Grey Teapots Vs. Red Teapots

After writing a bit about teapot feng shui a while ago, I thought I would share some personal experiences with my own teapots and feng shui…

First, I think it’s telling that both of my old red clay (hong ni) yixing teapots have incurred multiple damages.  I used to own 4 teapots- 2 grey & 2 red.  My gray teapots have never sustained any damage what so ever, even after frequent daily use.  My red clay teapots both have had a few injuries, their last resulting in breakage rendering them unusable.  To me, I think the feng shui of these pots is part of the reason some have survived while others have perished!

I have previously posted about the Qi, energy, psychological, and spiritual effects of the colour gray.  Currently, I own and cherish two gray teapots, this gray Kim Kyoung Soo and this gray David Louveau.  I most definitely gravitate towards using these grey pots when I am in a greater state of concentration, meditation, zen, mindfulness, when I am drinking tea alone, or when I am attentively absorbed in a new tea sampling.  I even use the gray pots when I hope to cultivate mindful calmness. 

These days I mainly use my gray teapots to mindfully sample new puerh tea as I feel it increases my focus and strengthens my mind to what is to come.   I also use grey clay pots at work as a reprieve, focus and calm, in my busy work day.  It is no wonder these pots are in great condition!

What is the energy of red?  It is the colour of heat, fire, dynamic action.  I use these pots often in the bustling gong fu brewing of puerh or oolong.  The dynamic morning transition of Yin into Yang, of sleep to awake, can sometimes be intense with a young family.  I choose a teapot that gets us going paired with quick strong and intense gong-fuing sessions.  However, I don’t want this energy to be overzealous so the pot is usually somewhat balanced with a heavier sturdy and rounder form and thicker walls- the Yin within Yang.

When this Yang energy is too much or too intense- carelessness, thoughtlessness, and mindlessness can predispose the teapots to a space where breakage is more likely to occur.  The energy of the pot you select to steep tea in influences your tea session, your mind.  Conversely, your mindset influences the teapot you select.  We should be mindful of this and select the most optimal teapot for gong fu cha.

Peace

A Guide/Advice on Purchasing the Best Teapot Online

Recently after the breakage of two of my only yixing teapots I set out to find some suitable replacements.  I quickly learned that buying a teapot in person is very different than purchasing one online.

Firstly, you cannot accurately see the quality of the teapot online.  Any imperfections that a trained eye can easily spot can be hid or cannot be determined with pictures online.  Also the size of the lid hole, tightness of the lid, any rough clay inside the pot that might cause potential problems, testing of the pour, general thickness of the teapots walls, the weight of the pot, etc, cannot be reliably determined with photos online. 

Obviously, the tactile feeling of the pot also cannot be determined online either.  More importantly, the overall feel of the teapot, its energy, its Qi, the way it feels in your hands and the way it makes you feel cannot be accurately assessed.  For someone who has an eye for, experience with, and a background in such things, buying a teapot online put me out of my comfort zone.

I think it’s always a good idea to first make sense of your tea drinking.  I did this and I think it will help give you a better idea of what exactly your teapot needs are before you go out a buy one.  It should be noted that really you don’t really need a teapot at all.  However, if you hope to practice gong fu cha “skillful tea brewing” and feel like using the brewing vessel as a way to refine your tea steeping skill or feel that the esthetic of a teapot elevates your tea experience, then you might want more than a cup and some loose leaves with a fork as a filter.  But really, it isn’t at all necessary to own a teapot and still enjoy tea.  In many ways adjusting water parameters, leaf to vessel ratios, water temperature, and steeping times will probably give you much more out of your tea leaves for less money.  But to me, I felt that the teapot was a needed esthetic and a convenient necessity.

