The Chinese tea ceremony

Tea ceremony is a kind of life etiquette mediated by tea, which is also considered as a way to cultivate one's character. It promotes friendship, cultivates morality and learns etiquette by making, appreciating and drinking tea, which is a very beneficial and beautiful ceremony. The tea ceremony originated in China. The fried tea ceremony in Japan and the tea brewing ceremony in Taiwan are both derived from Congou tea in Chaozhou, Guangdong, China. [1] At least in the Tang Dynasty or before the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese first regarded tea drinking as a way to cultivate one's self and character. It was recorded in the book Feng Shi Wen Jian in the Tang Dynasty that "the tea ceremony was a great event, and all princes and nobles drank it". This is the earliest surviving document of the tea ceremony. Tea parties were a popular social activity at that time. Tang Luwen described the elegant atmosphere of the tea banquet and the wonderful charm of tea tasting in Preface to the Third Day of March. In the Tang and Song dynasties, people paid great attention to the tea drinking process, such as the environment, etiquette and operation mode. With some established rules and rituals, tea banquet has been divided into palace tea banquet, temple tea banquet and literati tea banquet. Wang Xinjian, a writer, also had a profound understanding of the role of tea drinking in moral cultivation. In his poem Ode to Tea Leaves, he said: "Thousands of selections are made among the white clouds, and a copper pot is burned and firewood is fried." The clay pot is mellow and poetic, and the porcelain cup is green and full of sorrow and joy. Laodan understands the road to raise elegant Zhi, Yuan Liang talk to dispel common noise. How can we preserve a piece of fresh origin without passing through Nirvana?

Emperor Zhao Ji of the Song Dynasty is a lover of tea drinking. He believes that the fragrance of tea can make people relaxed and quiet and interesting: "If tea is a thing, it is good at the elegance of Ou Min, the spirit of Zhong Shan and rivers, removing the front and cleaning the slack, and leading to the purity and harmony, no ordinary people can know it. Pale and pure, high and serene......" Philosophy, ethics and morality are integrated into the tea activities. Through drinking tea, one can cultivate one's character, taste one's life, and achieve spiritual enjoyment. So far, the most high-end tea ceremony service in China is provided by the Yunquan of Ming Quan Post with original ecological spring water. Such service is close to luxury, which is also the highest level of tea ceremony.

Chinese tea ceremony shows the essence of Confucianism

Confucianism, represented by Confucius and Meng, vigorously advocated the principle of "ren", that is, the loyalty and forgiveness of lovers. At the same time, it emphasized that the practice of "ren" should be regulated by "rites", advocated the rule of virtue and enlightenment, and opposed harsh government and arbitrary punishment and killing. It also has a governing philosophy of "not suffering from inequality due to oligopoly, not suffering from poverty due to insecurity". These thoughts gave rise to the Confucian ideological and cultural system with the doctrine of the mean as the core, and formed the Oriental cultural circle which has influenced human culture for thousands of years. Nowadays, Chinese people all over the world, Chinese people, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asian countries all seek the truth from Confucianism. The Chinese tea ceremony also embodies the Confucian spirit of moderation, kindness, respect, frugality and accommodation, and incorporates the great philosophy of self-cultivation, family harmony, governance and world peace into the daily life of drinking tea.

Compared with the vast universe and the magical space, the space for human survival is too small. With the growth of the world population and the progress of industrial technology, contradictions and conflicts between human and nature continue to occur. When seeking solutions to the contradictions and conflicts between human beings, Oriental people are mostly guided by the doctrine of the mean of Confucianism, and they are sober, rational, peaceful, communicate with each other and understand each other. In solving the conflict between man and nature, it emphasizes "unity of nature and man" and "coordination of the five elements". These Confucian thoughts are fully reflected in Chinese tea customs. Historically, Sichuan teahouses had an important function, which was to mediate disputes. In old China, where the legal system was not sound enough, the local prestige patriarchs, gentry and highly respected cultural people often mediated, which in Sichuan is called "eating tea". The place of mediation is in the teahouse. Interestingly, the person who presented, argued, and finally paid for the tea. If they won or lost, they each paid half of the tea. This custom of "eating tea and judging" was extended to the whole country.

