Sen
Soshitsu, XV, Hounsai, the 15th generation grand master of the
Urasenke way of tea, now known as Sen Genshitsu, translates his title in
retirement, Daisosho, as "open guard". Having been one of now only
two O-iemotos, grand tea masters, to retire during his lifetime, he has enabled
his son, then Wakasosho, young master, Zabosai, to accede to the head of
household, commercial and cultural empire of Urasenke as Sen Soshitsu XVI. Thus, the elder Sen has
taken a carte blanche to be of service to the world-wide world of tea he vastly
expanded in ways that he sees fit: an ambassador without portfolio.
In 2004, at the
auspicious age of 80 years, he wrote a small book that has been
translated into English by Maya L. Perry as The Enjoyment of Tea (2006, Tankosha, Kyoto).
This easy to read collection of essays is less hindsight and grandiose wishes
for the future, and more a volume of key points that might serve as a companion
for teacher training.
Some of this autobiographical material has appeared in past issues of Chanoyu Quarterly, or the
Urasenke Newsletter,
both in English through the good offices of Gretchen Mittwer, the primary
Kokusaibu translator. One can easily skip over it as it really doesn't add to the body of knowledge about Urasenke life back-stage. Perhaps that will precipitate in 20 years, or perhaps the rest will remain in the shadows.
There
also are certainly numerous official (patronized and otherwise patronizing) biographies that
have been published abut the man who made efforts to promote peace in a bowl of
tea around the world after the defeat of Japan in the Pacific War. One can
arguably state that he did the very best that he could. Again, none reveal more than
what is desired to be public.
The
late UCLA Professor Dr. Herbert Plutschow's The Grand Tea Master (2001, Weatherhill, Trumbull, CT)
is a much longer, but similar biography. (Dr. Plutschow established two courses
in chanoyu at his institution, but, like other top academicians there, he was
never able to leverage an honorary doctorate for Hounsai, and thus, UCLA was
never the recipient of one of the numerous donations of tea house teaching
facilities that sprang up around the world during Sen Soshitsu XV's reign.) Other scholars, such as Rand Castile (The Way of Tea, 1971,
Weatherhill, New York) have published official biographies of the Sen family in
addition to the history of Urasenke Chado, and basic information about dogu, utensils, and the tea “ceremony”
experience. This latter book was in fact the text for my UCLA Extension course
taught by Dr. Plutschow and is a good, now out of print, overview of what
chanoyu. Like all books, it lacks the essence of the experience of doing it by
merely projecting what “happens”.
In his
most recent book, Genshitsu chose to include key points that specifically
relate to important aspects of the sentiment of chanoyu practice, and these would make great
outline of topics for teacher training, if not simply discussion among
English speaking chajin. I originally thought that this blog post would focus
on the need for such formal instructor instruction in English, but that will have to wait for
another posting.
Looking
over my notes from the book (written as possible topics for this blog), I see
that even they lack the soulful experience of holding this little book in hand
and reading a short section, as if
Her "Master’s Voice, to paraphrase the slogan of the RCA Victor phonograph company, is
being projected.
The
most outstanding of my entries is Daisosho’s explanation of shu / ha / ri. Shu being to protect or obey;
ha, to break or break through in movement; ri, to leave or separate.
Altogether, it is the capacity “to be able to understand or appreciate
something only after being separated from it.” I learned it originally as when
one puts down a utensil, including a bowl of freshly whisked matcha for the
guest to collect and drink, it is as if one is saying goodbye, giving it up.
Now I understand that it can also mean how I feel when I take a break from
classes.
Daisosho
also comments about hinshu gokan, the transposition and ultimate unification of roles of
host and guest. This book has the magic of the soul of tea that only a
practitioner can understand at the most profound level.
The book also includes a translation by Mittwer and Perry of the classic 100 “poems” by Rikkyu. One might appropriate these latter poems as the important points for teachers as well.
Reading this book, I can hear the voice of my own teacher, Sosei Matsumoto, who studied and ultimately lived with the Sen family when the war broke out and its duration, because she is an exceptional ambassador of the heart of chanoyu. It has been my experience over the past 28 years as her student that she has been a steadfast ambassador of the letter and spirit of Urasenke. So, while the information is not new, it is clearly what is to be handed down through the legacy of this practice.
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| "Nipper" listening to His Master's Voice, RCA Victor logo |
