Tea ceremony glossary

An extra dish served late in the meal to encourage more sake; added at the host's discretion.

Unglazed bowls from Shigaraki where ash falling in the kiln forms a natural glassy glaze.

Arranging the space, the utensils, and the whole setting to receive guests; the host's hospitality made concrete.

Mino bowls under a thick feldspar glaze, whose soft white and orange scorch marks define Momoyama taste.

An upright vessel holding the ladle and fire tools, used in the most formal stand procedures.

The formal architectural style, with alcove and staggered shelves, that hosted tea before the thatched style.

The standard form of the full gathering: entry around 11am, departure around 3pm, covering the complete sequence.

The face of a bowl or container turned toward the guest; the side with the best keshiki.

The charcoal procedure performed before the meal at a full gathering.

A three-level scale of formality — formal, semi-formal, informal — applied to procedures, utensils, and rooms.

The predominance of women in modern tea practice — a consequence of Meiji-period girls' education, not of older tradition.

A three-part structuring of pace, applied to a whole gathering and to individual procedures.

A practitioner of unusual devotion and judgement, distinguished by what they choose rather than how hard they practise.

Building the charcoal fire to keep the kettle at temperature; a quiet centrepiece of a full gathering.

The basket or box holding charcoal and fire tools for the charcoal procedure.

The principal warrior-class school, founded by Katagiri Sekishu, which spread through daimyo houses and produced many branches.

Momoyama Mino bowls whose deep matte black comes from being pulled from the kiln while still hot.

Domestic thick-tea jars from Seto, ranging from copies of Chinese forms to distinctly Japanese ones.

A closed folding fan carried by guests and used to mark greetings and boundaries, never to fan oneself.

Sotan's fourth son (1622–1697), founder of Urasenke, who served the Maeda house of Kaga.