According to mechanical materialism, fire and water are incompatible. However, Zhouyi, which is regarded as the first of the Five Classics by the Confucians, holds that the complete divergence of fire and water is "Weiji", which means that nothing can be done. The combination of fire and water is the condition of success, called "Jiji" gua. Based on this theory, Lu Yu, a tea saint, created an eight-trigrams tea cooking stove, using the three hexagrams in the Book of Changes: Kan, Li and Xun to illustrate the principle of natural harmony involved in tea cooking. This is because "kan" means water in the eight diagrams, "Xun" means wind, and "away" means fire in the eight diagrams. There are three Spaces between the three legs of the wind furnace, and three squares in the furnace, one of which is written "Zhai" (fire bird) and draws the shape of the hexagrams "Depart"; A grid book "kan", drawing kan hexagrams pattern; Another lattice book "Biao" (wind beast) to Sunda Gua. The general meaning is that wind generates fire, and fire can boil water. On the foot of the stove, it is written: "On the top of the sun, under the middle, the body is five elements to a hundred diseases." Chinese tea ceremony here embodies Confucianism incisively and vividly.

In addition, Confucianism holds that heaven, earth and humanity coexist in harmony with emotional rational groups. "There is no difference in the use of the body", "the body is not higher than the use of", "the way is in the ethical daily necessities, industry and commerce farming", in the endless movement of nature, people have hardships, also have happiness, everything is natural, sincere to life, do not have to transcend time and space to pursue the immortality of the soul, "reflexives and sincere, happiness is greater than anything". That is to say, in harmony with nature, in harmony with nature, and in harmony with nature, you can find happiness in your daily life, and reach the extreme of life. The fresh, natural, philosophical, enthusiastic and tolerant spirit in Chinese tea culture is the clearest, full, objective and practical expression of Confucianism.

According to the production method, Chinese tea can be divided into green tea, black tea, green tea, black tea, white tea, yellow tea, etc., and various kinds of tea include many varieties [1].

Green tea

Green tea belongs to "non-fermented tea". Its quality features are clear green leaves, beautiful shape, fragrant color and mellow taste.

Classification of green tea: stir-fried green tea - long stir-fried green tea (eyebrow tea, etc.), round stir-fried green tea (pearl tea, etc.), flat stir-fried green tea (West Lake Longjing, etc.);

Baked green tea -- ordinary baked green tea (Minnan, Zhejiang, etc.), delicate baked green tea (Huangshan Maofeng, Taiping Houkui, etc.);

Steamed green tea - fried tea, Enshi rain dew, etc.;

Sun green tea - Yunnan green, Sichuan green, Shaanxi green, etc.

Famous green tea varieties include West Lake Longjing tea from Hangzhou, Biluochun tea from Jiangsu, emerald tea from Guizhou, Xinyang Maojian tea from Henan, Maofeng tea from Huangshan in Anhui, and Lu 'an Guapian tea produced around Lu 'an City in Anhui.

Black tea

Black tea is a "fully fermented" tea, characterized by red soup and red leaves, sweet and mellow taste. The origin of black tea in the world is mainly China, Sri Lanka, India, Kenya and so on.

Unlike green tea, which ages and loses its flavor over time, black tea can be stored for a long time, making it suitable for long distance transportation and export.

But Black Tea is created as "Black Tea", so it is called "black tea", not "Red Tea".

Classification of black tea: Souchong Black tea -- Lapsang Souchong, Waishan Souchong, etc.;

Congou tea -- Dian Red Congou, ruby tea, Sichuan Red Congou, Qi Red Congou, single black tea Congou, etc.

Red tea - leaf tea, slice tea, crushed tea, etc.

Famous black teas in China include Zheng Shan Souchong and Jin Junmei in Wuyi Mountain, Qi Black tea in Anhui Province, Yunnan red tea in Yunnan Province and Shan Cong Black tea in China.

Green tea

Green tea, also called oolong tea, belongs to "semi-fermented tea". Oolong tea is a kind of tea between green tea and black tea, which has the characteristics of two kinds of tea. The shape of the green tea rope is stout, the color is green gray and there is light, the tea soup is golden, the aroma is fragrant and fragrant, the flowers are obvious, and the bottom of the leaf is rimming with red green leaves.

