and see its burning embers. Instead of shielding
ourselves from climate or circumstances, or complaining about them, we
accept them and find some enjoyment in them. We can do this for ourselves
anytime, any place, simply being where we are and accepting what comes our
way. If we can appreciate a slight breeze in the heat of summer, or the feel of a
warm bowl of tea in the midst of winter, how much more our enjoyment of life
will be.
Do everything ahead of time.
For a tea gathering, as for any event, it simply makes sense to allow enough
time to prepare so that we are not going into the event feeling rushed and
unready. On an even more fundamental level, though, if we are running late,
we are wasting our guests’ time. If we consider this deeply, we are wasting our
own time. Our lifespan is so short here on this planet, in this form, that to delay
is to waste a most precious and non-renewable resource – our opportunity to
realize who we really are. Everyday, we may spend most of our time in a
daydream, enjoying a fantasy or planning what we’ll do at some future date,
instead of being fully present with each breath, each moment as it is. This rule
of Rikyu’s is so simple, but so difficult to practice. Don’t waste time!
Prepare for rain.
In the context of a tea gathering, this means that the host should have
umbrellas and clogs for the guests, since they will need to pass through a
garden at some time during the gathering. In the event that it is too rainy, or
snowy, the host may need to have some alternative plans to occupy the guests
during the time they would normally be in the garden. On a deeper level,
though, we understand this rule to mean having the ability to act in whatever
circumstances arise. While we can plan for some possible occurrences, we can’t
plan for everything, and so we need to be able to act from a place of freedom
and openheartedness, responding in a straightforward way as a situation unfolds.
What if something spills? Wipe it up and move on. Don’t agonize over it. How
wonderful to be able to do this in any circumstance!
Give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.
It has been said that the way of tea is not really the way of tea, but the way of
host and guest, of relationship. This rule of Rikyu’s sums up all that have gone
before. “Those with whom you find yourself” are not just the guests, but the
utensils, the charcoal fire, the flowers, the tearoom, the season and setting – all
aspects of this phenomenal world. And what does it mean to show them every
consideration? An expression from the Judeo-Christian tradition is “Do unto
others as you would have them do unto you.” If we care for our guests, as we
ourselves would want to be treated, it becomes very clear what we need to do
for them, in a very specific way. If we extend the same care to the utensils, the
flowers, the space we inhabit, the chores we do, the day and time we find
ourselves in, we find ourselves connecting with the truth that underlies this rule.
We are not separate from our guests, or from the tea bowls, flowers, tasks, or
planet and its atmosphere. To practice this rule wholeheartedly, without
reservation or hesitation, is to enter this truth. And as we enter this truth, we find
we can take up the tasks of our life in any setting – the tearoom, our homes and
workplaces - with more energy and commitment than ever before.
First you must make a delicious bowl of tea; lay the charcoal so the water boils;
arrange the flowers as they are in the field; in the summer suggest coolness, in
the winter, warmth; do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain; and give
those with whom you find yourself every consideration. Simple instructions, but
as Rikyu said, if you can do these things well, you can be the teacher. Taking
up a discipline such as tea or aikido, calligraphy or pottery, can really help,
although certainly it is not essential. We can learn everything we need to learn
from our wholehearted engagement with making a bowl of tea, sweeping the
floor, listening to a friend, whatever we need to be doing. How wonderful this
practice is, that we can learn what we need to know in our daily activities, our
daily lives.
History of Urasenke Foundation Seattle Branch
Three generations of Urasenke Konnichian have been dedicated to transmitting
the ideals of the 400-year-old Chado tradition abroad. The 14th, 15th and 16th
generation grand masters have established branches and affiliate groups, built
tea facilities worldwide, authored numerous books and articles, and sponsored
academic programs and art exhibits.
Seattle Branch had its beginnings in the spring of 1981 when Urasenke
Konnichian established a course in Chado at the University of Washington and
funded the reconstruction of the teahouse in the Washington Park Arboretum
Japanese Garden to serve as the classroom.
Sen Soshitsu XV, traveled to Seattle in 1981 to inaugurate the four-credit Art
History "Chado and Japanese Aesthetics" course and bestow upon the teahouse
the name Shoseian, "Arbor of the Murmuring Pines." The course has been
offered continuously every quarter since 1981 and in 2007 UW Bothell campus
launched a Chado course as well.
