Tea Culture has long history and developed with time. Under the constantly change and enrich, it has formed different schools. Everyone has their own opinions and rationales. However, no matter what they say, you have to know how to drink tea before you deal with tea and learn the tea. Today, let’s talk about the five stages in learning tea.
You might just want to cure the thirst, when you drink tea in the past. It is not different than drinking a beverage. But slowly, you will fall in love with it. And you want to know it. You are willing to listen to every story of the cup of tea. Everyone has its own story. And you start to feel confused. So, you must listen carefully this time.
First stage: have you own opinion
No matter which sayings, you can think with your heart and try to understand, then make your decision. You don’t have to favor any party. Listen more to other’s opinions, then you can slowly form your own opinion.
Second stage: feel confused again
After forming your own opinion, you start to form your own knowledge and theory. No, you will hear the ideas that are similar to you, or against you. This time is when you will suffer the biggest impact, various inconsistencies are flocked in front of you.
Facing various issues, you will feel confuse and don’t know where to verify. No, your tea is your only companion. Clam yourself down, drink different tea and make comparison. Feel with your heart, this is when you start the true journey of learning tea.
Third stage: take the cream, discard the dross
Start from now, you should not give up any learning opportunity. Purchasing books, reading books, meeting tea enthusiast and getting close with professionals. Pay attention to every opinion. Select the both supporting and opposite opinions.
When you listen to the same opinion, you will find it pleasant. When you listen to the different opinion, you will search for the similarity. When you listen to the completely opposite idea, you will feel distant.
You original opinion has already plant seed in your hear and are now growing. You absorb nutrients from the same opinion, go through tough time from the different opinion. The root of the seed will find the most fertile soil to strengthen themselves and grow branches to protect them from the wind and rain.
You will only know how big the world is after you going through it. And it is when you will be able to ask for advice humbly.
When you encounter different idea, you have to give up what you have already know. Start from zero, and try to understand it with an open mind.
When you know more, the fragmented knowledge you have in the past, and the one-side view are gone. You can connect everything together. Once you have the central ideal, you can simplify the once complicated thing. You feel like you can summarize everything in one or two sentence.
The more you understand it, the less you will talk. On the contrary, the beginners tend to speak more professional terms.
Fourth Stage: embrace everything, let go your own opinion.
By this stage, you will no longer discuss the issues too much. No matter the tea is good or bad, you will not be easily surprised. Maybe by then, you can understand the meaning of “there is no fixed flavor of tea, it is only valuable if it suits you” told by antecessor.
The journey of learning tea is like climbing mountain. It is a joy to see all the mountains become so tiny in front of you. However, step forward for even one step is hard.
What if there is no more advancement on the top? Let it go. Don’t care too much who is right or wrong. It is just a cup of tea.
You have experiences the ups and downs already, what’s more there on the top to be missed about? Feeling good about yourself for being a master? Are you feeling good to see beginners just like you once were?
This is not you trying to distinguish yourself. It is the complacency. You should not keep it, but let it go.
Fifth stage: tea drinking is indeed a lifestyle
The journey of learning tea is completed for now. However, have you already forgot the original intention of learning tea? You become picky, have higher standard, and care more the formality. This is not what you should learn.
There is a saying: instrument game book painting poem wine tea, firewood rice oil salt sauce vinegar tea.
Many people know this saying, but why both sentences have tea in it, not many people know.
Because only tea, can be high or low, can be part of spiritual or daily life. So a lifestyle tea is what the final destination of learning tea.
Buddha says: parents are Buddha, serving your parents is serving the Buddha. The same with the tea learning, brew a good cup of tea for your father, mother and friends, which is the highest standard of the tea learning.