What is Tea Ceremony?

I suppose I started this blog in the middle, assuming people knew what tea ceremony was all about. I want to go back to the beginning and explain a little about the basics of tea ceremony.

What is Chanoyu?
Chanoyu is usually translated as "Tea Ceremony.” It literally means "hot water for tea," but centuries of Japanese history, literature and culture come together in the study and discipline of making and serving tea.

Chanoyu is a gift of hospitality that offers sanctuary for the human spirit, a quiet refuge in which to loosen the burdens of secular concerns to experience renewal.

Why is it sometimes called Chado?
As a spiritual practice, Chado, the Way of Tea, provides a gateway to the artistic and spiritual traditions of Japan first introduced to America in the classic "Book of Tea," by 19th c. critic, curator, and historian Okakura Kakuzo.

Chado presents an aesthetic approach to life that recognizes we are part of a larger pattern of relationships -- with others, with society, and with nature.