Oct 30, 2008

In Praise of Shadows

As the days are getting longer, our tea classes are increasingly held in the darkness that fills the autumn evenings. At the Ryokusuido Tea Room, there is only a single light with a low wattage bulb in the tea room. I love the way that the light of this room reveals and hides at the same time.

I have often thought that this low light situation looks like the room is lit only by candlelight. It is quite romantic to have the corners of the tea room shrouded in the shadows and the face of the host softly lit with a mellow light. It concentrates the focus of the guests when the temaeza is all that is illuminated.

I have often thought of tea in the time of Rikyu. Without electricity, the tea room would have been quite dark in the evenings except what was shown by the light of a lamp or candle. The host and guests must pay more attention to sounds and to smells as the dependence on sight is diminished. The edges of the things are softened and the room itself seems to expand in the darkness. If one were to use charcoal to heat the water the glow from the coals is not visible with the lights on. Only in the darkness can we see the reflection of the charcoal on the black lacquer, and the chrysanthemum at the ends of the burning wood is revealed.

It now makes sense for the guests to go to the alcove or tokonoma to look at the scroll and then go to look at the kettle and utensils. It also makes sense to ask for haiken to look at the utensils close up as these things would only show a gleam of gold from across the room. And we get to touch them and savor the texture of the clay from the tea bowl or smoothness of the bamboo tea scoop.

There is something to be said for the bright light of day to penetrate the shoji and illuminate the tea room. But also do not forget the shadows of the evening to reveal what is hidden in the darkness at the edges of the tearoom.

6 comments:

  1. Margie,
    So beautiful!

    Thank you,
    Jordan

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  2. Jordan,
    Thank you for your comment. Please let me know when you'd like to come to tea again. We'll be having open house in NE Portland a couple more times before the end of the year.

    Take care,
    Margie

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  3. Margie,
    Thank you for the invite... you will have to teach me how to ask for thin tea :-)

    Please send me the open house schedule, I will try and make it out there.

    Thanks,
    Jordan

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jordan,
    You are on the list, and I'll send you a schedule.

    Take care,
    Margie

    ReplyDelete
  5. This post reminded one of a classic 1933 essay written by Tanizaki about Japanese aesthetics called “In Praise of Shadows”. Have you ever had a chance to read it?

    If not one highly recommends this book.

    Check out this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Praise_of_Shadows

    Thanks again for such a mindful post.

    Peace

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  6. Matt,

    Thank you for your comment. I must admit that I took the title from the essay. I have read it, and I hope that Tanizaki will forgive me.

    Take care,
    Margie

    ReplyDelete