For me I determined that I need a teapot that:

1-      Would be for drinking tea with my family in the morning

2-      Would be mainly used for and enhance the flavor of aged/ semi-aged sheng puerh which we almost exclusively consume in the morning

3-      Should be of relatively large volume 200-300mL due to the short time period and the higher output our family demands while gong fu steeping in the morning

4-      Should be of durable and study design and feel, preferably with thicker walls (will withstand potential toddler throws)

5-      Should be a functional design and easy to use because it will be used daily

6-      Should exude the feeling and energy of dynamism, action, movement and the Fire Element which matches the energy of the mornings in our house, preferably red clay

7-      Should be of yixing clay

8-      Won’t break the bank

After I determined exactly what I was looking for then I went shopping at some reliable Western puerh vendors.  Browsing online, is the first step if you think you know which pots will improve the tea you hope to steep in the new pot.  I think if you contact the place where you are buying a majority of your tea this is a good logical place to start.  This makes sense because the vendor should ideally have the best teapots to bring out the best in the teas which they sell.  It seems reasonable that this would benefit both vendors and buyers alike.

Here are a few that I would recommend and trust and places that I actually went looking for a teapot.  They are all old bloggers that I have had personal connection to for over 10 years.  They are also dealers that focus on aged and semi aged puerh (on the tea that I will use the pot for).  They are also places where I commonly buy tea as reflected by frequent reviews of their teas on my blog:

Stephane- Teamasters

Stephane has been writing about yixing teapots transmitting knowledge from his teamaster, Teaparker for over a decade now on his blog.  He often helps his patrons chose the best teapotfor the tea they are drinking.  He has anextensive catalogue of yixing pots, many which are quite beautiful and are priced accordingly.

Wilson- Adventure In Every Cup

The title of his blog Travelling Teapot pretty much tips you off that this might be a great spot to look for teapots.  His teapot inventory has dwindled down over the last few years but his knowledge of love of yixing teapots makes Wilson a good person to go to.  I feel his selection of drinker quality semi aged puerh matches closely the tea I would be drinking in my future teapot.

David- The Essence of Tea

The new the Essence of Tea site has by far the best pictures.  It allows you to really zoom in and look at the details of the pot.  He bought up huge amounts of factory 1 yixing pots and quality private commissioned yixing while living in Malaysia.  Its super fun even to just browse at those beautiful shapes and forms.

I actually ended up checking the sites of Yunnan Sourcing and white2tea as well as pretty much all the western vendors I could think of but many of these sites didn’t have anything or very little that met the above criteria.  However, if you reach out by email or message, the vendor that you most frequently purchase from should be able to direct you to a teapot that they feel will work best for the teas they sell.  If they don’t have one that you are looking for they probably will be able to track one down.

Another great place to look is the used market.  Nothing I found met my above criteria but I would have much preferred to buy used and save the money than buy an unused teapot.  That’s just me.

I hope my personal experience in searching for the right yixing teapot online will help any readers to find the right pot for them.  If there are any readers who wish to share any other tips or their experience feel free to do so in the comments below.

So, did I end up buying?  Yes.  I ended up getting two old and beautiful yixing teapots that I feel are the right fit for my teas and tea drinking.  So far, I’m happy with them and feel no need to buy anymore.

Could have I just used an empty cup and a fork to hold in the leaves and gong fu-ed the tea in this make shift, minimalist, gaiwan type of brewing vessel? Yes, it probably would have done the trick just fine.

Could I blindly tell the difference of tea made in one of my yixing pots verses in a mug with a fork strainer?  Who knows, but I certainly hope I’m at that level.

Peace

Harmonizing Patina, Dao of Yixing Care

Humanity rests in the space between Heaven and Earth

Humanity follows the Earth, the Earth follows Heaven, Heaven follows the Dao, and the Dao follows what is natural.

The care of a yixing teapot is really, pretty simple. It is nourished with tea, the Yang, and water, the Yin.  To bring yixing into harmony it requires the touch of man or woman.

Mr. Kim, my teamaster, said that we should only clean yixing with the natural oils found in our hands.  Every day we should rub the pot with our fingers and palms.  This regular contact with the clay is beneficial in my ways.  Firstly, it cleans the pot from tea stain build up and scale.  It is also a way to bring us into a greater understanding of the teapot.  Most importantly, it is the best way for us to harmonize our energy with it.

The use of the teapot with water and tea leaves along with our touch completes the patina of the yixing teapot making it shine brilliantly full of Qi.

In this way our

tea,

water,

and teapot

are in harmony within ourselves.

The Dao.

