Its all about making a good cup of matcha: Japanese tea master Soko Shimura

New Delhi, May 1 (PTI) From the scroll on the wall to the seasonal flowers in the vase and the placement of tools to be used in tea-making, everything in a traditional Japanese tea room, or ‘chashistu’, has to be perfect for a tea ceremony.

But to Soko Shimura, deputy tea master of the Urasenke Konnichian, all that matters is that one makes a good cup of matcha.

Shimura was in the national capital recently to hold a lecture and demonstration on “Chado – Way of Tea” at the Japanese ambassador’s residence with an aim to deepen the understanding of Japanese culture in India.

He follows the tenets of tea making prescribed by the 16th century tea master Sen no Rikyu, who exemplified the elusive concept of “Wabi-Sabi”, the Japanese aesthetic based on Zen

Buddhism, that loosely translates to finding beauty in “imperfection, impermanence, and simplicity”.

“We focus on the essence, without any decoration or anything. You should have your own sense of beauty, incorporate the things that no one acknowledges. The ultimate goal of a tea ceremony is to make a good cup of matcha, while cherishing the way of the tea itself,” Shimura told PTI in an interview.

The tea master also delivered a lecture on the history of the Way of Tea and a presentation to introduce the layouts of Japanese tearooms and the various utensils, followed by a tea-making demonstration.

Matcha, powdered green tea blended with hot water, was first introduced to Japan in the 12th century by Zen monks returning from China and soon the “enjoyment of matcha” spread to the ruling and noble classes who would hold lavish tea functions that featured the display and use of Chinese art objects.

Shimura noted that consumption of matcha evolved out of these two ways into tea gatherings, or ceremonies, that acted as mediums for spiritual and aesthetic fulfilment. Against the use of elaborate and expensive utensils for tea making, Chado under Rikyu evolved into Wabi-cha – a simple, rustic tea.

“The combination of these two schools of tea making – one focusing on the harmony of the beautiful objects and the other on incorporative Japanese objects – added a new narrative dimension to the tea culture. The foremost representative of this tradition is Sen no Rikyu, who is one of the founders of the Urasenke tea tradition,” he said.

The traditional way of tea, according to Shimura, is about preparing and serving delicious tea.

Making a cup of tea is no less than a meditative process, both for the tea master and the guest.

A small amount of matcha is scooped into a tea bowl, or chawan, using a scoop, or chashaku, and whisked by a chasen in slow fluidic movements till the surface is covered with a thin layer of foam.

“I think the things to strive for are to bring order to the interpersonal relationships of everyone involved, to coordinate the setup by considering the tools that we believe are most suitable for the guest, and to put your heart into its narrative quality. And once you get the hang of how to properly whisk tea, that tea becomes truly delicious,” Shimura added.

He noted that one does not need to be certified as a tea master to become one, all one needs is to make a good cup of tea.

“You have to make good tea. It doesn’t matter if you are certified or not. The important thing is to make good tea, but also know the history of tea culture in Japan,” the tea master said.

Talking about the declining tea culture in Japan, Shimura said that there are only a few people who want to learn about it.

“The tea culture in the past was to train yourself or improve yourself. But nowadays it’s more westernised. Japanese people don’t drink tea at all. They don’t know if it’s good or bad. More and more Japanese people drink tea from plastic bottles. Tea culture is declining,” he said. PTI MAH MAH RB RB