Recognizing the integral role of Chado in the development of distinctive art
forms, Seattle Art Museum installed, in 1992, in the Asian wing of the third floor
of the new downtown museum, a tearoom designed and donated by Sen
Soshitsu, XV, to showcase the arts and culture of Japan and the friendship
between Japan and the United States. Aptly named Ryokusuian, "Arbor of
Green Reflecting Waters," by Dr. Sen, the teahouse was officially dedicated, in
April 1992, in a ceremony officiated by Soyo Sakurai, daughter of the 14th
generation grand tea master.
In 1985, Seattle Branch was established as a non-profit educational
organization to engage the broader community in the appreciation and study of
Chado. Seattle Branch works in cooperation with the University of Washington,
the Seattle Art Museum, the Washington Park Arboretum Japanese Garden, and
the Everett Community College Nippon Business Institute to bring Chado
programs to more than 3,000 people annually.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Prof. Steven Collins
President
Prof. Veronica Taylor
Vice-president
Mr. Kazuyuki Murata
Treasurer
Rev. Genko Blackman
Rev. Tatsunoshin Ohki
Prof. Ken Oshima
Ms. Mayumi Smith
INSTRUCTORS
Seattle Branch Staff
Bonnie Soshin Mitchell
Ms. Mitchell serves as the Urasenke Foundation Seattle Branch resident tea
instructor and director. Ms. Mitchell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art
History from the University of Washington, before embarking in 1974, on a seven-
year course of study in Chado, the Way of Tea, in Kyoto, Japan. From 1974 to
1981, Ms. Mitchell studied Chado under the guidance of Mrs. Shizue (Soha)
Yanagita. From 1975 to 1981 she studied concurrently at the Urasenke Gakuen
Chado Semmon Gakko college in Kyoto. In 1981, Ms. Mitchell returned to
Seattle to teach the UW Chado course. In 2008, Dr. Sen honored Ms. Mitchell
with the certificate of Seikyoju, the highest rank of merit in the Way of Tea.
Timothy Sowa Olson
Mr. Olson serves as the UW Chado course lecturer and tea instuctor. Mr. Olson
received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Portland State University. A
student of Seattle Branch since 1982, Olson joined the staff in 1999 after
completing a master's training course at the Urasenke Konnichian, the first non-
Japanese trained overseas to do so. In 2001, he was awarded the certificate of
Junkyoju, a senior rank of merit in the Way of Tea.
tea master who perfected the Way of Tea. Urasenke Chado has been transmitted
to the present by sixteen generations of grand masters dedicated to preserving
the teachings of Rikyu.
A student once asked Rikyu to summarize the most important teachings of tea,
hoping for a glimpse of some secret teaching he had not yet learned. Rikyu
responded, “ First you must make a delicious bowl of tea; lay the charcoal so the
water boils; arrange the flowers as they are in the field; in the summer suggest
coolness, in the winter, warmth; do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain;
and give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.” The student
was disappointed with this response, and said he already knew all that. Rikyu
told him if he could do all that well, then Rikyu would be his student. This
teaching is known as Rikyu’s Seven Rules. If we explore each of these rules in
some detail, we can understand a little better how the study of Tea can help us
in our daily lives.
Make a delicious bowl of tea.
Of course the primary purpose of making tea is to serve a delicious bowl of tea
to the guest, and on one level that means ensuring the water and tea are fresh
and good tasting, that we pay attention to the temperature of the water and the
proportions of tea and water, and that we whisk the tea thoroughly. But Rikyu
encourages a deeper level of engagement when we make a bowl of tea. Our
heart must be in it. We must prepare the tea wholeheartedly, with the simple
desire that the guest will find it delicious, and with no added attachment to the
guest’s recognition of the effort we have put into preparing the tea. Not so easy!
How often do we do something for someone, and hold back a bit in our giving,
waiting to hear their thanks? How often are we disappointed if they don’t give us
what we hoped for? Whether we are making a bowl of tea, responding to an
inquiry, or helping someone at work, be wholehearted.
Lay the charcoal so the water boils.
To lay the charcoal fire is not easy to do without wasting charcoal or making a
mess in the pristinely beautiful tearoom. It can be daunting, but this is an
essential task to do, and do well, in order to prepare a bowl of tea. How often do
we hold back from a task because we find it difficult, or we want to do
something else right now, or we’ve felt stung by criticism, or our ego is otherwise
stuck on this task in one of any number of ways. In the Zen meditation hall we
are told: just bow, just chant, just have some tea. It’s the same in the tearoom:
just place that utensil there, just fold the wiping cloth, just lay the charcoal. And
it’s how we need to be in our daily lives: just sweep, just make breakfast, just
mow the lawn, just help your child with the homework, just clean up after
yourself. This is a lifetime practice, of simply doing what needs to be done,
letting go of our opinions and attitudes, and performing our tasks with a lightness
of spirit.