Peace

See this recent article on Yixing patina by Dead Leaves Tea Club.

Toddler Yixing Teapot Throwing Tantrum

Yesterday,while I was at work, I was given some ominous news.  Apparently, in a tantrum, my toddler climbed up on a stool, to the tea table, grabbed the item with the most emotional reactivity, my new 1990s "fang yuan pai" yixing teapot (seen seasoning in this post here), and threw it at the hardwood floor.  Certainly, my little firecracker knows how to get a reaction out of us... hahahaha

My wife explained to me that the pot didn't break.

I said, "How didn't it break?"

She replied, "I don't know, it must be your lucky day..."

"It didn't break?"

"No"

"Is there any damage to the teapot?"

"You'll have to look at it when you get home from work."

"She threw it at the hardwood floor and it didn't break?"

"You'll have to put away the tea set from now on."

Sure enough, when I got home from work I inspected it over and over and there was no damage at all.  Not even a chip or scratch.  I guess its not that surprising.

One of the criteria I had in replacing my broken yixing pot from a few months ago was that it be of a sturdy and durable form.  I think its already past this test.  Hahaha...

My teamster, Mr. Kim, told me that Yixing pots were made famous when explorers sought them out for their durability.  He said that they were the only teapot that wouldn't crack to pieces when the temperature was near freezing and boiling water was poured into them to make tea.  Although, yixing teapots are not made of steal, for being made of clay, they are incredibly resilient and durable...

Thank God!

Peace

Yin/Yang of Seasoning Yixing

When preparing tea there is Yin and Yang.  Yang is potential energy, the tea leaves.  Yin is nourishing energy, the water.  You cannot separate Yin and Yang.  Without tea leaves and water there is no tea.

When acquiring a new yixing teapot you should always season it first.  What are you seasoning?

You are bringing harmony to the clay.  You are imparting and setting the deep energetics of Yin and Yang into the essence of the teapot.

To season yixing you should use a pot that is not metal.  In this pot you bring fresh spring water to a boil. When the boiling point is reached you reduce to a gentle simmer and gently immerse the teapot in the boiling water. Then you add the tea leaves you will actually use in that new teapot.  Boil it until the water turns dark from the tea leaves, until Yin and Yang are in harmony.  Remove teapot from the tea leaves and water decoction.

If the exact same leaves and water are used in the future in this seasoned teapot, true harmony can be achieved.

When Yin and Yang are in perfect harmony, what is this?

Peace

Teapot Feng Shui

When buying a teapot I think very few people in the West think about feng shui.  When I look at the blogs and photos online I think Westerners buy a teapot because they like the way it looks or they hope that it will bring out the best in their tea.  Of course, these are very very important considerations when purchasing a teapot. I think a third consideration should be feng shui.  At least, it has always been important for myself. 

It’s true that a teapot should be in the esthetic of the person making tea and should have a feeling of being authentic for them.  It should be selected to bring out a certain quality in the tea.  Never will one pot be the best pot for all tea or all puerh tea or for every individual or every tea setting or for every guest just like one type of storage will not be optimal for every variety of puerh.  So choosing to use a certain pot or purchase a certain teapot should take this into consideration.

“Feng Shui”, in very general terms, is the placement of objects in an environment to impart a certain energy.  Throw out your images and preconceptions about what the term “feng shui” means to you and think about this very simple idea of feng shui.  When it comes to preparing tea, when pertaining to the teapot, these elements of feng shui should be considered…

The energy of the tea space in general.  What spaces do you use to prepare tea?  Is it just in one room or in different rooms and spaces?  At work and at home?  Will you use the teapot in just one of these spaces or move it into others?  What direction is the space? How is the light in the space?  What is the energy in that space like? What is the feeling of the tea area?  Is it a lively, active, or busy room or space- full of Yang?  Is it shared with many people or does it get lots of traffic?  Or is a quiet, relaxing, tranquil space, meditative space- full of Yin?

