There are as many ways to prepare tea as there are people. When it comes to tea, the rule followed in our side of the world is: to each his own. Well, variety isn’t bad, or is it?
The Japan Foundation recently organised an event where tea master Soren Mcihael Christain Bisgaard demonstrated the traditional ritual of tea preparation inspired by Zen Buddhism. The curious fact is that Bisgaard is a computer programmer and not of Japanese descent (he is a Danish citizen), but that is no deterrent to Bisgaard and his tea-making way of life. “My activities abroad are increasing with more (tea) presentations, seminars lectures and large scale formal offering of tea. I regularly teach tea-making to Japanese and foreign students in Kyoto and other parts of the world like Bali and south India,” Bisgaard explains.
In Japanese society, tea-making is a specialised and exclusive tradition. Matcha (powdered green tea) is made during a tea ceremony called the “Way of Tea”, known as Chanoyu or chado (pronounced sado) in Japanese. The process of making tea is known as Temae. Tea-making is a quiet ceremony, preferably in a garden or natural habitat, with minimal movement and use of relatively small utensils.
While the tea ceremony kept progressing placidly, the interest it generated was more than expected. According to Yusuke Matsouka, director, Arts and Cultural Exchange, Japan Foundation, the event was a huge success. “We got a better response than we expected. We thought the turnout will be around 100 people, but we had more than 200 in the auditorium. They sat through the tea ceremony with bated breath. People reciprocated very well and reflected the calm and composure essential for a Japanese tea ceremony.”
Demonstrating tea-making has been a life-changing experience, Bisgaard admits, and he plans to take it one-notch up. “I am a philosopher at heart and wish to write a unique and innovative book on Chado based on my personal teaching experience and philosophy.”