Arrange the flowers as they are in the field.
Flower arranging for tea is somewhat different from the formal arrangement of
flowers known as ikebana. Rikyu encouraged his students to place one or two
flowers in a simple container – he often carved rough containers out of bamboo
– and to arrange them in one movement, without adjusting them once they are
in the container. But how does one ensure that they look good? Again, this is
not so easy. First of all, arranging the flowers as they are in the field requires that
we pay attention to them as they are growing, and not just cut them without
regard for their natural habitat and growth patterns. Which ones are tall or short?
Do they droop down or stand up straight? What are they growing near? If we
respect these attributes of flowers as we observe them, cut them, and bring them
to the tearoom, then placing them in the vase becomes much simpler.
The same is certainly true in our daily lives. If only we would learn to pay
attention, to observe what is going on, without judgment or opinion, how much
closer we would be to a simple appreciation of things as they are. That is the
key to flowers “looking good” in a vase, just as they are placed. And if it’s true for
flowers, how much more true is it for people at home, or in our workplace? If we
pay attention to people, observe and get to know them, without immediately
adding a layer of opinion about how we want them to be, how much more able
we will be to appreciate them and their own unique qualities, just as they are.
In the summer, suggest coolness; in the winter, warmth.
In the tearoom we devote a lot of our attention to creating an atmosphere in
which the guests can enjoy themselves. This does not mean that the heat or air
conditioning is adjusted to make a perfect climate, but that we celebrate the
unique aspects of each season. For example, we may hang a scroll in the
tearoom that speaks of cool mountain breezes during the summer, or serve warm
sweets with the tea in winter. A portable brazier is used in summer and placed
as far from the guests as possible, to prevent them from feeling its heat. In
October it is moved closer to the guests, and then in November it is put away in
favor of the sunken hearth in the middle of the tearoom, where guests can feel
the warmth of the charcoal fire and see its burning embers. Instead of shielding
ourselves from climate or circumstances, or complaining about them, we
accept them and find some enjoyment in them. We can do this for ourselves
anytime, any place, simply being where we are and accepting what comes our
way. If we can appreciate a slight breeze in the heat of summer, or the feel of a
warm bowl of tea in the midst of winter, how much more our enjoyment of life
will be.
Do everything ahead of time.
For a tea gathering, as for any event, it simply makes sense to allow enough
time to prepare so that we are not going into the event feeling rushed and
unready. On an even more fundamental level, though, if we are running late,
we are wasting our guests’ time. If we consider this deeply, we are wasting our
own time. Our lifespan is so short here on this planet, in this form, that to delay
is to waste a most precious and non-renewable resource – our opportunity to
realize who we really are. Everyday, we may spend most of our time in a
daydream, enjoying a fantasy or planning what we’ll do at some future date,
instead of being fully present with each breath, each moment as it is. This rule
of Rikyu’s is so simple, but so difficult to practice. Don’t waste time!
Prepare for rain.
In the context of a tea gathering, this means that the host should have
umbrellas and clogs for the guests, since they will need to pass through a
garden at some time during the gathering. In the event that it is too rainy, or
snowy, the host may need to have some alternative plans to occupy the guests
during the time they would normally be in the garden. On a deeper level,
though, we understand this rule to mean having the ability to act in whatever
circumstances arise. While we can plan for some possible occurrences, we can’t
plan for everything, and so we need to be able to act from a place of freedom
and openheartedness, responding in a straightforward way as a situation unfolds.
What if something spills? Wipe it up and move on. Don’t agonize over it. How
wonderful to be able to do this in any circumstance!
Give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.
It has been said that the way of tea is not really the way of tea, but the way of
host and guest, of relationship. This rule of Rikyu’s sums up all that have gone
before. “Those with whom you find yourself” are not just the guests, but the
utensils, the charcoal fire, the flowers, the tearoom, the season and setting – all
aspects of this phenomenal world. And what does it mean to show them every
consideration? An expression from the Judeo-Christian tradition is “Do unto
others as you would have them do unto you.” If we care for our guests, as we
ourselves would want to be treated, it becomes very clear what we need to do
for them, in a very specific way. If we extend the same care to the utensils, the
flowers, the space we inhabit, the chores we do, the day and time we find
ourselves in, we find ourselves connecting with the truth that underlies this rule.