The energy, choice of implements, and arrangement of the tea setting.  Almost all of the above questions can be asked about the actual microcosmic environment or space of the tea setting.  What is around and on the tea table?  Are the implements arranged on the table in a certain logical order that follows the natural movements of preparing tea and/or serving tea?  Do the implements and teawears harmonize with each other or do they create a clash of energy, styles, feelings?  Does the volume and proportion of the teapot, cups, serving picture make sense or is one too big or two small? Is there deliberate choice behind the tea implements or is it just random?

The teapot shape, form, energy, and colour. After you have answered these questions for both the tea space and tea setting you can ask: How do you wish to influence, change or harness the energy in this space with your teapot or tea setting?  Do you want to increase a certain energy or mood or decrease it? Or harmonize with it? How do you wish to harmonize the Yin and Yang in your tea space?  The teapot is arguably the centre of the tea setting and tea space. So how will it influence this energy?

…If you wish to impart more Yin nature you should consider a darker colored and more neural clay or glaze.  Gray, purple, or dark colored clays are more Yin. The pot many contain phrases written on it that are passive or contemplative. If you want to harness more Yin you may also look for a pot with more feminine form, a rounder form, softer lines, and with a shorter spout.  The pot should look soft, smooth, and relaxing.

…If you wish to impart more Yang nature you should consider a brighter, richer, vibrant colored clay or glaze.  Red, green, blue and colorful clays are more yang.  The pot may contain phrases written on it that mention movement or transition in nature.  If you want to harness more Yang you may also look for a pot with a strong masculine form with stronger lines and more pronounced handle, lid, and spout.  The pot should embody dynamism, activity, and action.

Or a teapot that is a balance of Yin/Yang with both of these elements from Yin and Yang to create a certain balance within the pot itself.  Brown or Yellow clays tend to also do this.

Harmony with the seasonal change.  How does the teapot influence the seasonal energy?  Does you pot harmonize with the season? Or does it balance the extremes of seasonal weather, colors, and scenery/ esthetic (such as using warming colors in winter).

Energy of guests or solitary arrangement.  How does the teapot influence the feeling you are trying to impart to your guests?  Does it harmonize with the energy of your tea gathering?  Or does it attempt to balance the mood?  Perhaps the teapot attempts to cultivate a certain energy that is lacking?  If the teapot is used mainly for solitary tea steeping then maybe it attempts to balance/harmonize one’s own energy?

Balancing practical considerations with Feng Shui.  Of course there are practical implications for choosing a teapot.  Maybe you only have one or two teapots.  Or maybe a certain teapot really brings out a certain quality in your tea but goes against many of the points above.  Or maybe you are transitioning your tea space, tea setting, tea table to a different esthetic…

Or maybe you have just never put too much thought into any of this…

Maybe you will now (or maybe not)?

Peace

A Minimalist’s Teapot Tally

Readers of this blog will know that I have been having a bit of a teapot shortage lately (here and here).  I stated in a recent post that I actually own very few teapots despite a deep appreciation of them and significant immersion in learning about them in Korea.

Below is my grand tally of all the teapots I own…

Currently, I only have two working teapots:

I have this grey one from David Louveau that is aging gorgeously with use.  It is quite a small pot maybe around 100ML and I use it mainly for puerh or any sample or tea that requires such a size.  At first, I was a bit critical of this pot but only in use has its true nature been revealed.  This pot was gifted to me by the potter himself and so is naturally very special to me.  Currently, this pot sits at work for the very rare instance I have time for a gong fu session throughout the day.  I love this pot.

The other is this teapot from Korean master potter Kim Kyoung Soo, it is also grey.  This pot is a Korean masterpiece and I usually only use it for Korean tea.  It is quite wondrous and out of all the pots I came across in Korea, I am happy to have this one.  That speaks volumes considering that I was immersed in 1000s of them at that time.  I have it at home but steeping puerh in it, which I have reluctantly done lately doesn’t feel right.

I used to have a cheap Shui Ping red clay Yixing teapot that I purchased in China.  It is a modern pot of simple craftsmanship that could hold about little over 150-200ML I think.  I used this pot at home for puerh.  I had dropped it on my Korean ceramic Kim Kyoung Soo tea table and cracked the lid in half a few years ago but it was a simple break and I would easily still use it. A few months back I was trying to unclog the golf ball filter with a tooth pick and it broke off a sizable chunk of the filter.  After that the uneven jagged filter became a serious problem because it would easily catch tealeaves and clog after every use and would be very hard to unclog.  The back pressure would cause the lid to pop off.  One day I just tossed it- it was a lost cause.  Its undoing was my fault and I had the David Louveau pot above of similar size so I didn’t bother to replace it.

