Tea, then and now in China, is much more than a beverage. The moment and the act of the moment constitute life. Therefore, everything associated with tea must be approached with detail and beauty. In the same way, fine cultural details can reveal the characteristic concerns of a society. When involved in the trivia of everyday life, people tend to be less inhibited, more true to themselves.
Tea is such a touchstone.
Its uses and abuses will reveal as much about the society in which it exists as the artist's unselfconscious line betrays about his personality. I have listed here a number of the other numerous references and sources of information in regards to tea. This is not intended to be a complete list. The Little Book of Tea. Andrews McMeel Publishing, 1998.