The Kung Fu of Tea

Kung Fu – Any study, learning or practice that requires patience, energy and time to complete.

Before the West interpreted the term Kung Fu to mean Chinese Martial art, it referred to a very distinct set of processes that created particular outcomes. It signifies a skill achieved through hard work and practice. Its very connotation denotes that the outcome cannot be achieved by any means other than that timely diligence. It states that the outcome will have rewards emerge from the process, the end being in the means, while undergoing the means to an end.

Irrespective of the health benefits that come from the properties of tea, the entire process involved in its execution, from sewing the seeds to consuming the liquid, is Kung Fu. A particular strain of a certain family of the Camellia Sinensis plant is carefully chosen for a specific geographic location accredited for its distinct soil, definite weather system and perfect altitude. The seeds are sewn and a specific form is chosen as a bush, shrub or tree, whichever best suits its purpose. The harvesting of the plant is entirely orchestrated, specifying to the week the optimum time to yield the leaf for the desired content. This body is then groomed through a calculated processing method tailored to its precise outcome.

When the tea is ready for “consumption”, it is passed on to the tea bearer. The responsibility of this purveyor is to guide every last step in its journey. By choosing the tea ware that best suits the tea, using the water heated to an exact temperature and thus perfectly transmute it to the drinker, the Tea Master can ensure the tea transcends its self. The means of creating a tea is made up of many ends; its ultimate end cannot exist without means that require diligence, patience, hard work and energy to complete.