05 April, 2007

Musings

On Zen and Tea

Mass, Ritual, and Tea - there is no guide
Timing Tea - learning by doing
Drink Some Tea - where was I just now?
Just Doing - a cure for being elsewhere
Timeliness - to every thing, there is a season
Ice, Water - words of Taisen Deshimaru-roshi, the Zen monk
Tea Company - wa, kei, sei, jaku
Mumonkan - take all this with a pinch of salt
The Value of Words - drink more tea, do more zazen
The Unknown Soldier - space to think, a quietening session


On Gongfucha

The Zen of Wenxiangbei - using aroma cups
A New Tool - sorting tea with a pu'er tray
Chachong - friends made of clay
Induction 101 - how your induction kettle works
Nembu Tekki - the art of the tetsubin
Tetsubin vs. Induction - the differences and concerns
The Aging Tetsubin - keeping track of an iron kettle's aging
Internet Pots - buying blind?
Something Wicked This Way Comes - a collection of pots
Tasting Tea, I and II - what works for me
Wabi-Sabi - reducing our tea-clutter
Ending a Session - tidying up is an important part of gongfucha


On Miscellany

Consulting the Oracle - the Book of Changes and the Half-Dipper
That Time of the Month - a response to feedback on the Half-Dipper
Maturity - of the drinker and the Half-Dipper
Non-tea - consuming caffeine in the afternoons can affect the quality of sleep
A Glossary of Tea - ku, or bitterness
Just Writing - purposeless textual meandering
Hagiyaki - the ghostly "Oni" style
Normality - the everyday life
There's No Rush! - buy slowly, or face shelves filled with bad tea
Single Mountains - gaining exposure through avoiding the howlers
House Blend -  making the most of your leftovers
Tea Demonstrations - matcha at the British Museum and London's TeaSmith
A Quest for Gongfucha - an attempt to discover real tea in London
Maliandao - exploring Beijing's tea district
Chayuan - more from Maliandao
Gongfucha in Grenoble - even the French like good tea
HH the Dalai Lama - HH visits our little town


Haiku for all seasons

Waving Back
Ticking Clock
Michaelmas Term
The Fat Man
College Choir
Reading Haiku
Morning Heidu
Cha
No Tea
A Shade of Clouds
In the Abbey Ruins
Outside Train Windows
The Last Birdsong
Tea in a Sunbeam
Caught in the Gongdaobei
Spring Showers
Distant Churchbells
A Gentle Breeze
Twilight Birds
Cold Summer Day
River Clay (Rod Wilmott)
Breathing... (Rod Wilmott)
Weight Lifter (Garry Gay)
Water Pools (John Wills)
Snow at Dusk (Betty Dvornisk)
Cat's Yawn (Arizona Zipper)
The Blind Musician (Nicholas Virgilio)
Museum Garden (Bill Kenney)
Chrysanthemum Silence (Matsuo Basho)
Dozing on Horseback (Matsuo Basho)
The Brushwood Gate (Matsuo Basho)
The Big Dipper (Matsuo Basho)
Soldier's Dreams (Matsuo Basho)
To Autumn (John Keats)