is the 15th-generation Grand Master (''

iemoto is a Japanese term used to refer to the founder or current Grand Master of a certain school of traditional Japanese art. It is used synonymously with the term when it refers to the family or house that the iemoto is head of and represents. Th ...

'') of

Urasenke is one of the main schools of Japanese tea ceremony. Along with and , it is one of the three lines of the family descending from , which together are known as the - or the "three houses/families" (). The name , literally meaning "rear hous ...

, which is one of the most widely known schools of Japanese tea, and served in official capacity from 1964 to 2002. In 1949, he received the

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

title Hōunsai (鵬雲斎). Following his retirement, he adopted the name Sen Genshitsu (玄室), with the honorary title Daisōshō, in order to distinguish him from his son and successor, Sen Sōshitsu XVI. For over seven decades, Dr. Sen Genshitsu has traveled across the world in order to promote the ethos of "Peacefulness through a Bowl of Tea".

Early life

Sen Genshitsu was born in

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

on 19 April 1923, the first son of the 14th-generation Urasenke iemoto (Sen Sōshitsu XIV, Mugensai Sekisō Sōshitsu (Tantansai), 1893-1964) and his wife, (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Itō) Kayoko. Prior to his birth, Mugensai and Kayoko were already the parents of two daughters, Yaeko and Yoshiko; the birth of their first son, who would eventually become Mugensai's successor, occasioned much jubilation. Later, Mugensai and Kayoko begot two more sons, Yoshiharu and Mitsuhiko. At birth, he was given the name Masaoki (政興) by his grandfather, the 13th-generation Urasenke iemoto (Sen Sōshitsu XIII, Ennōsai Tetchū Sōshitsu, 1872-1924). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Sen Masoaki served in the Japanese Navy airforce division, and was assigned to be a kamikaze pilot, but in order to prevent an old dynasty from dying out, he was not allowed to participate. He later completed his education at

Doshisha University , also referred to as , is a private university in Kyoto, Japan. Established in 1875, it is one of Japan's oldest private institutions of higher learning, and has approximately 30,000 students enrolled on four campuses in Kyoto. It is one of Japa ...

, graduating from the faculty of economics. He took

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

vows under Gotō Zuigan, the chief abbot of

Daitoku-ji is a Rinzai school Zen Buddhist temple in the Murasakino neighborhood of Kita-ku in the city of Kyoto Japan. Its ('' sangō'') is . The Daitoku-ji temple complex is one of the largest Zen temples in Kyoto, covering more than . In addition to ...

temple, and in 1949, received the title Hōunsai.

Career and honors

In 1950, confirmed as heir apparent, he began his many travels abroad to spread his ideas, starting in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where he began his association with the

University of Hawaiʻi The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system in Hawaii. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, ...

. In 1953, he became president of the non-profit Urasenke membership organization, Tankokai. Upon his father's death in 1964, he officially succeeded as the 15th generation Urasenke iemoto. In the following decades, he has made many contributions to the international academic study of the history and culture of tea, and was awarded a Ph.D. from

Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...

in 1991, and a Litt.D. from

Chung-Ang University Chung-Ang University (CAU; ) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. The university operates two campuses: main campus located in Dongjak District, Seoul, and an additional campus in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province. CAU consists of 1 ...

in 2008. In 1976,

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

awarded him an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts. Among positions outside of Urasenke, he currently heads the Consulate of Peru in Kyoto as

honorary consul A consul is an official representative of a government who resides in a foreign country to assist and protect citizens of the consul's country, and to promote and facilitate commercial and diplomatic relations between the two countries. A consu ...

. He was honorary consul of Portugal in Kyoto from 1969 to 1982, and the honorary consul-general of Italy in Kyoto from 1982 to 1983. He served as

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and p ...

director from 1988 to 1990, and as a

Rotary Foundation The Rotary Foundation is a non-profit corporation that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely ...

trustee from 1998 to 2002. He was appointed by Japan's

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

as Japan-U.N. Goodwill Ambassador in 2005, as well as chairman of the Rotary Japan Foundation, president of the United Nations Association of Japan, president of the Kyoto City International Foundation, director of the Kyoto Municipal General Center for Lifelong Learning, and president of the Japan Equestrian Federation. In March 2012, he was designated as

UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador is an official postnominal honorific title, title of authority, legal status and job description assigned to those goodwill ambassadors and advocates who are designated by the United Nations. UNESCO goodwill ambas ...

by the director-general of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

. In April 2017, he was appointed as an advisor to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan. In 1997, he was awarded the

Order of Culture The is a Japanese Order (decoration), order, established on February 11, 1937. The order has one class only, and may be awarded to men and women for contributions to Japanese Art, Japan's art, Japanese Literature, literature, science, technolog ...

by the Emperor of Japan,

Akihito Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is a member of the Imperial House of Japan who reigned as the 125th emperor of Japan from 1989 until 2019 Japanese imperial transition, his abdication in 2019. The era of his rule was named the Heisei era, Hei ...

, the first in the

chadō The Japanese tea ceremony (known as or lit. 'Hot water for tea') is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of , powdered green tea, the procedure of which is called . The term "Japanese tea ceremony ...

world to receive such an honor. In 2020, the French government awarded him with the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, with the degree of

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Personal life and retirement

His wife was Tomiko (1930–1999). In December 2002, his eldest son, Zabōsai (born 7 June 1956), succeeded him as the 16th generation head of Urasenke, and inherited the name Sōshitsu. With that, Sen Sōshitsu XV discontinued his own use of the Sōshitsu name, taking on the name Sen Genshitsu, and the honorary title Daisōshō, signifying his position as a former Grand Master. His son Sōshitsu Sen XVI is married to Masako Sen (''née'' Princess Masako of Mikasa), granddaughter of

Emperor Taishō , posthumously honored as , was the 123rd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 1912 until his death in 1926. His reign, known as the Taishō era, was characterized by a liberal and democratic shift in ...

References

External links

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Greetings from SEN Genshitsu (Soshitsu XV)
{{Authority control 1923 births Living people People from Kyoto Japanese tea masters Doshisha University alumni Kamikaze pilots Recipients of the Order of Culture Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 2nd class Recipients of the Medal of Honor (Japan) Officers of the Legion of Honour Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Japanese men centenarians