Thursday, March 17, 2011

Different from the charcoals for BBQ

Do you want to see how it looks like in a sunken hearth? We have used an electric stove for the kettle instead of charcoal in our tea lesson. However our master used the charcoals in the recent lessons. Here it is …



You might think it’s nothing special and it looks just like the charcoals for barbecue. But actually these charcoals are special. They are charcoals for sado (The Way of Tea). The box contains a set of different shaped charcoals. Each piece should be in certain shape and size. Each piece even has a name.






Moreover, the charcoals should be placed in certain positions in the sunken hearth. There are manners and procedures in placing them. I think the practical combination and position of charcoals create a stable heat during the tea ceremony. We Japanese have a very strict discipline when it comes to many things. We even follow certain rules to place charcoals just to have a cup of tea, he he he … (^^;; I was reminded of the profoundness of sado (The Way of Tea).

1 comment:

  1. Kohei-san, do you know anything about washing the charcoal before using it? I saw someone do it once, but I came in at the end and didn't see all of it, and he did not speak very much English. Do you know why it needs to be washed, and if there is a special way to wash it?

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