#3 The Main Styles of Sadou

 There are three major styles in Japanese tea ceremony. Omote-Senke, Ura-Senke and Musyakouji-Senke. They called San-Senke, which means three Sen family. 

Fushin-an　cf.http://www.omotesenke.com

　Omote-Senke is the head style of three Sen family. The originator is Sen no Rikyu. This style was born after Rikyu's death. To tell the truth, A style of the origin became the head family as a result that two different styles were created from the tea ceremony that Rikyu made. It is children of Sen Sotan - the third head of Sen family- that they made Three Sen family. In the case of Omote-Senke, it is Sen Sosa who is the third son of Sen Sotan to have succeeded birthright. The Omote Senke estate, known by the name of its representative tea room, the Fushin-an, was where Sen no Rikyu's son-in-low, Sen Shoan, reestablished the Kyoto Sen household after Rikyu's death. It is located on Ogawa street in the Kamigyo word of Kyoto.

Konnichi-an

  

　Ura-Senke was made by Sen Sositu who is the fourth son of Sen Sotan. After having been retired, Sen Sotan prepared a new tea room into the back of Fushin-an. The name of tea room is Konnichi-an. When de died, his son Sositu succeeded the tea room, and Sositu made a new style of the tea ceremony. That is just Ura-Senke. Ura means back in japanese. Then why is that Ura? Because Konnichi-an was built at the back of Fushin-an ! Ura-Senke is now the most famous style of tea ceremony.

Kankyu-an

  Musyakouji-Senke's originator is the second son Ichiou Sosyu. Originally he adopted into other family. But when he was about 60, he backed to Sen family.　In later years of Sotan, Sosyu made his tea room. As a result that he talked with his father, the name of the tea room became Kankyu-an. Sosyu's another name is Jikyusai, mean "similar to Rikyu". He was a master of tea ceremony who pursued Rikyu most.

 These are the most famous styles of tea ceremony. But there are more styles. However, there is one thing which is common regardless styles of tea ceremony. That is heart to love tea. Through drinking tea, we can talk easily each other and forget the noise of the world. Once-in-a-lifetime chance - this is Rikyu's words. It is the essence of the tea ceremony to take good care of the encounter with the person , and to spend that time pleasantly.

#2 About Sen no Rikyu

About Sen no Rikyu

Sen no Rikyu

  Sen no Rikyu is the father of Japanese tea ceremony "Wabicha". He was born in Izuminokuni - current Osaka- in 1522 as the child of merchant. His father's job is warehouse business, but he didn't inherit the job. His childhood name is Yosirou. He enjoyed the tea ceremony from youth and in his 17, he started to change the tea ceremony with his master Takeno Jyouo. His great sense and passionate about the tea ceremony made his name famous. By the way, Sen no Rikyu is not his name. His name is Housennsai . It is something like his title that given by Oogimachi emperor. Because those days, people of merchant rank cannot attend the tea party. But a person who has a title, he can join the tea party. And, he was employed as a master of tea ceremony by Nobunaga Oda. After Honnoji incident, he served Hideyoshi toyotomi. He began the use of bamboo flower cases, making of tea bowl and creation of Soan tea room and leaves for the completion of Wabicha. That is in his 60. 1591, Rikyu touched the wrath of Hideyoshi, he forced to perform hara-kiri. He died, at his 70.
 Then what is Rikyu's Wabicha? The base of Wabicha is universality. He denied established sense of values  to respect a noted product. He removed the decoration of tea tools and used the tea tool which was not expensive at all. It is thought that his this sense of values was influence of his master Jyouo. He thought that the most beautiful thing is imperfection, anhe called it Wabi. But this is only about tea tools. Sen no Rikyu extended an object of wabi in the structure of the tea-ceremony room and a style of whole tea party including the manners of tea serving as well as a tea tools. Whem he was asked by pupil with the secret of the tea ceremony, he answered that "It is basic". When you treat a guest, the expensive thing showing off your authority is not necessary. The necessary thing is the space where the guest settles, a tea and a heart of motenashi. Why did he take good care of a guest as it? Because he thought the time when he and his guest meet it this way is holy quality to never come. This is spirit of so-called Ichigoichie
 After his death, but his wabicha didn't die. His pupils succeeded tea by each way of thinking.

#1 The History of Sadou

The History of Sadou

 The custom of drinking tea was handed down from China in 8^th century. Those days, Japan had sent many priests to Tou - in 8^th century, China’s name is “Tou” – and one of those priests brought the tea which was drunk in china to Japan. The tea called Dancha. This is the most ancient tea for Japan, and this is the first introduction. The second introduction was Kamakura period. Priest Eisai brought the book which explains how to drink the tea as a medicine. This custom spread out among the priests and the nobility. In addition, this custom spread out to the people in the form called Toucha – the tea competition in Muromachi period. The tea competition was a gamble to guess taste of tea right – What is the name of the tea? Where is the tea from? And so on - , and this became popular among samurais. As the tea competition became popular, it has the need to secure a place to perform the tea competition. This is the tea ceremony room in the back. Order and courtesy were gradually made to performing the tea competition, and this became the beginning of manners of the tea ceremony in the back.

  The form of the tea ceremony called wabicha was completed in Azuchimomoyama period by the famous Sennorikyu. His wabicha spread out to samurais, and various styles of tea ceremony were born. It called samurai family tea ceremony or daimyo tea in particular in the present age.

  By the time of Edo first period, the population of the tea ceremony was limited quality constructed by a daimyo and a big merchant mainly. But in the middle of Edo period, the merchant rank grew up economically, the population of tea ceremony increased explosively. And it was central three styles of the tea ceremony called sannsennke that accepted such merchant as a pupil. In this way, the tea ceremony spread out in the all over Japan. But this let the tea ceremony popularize, and the common people enjoyed the tea ceremony as pleasure not as a mental thing. That’s because common people cannot understand the spirit of wabisabi. On the other hand, the beauty of the heart to treat a person which is an original purpose of the tea ceremony comes to ne emphasized. Is is said that the spirits of wakeiseijyaku that is the motto of the Rikyu styles was made then. In this way, the current form of   Japanese tea ceremony was completed.