My family and I steeped puerh daily in my big “Gum Sa Do Yae” Zen 250ML pot, a gift from my teamaster, until its recent demise.  I have posted an appreciation of this beautiful zen tea pot before.

That’s it!  Just these two… that is definitely teapot minimalism!

 I have used the gray Kim Kyoung Soo teapot over the last little while (here and here) to brew old aged puerh but I really feel like it is not doing the aged puerh justice so I have decided to look for a replacement for this beloved pot.

These days, in our house, we are using an old metal tea strainer and immersing the puerh tea completely into large cups before pulling out the strainer with a fork… I never thought it would come to that, but that is exactly how we drank some of the 2006 Mengku Arbour King Brick this morning and some 1990s aged Bulang a few days ago!

In a way, I feel like this is more authentic in a minimal sort of way.  If there are any readers out there who steep puerh with a teacup strainer basket- you are my hero.

Peace

Teapot Collector Vs. Teapot User

After my recent teapot breakage I have been meditating on the whole concept of teapots.  Although I have written a ton on such things (see here and here), I feel that I have much more to say about teawares.  Please reader, join me in a series of posts that look at the beloved teapot…

To me the teapot is both an object of art in and of itself and an indispensable element in the greater art of tea.  The later could either be as the performance art of tea ceremony or in the skillful art of preparing tea or “gong fu cha”.

If you see the teapot as only an object of art then it serves no actual practical purpose other than that of art itself.  If you like to collect this type of art and display it- that’s fine by me because I also enjoy looking.  However, to me, the real art of the teapot is in its use.

The teapot is 3-D, three dimensional, because it is sculpture.  To view a teapot in a photo or on a screen is to not do it any justice.  When appreciating sculpture you have to see it at different vantage points to truly appreciate it.

The teapot is also functional art in that it serves a purpose- to make tea.  Historically, it was made for this purpose and because tea holds an important part in many societies- its make was both practical and for appreciation.  This appreciation developed into an art.  In actually using the teapot to make tea, we can we also appreciate its art on a deeper level by picking it up and appreciating its texture, its weight, the sound its lid makes when closing it, the sound hot water makes when filling it, the sight of its pour.

However, only by making tea in ceremony or, alternatively, by brewing gong fu cha (with great skill) can we reach the deepest level of appreciation.  At this level the teapot is only a smaller part of the art of preparing tea.  Its selection, to improve the tea steeping esthetic as well as to improve that particular tea which you intend to steep.  Basically, you are selecting that teapot because you think it will improve the taste or bring out a certain desirable quality in a certain type of tea.  The selection of a certain teapot also should be in harmony with, the guests, season, other teawear, the environment, the person preparing the tea, and in the esthetic of the guests you are serving.  It is at this level where art emulates life.  And life is tea.

I suppose, issues of art aside, there is also the financial part of this as well.  An old unused teapot can command very high prices these days.  I’m currently finding the price of quality yixing has gone through the roof lately, mirroring the price of puerh.  Part of this is art collecting, part of this is increasing interest in puerh, part of this is in speculation, part is that old items are just being valued at the same price of a new pot of similar quality.

On the other hand, to actually use the teapot is essentially devaluing it.  Risk of breakage increases.  For me, using it with a bunch of small children around, breakage is an almost certainty.  I think some teapot collectors out there might have groaned when they saw that last pot of mine busted up.  However, I think it was definitely the teapot users out there who could identify with this inevitable situation most.

It goes without saying that I am in the puerh drinker and teapot user categories.

Peace

Broken Luck or Lucky Broken?

It’s always a bit awkward when someone breaks one of your most valuable teawares right in front of you.  Sigh….

This happened just this morning.  But I have been mentally preparing for this momentary blip for the last few months and years.  So, I think am okay with it.

