The
term 'Gong Fu' may be more familiar than it sounds - generally it is
associated with martial arts; it is more commonly spelled as 'Kung Fu'.
Translating from Chinese as 'great skill and effort,' Gong Fu is
required in both martial arts and tea - the practice of one reflected
in the other - and is embraced as one of the founding principles here
at Teance.
Though
the practice of martial arts is fast and furious, in the beginning,
minute attention is paid to practicing correct form. The art and the
practitioner become inseparable, and every action is then executed
effortlessly and expertly. The practitioner can now freely respond to
circumstance and spontaneously express his intentions.
Like
martial arts, the Gong Fu of tea also requires much practice, skill,
and effort - and some very good tea leaves, ideally. But to truly
achieve Gong Fu tea, the Taoist idea of 'Wu Wei' must also be applied:
doing without doing. With Wu Wei, one is so good that the action seems
completely effortless; others should not notice all the meticulous
attention that took place to make that perfect cup.
Why
is the Taoist idea of Wu Wei necessary in Gong Fu tea? Here we break
from martial arts: The spiritual practice of mindfulness,
concentration, and deliberate intention through tea is ultimately used
in the service of others. The guest should be moved by his experience
without imposition; the generosity and spirit of sharing one's best
effort should be felt without display. The guest should experience,
wordlessly, the years of artful practice that brought to life the leaf
as intended by the tea masters' equally skillful crafting, somewhere
far away in the mountains of Asia.
To
achieve Wu Wei, Gong Fu is required of our staff at Teance and is
applied in every aspect of their training. They begin by learning the
height and speed of the pour, how to turn the wrist for efficiency, and
how to arrange the tasting cups. They learn all of the formal
presentation steps designed not for show, but to produce the best cup
of tea possible. They learn to recognize the temperature of the water
by feel, to observe the passage of time intuitively, to know the
portioning and steeping specifics of each tea.
With
such meticulous procedure comes spontaneous response - to how the tea
responds to one's efforts, to the temperature of the day and how it
affects the way the tea unfurls. At the same time, our hosts must
maintain the ability to converse and educate the guest through the
history, agriculture, origin, and culture of tea. The practice of tea
focuses the mind yet enables it to do many tasks with equal attention.
When
Gong Fu reaches Wu Wei, there is effortless perfection, doing without
doing. That is the goal we hope to achieve at Teance: true service that
leaves the guest free to enjoy a flawless experience without barrier,
with both host and guest benefiting equally from the generosity and
depth of experience that tea can bestow. The practice of tea and the
Tao are one, and tea becomes the medium through which the best in us
are brought forth.
Winnie
is our fearless tea buyer and co-founder, whose passion for the leaf
infuses every aspect of Teance. Her tea blog chronicles her reflections
and adventures as she traveled through Asia on this spring's buying
trip: http://teapersonality.blogspot.com
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