Tea (茶) is a popular beverage that is consumed in many parts of the world today, especially Asia. Apart from tea being widely known for its medical purposes, it actually holds much significance in the Buddhist religion in China. In seeking enlightenment, Buddhist monks in China tended to rely on fasting, prolonged meditation, and spiritual exercises. Green tea (绿茶), which was the first type of tea discovered and the focus of this post, thus presented the qualities that the monks needed in the search for enlightenment. In some Buddhist monasteries, it also served as a great alternative to other beverages, especially alcohol, which was held in high regard in the past. Green tea is made from the young tea leaves of Camellia Sinensis and usually ingested without fermentation after withering, steaming, drying, and grading. [1]

One famous tale regarding the origins of Green Tea can be traced back to the arrival of Bodhidharma, who was the 28^th Patriarch of India, in the 5^th Century to spread Buddhism to China. One day while meditating at Shongshan Shaolin Temple, Bodhidharma was too tired and fell asleep. In an attempt to ensure that his eyes do not shut again, he cut off his eyelids and threw them onto the ground. A green tea plant then started growing at the very spot he threw his eyelids. [2] From then on, green tea was often brewed to aid in the meditation of the disciples of Bodhidharma whenever they felt exhausted and distressed. As tiredness counteracted effective meditation, Green tea helped by stimulating energy and strengthening one’s perseverance which facilitated alertness in the mind and also provided hydration for the body. [3] Additionally, Green tea encouraged “right actions” and “pure thoughts” as it does not have the effect of intoxication like alcohol which may inculcate lewd and immoral behaviors and destroy families. This thus showcases the close ties that Green tea had with the everyday lives of the monks in pursuing enlightenment.

The significance of Green tea and Buddhism subsequently led to the first publication on tea during the Tang Dynasty known as The Classic of Tea (茶道的开始：茶经) by Lu Yu（陆羽）[733-804] and popularize tea as a preferred drink throughout China. This classic compiled all the details on tea ranging from the desirable locations to find them to the characteristics of recognizing and choosing the best leaves, and most importantly, the finest way of preparing tea for maximum enjoyment. He later became recognized as the “God of Chinese Tea”. [4]

On top of the benefits that Green tea had in cultivating enlightenment for the monks, it was also noteworthy in its contribution to tea houses in the Buddhist temples and later, the social setting in China. As a result of the popularization of tea in Buddhism, tea houses were established in temples. Within the tea house, there was a tearoom where the monks could deliberate about the Dharma. Whenever the “tea drum”, which is located in the northwest corner of the Dharma Hall, is sounded, the monks must make their way to the tearoom for the tea ceremony. There is also another place near the main entrance where the “giving tea-monk” would serve tea to the Buddhist followers and prominent guests. [5] This was done for two reasons. Firstly, as a blessing from God and Buddha and secondly, to emphasize the acclamation of one’s mind with tea and provide the passage to discover one’s true self. [6] In less formal settings, tea drinking also helped to bridge the differences and temporary “dissolute” the hierarchical structures between the monks and the literati by allowing them to come together on a level field and share about their knowledge and values, unthreatened by the dangers of intoxication.

Over the different dynasties, the ways of preparing green tea have changed significantly. For this post, I will be focusing on the green tea preparation method from the Tang Dynasty to showcase the differences between how it was prepared then and now. In the past, there were many steps and specific tools involved.

Tang Dynasty Tea Preparation Method:

1. Use a bamboo clip to hold the green tea cake over the fire for it simmer. After which, it is stored among a stack of paper to retain the green tea smell.
2. When the green tea cake is cooled, put it into the grinder for it to be molded into green tea powder.
3. Use a sieve to filtrate the green tea powder. The filtrated green tea powder will then be stored in the box.
4. When brewing the green tea, one needs to use a wind stove and tea kettle. Pour water into the tea kettle then place it on the wind stove and boil it.
5. Water is divided into three boiling points. When the boiling water appears to have fisheye-like bubbles and slight sound, that is the first boiling point and one adds an appropriate amount of salt to season it. When the bubbles at the side of the kettle are blister-like, that is the second boiling point; on one hand use the ladder to remove the bubbles and on the other, use a bamboo clip to stir the center of the tea kettle and pour the amount of green tea powder that one wants into the center of the tea kettle. When the green tea boils very quickly with water splashing out, it is the third boiling point. At that moment, bring back the ladder with the bubbles and pour it into the kettle to prevent the green tea from over-boiling. This will create the green tea soup which can be categorized into foam, cake, and flower.
6. The green tea is then poured into the tea bowl. One has to ensure that there is a balance between the foam and the cake in the tea soup. It will have a pale-yellow appearance.

