Kakuzō Okakura

The Book of Tea

Okakura Kakuzo

Now available in a gorgeous hardcover slipcase edition, this "object d'art" will be sure to add grace and elegance to tea shelves, coffee tables and bookshelves. A keepsake enjoyed by tea lovers for over a hundred years, The Book of Tea Classic Edition will enhance your enjoyment and understanding of the seemingly simple act of making and drinking tea. In 1906 in turn-of-the century Boston, a small, esoteric book about tea was written with the intention of being read aloud in the famous salon of Isabella Gardner, Boston's most famous socialite. It was authored by Okakura Kakuzo, a Japanese philosopher, art expert, and curator. Little known at the time, Kakuzo would emerge as one of the great thinkers of the early 20th century, a genius who was insightful, witty—and greatly responsible for bridging Western and Eastern cultures. Okakura had been taught at a young age to speak English and was more than capable of expressing to Westerners the nuances of tea and the Japanese Tea Ceremony. In The Book of Tea Classic Edition he discusses such topics as Zen and Taoism, but also the secular aspects of tea and Japanese life. The book emphasizes how Teaism taught the Japanese many things; most importantly, simplicity. Kakuzo argues that tea-induced simplicity affected the culture, art and architecture of Japan. Nearly a century later, Kakuzo's The Book of Tea Classic Edition is still beloved the world over, making it an essential part of any tea enthusiast's collection. Interwoven with a rich history of Japanese tea and its place in Japanese society is poignant commentary on Asian culture and our ongoing fascination with it, as well as illuminating essays on art, spirituality, poetry, and more. The Book of Tea Classic Edition is a delightful cup of enlightenment from a man far ahead of his time.

The Book of Tea Classic Edition

smilla

In the trembling grey of a spring dawn, when the birds were whispering in mysterious cadence among the trees, have you not felt that they were talking to their mates about the flowers?

Like all the good things of the world, the propaganda of Tea met with opposition.

there’s so much beauty in this little book

But it is also told that Niuka forgot to fill two tiny crevices in the blue firmament. Thus began the dualism of love - two souls rolling through space and never at rest until they join together to complete the universe. Everyone has to build anew his sky of hope and peace. 

Kakuzou Okakura

For a generation adjusting painfully to the demands of a modern industrial and commercial society, Asia came to represent an alternative vision of the good life: aesthetically austere, socially aristocratic, and imbued with spirituality. The Book of Tea was originally written in English and sought to address the inchoate yearnings of disaffected Westerners. In a flash of inspiration, Okakura saw that the formal tea party as practiced in New England was a distant cousin of the Japanese tea ceremony, and that East and West had thus �met in the tea-cup.�

Ilse

Written in English by a Japanese scholar in 1906, ""The Book of Tea"" is an elegant attempt to explain the philosophy of the Japanese Tea Ceremony, with its Taoist and Zen Buddhist roots, to a Western audience in clear and simple terms. One of the most widely-read English works about Japan, it had a profound influence on western undertsanding of East Asian tradition.

Manu

sani

“Those who cannot feel the littleness of great things in themselves are apt to overlook the greatness of little things in others.”

i didn't expect a nonfiction book to be so beautiful? (only because i'm very new to the genre) the way the author talked about tea, flowers, Taoism, zennism, it was so profound. AND he did not play about hating the west. how immaculately he criticised them needs to be studied because i absolutely loved it. 

might delve deeper into the genre now!

Minor classic of the Orient. Perhaps the most entertaining, most charming explanation and interpretation of traditional Japanese culture in terms of the tea ceremony. Introduction, notes by E. F. Bleiler. "Provocative and entertaining, this edition is particularly pleasing in format." — Guide to Asia Paperbacks.

Buku ini membahas filosofi dari teh, minum teh, dan budaya Jepang di sekitar minum teh. Menarik dan informatif. Aku cukup menikmati gaya penulisannya yang puitis, pemikiran serta barangkali analisis budaya yang disajikan penulis. Walaupun ga terlalu memorable sih jujur. 3.5/5.

On a side note, it's kinda laughable how insistent they were with justifying their way of flower arranging as far as ridiculing the western way to make them seem morally superior. Not that I'm partial to any particular way of flower arranging. It all comes down to culling flowers for decoration anyway.

Leila

Wenny

Reads like a dream. Indeed small is the cup of human enjoyment, that the contemplation of the imperfect can overflow the soul so, if one would just stop and smell the tea.

Sabrina D. 

Ignore the outdated racist language from the introduction/afterward author. Found the author facts the only things really useful from the intro. Also, I see this book in no means as “an apology” as stated on the back. Get that western thought out of here, book editor lol. 

Safiya 

Despite the naive reproaches the he author draws to the western civilisation, it is a valuable gem, as far as it concerns Teaism, Ikebana, and architecture. There's in fact no depiction of the tea ceremony, only the "theoretical framework" from which it originated. The whole paragraphs are embellished by Japanese poetry that captures the delicate beauty of the humble Japanese art.

Takeda no Komori Uta : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tq5jt...

Jeremy Jones

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/769/769-h/769-h.htm

As an avid lover of many a type of tea, the title was enough to lure me into checking the description. I went into it completely blind, without knowing who Okakura Kakuzō was, and found myself really liking it. It's a beautiful and thoughtful work about art, philosophy, teaism and Taoism and many more things. I'd definitely recommend you give it a read if these topics interest you!

Tournelune

It was wonderful to be captivated by this wonderful hymn adressed to the tea, the simplicity of beautiful things and the art and appreciation of nature. Many beautiful ideas remained in my heart, definitely one of my favorite books!

The Book of Tea

Reviews

Highlights