
Tea & Meditation
Many T Ching writers have shared their experiences and creativity with tea and meditation in hopes that you will discover something that resonates with your search for more meaning in your cup of tea.

Tea and Self-Care; Ritual Bathing
Tea and Self-Care One trending phrase in health and wellness is “self care”. I realized that having a meaningful relationship with tea - a tea practice - is a powerful form of self-care and has been for hundreds of years. (More about that in my ‘conclusion’ below.)...

The Therapeutic Properties of Tea
While writing and subsequently editing each day, I place my laptop atop of the chaxi and crowd a gaiwan…

Sacred Teaometry; A Tea Lover’s Thoughts on Tea Ceremony
Tied to the study of nature and the mathematical principles found therein,

Tea Is An Experience
Sitting down to drink a cup of tea grants us permission to slow down. Slowing down is a powerful…

Learning to Wash Tea Cups
It was while my eyes were away, already where I wanted my hands to move next, that I heard the sound…

Green Tea: Healing And Serenity In A Cup
Aaron Fisher, in his book The Way of Tea: Reflections on a Life with Tea, notes, “Tea’s ability to both stimulate our awareness and calm us down at the same time makes it the ideal center for a natural and spontaneous meeting with the Tao." Every tea drinker knows...

Japanese Tea Meditation Will Help You Be In The Moment
Meditation is an excellent and satisfying way of bringing yourself into the present moment. There are many different forms of meditation to ground us, and provide the energy and focus we need to get through the day without feeling burnt out. One of the ways to...

Tea Aversion and Attraction
Experiences in tea can be vast and varied. Some good, some bad, some we’d like to enjoy again, and some we would rather forget. That said, judging whether or not we like a tea while we are drinking it can become a roadblock that bars us from true enjoyment of the...

A Brief Overview of Buddhist Influence on Tea Culture
Tea now enjoys a prominent place in many Buddhist traditions, but in the time of Gautama Buddha (the first Buddha and the founder of Buddhism), tea had not yet reached India, and wouldn’t for hundreds of years. It was because of traveling monks going to China that tea...

The Mindfulness of Tea
In mindfulness practice, one of the keys to expanding the ability of mind is to pay attention to the thoughts, feelings and sensations experienced by the mind and body in the present moment. One way to do this is by being present during simple tasks and activities. As...

Medi-TEA-tion, Part 4
And what about music? We can use the same process here as with tea selection. Don’t just un-pause the iPod from its last outing. Tune in and see which music feels right now. What will go well with the tea you have just picked? What will balance your current mood? Or...

Medi-TEA-tion, Part 3
Now, back to our tea session: Hopefully, by now we have set aside some time to mindfully tidy up the tea space. We can then use our creativity to set up a Chaxi with some ornaments and chose the teaware to go with it (or vice versa). Over time, we can combine...

Medi-TEA-tion, Part 2
What are the Four Foundations of Mindfulness? And what is mindfulness? It never harms to go back to basics from time to time. Mindfulness, in my opinion, is the attempt to bring a fully inclusive awareness to what we are doing right now. From a certain point of view...

Medi-TEA-tion, Part 1
Over the next few installments, I would like to offer some tips for bringing more of the spirit of meditation into our tea drinking. This could be particularly relevant for those solitary tea sessions, which we might savor from time to time. But it is also useful when...

Fetching Water
Contribution by: Global Tea Hut The last drop glides off the silver-tipped spout and fills the side handle teapot. The iron kettle stands empty. Steam is rising, tea infusing, fire bound coals basking in the brazier. In the Daoist tearoom, sunset orange themes the...

Spirals: Part 4
One of the magical qualities of tea is that it works non-verbally. It seeps into the cracks and joints of our bodies and souls, filling them with light and warmth and love and wisdom, whether we know it or not. The more open we are, the more deeply it penetrates. In...

Spirals: Part 3
Some time ago, I traveled south in Taiwan to a new Vipassana center. Ten days later, I was given a ride to the nearest train station by a kind fellow meditator. As we drove along through the beautiful scenery, I learned that she was the owner of an English school, and...

Spirals: Part 2
Article by Lindsey Goodwin, Arthurian Mythologist. Shortly after I made Taiwan my new home last fall, I visited Mr. Xie, an organic farmer. He explained how his success with organic farming had encouraged others in his area of Nantou County to convert to organic...

Spirals: Part 1
Article by Lindsey Goodwin, Arthurian Mythologist When you are on a spiritual path, you probably find that your route is often a circular or spiral one. You begin at one point and, after months or years of moving and growing and learning and changing, you return to...

Bowl Two: Mastered mind; meditation
Without mastery of the mind we shall never walk upright, no matter how wonderful our intentions. The mind is a strong and powerful elephant, able to serve or destroy the city equally. For that reason, our centers and schools will always be places of meditation,

Tea and meditation
I became more serious about tea around the same time I began exploring meditation as part of my everyday life. These two practices go hand-in-hand – they are both contemplative, slow-paced activities that help…