C h ’ o ŭ i —

translated by I a n H a i g h t and T ’ a e - y o n g H ŏ

The Divine Life of Tea 

   1.

Picking Tea Leaves

The Complete Book of 10,000 Jewels and The Book of Tea state,

A purple-colored leaf is unparalleled, while green is next in

supremacy. Leaves like a bamboo sprout are better than fully

developed leaves, and wrinkled leaves are better than flat. The

bamboo-sprout leaf has three shapes: one is softly curved, as the

shoes of a barbarian; another is like the breast of a wild ox, the

edges upturned, as a curvy dress’ fold; the last is like a light wind

rippling waves of water—it is neither smooth nor flat.

The Complete Book of 10,000 Jewels states,

It is important to pick tea leaves in the appropriate season. If

leaves are picked too early, the taste will not have ripened; if the

leaves are picked late, the spirit will have dissipated. Five days

before The Season of Rain for Grain is considered best for picking,

while five days after is next-best; ten days after the season is the

third-best time for picking.

It is my experience with Korean tea grown in the south or lower elevations that picking around The Season of Rain for Grain is too early; it is more natural to pick this Korean tea around The Season of Entering Summer—this time is most appropriate. After a cloudless night when the tea leaves are wet with early-morning dew—this is the best time for picking, while picking during the day is next best.  Picking during a cloudy or rainy day yields poor tea leaves.

From newly picked tea leaves, remove the comparatively old or damaged, then roast the remaining leaves in a hot kettle. 

2.

Making Tea Leaves

Before roasting, one should remove old leaves and pieces of broken twigs or stems. A two-foot, four-inch diameter kettle is good for roasting 900 grams of tea. Watch the kettle to make sure it doesn’t scorch, until it steams from finger-sprayed water. Then put the tea leaves inside and carefully roast them.

The fire mustn’t sink low; maintain the fire so that it heats evenly. Stir until the tea leaves are perfectly heated, then swiftly remove them from the kettle. Place the leaves in the middle of a large sieve and gingerly rub them together.  Again, put the leaves in the kettle. Gradually lessen the strength of the fire, roasting the leaves dry.  Such rules are paramount; how to roast is an abstruse and difficult thing to describe with words.

    3.

Discernment

The possibilities of tea are born first from refined making, second from how it is stored, and third from suitable infusion. Whether tea is good or bad is decided with the first roasting, and whether tea is clear or dark depends on the last. If the fire was strong, the tea’s scent will be fresh, but if the kettle was not hot enough, the tea’s spirit will not appear in full. If the fire was too strong, the surface of the leaves will be burnt, but the inside will remain raw; and if the fire was weak, the tea leaves will lose color.

If the leaves are roasted too long, they become unsavory and yellow. If the leaves are removed too early, they will be immature and black. If the rules are followed well, the leaves will be sweet, but if the rules are violated, the leaves become astringent.

Leaves with white spots are still flavorful, but those with no spots from burning are best.

    4.

Storing Tea

After the first roasting process, put the tea leaves in an old pot. Seal the mouth of the pot with paper and let three days pass. Wait until the nature of the leaves recovers, and roast the leaves over a weak fire until they are almost dry. When the leaves cool, ever-so-gently pile them inside an urn. Cover the mouth of the urn with a skin of thinly cut bamboo, and then cover the bamboo with several layers of leaf-like bamboo sprouts or paper-thin bamboo skin. Tie it all down at the urn’s mouth.

Take a brick and heat it in the fire. Remove the brick and wait until it cools. Then place the brick on top of the urn’s tied-down paper. 

Keep the urn in a lidded box. Never store the urn in an open wind or near flames. An open wind’s cold can chill the leaves, and an open fire can prematurely yellow tea leaves.

   5.

Despoiled Tea Should Not be Used

Finely made tea leaves should look deep green. If the leaves are not stored according to the laws, they may first turn pale green, and later yellow, then black, and lastly white. If one drinks tea from such leaves, the heat of the stomach’s energy will be chilled; too much of such tea generates an emaciating energy, which can accumulate.

   6.

The Value of Spring Water

The spirit of tea leaves is born into the body of water; leaves are the spirit animating the body of water. Water that is not authentic will not reveal the leaves’ spirit; an unrefined tea leaf will not allow water to show the goodness of its body.