We are not separate from our guests, or from the tea bowls, flowers, tasks, or
planet and its atmosphere. To practice this rule wholeheartedly, without
reservation or hesitation, is to enter this truth. And as we enter this truth, we find
we can take up the tasks of our life in any setting – the tearoom, our homes and
workplaces - with more energy and commitment than ever before.
First you must make a delicious bowl of tea; lay the charcoal so the water boils;
arrange the flowers as they are in the field; in the summer suggest coolness, in
the winter, warmth; do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain; and give
those with whom you find yourself every consideration. Simple instructions, but
as Rikyu said, if you can do these things well, you can be the teacher. Taking
up a discipline such as tea or aikido, calligraphy or pottery, can really help,
although certainly it is not essential. We can learn everything we need to learn
from our wholehearted engagement with making a bowl of tea, sweeping the
floor, listening to a friend, whatever we need to be doing. How wonderful this
practice is, that we can learn what we need to know in our daily activities, our
daily lives.
History of Urasenke Foundation Seattle Branch
Three generations of Urasenke Konnichian have been dedicated to transmitting
the ideals of the 400-year-old Chado tradition abroad. The 14th, 15th and 16th
generation grand masters have established branches and affiliate groups, built
tea facilities worldwide, authored numerous books and articles, and sponsored
academic programs and art exhibits.
Seattle Branch had its beginnings in the spring of 1981 when Urasenke
Konnichian established a course in Chado at the University of Washington and
funded the reconstruction of the teahouse in the Washington Park Arboretum
Japanese Garden to serve as the classroom.
Sen Soshitsu XV, traveled to Seattle in 1981 to inaugurate the four-credit Art
History "Chado and Japanese Aesthetics" course and bestow upon the teahouse
the name Shoseian, "Arbor of the Murmuring Pines." The course has been
offered continuously every quarter since 1981 and in 2007 UW Bothell campus
launched a Chado course as well.
Recognizing the integral role of Chado in the development of distinctive art
forms, Seattle Art Museum installed, in 1992, in the Asian wing of the third floor
of the new downtown museum, a tearoom designed and donated by Sen
Soshitsu, XV, to showcase the arts and culture of Japan and the friendship
between Japan and the United States. Aptly named Ryokusuian, "Arbor of
Green Reflecting Waters," by Dr. Sen, the teahouse was officially dedicated, in
April 1992, in a ceremony officiated by Soyo Sakurai, daughter of the 14th
generation grand tea master.
In 1985, Seattle Branch was established as a non-profit educational
organization to engage the broader community in the appreciation and study of
Chado. Seattle Branch works in cooperation with the University of Washington,
the Seattle Art Museum, the Washington Park Arboretum Japanese Garden, and
the Everett Community College Nippon Business Institute to bring Chado
programs to more than 3,000 people annually.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Prof. Steven Collins
President
Prof. Veronica Taylor
Vice-president
Mr. Kazuyuki Murata
Treasurer
Rev. Genko Blackman
Rev. Tatsunoshin Ohki
Prof. Ken Oshima
Ms. Mayumi Smith
INSTRUCTORS
Seattle Branch Staff
Bonnie Soshin Mitchell
Ms. Mitchell serves as the Urasenke Foundation Seattle Branch resident tea
instructor and director. Ms. Mitchell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art
History from the University of Washington, before embarking in 1974, on a seven-
year course of study in Chado, the Way of Tea, in Kyoto, Japan. From 1974 to
1981, Ms. Mitchell studied Chado under the guidance of Mrs. Shizue (Soha)
Yanagita. From 1975 to 1981 she studied concurrently at the Urasenke Gakuen
Chado Semmon Gakko college in Kyoto. In 1981, Ms. Mitchell returned to
Seattle to teach the UW Chado course. In 2008, Dr. Sen honored Ms. Mitchell
with the certificate of Seikyoju, the highest rank of merit in the Way of Tea.
Timothy Sowa Olson
Mr. Olson serves as the UW Chado course lecturer and tea instuctor. Mr. Olson
received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Portland State University. A
student of Seattle Branch since 1982, Olson joined the staff in 1999 after
completing a master's training course at the Urasenke Konnichian, the first non-
Japanese trained overseas to do so. In 2001, he was awarded the certificate of
Junkyoju, a senior rank of merit in the Way of Tea.
The Urasenke CHADO Tradition
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