A chakai-ki records the date, place, guests, utensils, and kaiseki menu of a gathering. These are first-rank sources for what tea practice actually was at a given time. They differ in kind from the chasho, which set out ideas: their value lies in the accumulation of facts about which utensils appeared on which day and who was invited.
Origins
They began as notes kept by hosts or guests for themselves, not for publication. Because of that they contain little embellishment, and the working names of utensils and the reality of how they were combined survive as they were. The transmission of Momoyama-period records from the townsman circles of Sakai, Hakata, and Nara made it possible to trace what tea practice looked like in ways the transmission documents alone cannot show.
Why they matter
Where the chasho tell us what practitioners said they valued, the chakai-ki tell us what they actually used. Where the two disagree, the records are the harder evidence.
Sources
- 四大茶会記（世界大百科事典「津田宗及」項） / コトバンク
Supports: 《天王寺屋会記》《松屋会記》《今井宗久茶湯日記抜書》《宗湛日記》の4つが「四大茶会記」と呼ばれ、桃山期の茶会を伝える貴重な資料とされること
About this article
Edited by the operator of Chaen (a one-person operation) / Last updated:
Tea ceremony descriptions can vary by school and source. Where interpretations differ, this glossary avoids definitive claims and focuses on broadly shared understandings. If you notice an error, please let us know viaContact. To learn about our organization, seeAbout Chaen.
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The Japanese practice of preparing and serving powdered green tea, treated as a lifelong discipline rather than a beverage ritual.
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Finding sufficiency of mind within insufficiency and plainness; one of the root concepts of tea practice.
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The principle that every gathering is unrepeatable, and should therefore be treated as if it will never occur again.
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