A mountain peak’s spring water is clear and light. Spring water from the base of a mountain is clear but heavy. 

Spring water issuing from stone is clear and flavorful, while spring water issuing from sand is clear but has a chilled nature; spring water issuing from earth is pure and colorless.  Water flowing from yellow stone is wonderful, but water flowing from blue stone is of no use.

Moving water is better than still water, and water under shadows is better than sunlit.  Water from an authentic spring has no taste or scent.

   7.

Well Water Does Not Make Good Tea

The Book of Tea describes mountain water as ideal, and river water as next best to use, while well water is inferior. If one cannot gather water from a river, or a nearby mountain has no spring water, the next best choice is to collect rainwater in The Season of Plum Blossoms. This water has a taste sweetly harmonious; since ages past, this water’s nourishing quality has been well known.

Though snow water is clear, its nature is heavily dark, chilling spleens and stomachs of men. Unfortunately, this nature accumulates in the body if drunk too much.

   8.

Storing Water

To store water, the pot should be located under shade in a garden and covered with silk gauze. Let the water breathe the energy of early-morning’s starlit dew. The benevolence will not disappear then; the radiance will always be preserved.

If the pot is covered with wood, stone, thin skins of bamboo sprouts, or is sealed by paper, and the pot is placed under sun, then the water’s spirit will dissipate. The flow of energy will be blocked, and the water’s spirit will be exhausted.

Only when tea is fresh and water divine is drinking tea a most precious thing. If tea leaves lose their freshness and water its divinity, what difference is there between tea from these components and ditchwater?

   9.

The Utensils of Tea

Lu Yu, who wrote The Book of Tea, used a silver kettle to infuse tea. After speaking on the excesses of luxury, he later used porcelain, though porcelain did not endure. Eventually, he returned to silver.

In my opinion, silver tea utensils should be kept in a wealthy house. If the house is a mountain cottage or thatched hut, only a tin kettle should be used. Tin will cause no harm to the fragrance, color, or taste of tea, but utensils of copper or iron should be avoided.

   10.

The Tea Bowl

A snowy-white bowl is regarded as a superlative choice. A blue-white bowl that does not damage the color of tea is the next most-select choice.

   11.

The Towel for Wiping the Bowl

Before and after drinking tea one should use a finely-woven hemp cloth to wipe the bowl.  Other kinds easily become despoiled and so are less effective.

   12.

The Container for Daily Use of Tea

The container for tea’s daily use should be made of tin. From the large storage urn of tea leaves, place leaves in the small tin for daily use.

When all the leaves are consumed, take more from the large urn.

   13.

Maintaining Fire

Infusing tea perfectly requires, firstly, maintaining fire. When a stove’s fire burns with red flames, place the kettle on the stove. One must swiftly and lightly fan the flames; when the fire begins to slowly crackle, fan the flames doubly swiftly.

Following are observations regarding weak and strong fires: an excessively weak fire means the nature of the water will be smooth. “Smooth” means the water will surrender to the tea. An excessively strong fire means the character of the fire is too vigorous. “Vigorous” means the tea will dominate the water. If all these factors are not carefully observed for optimum harmony, there is no point in pursuing mastery of tea.

14.

The Criterion for Boiling

There are three methods to observe boiling water, and each method has five distinctions to watch for. The first method is the criterion of bubbles, second is the criterion of sound, and third is the criterion of steam. “Bubbles” refers to the inner criterion, while “sound” refers to the outer criterion. Steam allows one to easily determine the aspects.

When bubbles are the size of shrimp eyes, then grow to the size of crab eyes, then fish eyes, and finally a connected beading, this is still an insipid state of boiling water. Continue until attaining a gushing boiling, like a rising wave’s rolling shape, then remove the water from the heat. Wait until the surface of the water remains still. When all the water’s energy has been transformed, it is then at optimum purity.

As the water heats, the first sound is that of a simple boiling. Next will be a rolling rhythm, like the turn of carriage wheels—then a shaking rhythm, like wind in bamboo trees. A sound similar to heavy rain will then follow, but these states of boiling water are still insipid.  When there is no sound of boiling, the water is at optimum purity.

Steam may rise in threads of one, two, three, or four. If threads are disorderly, indistinct, chaotic, or tangled, the boiled water is still insipid. When steam rises in straight lines but separates into puffs, the water is at optimum purity.

