The History of the Japanese Tea Ceremony and Wabi-Sabi

The Establishment of Wabi-cha

The Way of Tea becomes something noble, deeply connected to spirituality. From the late 15th to the late 16th century, tea culture began to spread widely. At that time, people enjoyed tea in lively banquets, decorating the room with luxurious Chinese tea utensils.

Amid this atmosphere, Murata Jukō (1423–1502) wrote a set of teachings for his disciples known as the Kokoro no Fumi (“Letters of the Heart”). In it, he was the first to describe tea practice as the “Way of Tea.”

The term sadō (tea ceremony) did not yet exist, but Jukō discovered within the act of preparing tea not merely enjoyment, but a “Way”—a means of learning about human life and spiritual cultivation.

What is “Dō” (The Way)?

In Japan, many traditional arts carry the word 道 (dō, “the Way”) in their name: Sadō (tea), kendō (swordsmanship), shodō (calligraphy), kadō (flower arrangement), kyūdō (archery), and more.

The word 道 (dō) has two major meanings:

• A physical path where people walk; a route or passage.
• A principle one should follow; the order of the universe; a teaching.

For the Japanese, “the Way” is not only the journey of learning skills and techniques (①), but also (②) the pursuit of spiritual discipline and training to reach the truth of things.

In the process of mastering a dō, one learns to value silence, cultivate patience and concentration, and train the mind to attain tranquility and enlightenment.

Zen and the Way of Tea

Murata Jukō, Takeno Jōō—who inherited and developed Jukō’s teachings—and Sen no Rikyū, who studied under Jōō and perfected the Way of Tea, were all practitioners of Zen Buddhism.

Sen no Rikyū taught that “the Way of Tea is the same as what monks practice—it is the pursuit of self-realization.”

Below is one of Rikyū’s famous sayings:

“A house need only be built well enough not to leak, and meals need only be enough to keep one from hunger. This is the Buddha’s teaching and the true spirit of tea. Carrying water, gathering firewood, boiling water, preparing tea, offering it to the Buddha, sharing it with others, drinking it yourself, arranging flowers, burning incense—these are all acts that follow in the footsteps of the Buddhas and patriarchs.”

He clearly states that the primary purpose of the Way of Tea is Buddhist training and the attainment of enlightenment.

“The essence of wabi is to express the pure and immaculate world of the Buddha. When one arrives at this humble grass hut—the roji—all dust and impurities are swept away, and host and guest interact with a sincere heart. Thus, strict prescriptions, formal rules, and fixed measures need not be insisted upon. It is simply a matter of making a fire, boiling water, and drinking tea.”

What is Wabi-Sabi?

Wabi-sabi is an essential concept that symbolizes Japanese aesthetics.

It is a sensibility discovered and promoted by Murata Jukō and Sen no Rikyū, and it underlies not only the tea ceremony but all of Japanese culture.

Wabi (侘び) refers to the beauty of modest, simple living—an appreciation for the quiet elegance found in simplicity. Sabi (錆び) literally means “to age” or “to fade,” and expresses the aesthetic sensibility that cherishes the character and depth brought forth by the passage of time.

In simple terms, Japanese culture values simplicity and modesty over novelty and extravagance, and finds beauty in the natural aging and impermanence of things.