Meaning of Drinking Tea & Basics to Master it
All creatures big and small, including the winged ones that fly, those with fur that run, and those who have mouths to speak—all need to drink water in order to survive. That is the basic essence of drinking, but at times the meaning of what humans refer to as “drinking” is more ambiguous. To quench the thirst one can drink water; to escape worries or anger, people turn to wine; but to dispel sloth and torpor, there is but one meaning of “drinking”, and that is tea!
Now tea as a drink was first discovered by the legendary, Shennong, as recorded by Duke Zhou of Lu (鲁周公). Throughout history, there have been many famous tea drinkers, such as Yan Ying of Qi (齊), Yang Xiong, Sima Xiangru of Han, Wei Yao of Wu (吳), Liu Qun, Zhang Zaiyuan (張載遠), Lu Na (陸纳), Xie An and Zuo Si of Jin (晉). After these great men, tea drinking has become more and more popular. Nowadays, in the Tang Dynasty, if one travels to the two biggest cities, Xian (西安) and Luoyang (洛陽), or to the Hubei (湖北) and Chongqing (重慶) areas, one finds that tea is a household drink.
There are four different kinds of tea: rough tea, loose tea, tea powder, and tea cakes. If one wants to casually brew a fresh tea cake, one needs to pry open the cake with a knife, roast it until it steams, and the juice vaporizes, chopping it into fine pieces. Afterward, put it into a vase, add hot water and gently shake it. This is known as “half-cooked tea (夾生茶)”. Some people boil tea with green onions, ginger, dates, orange peels, dogwood, and/or mint. Then, they either keep scooping and pouring the tea back into the pot to mix it as it boils, so it tastes smoother and does not foam, or they simply scrape off the dregs and foam. This kind of tea is not unlike the swill of drains and ditches, and yet, alas, many people are accustomed to drinking it!
All things on Earth are born with unique and mysterious wonders, and yet only a human can master and perfect a life. No mere shelter, we live in intricately designed houses, dress in fabulous clothing, eat delicious food and drink exquisite alcohol. Such refinement, and yet most people do not know how to prepare and drink fine tea!
There are nine skills one must master in a life of tea:
Processing the leaves
Discrimination of quality
Understanding the utensils and their use
Preparing the proper fire
Understanding and selecting suitable water
Proper roasting of the tea
Grinding the tea into powder
Brewing the perfect elixir
Drinking the tea
To pick leaves on cloudy days and roast them at night is not the sign of skilful tea processing. To but nibble the tea leaves and sniff their fragrance is not truly discerning quality. Pots used for cooking or bowls that smell of food are not appropriate implements for brewing tea. Similarly, firewood contaminated with oil or mere kitchen coals are not suitable for brewing tea, either. Rapidly moving or stagnant water sources are not worthy of a fine tea. When roasting tea cakes, if the outside is done while the inside is still raw, one has more practice to do. Do not grind the tea leaves into too fine a powder. Neither stirring boiling water with jerky motions nor too vigorously is proper brewing.
One must stir gracefully and smoothly. And lastly, drinking tea only in one season, like during the summer yet not much in winter, is not conducive to a true understanding of tea.
For the most exquisite tea, the essence should manifest in but three bowls. When one pot makes five bowls, the tea does not taste as good. But if you can be satisfied with a compromise in quality, five bowls are permissible. If you have five guests, it is better to serve three bowls of tea for them to share. If you have seven guests, then make five bowls and pass them among the guests. If you have six guests, then make five bowls and use the hot water basin as the sixth. If a guest is missing from your gathering, then the spirit of the tea must take their place.
