茶道初歩の初歩　First Steps to Tea - A Simple Tea Gathering.

Today we will continue to discuss the journey of tea and the elements of how to be a guest. Please wear comfortable clothing and white socks. Like the zendō at the Zen Center, please avoid wearing jewelry (especially anything that dangles) or strong scents.
Today we will have a simple 茶席 chaseki (tea ceremony) so that you can begin to practice the role of the guest. Plan on participating in two sittings which will give you two chances to practice being a guest. (This is fairly typical procedure for tea circles.) Please chip in $10.00 to $15.00 at the event to offset the cost of tea and okashi. If this is a hardship for you, please contact me.
The journey of tea begins with learning how to be a guest at a simple 茶席 chaseki (tea ceremony). The next step is to begin practicing 割稽古 warigeiko where the basic movements performed by the host are practiced. A 扇子 sensu (small folding fan) is the symbol of the guest. Warigeiko requires a 袱紗 fukusa which is the symbol of the host and is used in various ways during a chaseki. Men traditionally use a purple fukusa and women a red fukusa. Fukusa with high numbers (that is how the silk in them is graded) are easier to use than ones with low numbers.
I have limited supplies of sensu and fukusa which I can lend during meetups. There are no tea ceremony supply stores in New York. There is a fellow in Portland, Oregon who is importing tea ceremony supplies. (Be prepared, the prices may shock you.) His webpage is at: http://www.teadogu.com/ Tea supplies can also be imported from Japan by searching at http://www.rakuten.co.jp/ and of course eBay.