JAPN 255 - Hidden Japan: Tea Ceremony

“The way of tea,” chanoyu or chado/sado , was established by Sen no Rikyu in the 16th century in Japan, with “harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility” (wa kei sei jaku) as its principles. Chanoyu is the most direct practice of Zen Buddhism tradition, and many samurai warriors practiced it as part of the martial arts education. Students learn to realize the principles of chanoyu in a concrete and ritualistic way of making and receiving a bowl of maccha whisked tea. Assigned readings, along with hands-on practice, help students learn the Japanese tradition, art, aesthetics, calligraphy, literature, history, philosophy, and architecture. At the end of the course, students create and perform a tea ceremony in small groups, write a final paper that reflects on their performance and relates their experience to their modern lives as well as to their own cultural backgrounds. Students learn how the apparent universal concepts such as purity, tranquility, and mindfulness are attained through different sets of human behavior, and examine the human diversity and global interconnections reflected in cultural and artistic expression over time and space. The course has no prerequisite and is taught in English. Students will consume maccha tea and Japanese confectionery.

Credits: 1
Prerequisites: None
Major/Minor Restrictions: None
Class Restriction: None
Area of Inquiry: Human Thought and Expression
Liberal Arts CORE: Global Engagements

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