THE SEKISHURYU SCHOOL OF TEA

Past and PresentSado, or the Way of Tea, is a prime symbol among the beautiful cultural traditions ofJapan. lts roots have been grounded deeply and permeate the daily life of Japan. With ahistory of over six-hundred years, Sado has continued down to the present day embracing
many of the traditional arts. The spirit of tea is rooted ﬁrmly in the spirit of the people
and, in fact, constitutes the standard guiding the day to day values of the japanese people.
Historically, the Sekishuryu School of Tea took its forms from an earlier style calledtocha(a Chinese pastime whereby contestasts would attempt to outguess others regarding the various qualities of tea that were being passed around). And, with the birth anddevelopment of the concept of furyu (elegance) , this tradition has been passed down
according to the way of transmission of Tea Master, Sen no Rikyu.
At the source of Japanese aesthetic sense of beauty can we ﬁnd this unique realmof tea treasuring, as it does, wadi and sadi (concepts of quiet elegance and simplicity).
This spirit of sado, deing inseparadle from Japanese taste, has been passed down to thepresent transcending all ages and conditions of our ever-changing world.
At the same time, the ideals df sado constitute the standards for construction
centering around the tea house and inclusive of the surrounding gardens and paths.
Further, these ideals encompass the craft arts from the style of tea bowls and natsume(a lacquer container that holds powdered tea) used in the tea ceremony down to theparticulars of the vases set in the tokonome (alcove) or the scrolls hanging in the machiai(a kind of ante-room where guests wait before being invited into the room itself) or thetokomoma.
Moreover, the beauty of the temae (serving of the tea itself) and of the kaiseki meals
embodied in the tea ceremony has played an instructive role in the aesthetics of the daily
life of the Japanese. That is why one cannot talk about Japanese culture without talking

about the tea ceremony.
There are many schools of tea activity in Japan today.
Sekishuryu is certainly to de numdered among them, occuppying
a very unique position; the tea school of the former samurai
class. There are quite a few people in Japan even today who foolthat it is the spirit of the samurai or warrior that underlies thewhole structure of the spirit of the Japanese people.
From the time Katagiri lwanakami Sekishu, the founder ofSekishuryu, advised the fourth Tokugawa Shogun, letsuna,
Sekishuryu became established as the tea school for families ofthe succeeding Shoguns and of the warrior class. The Sekishuryu
School combines the spirit of the warrior with the spirit of thetea ceremony itself to form a tradition of highest reﬁnement.
The warrior class as such was dissolved a little over 150 years ago. Yet, the spirit ofthe warrior lives on today in the tea ceremony. The spirit of tea passed down from tea
masters Juko and Rikyu most surely embraces the spirit of the warrior; this becomes
revealed through the gestures and movements during the temae, the various positions forholding and folding the fukusa cloth and constitutes the unique creativeness of the tea
ceremony of the warrior class.
ln the former castle towns all around the country, Sekisyuryu remains alive and is still
very active today. At on time, the various daimyo (feudal lords) vied with one anotherincorporating Sekisyuryu into their various domains. And, it was in these castle towns
that those samurai warrior, having very strong connections to Sekisyuryu, lived and where
their descendants carry on the tradition today. Since these castle towns are scatteredthroughout the country it is only natural that Sekisyuryu prpliferates everwhere.
The present Sosho (Tea Master), Katagiri Sadatomo, succeeds as the 16th tea masterand heads the school today. This youthful tea master will certainly play an active role inthe unfolding of Sekishuryu as an evergrowing tradition-a tradition that supports the very
spirit of the Japanese people.