Tea Tales by Kuwata Tadachika 茶道逸話 桑田忠親
#54 - A Warning About Copying Others
For a kuchi-kiri tea gathering one year, Rikyu used an old, rounded kettle with great success. The Seven Daisu Masters were in attendance for this particular gathering. They took a keen interest in the kettle, enquiring about the particulars of its make and provenance while enjoying its beauty. Soon after this gathering, one of the Seven Daisu Masters hosted another event. At this tea gathering the host chose a kettle that bear strong resemblance to the ball-shaped kettle Rikyu used on the previous occasion. Rikyu was in attendance and remarked: “The aesthetic choices of you lot are as clear as the water in the mizusashi. If another chajin uses a round kettle, one would be wise to use a square kettle. This round kettle looks like the one I used the other day. The significance of such a choice has therefore been and gone, and there’s nothing original here for our amusement.”
- From the Sawa-shigetsu-shū by Kusumi Soan (1636 - 1728)
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A pdf download of the above article, including more detailed information in footnotes and the original Japanese is available at my Patreon.
- Adam Wojciński, Paris
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