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| poems |
Poems to Guide the Mind
As I look about,
Neither flowers nor autumn-tinted leaves
Near the grass-thatched hut
That stands alone by the shore.
The autumn dusk.
FUJIWARA no Teika (1162-1241)
***
For those who long for
the flowers of spring
Show the young grasses
That push up among the snowy hills.
FUJIWARA no Ietaka (1158-1237)
***
There are many ways to put into practice in our own lives the
teaching of the great masters of the past. In Zen, truth is
pursued through the discipline of meditation in order to realize
enlightenment, while in Tea we use training in the actual
procedures of making tea to achieve the same end.
SEN Soshitsu, XV (b. 1923)
***
Tea has the blessings of all the deities, promotes filial piety, drives
away the devil, banishes drowsiness, keeps the five viscera in
harmony, wards off disease, strengthens friendships, disciplines
body and mind, destroys the passions, gives peaceful death.
MYOE Shonin (1173-1232)
***
Wa...is the complete harmony of all elements; its definition
includes sincerity.
Kei...gives a sense of profound reverence toward all things, and
is used by tea men to identify characteristics of humility and
respect.
Sei...contains the thought of orderliness in life, cleanliness, and
purity.
Jaku...means tranquillity, calm. These four are essential to tea.
Rand Castile, 'The Way of Tea'
***
If the water of our tea is drawn from the depths of mind then we
have true chanoyu.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The real Way of Tea has degenerated in the hands of so many
whoseek to use it as a toy, a plaything of their prosperity. What
we see now coming is a shallow tea, and if I live long, I alone will
enjoy the tea of the grass hut, and no one will come to share it
with me. How sad it is.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
Tea is in all pure and takes joy in meditation and delight in the
dharma.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Surely there is nothing easy about practicing seated meditation
and understanding each other's minds or about achieving
oneness through a bowl of tea. The main thing is the human
mind seeking peace, whether in the spirit of seated meditation or
sitting to drink tea.
SEN Soshitsu, XV, (b. 1923)
***
Tea, like cleaning, is not a skill to memorize but one that is
acquired slowly by the body and the spirit.
SEN Soshitsu, XV, (b. 1923)
***
Remember that fine houses and rare food are mere panaceas of
this mundane world, for shelter is enough if it protects from the
rain, and food is sufficient if it satisfies hunger. These are the
teaching of the Buddha and the Way of Tea. With your own
hands bring wood and water, heat the water and make tea. Offer
it to the Buddha, to others, and then partake of it yourself.
Arrange flowers and burn incense. These actions are taken
together for the purpose of following the example of the Buddha.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
Tea is naught but this: First you heat the water. Then you make
the tea.Then you drink it properly. That is all you need to know.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The original purpose of Tea has at its core the acceptance of the
insufficient.
***
To those who aspire to follow the Way of Tea, guard against
jealousy. To place yourself at the center, to envy others, to
tempt others -- these are unpardonable. Know your duty, and
as you immerse yourself daily in the Way of Tea, you will be
rewarded with happiness. The more you look up to others, the
clearer your own position in relation to them will become.
Whenever something untoward happens, people try to make
themselves look as good as possible. But if we remember the
humble heart of the host in the tearoom, for he knows the
spiritual taste of tea, then this persistent clinging to power for its
own sake will be seen for what it is. Know what you know and
know what you don't know, for only then will the limits of your
strength become evident. To attain spiritual power, seize the
chance when it offers itself; devote yourself to study and
practice. In life are many who feign knowledge and lead others
astray. No action can be more reprehensible. The Way is never
exclusive. It is open to all to follow, but those who set out upon
the path perforce need the help of those who have passed that
way before.
SEN Soshitsu XIV, (1893-1964)
***
I have toured the world with the goal, "peace through sharing a
bowl of tea." Taking a bowl of green tea in your hands and
drinking it, you feel one with nature, and there is peace. This
peace can be spread by offering a bowl of tea to another. I hope
you will drink and share this peace with me.
SEN Soshitsu XV, 'Tea Life, Tea Mind' (b. 1923)
***
Tea is a miraculous medicine for the maintenance of health. Tea
has an extraordinary power to prolong life. Anywhere a person
cultivates tea, long life will follow.
Eisai Zenji, 'Kissa Yojoki,' (d. 1211)
***
The spirit of chanoyu is to cleanse the six senses from
contamination. By seeing the kakemono in the tokonoma and
the flower in the vase, one's sense of smell is cleansed; by
listening to the boiling of water in the iron kettle and to the
dripping of water from the bamboo pipe, one's ears are cleansed;
by tasting tea one's mouth is cleansed; and by handling the tea
utensils one's sense of touch is cleansed...thus...the mind itself
is cleansed of defilements.
NAKANO Kazuma, 'Hagakure,' (c. 1710)
***
In the summer, impart a sense of deep coolness, in winter, a
feeling of warmth; lay the charcoal so that it heats the water,
prepare the tea so that it is pleasing –these are the secrets.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
It is the mind that aspires to enter the path that is my own true
teacher.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
See with your eyes, hear with your ears, and smell the incense.
