THE ONE TRUE TASTE OF TEA

I share a sip of tea together with the spring wind and 10,000 peaks;

Then with my arms folded in my sleeves I contently stroll along the riverbank.

Sen No Rikyu (1522 – April 21, 1591) based his calligraphy on the original two verses from a poem by Kaiseki (Chieh-shih), a Zen Master of the late Sung. The complete original poem goes:

At daybreak I draw cold, clear water from the temple well;

I carry it in a stone kettle and then, in the best of moods, boil tea.

I share a sip of tea together with 10,000 valleys and the pine wind;

Then with my arms folded in my sleeves I contentedly stroll along the riverbank