Wakei seijaku names four qualities that tea practice is meant to cultivate: wa (harmony), kei (respect), sei (purity), and jaku (tranquillity). It is the most commonly cited statement of what the discipline is for, and is attributed to Sen no Rikyu.
The four terms
**Wa** concerns the fit between people, objects, season, and setting — a gathering in harmony is one in which nothing is out of place. **Kei** is respect extended to the guests, to the utensils, and to those who made them; it is expressed through handling rather than words. **Sei** is purity in both senses: the physical cleaning of the room, the utensils, and the hands, and the clearing of preoccupation that the cleaning is meant to produce. **Jaku** is the stillness that the first three make possible, and is generally understood as the result of the others rather than a fourth independent effort.
How it is taught
Students usually meet the phrase early and understand it slowly. The cleaning of a tea scoop with a silk cloth, for instance, is presented first as a sequence of movements to memorise; the reading of that sequence as an act of respect and purification comes later. The four terms are therefore less a set of rules than a description of what sustained practice is supposed to produce.
Sources
- 和敬清寂（デジタル大辞泉 / 精選版 日本国語大辞典 / 改訂新版 世界大百科事典） / コトバンク
Supports: 和敬清寂が「茶道の精神を表現するのに用いられた語」で、和敬は茶事における主客相互の心得、清寂は茶庭・茶室・茶道具などに関連する心得を指すとされること
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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Related terms
- Chado (The Way of Tea)chado
The Japanese practice of preparing and serving powdered green tea, treated as a lifelong discipline rather than a beverage ritual.
- Wabiwabi
Finding sufficiency of mind within insufficiency and plainness; one of the root concepts of tea practice.
- Ichigo ichie (one time, one meeting)ichigo ichie
The principle that every gathering is unrepeatable, and should therefore be treated as if it will never occur again.
- Sabisabi
The sense of beauty in age, wear, and quiet that the passage of time produces; spoken of alongside wabi.
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Seven precepts attributed to Rikyu, each stating something obvious about hospitality — which is the point.