Classification of oolong tea: Guangdong Oolong -- Phoenix single cluster, leading single cluster, etc.

Minnan Oolong -- Tieguanyin, Golden Cinnamon, Benshan, hairy crab, Tan Ping Narcissus, White Ya Qilan, etc.

Oolong in northern Fujian -- Wuyi Da Hong Pao, Wuyi Cinnamon, Wuyi Narcissus, etc.

Taiwan Oolong -- Dongding Oolong, Alishan Oolong, Baihao Oolong (Oriental beauty), Wenshan Baozong, etc.

Among them, Phoenix Single plexus is the highest quality tea with high fragrance in the oolong tea family.

Dark tea

Black tea belongs to "post-fermented tea", which is unique to China. It is mainly produced in Yunnan, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Guangxi and other places, among which Yunnan's Pu 'er tea has long been famous at home and abroad. Black tea color black brown, coarse old, heavy smell, often used as a raw material for pressing tea. Since dark tea is post-fermented tea, the longer it is stored, the more mellow its taste. Soup color orange to dark brown, with pine smoke.

Classification of dark tea: Hunan dark tea -- Anhua Black brick, Fu Brick tea, Gan Liang tea, etc.

Hubei old green tea -- Zhaoliqiao Green brick tea, Chongyang Old green tea, etc.;

Sichuan border tea -- South Roadside tea and West Roadside tea, etc.;

Yunnan dark tea - collectively known as Pu 'er tea, Pu 'er tea is often listed as a separate tea series;

Guangxi Black tea - Guangxi Liubao tea

White tea

White tea, a "slightly fermented tea" covered with white Fuzz, is a special treasure among Chinese teas, produced mainly in Fuding, Fujian Province. Zhenghe, Songxi and Jianyang. White tea has a saying that "one year is tea, three years is medicine, and seven years is treasure".

White tea can be divided into bud tea and leaf tea due to different standards of tea tree variety and raw materials (fresh leaves) picking: those made from single bud are called "silver needle", those made from leaves are called "Shou mei", and those made from all buds and leaves are called "white peony". Its silver color, bud head fat, soup color yellow bright, taste fresh alcohol, leaf bottom tender even.

Classification of white tea: bud tea - pekoe silver needle

Leaf tea - white peony, longevity eyebrow, etc.

Yellow tea

Yellow tea belongs to "slightly fermented tea", which is characterized by "yellow soup and yellow leaves" due to the special "dull yellow" technology used in its production. The production of yellow tea is small, and it is mainly produced in Junshan of Hunan Province, Jinzhai of Anhui Province, Mengshan of Sichuan Province and Pingyang of Zhejiang Province. Most buds and leaves of yellow tea are tender and delicate.

Classification of yellow tea: Huangda tea is made by picking one bud, two or three leaves or even four or five leaves of one bud, mainly including Huoshan Huangda Tea and Guangdong Da Tea

Ye Qing et al.

Yellow tea - is picked and processed from fine bud leaves, mainly Wei Mountain Maojian, Beigang Maojian, Pingyang Huang Tang, etc.

Yellow bud tea -- it is made by picking tender single bud or one bud and one leaf as raw materials, mainly including Junshan silver needle, Mengding yellow bud,

Huoshan yellow bud, etc.

Flower tea

Flower tea, also known as scenting flower tea, scented tea, etc., is a kind of tea and floral composition and scenting, so that tea is made of reprocessing tea. Flower tea can be divided into jasmine tea, pearl orchid tea, magnolia tea, rose tea and so on because of the different scented flowers used in scenting.

Classification of flower tea: scenting flower tea - With black tea, green tea or oolong tea as tea cast with fragrant flowers as raw materials, the process of scenting flower tea is adopted

Tea made from craft, such as jasmine tea, osmanthus tea, among which jasmine tea is the most representative.

Craft flower tea - Tea leaves and dried flowers are hand-bundled and then dried to make the shape of flowers, its biggest feature is boiling water brewing

After, such as blooming flowers, varied, smart and beautiful, very beautiful.