I am of the philosophy that you should use and fully enjoy your best teawear every day.  The Art of Tea is a living art, a daily skill, a performance, a meditation.  It would be a greater shame, I think, to have died and not exhaustively used and enjoyed such a pot.  Because if it had just sat in a china cabinet or worst in a drawer how could you have enjoyed it to its fullest?  Would you be more happy being buried with it?  Or it being boxed up and sent to a thrift shop?  Or inherited to someone who is incapable of such appreciation?

And man, have I ever enjoyed this big one.  Look at its patina, luminescent like the sunset.  You can’t put a price on a patina like that… just beaming radiance!  Unfortunately, I no longer have the financial expeditiousness nor means to replace such things.  I think it might surprise some readers that because of my minimalist view point, I actually own very very few tea pots.

It had a good “Last Supper” at least.  It was filled full of Yang Qing Hao… If I was a teapot, I think that’s the way I would want to go… hahaha

Well, the last two weeks I have had horrible, horrible tea luck.  I have had developed an allergy to only a select yummy teas, had some sell out just before purchase, and now this.  There is a saying that bad luck comes in 3s so hopefully it’s up and up from here.  I think I have needed something to bring me down, to humble myself, in the tea world lately.  Don’t you think?

But really, if these are my tea problems, then I actually consider myself quite lucky.

I have made the decision that I would rather have my tea table accessible to my very very young children and enjoyed communally, as a family.  Then to have things tucked away, off limits, exclusive.  Sharing tea with my family, the properly delicious gongfu way, has brought me more joy than this very very expensive teapot.

I had always thought one of the little ones would smash it by pulling the teatable on to the ground or by picking it up and dropping it or throwing it.  Would have never thought the very pregnant member of the family would find it too uncomfortable to bend over the teatable so as to pour the tea out of the pot while standing over the hundred year old hardwood floor not the bamboo tea table.

When the lid hit the ground there was an awkward, “I’m sorry!”

But my reply was, “It’s Okay. Really, it’s Okay.”

Peace

Appreciation of an Unglazed Grey Teapot by David Louveau and Commentary on Imperfect Beauty

If there is any potter outside of Korea who best embodies the spirit of the Korean potter, perhaps David Louveau could be that potter. Some of his works mirror closely his mentor and Korean master potter, Sel Young Jin. David Louveau fires his pieces in a wood kiln the traditional way, the way of nature, the Korean way. Although David's works are beautiful, they are still a far distance from his master. From a distance his works could certainly be mistaken for Sel Young Jin's.

It is hard to judge imperfect beauty- When is imperfection imperfect and when is it beautiful? This post delves deeper into this question by close examination of a small unglazed teapot which was kindly gifted about one year ago by David Louveau. As you can see it has seen its fair share of use over the past year...














The form of this pot mirrors closely the style of Sel Young Jin. It is nicely porportioned with its sout body that is slightly pulled by outstretching spout and handle. The handle is more thick at the top then tapers down, another characteristic of Sel Young Jin's pots. Of particular beauty is the rugged, cracked finish of the clay here. It creates a subtle texture in the fingers which imparts a nice natural ambiance when pouring. These imperfections make a pot beautiful, so natural. The small almost unnoticeable scratch into the clay surface on the lid is one such beauty mark, giving the pot a certain personality.
















The unglazed finish is perhaps the most noticeable quality of this pot. New, the pot looked to crude and sharp but with many uses the oil from the tea has given it a soft, natural, rustic look which cannot be faked. Only from a good year of use can this look and feel be achieved. The oils and water stains cling to the crevices and edges and create an effect as if the pot is dull but glowing.

Unfortunately, it also brings out the aspects of the pot that are too crude and unfinished, which create a certain harshness that cannot be classified as beautiful. These characteristics are not found on master's pots and are an over exaggeration of crudeness, a lack of tasteful subtly, an overly deliberate attempt at imperfect beauty, or a lack of overall refinement or skill of the potter. On this teapot they are small and quite unnoticeable to the untrained eye but nevertheless they are there. These exaggerated characteristics can reveal the thin line of what defines a potter as a master or a student. There are three aspects of this pot which lack this refinement. And only for the sake of learning, shall one point them out.





















