Born in 1522, Senritsu was a famous tea ceremony master of the Azuchi Momoyama period during the Sengoku period of Japan, known as the Tea Sage. His real name is Yushiro Tanaka, and his family pattern is "Solo Music". He is known as the "Three Masters of the World" together with Imai Munehisa and Tsuda Muneyoshi. As the "originator" and master of the Japanese tea ceremony, Senritsu's tea ceremony ideas of "harmony, respect, purity, and silence" had a profound impact on the development of the Japanese tea ceremony. Qianlixiu is a legend in the tea industry, and the pursuit of the beauty of tea serving has nothing to do with the tea itself, and it has truly risen to the height of an artistic philosophy!
Master Senritsu in the stills of the Japanese movie "In Search of Senritsu"
Senritsu's 10 years of serving Hideyoshi were a golden period when his tea ceremony was constantly improving and his artistic talents were fully displayed. He carried out all-round reform and improvement of the tea ceremony, because the tea ceremony itself is a comprehensive cultural system that integrates diet, gardening, architecture, flowers, calligraphy and painting, carving, pottery, lacquerware, bamboo, etiquette, sewing, etc., so the influence of Rishu goes far beyond the tea itself and expands to all aspects of Japanese culture. It is often said that the perfection of skills is the "Tao", and those who reach the "Tao" are the peak of their skills, and Li Xiu has reached such a state.
Wabi-sabi is a thought, an aesthetic, a worldview. It is not a word that is translated directly from Japanese to English, and the ideas behind it are not immediately transformed into the minds of those who did not know it before. In simple terms, it refers to an intuitive way of life that emphasizes finding beauty in imperfection and accepting nature's cycle of life and death. The best way to understand silence is to accept this idea and begin to pay attention to examples of silence in one's daily life.
"侘" is often used in Japan to express the beauty of the tea ceremony, and people say that the whole system of the Lixiu tea ceremony that began with the rise of Murata Zhuguang and reached the highest point of Senritsu is "侘び茶". "侘" became a theory of the tea ceremony, that is, the term "侘び茶" appeared during the Edo period. The meaning of "侘" in the tea ceremony is not only rough, but also the meaning of the desire to pursue texture and beauty despite its general appearance. The meaning of "侘び" is expressed through the term "侘び数寄", which refers to light but high-quality tea, and people who like to drink this tea.
The depiction of silence is the beauty of imperfection, which includes imperfection, incompleteness, impermanence, and of course can also refer to simplicity, silence, humility, nature... Like wisdom in Buddhism, it is imply ineffable, so the word is broadly inclusive when expressed in language. It is the simplicity of beauty that blends in simplicity and quietness, and silence is the luster of time.
The tea ceremony itself is an illustration of how the silence manifests itself in Japanese culture. The tea ceremony was carried out by Zen masters and monks and adopted in the 14th century by wealthy aristocrats who meticulously built tea rooms using sumptuous tea sets imported from China. However, in the 16th century, the tea ceremony master Senritsu proposed a new way of tea ceremony that could be carried out in small tea houses, and tea sets were also made by local craftsmen. This tea ceremony of Senritsu conquered the less wealthy people and became the famous tea ceremony (that is, the tea ceremony carried out in the way of The Lotus). Today, this tea ceremony can be understood and practiced by Zen monks, wealthy tea ceremony masters, and Tokyo housewives (and even their pronunciation teachers).
Senritsu was a giant of Japanese tea ceremony history, one of his important contributions was to introduce the Japanese tea ceremony from its inception to its completion and heyday, he lived 500 years ago, it was the Sengoku period in Japanese history, when the great samurai Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeated many opponents and became the emperor's assistant, the emperor became a puppet, Andyotomi Hideyoshi was in power for a while.
According to the customs of the time, in order to abandon the troubles of life and death, the samurai in order to abandon the troubles of life and death, in between the conquests, ordered a bowl of tea as a ritual to cleanse the soul, and the famous tea man Senritsu became the chief tea ceremony teacher of Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi, although he had a long-standing friendship with Ritsu, also had great respect for this tea ceremony master. However, behind the glory of being able to accompany the king's side, there is also the danger of accompanying the tiger.
In an age of betrayal and betrayal, in which even the closest of his people could not be trusted, Lishu was unwilling to be a condescending and flattering man, and was never afraid to clash with his fierce-tempered patron.
Rishio's enemies took advantage of the occasional discrepancy between him and Hideyoshi to slander him in a plot to poison Hideyoshi. Rishio may take the opportunity to serve Hideyoshi a bowl of deadly and poisonous tea—a whisper that finally reached Hideyoshi's place.
There was no need for anything else, and Hideyoshi's suspicions alone could serve as a sufficient reason for the immediate execution of his subjects. In the arrogance of this tyrant, no one has any room for justification.
The only gift for a dying man is to allow him to maintain his dignity by cutting himself off.
Only those who are born of beauty can die of beauty. The end of the great tea people, like the rest of their lives, is elegant and moving. Always trying to be in harmony with the tone of everything in the universe, even the unknown world towards death is prepared early. "Lixiu's last tea party" will always occupy the highest point of tragic beauty.
Thus, the day of Lisho's intended suicide finally came, and he invited his most important disciples to the last tea party of his life. The disciples all gathered in front of the porch at the scheduled time. When they looked into the courtyard, the trees on both sides of the courtyard seemed to be trembling with sadness. In the rustling of the branches, you can hear the wandering spirits who have nowhere to rely on whispering. As for the gray stone lanterns, they look like mighty guards standing in front of the gates of the Underworld.
At this time, a noble and rare incense wafted from the room, and it was the master who was summoning the guests to enter, and the disciples entered the seats in order. The hanging painting between the beds is a genuine work by an ancient monk who uses the theme of the passing of everything on earth. On the stove, the boiling water encourages the kettle to sing a lament, like the cicada that pours out its sorrow to the dying summer day with its chirping.
The host entered the tea room and served tea soup to the guests one by one, and the crowd drank it silently in order, and the host finally drank it. Then, according to the ceremony of the time, the first guest asked to inspect the tea set at this time. Lishu put them, and the hanging, on the table, and after all the visitors had expressed their praise for the treasures, he gave them to everyone as a memorial.
He kept only the tea bowl, for "the bowl, which was defiled by me, the unfortunate man, should no longer be used by the world." As he said this, he smashed it to pieces. The tea party was finally over, and all the guests held back tears and left in a daze after saying goodbye to the host. Only one of his closest disciples remained, entrusted by Riccio, to bear witness to his final end.
At this time, Li Xiu took off his tea party attire, carefully folded it, and placed it on the cushion, revealing the pure white and dirt-free plain robe inside. He gazed gently at the shining deadly sword in his hand, and praised the beautiful death sentence "The sword of eternity, the good guest of mine, the thorn Buddha, the ancestors, and the path of Ru." With a smile on his face, Li Xiu embarked on the unknown path.
Senritsu is revered by the Japanese as a tea saint, and he inherits the spirit of the tea ceremony of the past generations and founded the authentic Japanese tea ceremony. The tea ceremony spirit he proposed, "harmony and respect for silence", is concise and rich in connotation. "Silence" refers to the aesthetics of coldness, tranquility and idleness; "Harmony" indicates respect for guests.