The Ueda Sōko Tradition of chanoyu, or tea ceremony, is a cultural aesthetic practice that originated within the samurai nobility of feudal Japan. The Tradition is commonly called the Ueda Sōko Ryū or Ueda Ryū (Ryū meaning "Tradition" or "School"). The founder from whom the Tradition takes its name was Warring States period warlord Ueda Sōko. The customs, etiquette and values of the samurai are woven throughout all aspects of the tradition's practice of chanoyu, a practice that has continued unbroken for over 400 years.

This website is for Adam Sōmu Wojciński's teaching practice of chanoyu, registered under the name 'Sōmu Shachū' (Sōmu's Troupe) at the home (Iemoto) of the Ueda Sōko School in Hiroshima.

One earns the right to establish a formal teaching practice (shachū) within the Ueda Sōko School after obtaining all formal qualifications from the Grandmaster. Through Sōmu Shachū, you can study towards these same qualifications, and as such, the School is transmitted through generations.

Sōmu Shachū welcomes all people to the study of chanoyu. From absolute beginners, to experienced practitioners of a different School of tea, Adam tailors learning programs to each individual. 

Sōmu Shachū is revolutionary within the Ueda Sōko School in the sense it is the first troupe to open to a global practice, online. Adam's students are located in countries such as Australia, France, Germany, Czech Republic, England, Japan, the U.S.A., Brazil and Argentina. All students share in a dynamic community of tea practitioners across the world. 

Adam teaches both online and conducts periods of intensive training in person in Europe, Australia and Japan. 

Adam Sōmu Wojciński

Adam Sōmu Wojciński is a direct disciple of, and the official English translator for Ueda Sōkei, the 16th Grandmaster of the Ueda Sōko Tradition of Chanoyu. Adam is currently based in Paris.

Adam graduated with Honours in Japanese and Philosophy from the University of Melbourne. He worked as an interpreter, translator and project manager before dedicating his life to tea and art. In 2011 he was awarded the 'Outstanding Achievement in Japanese Art and Culture' award from the Junior Chamber International of Japan. In 2015 he conducted a series of chanoyu gatherings and workshops representing the Japanese Government in Zimbabwe, then again in Ghana in 2016. 

He is the first non-Japanese person to receive a tea name in the Ueda Sōko Tradition. His tea name 'Sōmu 宗夢' links him to Nomura Kyūmu 野村休夢, the first Grand Retainer of Ueda Sōko's teachings of chanoyu.

Adam is head of the Australian Branch of the Ueda Sōko Tradition and teaches globally, with students in Australia, Europe, Japan and North and South America.

He has translated numerous works published by the Ueda Tradition including lectures by Ueda Sōkei, articles by Rinzai Zen priest Itteki Dōjin, genealogies of the Ueda and Asano Clans, samurai class chanoyu history, comparative aesthetics studying Rikyu, Oribe and Sōko, and extensive temae procedures.

Adam is interested in connecting the aesthetic and moral values of chanoyu to the indigenous arts, beliefs and practices of cultures around the world. Through this he aims to deepen the understanding of self, others and the natural world. Adam believes chanoyu should flourish as a global culture that furthers the arts, human understanding and peace. 

Adam features on this Japanese documentary from 30:18 (Japanese):

The Ueda Sōko Tradition of Chanoyu is:

• a warrior class school of chanoyu (tea ceremony) that originated in the Momoyama period (1568-1598). The warlords of this period lived in a ruthless time where the fear of death was present in daily life. The tea of the Momoyama period samurai class is therefore a style of tea that seeks quietude for the mind and strength of spirit

• a warrior class tradition of tea ritual (chanoyu) that continues unbroken from the Momoyama Period of Japan (1573 ~ 1603) to the present day. The current Grandmaster, Ueda Sōkei continues a direct bloodline from Ueda Sōko, the founder of the School

• a tradition where the unique aesthetics of Ueda Sōko can be seen - aesthetics that combine influences from Rikyu’s pursuit of tranquility and Oribe’s pursuit of beauty in change and variation. This result is an aesthetics that values dignity, elegance and contrasts

• the only tradition of Japanese tea ceremony that has restored its headquarters (Iemoto) to the original layout of the Edo Period samurai residence, complete with the tearoom complex ‘Wafūdō’ and shoin reception building. The Ueda school also holds many historical tea equipage, artefacts, and ancient texts with great significance for the history of chanoyu

• a tradition known for the dignified, elegant movements that make up its tea preparation ceremony. This is achieved by composing movements of straight lines, eliminating all unnecessary movements and grounding the movements of the ceremony (temae) in set forms found in sword and archery training. The Tradition emphasises the yin/yang balance in the practitioner which usually results in a more powerful aesthetic for men and a softer aesthetic for women (in line with samurai culture of the Momoyama Period)

• a tradition that emphasises integrating the central nervous system of the body with the breath and utensils during the temae and all procedures in the tea room

• a tradition that emphasises the responsibility of the host - the host must be able to conduct a chaji (full-length tea gathering) on their own without assistance 
  
  For more in-depth information on the characteristics of the Ueda Ryū, follow this link

Sōkei was born in Hiroshima in 1945. He graduated from the Faculty of Economics of Keio University.

Sōkei became the successor of his uncle, 15th Generation Grandmaster Ueda Sōgen and inherited the position of Grandmaster of the Ueda Sōko Tradition of Chanoyu in 1995.

He received the Buddhist name of Sōkei from Harada Shōdō Rōshi, Chief Priest of Sōgen-ji temple, Bizen.

Sōkei has designed and supervised the building of many tea houses in Japan, China and Germany. One of his significant contributions to the history of chanoyu and the Ueda Tradition is his reconstruction of 'Wafūdō', the Ueda Clan tea complex that originally existed on the grounds of Hiroshima Castle before being obliterated in the Atomic Bombing of 1945. The current home of the Ueda Tradition is a faithful and rare recreation of early Edo Period tea culture, thanks to Sōkei's efforts. 

He is the author of ‘The Ueda Sōko Tradition of Chanoyu’ (with Ueda Sōgen, published by Dai-ichi Gakushū-sha), ‘The Tea of Ueda Sōko’ (published by Kōdan-sha) and ‘Go-yudan naki yō’ (Kadokawa Publishing Co.) among other publications.