''Wabi-cha'' (; ; ), is a style of

Japanese tea ceremony The Japanese tea ceremony (known as or ) is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of , powdered green tea, the procedure of which is called . While in the West it is known as "tea ceremony", it is se ...

particularly associated with

Sen no Rikyū , also known simply as Rikyū, is considered the historical figure with the most profound influence on ''chanoyu,'' the Japanese "Way of Tea", particularly the tradition of '' wabi-cha''. He was also the first to emphasize several key aspects ...

Takeno Jōō was a master of the tea ceremony and a well-known merchant during the Sengoku period of the 16th century in Japan. His name has come down in Japanese cultural history because he followed Murata Jukō as an early proponent of wabi-cha, and was ...

and its originator

Murata Jukō is known in Japanese cultural history as the founder of the Japanese tea ceremony, in that he was the early developer of the wabi-cha style of tea enjoyment employing native Japanese implements. His name may also be pronounced Murata Shukō. B ...

. ''Wabi-cha'' emphasizes simplicity. The term came into use in the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

, prior to which it was known as ''wabi-suki'' (), ''suki'' meaning "artistic inclination", and "''wabi''" meaning 'forlorn'.

History

By the latter years of the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

, tea ceremony had become widespread, with a preference for expensive wares of

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

origin known as ''karamono''. ''Wabi-cha'' evolved as part of a movement to appreciate local wares and simpler styles. Generally, three main figures are credited with the development of the wabi-cha aesthetic form of chanoyu: first, Murata Jukō; then, Takeno Jōō; and finally, Sen no Rikyū. Rikyū cited two poems from the ''

Shin Kokin Wakashū The , also known in abbreviated form as the or even conversationally as the Shin Kokin, is the eighth imperial anthology of waka poetry compiled by the Japanese court, beginning with the ''Kokin Wakashū'' circa 905 and ending with the ''Shinshok ...

'' poetry anthology of the early thirteenth century, as exemplifying his ''wabi'' aesthetic. One, a favorite of Takeno Jōō's, is by

Fujiwara no Teika , better-known as Fujiwara no Teika"Sadaie" and "Teika" are both possible readings of ; "...there is the further problem, the rendition of the name in romanized form. Teika probably referred to himself as Sadaie, and his father probably called ...

(1162–1241):

Casting wide my gaze, Neither flowers Nor scarlet leaves: A bayside hovel of reeds In the autumn dusk.

The other, in which Rikyū found particular appeal, is by

Fujiwara Ietaka Fujiwara (, written: 藤原 lit. "''Wisteria'' field") is a Japanese surname. (In English conversation it is likely to be rendered as .) Notable people with the surname include: ; Families * The Fujiwara clan and its members ** Fujiwara no Kamatari ...

(1158–1237):

Show them who wait Only for flowers There in the mountain villages: Grass peeks through the snow, And with it, spring.

At the core of Rikyū's aesthetic was the

tea room A teahouse (mainly Asia) or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment whic ...

smaller than 4.5 tatami mats. Rikyū sought to mold chanoyu into a spiritual path. His radical simplification of the tea-room interior, his reduction of space to the bare minimum needed for "a sitting", was the most practical way of focusing tea practice on the communion of host and guests. This is seen in the one extant tea house attributed to his design, the tea house called Taian (), located at Myōkian temple in Yamazaki, Kyoto, which has been designated by the Japanese government as a National Treasure (''kokuhō''). His achievement represents the culmination of the ''wabi'' aesthetic born of the contemplative awareness of the relationship between people and things. With Rikyū, ''wabi'' took on its most profound and paradoxical meaning: a purified taste in material things as a medium for human interaction transcending materialism. Rikyū also began designing his own tea wares, sometimes having them made by local craftsmen. Raku ware tea bowls originated from Rikyū having the tile maker named Raku

Chōjirō (1516-?1592) is distinguished as the first generation in the Raku family line of potters. According to historical documents he was the son of one Ameya, who is said to have emigrated to Japan from Korea (or possibly Ming China, as asserted on t ...

create tea bowls for him.Japanese ''Rikyū Daijiten'' (Rikyū Encyclopedia). Tankosha, 1989. He even created his own objects to use in the

, including flower containers made of bamboo he cut himself.

Modern wabi-cha

Ironically, in modern times achieving the aura of rustic simplicity demanded by ''wabi-cha'' can be an expensive endeavour. Even the simple, cheap items used by Rikyū and his followers have gained both status and value: authentic ''Raku'' tea bowls, for example, are among the most expensive available today, and among the most sought after. Similarly, creating the look of simplicity promoted by Rikyū for tea rooms can also be very expensive.

References

External links

Article about the history of ''chanoyu'' and ''wabi-cha'', and the characteristics of the Tai-an designed by Sen no Rikyū, by a Japanese professor of architecture
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wabi-Cha Chadō