While asking questions, arrive at understanding.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The sun, Lord of the East, grinds the fragrant dust of tea.
Bejeweled nectar on the teeth, revives me. A pure wind envelops
my body. The whole world seen in a single cup.
Kokan (1278-1346)
***
The real essence of tea ...a tea house beneath the bamboos with
water and stones, trees and shrubs, a place for burning coals,
kettle, flowers and the tea utensils; being able to taste the joy of
nature in a single tea house. Such a heaven on earth, in the
spring with white cherry blossoms everywhere, of nature in the
fall – the moon, in summer – its breezes, and winter – snow, the
delicate changes throughout the four seasons.
***
House and dewy ground. Guest and host both joined as one,
share a cup of tea.In tranquil meditation, no margin divides their
hearts. The roji is a way apart from this bustling world and its
many cares. How will that path sweep away the dust from within
our hearts?
***
Let your manner be natural and unobtrusive.
Arrange flowers as befits the room, with an air of lightness.
When you burn incense, light it so that it does not billow
upward as though it were all there was.
The utensils used should be appropriate to the
person’s age, to old and young, respectively.
Upon entering the tearoom, it is important above all else
that both host and guests compose their frame of mind
so as to be completely free of extraneous thought; this attitude
should be harbored within and not displayed outwardly.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Of the two characters with which the word "roji" is written, the
first means "to reveal or expose." The second means "self."
Thus, together they mean "the revelation of one’s essential
being." We call it "roji," because it reveals the innate self as it
truly is, apart from all one’s evil passions....Based on this
definition, the significance of the tea room is that it is a hall of
spiritual training where one reveals one’s innermost essence, and
we call it "roji." Thus, "roji" is one name for the tea room itself.
Jakuan Sotaku, Zencha Roku
***
Tea is not play; it is not technique; it is not entertainment.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Chanoyu should be made with the heart, not with the hand.
Make it without making it, in the stillness of your mind.
Hamamoto Soshun, senior instructor of the Urasenke tradition of
tea
***
The way of tea: trace it, and ever deeper it goes; like the fields of
Musashi where the moon is lucent, its depths draw us on.
SEN Soshitsu VI, (1654-1726)
***
Chanoyu is conveyed through the mind, through eye and ear–
Without a single stroke of the brush
***
If asked the nature of chanoyu say it’s the sound of wind-blown
pines in a painting.
SEN Sotan, third-generation descendant of SEN no Rikyu,
(1578-1658)
As I look about,
Neither flowers nor autumn-tinted leaves
Near the grass-thatched hut
That stands alone by the shore.
The autumn dusk.
FUJIWARA no Teika (1162-1241)
***
For those who long for
the flowers of spring
Show the young grasses
That push up among the snowy hills.
FUJIWARA no Ietaka (1158-1237)
***
There are many ways to put into practice in our own lives the
teaching of the great masters of the past. In Zen, truth is
pursued through the discipline of meditation in order to realize
enlightenment, while in Tea we use training in the actual
procedures of making tea to achieve the same end.
SEN Soshitsu, XV (b. 1923)
***
Tea has the blessings of all the deities, promotes filial piety, drives
away the devil, banishes drowsiness, keeps the five viscera in
harmony, wards off disease, strengthens friendships, disciplines
body and mind, destroys the passions, gives peaceful death.
MYOE Shonin (1173-1232)
***
Wa...is the complete harmony of all elements; its definition
includes sincerity.
Kei...gives a sense of profound reverence toward all things, and
is used by tea men to identify characteristics of humility and
respect.
Sei...contains the thought of orderliness in life, cleanliness, and
purity.
Jaku...means tranquillity, calm. These four are essential to tea.
Rand Castile, 'The Way of Tea'
***
If the water of our tea is drawn from the depths of mind then we
have true chanoyu.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The real Way of Tea has degenerated in the hands of so many
whoseek to use it as a toy, a plaything of their prosperity. What
we see now coming is a shallow tea, and if I live long, I alone will
enjoy the tea of the grass hut, and no one will come to share it
with me. How sad it is.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
Tea is in all pure and takes joy in meditation and delight in the
dharma.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Surely there is nothing easy about practicing seated meditation
and understanding each other's minds or about achieving
oneness through a bowl of tea. The main thing is the human
mind seeking peace, whether in the spirit of seated meditation or
sitting to drink tea.
SEN Soshitsu, XV, (b. 1923)
***
Tea, like cleaning, is not a skill to memorize but one that is
acquired slowly by the body and the spirit.
SEN Soshitsu, XV, (b. 1923)
***
Remember that fine houses and rare food are mere panaceas of
this mundane world, for shelter is enough if it protects from the
rain, and food is sufficient if it satisfies hunger. These are the
teaching of the Buddha and the Way of Tea. With your own
hands bring wood and water, heat the water and make tea. Offer
it to the Buddha, to others, and then partake of it yourself.
Arrange flowers and burn incense. These actions are taken
together for the purpose of following the example of the Buddha.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
Tea is naught but this: First you heat the water. Then you make
the tea.Then you drink it properly. That is all you need to know.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The original purpose of Tea has at its core the acceptance of the
insufficient.