Now, the number of steps has reduced tremendously and almost no particular tools are needed.

Preparation Method according to the Rickshaw Green Tea Packaging:

1. Put one tea bag in a cup.
2. Pour in fresh boiling water
3. Let the tea stand for 2-3 minutes or brew to taste

Being produced in China, where the source of green tea leaves during the Tang Dynasty is also attained from, Rickshaw Green Tea provides a rather similar pale-yellow appearance. Its taste is likely to be almost identical too.

Access to green tea has also transformed tremendously. In the past, green tea was mostly confined to the locations at the highest elevations like mountains, where Buddhist monasteries are located. To have green tea, one has to have links to Buddhism and travel up to the mountains or have higher statuses like the emperor. Comparatively, Rickshaw Green Tea is widely available in supermarkets across the island and on various online platforms. It is within the proximity of almost everyone.

To compare green tea and Buddhism then and now, there is still a strong connection between both in China. Monks in Buddhist monasteries still consume green tea to aid their enlightenment and many followers of Buddhism from different parts of the world would still visit tea houses in temples of China to seek blessings and attain purity. Green tea is also served as a liquid offering to Buddha and Bodhisattvas in the temples.

However, in other parts of the world like Singapore and Taiwan, tea houses have expanded beyond the aspect of religion to become a platform where people from different statuses can come together to talk to each other, share and discuss the latest news, leisure or even learn more about the Chinese culture.

Green tea has also transformed from a traditional drink during the Tang dynasty to something more commercialized and suited for the different generations in the late 1980s [7]. Some of these beverages include honey green tea, iced green tea latte, and maccha green tea. For the young ‘millennial’ generation, queuing up for tea has become almost a ‘fad’ to be seen with the ‘in crowd’.  It has become ‘trendy’ to be seen with friends and to be able to share knowledge about the beverage.

In conclusion, despite green tea having a long history rooted in the Buddhist religion, we can see how it has increasingly evolved into a beverage consumed across all rungs of society. Depending on locality, the initial characteristic of a tea house has also extended to include other purposes.

Resources:

1. Khan, Naghma, and Hasan Mukhtar. “Tea and Health: Studies in Human.” Curr Pharm Des 19(34) (2013): 6141-6147. Accessed September 14, 2019. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4055352/.
2. Yixing Xuan Teahouse. “The History of Tea in China: Zen Buddhist Tea Ceremony.” Accessed September 14, 2019. https://www.yixingxuan-teahouse.com/history-tea-china/.
3. Sabban, Françoise, and Elborg Forster. “China.” The Cambridge World History of Food. Kiple, Kenneth F. and Kriemhild Coneè Ornelas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. V.B.3: 1165-75. https://www.cambridge.org.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/core/books/cambridge-world-history-of-food/china/6C7996C7EAD454219D3546B4D61DEA55
4. Lu Yu and Zheng Pei Kai. 茶道的开始：茶经Chadao de kaidao: chajing [The Classic of Tea]. Taiwan: Locus Publishing, 2012.
5. Hsing Yun. “Buddhism and the Tea Ceremony.” Translated by Irene Poon. Chinese Buddhist Encyclopedia. Accessed September 15, 2019. http://www.chinabuddhismencyclopedia.com/en/index.php/Buddhism_and_the_Tea_Ceremony.
6. Umi Tea Sets Blog. “The Status of Buddhism in Tea Culture.” Accessed September 15, 2019. https://www.umiteasets.com/blog/the-status-of-buddhism-in-tea-culture.html .
7. Chun Sui Tang. “The Story of Pearl Milk Tea.” Accessed September 16, 2019.  https://chunshuitang.com.tw/  

Additional Resources:

Benn, James A. 2015, “Buddhism and Tea during the Tang Dynasty,” in Tea in China: A Religious and Cultural History, Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 42-71.

Campany, Robert Ford. 2005, ‘The Meanings of Cuisines of Transcendence in Late Classical and Early Medieval China’, T’oung Pao, 91.1-57.

Laudan, Rachel.  “Monks and Monasteries: Buddhism Transforms the Cuisine of China, 200 CE—850 CE,” Cuisine and Empire: Cooking in World History (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2013), Ch. 3: 145-82.