Japanese Tea Ceremony (The way of tea): Sado 茶道

Sado is a Japanese style tea ceremony about how to prepare and serve a tea.
The tea ceremony is a kind of artistic practice to create a refined environment to provide and serve tea for important persons and visitors.

The formal tea ceremony is complicated and has many important etiquettes, including how to behave and how to drink.

How to sit in the Japanese tea ceremony

Here are the steps:

1. Open the fusuma at the entrance
2. Place your fan in front
3. Bow slightly
4. Edge forward over the threshold

Then, you can enter the room. The next step is to sit in front of the alcove and admire the hanging scroll.

Next, sit and look at the kettle and brazier.

Finally, move to the position for the first guest and sit and wait for the arrival of the host.

How to Make Tea

The steps for how to make tea are:

1. Sit in the entrance and bow slightly
2. Move to the front of the hearth
3. Sit and arrange the utensils
4. Pour hot water into the tea bowl, empty the water, and wipe the tea bowl
5. Scoop two spoons of powdered tea into the tea bowl
6. Put hot water into the tea bowl
7. Whisk the tea bowl
8. Facing forward and offer the tea to the guests

How to Drink Tea

There are several rules for how to drink tea in the ceremony:

1. Move, and pick up the tea bowl and put it in front of you
2. Return to your sitting position
3. Put the tea bowl between you and the second guest
4. Say “Osakini (= I would drink before you do)”
5. Rotate the bowl twice
6. Take a sip and then finish
7. Admire the bowl
8. return it to the host

There are several tea ceremony classes in Kyoto and Tokyo for foreign tourists.
You can enjoy the Japanese traditional tea ceremony.