***
To those who aspire to follow the Way of Tea, guard against
jealousy. To place yourself at the center, to envy others, to
tempt others -- these are unpardonable. Know your duty, and
as you immerse yourself daily in the Way of Tea, you will be
rewarded with happiness. The more you look up to others, the
clearer your own position in relation to them will become.
Whenever something untoward happens, people try to make
themselves look as good as possible. But if we remember the
humble heart of the host in the tearoom, for he knows the
spiritual taste of tea, then this persistent clinging to power for its
own sake will be seen for what it is. Know what you know and
know what you don't know, for only then will the limits of your
strength become evident. To attain spiritual power, seize the
chance when it offers itself; devote yourself to study and
practice. In life are many who feign knowledge and lead others
astray. No action can be more reprehensible. The Way is never
exclusive. It is open to all to follow, but those who set out upon
the path perforce need the help of those who have passed that
way before.
SEN Soshitsu XIV, (1893-1964)
***
I have toured the world with the goal, "peace through sharing a
bowl of tea." Taking a bowl of green tea in your hands and
drinking it, you feel one with nature, and there is peace. This
peace can be spread by offering a bowl of tea to another. I hope
you will drink and share this peace with me.
SEN Soshitsu XV, 'Tea Life, Tea Mind' (b. 1923)
***
Tea is a miraculous medicine for the maintenance of health. Tea
has an extraordinary power to prolong life. Anywhere a person
cultivates tea, long life will follow.
Eisai Zenji, 'Kissa Yojoki,' (d. 1211)
***
The spirit of chanoyu is to cleanse the six senses from
contamination. By seeing the kakemono in the tokonoma and
the flower in the vase, one's sense of smell is cleansed; by
listening to the boiling of water in the iron kettle and to the
dripping of water from the bamboo pipe, one's ears are cleansed;
by tasting tea one's mouth is cleansed; and by handling the tea
utensils one's sense of touch is cleansed...thus...the mind itself
is cleansed of defilements.
NAKANO Kazuma, 'Hagakure,' (c. 1710)
***
In the summer, impart a sense of deep coolness, in winter, a
feeling of warmth; lay the charcoal so that it heats the water,
prepare the tea so that it is pleasing –these are the secrets.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
It is the mind that aspires to enter the path that is my own true
teacher.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
See with your eyes, hear with your ears, and smell the incense.
While asking questions, arrive at understanding.
SEN no Rikyu (1522-1591)
***
The sun, Lord of the East, grinds the fragrant dust of tea.
Bejeweled nectar on the teeth, revives me. A pure wind envelops
my body. The whole world seen in a single cup.
Kokan (1278-1346)
***
The real essence of tea ...a tea house beneath the bamboos with
water and stones, trees and shrubs, a place for burning coals,
kettle, flowers and the tea utensils; being able to taste the joy of
nature in a single tea house. Such a heaven on earth, in the
spring with white cherry blossoms everywhere, of nature in the
fall – the moon, in summer – its breezes, and winter – snow, the
delicate changes throughout the four seasons.
***
House and dewy ground. Guest and host both joined as one,
share a cup of tea.In tranquil meditation, no margin divides their
hearts. The roji is a way apart from this bustling world and its
many cares. How will that path sweep away the dust from within
our hearts?
***
Let your manner be natural and unobtrusive.
Arrange flowers as befits the room, with an air of lightness.
When you burn incense, light it so that it does not billow
upward as though it were all there was.
The utensils used should be appropriate to the
person’s age, to old and young, respectively.
Upon entering the tearoom, it is important above all else
that both host and guests compose their frame of mind
so as to be completely free of extraneous thought; this attitude
should be harbored within and not displayed outwardly.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Of the two characters with which the word "roji" is written, the
first means "to reveal or expose." The second means "self."
Thus, together they mean "the revelation of one’s essential
being." We call it "roji," because it reveals the innate self as it
truly is, apart from all one’s evil passions....Based on this
definition, the significance of the tea room is that it is a hall of
spiritual training where one reveals one’s innermost essence, and
we call it "roji." Thus, "roji" is one name for the tea room itself.
Jakuan Sotaku, Zencha Roku
***
Tea is not play; it is not technique; it is not entertainment.
MURATA Shuko (d. 1502)
***
Chanoyu should be made with the heart, not with the hand.
Make it without making it, in the stillness of your mind.
Hamamoto Soshun, senior instructor of the Urasenke tradition of
tea
***
The way of tea: trace it, and ever deeper it goes; like the fields of
Musashi where the moon is lucent, its depths draw us on.
SEN Soshitsu VI, (1654-1726)
***
Chanoyu is conveyed through the mind, through eye and ear–
Without a single stroke of the brush
***
If asked the nature of chanoyu say it’s the sound of wind-blown
pines in a painting.
SEN Sotan, third-generation descendant of SEN no Rikyu,
(1578-1658)
| Contact EWCC: 5125 40th Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98105 (206) 328 6018 mitchell@urasenkeseattle.org |
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