First, the attachment of the spout and handle to the pots body is too crude and sloppy. The edges are too sharp and defined where they should be more smooth, naturally transitioning and creating harmony, creating a continuity, a whole, from these separate parts. The spout even shows borders of where the scraping to fuse the parts took place and looks unfinished.






Second, the perforated holes inside the pots spout are rough and unfinished. These are usually sanded down in most pots to create harmony and subtly.












Third the chop on the bottom of the pot is very crude and a bit off-putting. Usually calligraphy or a stamp is used which acts harmoniously with the pot, however this pot has etched quality that seems a bit sloppy and distracting.

With all of this said, one must recant. Overall, this pot is a beauty, its use is a testament of this. Think if one were to purchase a pot in the Korean style but did not wish to pay hundreds of dollars, a pot from David Louveau would be a perfect (or an imperfectly perfect) choice.

Peace

Appreciation & Wear of Kim Kyoung Soo's Grey and White Style: Three Cups

Hot water passes from the serving pot and into the cups to warm them. Its stream contact the bottom of the cup- the water poured from a short distance echos peace. The cups are each filled 1/3 with water and left until they become warm. They are purposefully picked up with the right hand and brought to the dan tian where they symbolically contact the purity of the white hemp cleaning cloth held in the left hand. The hot water is slowly tilted towards the distant edge of the cup and then slowly angled clockwise around the lip of the cup. This clockwise direction indicates a filling of the cup with energy and creating energetic space for the tea which will so arrive here. Obviously, it is also done to warm the full inside surface area of each cup.

The hot water is then poured into the dirty water bowl, the small bead of water is wiped away with the pure white hemp cloth, and the cup makes its way back on to the table. This exact routine is now completed with the other two cups.

When the tea is prepared and poured into the serving pot from the teapot it makes its way into the cup closest and furthest left to the person preparing tea. The sound of the tea hitting the empty, warm cups now sound even more peaceful than just minutes later. The tea is poured from a short distance from each cup creating a sound that resembles a trickling stream. Pouring too fast, this sound and feeling is lost and a hurried feeling is added to the tea room. Pouring too slow, this sound and feeling is also lost and a stagnant over-restrained feeling is added to the tea room.

Half of the first cup is poured, then half of the second cup, the cup above or to the immediate right of the first cup, then the third cup is fully filled, the second cup is then topped up, then the first topped up. A few small bubbles float softly on the surface of the liquid.

The white of the inside of the cup represents the purity or reverence that we show to the tea- it the surface contacting the tea. It is the purity and peace which we all strive for while drinking tea, the peace inside us. In the ChaSinJeon white cups are best for drinking tea so that the full colour of tea can be fully appreciated. The inside of each cup is crackled and stained from the tea oils, each also has small air holes. This is each cup's fingerprint, its impression on us, on our tea experience.

It is glazed with a simple grey fieldspar glaze on the outside representing the modesty we should project outwardly when enjoying tea. Each cup has the pictograph of a moon, a yin symbol. The functions of cups are too hold, a yin function. Reminding us of our inner nature and quietude as we sip from its insides.

Peace

Appreciation & Wear of Kim Kyoung Soo's Grey and White Style: The Serving Pot

Hot water gets passed from the cooling bowl to the teapot, from the teapot to the serving pot, then from the serving pot to the cups. After the serving pot is preheated and the tea steeped, the serving pot is the first to receive the gift of infused tea from the teapot. It is the first to receive and the first to give. It reminds us that the tea ceremony is about giving and receiving- about host serving guest.

The serving pot contains the same yin and yang motifs as the cooling bowl and tea pot. Its most noticeable feature is its shape and form.The shape and form of this grey and white Kim Kyoung Soo serving pot reflects both its practical and energetic function.

Warm infused tea passes from the spout of the teapot and through the relatively narrow collar of the serving pot. This opening at the top of the serving pot is a bit smaller than the opening of the cooling pot. The smaller opening is to retain the heat and the qi of the infused tea. The serving pot also has a more distinct bulbous interior than the more open interior of the cooling pot. This more bulbous shape acts to amplify the sound of the pour and give it more of a beautiful echoing reverberation- a feeling of closeness, of being grounded and held, a feeling of safety. More importantly this deeper bulbous shape acts to contain the warmth and qi (taste and smell) of the tea inside. It also reminds us that host should always retain warmth and feeling in every tea meeting.

