The Tea Derek? Why a blog about Judaism and Tea?

During my year studying in Japan, I joined the Sado-bu (Tea club).  In those months of learning bits of the tea ritual, I thought and wondered a great deal. 

There was something inside the tea bowl.  Something more than the dark moss-green of the tea, though that was part of it.  Something beyond the vivid white-green foam whisked atop the liquid, though the foam was part of it.  There was a universe inside the bowl—though I couldn’t explain what that meant. I drank secrets every day with the tea, but I could never determine their taste or texture.

Tea is for doing, not for explaining, but I spent hours trying unsuccessfully to put Tea into words. 

When I took up a more methodical study of Tea back home in the West, my Jewish studies brain embraced the ritual.  I started drashing.  As time passed, my understanding of Tea began to emerge in Jewish terms. And Judaism took on characteristics of Tea.

They informed each other in my mind, enriched each other in many ways.  Seeing how Tea distinguished between cleaning and purification made the same distinction in Judaism more approachable.  The Jewish act of praying the same liturgy daily and still finding meaning in it made the long, slow practice of learning Tea feel more balanced. 

Why do we step out of the tea room with your left food?—Why do we step back at “Oseh shalom”? —Why hire a cantor if you have an active lay community? —What’s the purpose of learning from a teacher when you’ve already perfected the process? —Which pieces really matter, and which are merely encouraged? —When does altering to suit the modern world strengthen the spirit of the discipline, and when does changing the tradition destroy something precious and unique? —How can I center myself around [Judaism/Tea] in such a way that the people I meet instantly recognize that I’m on to something?

The questions keep overflowing my mind.  The answers are rarely final answers; there’s always room for more digging. I don’t expect to reach an enlightened destination, but I do intend to continue heading forward.

The purpose of this blog is twofold.  I expect it, first, to pressure me into dedicating time to developing my perspectives on Tea and Judaism. Secondly, I hope that my semi-formed ideas will serve as dialogue-starters. If you disagree with, or wish to expand upon or hear more about a point, please write in.  The door is open.