   15.

Using Impeccable or Over-boiled Water for Tea

Cai Junmo only used impeccable water for tea, never over-boiled water. This was according to the handed-down methods of producing tea, which required the exertions

of pounding, grinding, and sieving leaves. Tea properly made in this manner has dragon or phoenix patterns pressed into the cakes.

When one observes tea freshly infused from cakes and impeccably boiled water, one can see the spirit of the tea immediately rise to the surface. This is why one should use impeccable water and not water that is over-boiled.

Tea made now has no need for sieving or grinding; the original body of the whole leaf is kept. The reason boiled water must have optimal purity is it entices the appearance of the tea leaves’ prime spirit.

Therefore I say boiled water must be boiled to the fifth grade for tea to show its three singularities.

“How to Boil Water” states,

Watch the boiling water so it does not over-boil, then remove the

kettle and pour a little into a pot. From the pot, remove the

coldness by tilting and pouring out the water. Then add tea leaves.

   16.

The Adding of Tea Leaves

The adding of tea leaves has an order, the rules of which should not be ignored. “Under” means the tea leaves should be placed in the teapot and boiling water added next. “Middle” means hot water should first half-fill the pot, the tea leaves added, and then the pot filled with hot water. “Over” means after the water fills the pot, the tea leaves should be added. 

In the seasons of spring and autumn one should practice “middle”; in the season of summer “over” should be practiced; in winter, “under” is best.

Measure the optimal amount—surpassing the midpoint will upset perfect balance. Excessive leaves mean the taste will be bitter and the fragrance lessened. Too much water risks a weakening of flavor and pale color.

Water and tea leaves will likely be in harmony through this method: Drink after filtering with a cold hemp sieve. If the sieving time is too early, the spirit of the leaves will not be revealed. Perfect timing also means the tea should not be drunk late. If the tea is drunk late, the first distinct scents will have lessened.

   17.

Fragrance

Tea has at least eight scents; the first four are favorable. The first scent is authentic, while the second is subtle, like an orchid; the third is clear, and the fourth is pure. When the outside and inside of tea leaves are evenly roasted, the tea’s scent will be pure; when the leaves are neither raw nor over-roasted, the fragrance is clear as an autumn sky. If the roasting fire burned evenly the scent is as an orchid; if the leaves were harvested before The Season of Rain for Grain and the spirit has been preserved, the scent is authentic.

Additionally, tea leaves contain four scents that are unfavorable. The first is after infusing, wherein the leaf’s fragrance is unborn. The second is a brief scent that disappears before sharing. The third occurs when the fragrance, lacking density, is weak. The fourth is when one can smell no distinctive scent.

   18.

Color

Tea of a deep green color is regarded as best, and a blue-white foam means the tea will be wonderful. Foam that is yellow, black, red, or pale does not belong to quality tea. Snowy-white foam suggests the highest quality tea, while green foam means an average tea, and yellow foam implies a base tea.

When fresh spring water and a strong fire are utilized in infusing tea with sensitive adeptness, a jade-like tea with an ice-colored foam is yielded. This, in a ceramic bowl, is breathtaking art.

   19.

Drinking

When drinking tea, the fewer guests, the better. If there are many guests, then the atmosphere risks discursiveness; discursiveness means the refined taste of tea is wasted.  Drinking alone is said to be spiritual, while two people drinking is of high order; three or four people drinking is tasteful, and five or six is good for the nonchalant; seven or eight is a simple sharing.

   20.

The Rules of Infusion

After two infusions in the teapot, use the pot again only after rinsing with cold water—even if the leaves have already been washed out. Not doing so will lessen a future tea’s fragrance. If the pot is not rinsed with cool water, then the spirit of the tea will emerge unsound. If the pot is cleaned properly, then the nature of the water will always emerge divine.

   21.

Taste

With regards to taste, a pleasurably smooth flavor is considered supreme. A tea that is bitterly astringent is undesirable.

   22.

The Harmonious Balance of Tea

When making tea leaves, the leaves should be refined. When storing tea leaves, the leaves should be kept dry. When infusing tea leaves, the process should be faultless.  Refinement, dryness, and faultlessness: these create a complete harmonious balance of tea.

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