There is beautiful contrast from the wear of this Kim Kyoung Soo serving pot. The inside of the pot was once as white and pure as the cooling bowl. Now only the crackled top collared rim shows evidence of what was. The choice to leave it covered in tea oil obscuring its pure white inside is simply to not remove qi that has accumulated from all the green tea that has passed through this vessel manifesting as this brown, terracotta coloured layer. Some feel that the presentation of purity to the guest is more important than accumulation of qi- you will see both in Korea.

The most stunning feature of this interior is no doubt the contrasting white flecks on the interior's bottom. These were made by a guest who doubted that there would be white under the thick coat of tea oils. They scraped their finger nail on the bottom of this serving pot, only when the white ceramic was exposed did they believe that such drastic change had taken place. These exposed white flecks remind one to experience that which is beyond the senses when enjoying tea poured from this serving pot.

The form of this pot looks as if it is reaching, stretching from handle to spout a little bit. This represents the relationship between the person preparing tea and their guests. On one end, the maker of the tea has his hand around the looped handle. This looped handle is almost identical to that of the teapot. It too contains ghostly faint, cloud-like globs of glaze.

On the other end is a long reaching spout. It is a bit longer than that of the teapot. It truly gives the impression of stretching from host to guest- of reaching out, of touching with warmth, with tea.

The tea oiled insides interconnect with the oil stains that descend down the exterior of the pot. They reaching down the long spout connecting almost flawlessly to the exposed clay of the pot's base. What is inside is out and what is out is inside. The green tea within connecting with Earth, with the host, with the guest.

Peace

Appreciation & Wear of Kim Kyoung Soo's Grey and White Style: The Teapot

Hot water passes from the cooling bowl into the empty teapot to warm it, preparing it for leaves. Water rests in there briefly then is poured into the serving pot. The leaves are then added and, in time, cooled water embraces these leaves...

The knob of the lid feels glossy and smooth between the fingers. The side walls of the lid show the wear of the original clay and its constant interaction with liquid tea which has approached to close to the rim of the teapot.

The form of this grey and white teapot is simple enough not to be pretentious. The comfortable flat looped handle on the far end feels like shaking an old friends hand. It hugs one's slightly large fingers nicely. A cloudy white blotch adorns the handle. It acts to remind those preparing tea of the light hand, like that of a floating cloud, required to make a good pot of tea. Where the handle connects with the body of the pot there is some slight staining contrasting the white cloudy blotch nicely. Underneath the handle rests a somewhat hidden chop of Kim Kyoung Soo- the only one on this piece.

The spout at the other end of the pot sufficiently balances the handle, if not stretching your vision more to that end anyways. This slight emphasis is deliberate as energetics and concentration flow out this spout along with freshly infused tea liquor. The end of the spout is ridged so as to liberate the last drops of tea from the teapot- a patient but necessary moment in every pour. Done to ensure that no water is left over the delicate tea leaves.

The most stunning aspect of this pot's wear is the rustic-earthy staining that has occurred from the last drips of tea clinging to this spout, refusing to depart from its home. It forms an orange-brown stripe that makes its way from the tip to the exposed clay circle at the bottom of the pot's base. Its raw nature is appreciated. The exposed clay is at the very bottom of this pot, grounding it- a reminder of the earth it has come from.

The sides of the pot sport the ancient pictographs for moon and wind, yin and yang. These pictographs balance and remind us of the connection of nature to the process of steeping tea. The shinny grey sides of the pot are marked with some beautiful dimpling allowing the pot to take an extra deep breath while holding tea leaves and warm water inside. There is noted staining around the pots rim as well.

Peaking inside the pot, you can see a large white blob of glaze- the most bold marking on the pot. It is left for the leaves and water to enjoy or perhaps the keen and patient observer before and after the tea has been prepared. The crackling of the white blob is a measure of all the tea that has passed through this pot, passed through this mind.

Peace