Cha Dao: The Way of Tea, Tea as a Way of Life

Towler gives a mixed collection of wonderful storiies,great profound quotations of other people's great wise books and then mixes it into a broth of superficial hotpot,with lots of historically inaccurate and wrong supplements.There are so many great books on Dsoism,on Zen on Tea and on Chinese or Japanese Culture. You had better red These!HThe book is true to its title. One can always learn . The best thing in it,I found the description of the Daoist Tea ceremony with the plate translation!

I was looking for a book that provided a Taoist context for tea, and this book fit exactly. There are other books that provide much more information about the history and culture of tea, and other books that will expound on Taoism more thoroughly, but this book melds the two.

An enlightening read on tea philosophy. Solala Towler shares with us the Daoist wisdom that is intermixed with tea. Like true books on Cha dao it not only teaches knowledge but more importantly wisdom.

This book is a mix of info on tea and stories demonstrating the Tao. I found it a pleasant, easy read and gentle introduction to Taoism.

A "wealth of information" doesn't even begin to describe the contents of this book. Regarding tea and the art of drinking tea, among other Daoist topics, it is a superwealth of information, and much of it is most surprising. For some of us who have been partially, at least, in the dark about so many aspects of the subject, it is a coming out into the light of day and may send the reader shopping for the 4th highest grade of Dragon Well green tea (the author tells us that there is little difference between it and the highest grade of 5, and the 4th is what he personally chooses). Dragon Well is his favorite tea.Besides so many practical facts about tea (tea is only good for one year, then it is as good as dead; never use teabags--even the best quality is inferior to loose tea; if the tea leaves sink to the bottom of the pot, the tea is old and stale; bring the water to a boiling point, but don't boil it, etc.), this book gives an understanding to the Westerner of the sanctity of the tea drinking ritual and the vital importance of it to, in this case, the Chinese and Japanese. It is indeed a way of the art of life, as the author describes, a marriage of heaven and earth (water from heaven, nutrients from earth) with man, the ritual participant, completing the trinity.One part of the book is difficult to read. It contains a graphic description of seppuku, or what the Japanese call harakiri. It too is a ritual in which the person doomed to die (by choice or by command) literally disembowels himself with a sword, slicing in three directions, before the coup de grace is performed in what is called the kaishakunin duty of beheading done by an attendant. In the case of the famed writer Yukio Mishima, who, for political reasons (perhaps holy to him) planned his seppuku for over a year, after several tries, his chosen attendant was not able to correctly perform the task, so another had to complete the beheading. Imagine the suffering!This book, along with the books of Master Wu, who, fortunately for us Westerners, has come to the United States and is now teaching and writing here, brings a lot of new and enriching information and light to the subject of Eastern philosophy and religion. Master [Zhongxian] Wu has brought us a whole new, for us, approach to using the I Ching in his book Seeking the Spirit of the Book of Change: 8 Days to Mastering a Shamanic Yijing (I Ching) Prediction System. And Solala Towler at long last gives us a comprehensive look into the amazing world of tea worship as a means to the center of oneself and being at one with the universe.The book is full of wonderful Daoist stories. The only weakness I find in it is where the author informs the Western reader how to practice Daoism in his daily life. At these times (and they are rare) he seems to become almost florid and uses generalizations without follow-up explanations."Go slow" is one of the most important factors in the practice of Daoism. But tell that to the single Western mother raising numerous kids, living in a large metropolitan area, and holding down two or three jobs, at the same time keeping house, cooking dinners, and trying to attend PTA meetings and soccer games. She simply can't "go slow" and survive. I hope that this problem is addressed someday in detail for the harried, overburdened, overworked Western reader who, after fighting his way through throngs of subway riders just to get to work, doesn't want anyting but a good, old-fashioned, albeit jolting, cup of coffee.A great and valuable book. Only we need more!

I happen to love tea. The more the better. However, I'm more of an ooolong/black tea lover than a green tea aficionado, so I thought I'd learn more about green tea. People are so hooked on green tea that they will drink any green junk poured into a cup, whether it's a fine brew or not. I want to know what the good stuff is. I already know Japnese sencha is good. What else?As it so happens, "Cha Dao: The Way of Tea, Tea As as a Way of Life" is as much about philosophy and history, so don't pick this up and expect a handy-dandy guide to finding and making great tea. It is about the revered beverage of the East, about the religion of the Dao, about Zen Buddhism, and about the complicated tea ceremonies of Japan and China. Solala Towler's book begins as a background of how tea was first discovered, which vary according whom you are listening to. Then it goes on to discribe how it was first used as medicine, then as tribute for the emperor of China, then as a middle-class beverage. Much of this will leave readers wondering "Where's the part where it tells me how to make a good pot of tea?" But I found this part fascinating, because it shows how tea basically helped create the culture of two Asian nations, It was pressed into bricks and used as money and thereby helped subdue the Mongolians, the slavic tribes and others who were low on vegetables in their diet. (And camellia sinensis is a plant that is considered a vegetable.)A bit too many mystical stories of tea masters who confounded their emperors or others were there for my taste. (If I want to study the puzzles of the Dao and koans of the Zen, I'll buy a book on that. This is really too much for a book on tea.)I also found it extraordinary lazy of the author, who lives in the Pacific Northwest, to include only tea emporiums and links to tea shops in her area. How hard is it to link to the major cities, at least, where Chinese have settled? As it is, if you want to try the famous Dragon Well tea that she writes about incessantly, you're on your own with the Internet. One star was taken off just for this extreme provincialism and lack of service to the reader.One small note. An editor could have shaped up the wandering format of this book. It doesn't have any kind of logical shape and goes from China to Japan willy-nllly. People want to have a logical reason for why they are reading about the countries they are visiting, and this book doesn't offer that. I just threw up my hands and figured I'd just go with the Zen of it all.Still, This is a most unusual book, if not the most helpful. I'm not a Daoist nor a Zen Buddhist, but now I have some idea of how a tea ceremony is conducted, I know the finest teas that are served in China, and I even know why the British got so hooked on tea and started the Opium Wars. (No, they didn't want the opium.) All the great teas of China are listed--although you have to figure where to buy them. The writer also explains how to make a great brew.I'd recommend this book to someone who wants to take a most unusual journey.

Overview of Dao and the some of the concepts behind it. References heavily other authors to bring in snippets from history, the Dao De Jing ''' and tea classics. Overall very light style and easy to read. Enjoyed reading it on the way to & from work.Unfortunately the latter chapters on tea rather let it down. Interesting perspective on Chinese tea from Solala Towler's journeys in China. The sections on Cha Dao, tea preparation and teas generally seemed rather an after thought and missed many of the concepts, nuances and indeed facts.Overall 4* but the tea sections 2/3*If you are after a better understanding of tea culture there are many great books available.

Wonderful essays on my favorite subjects - Dao and Tea

very interesting read

great service and goods

a great and easy readeble book about cha dao . it made me want to read more about it, this book was kinda too short for me.