Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Chashitsu
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
== Architecture == [[File:Meimeian08n4592.jpg|right|thumb|''Nijiriguchi'' entrance of a tea house]] The ideal free-standing tea house is surrounded by a small [[Japanese garden|garden]] having a path leading to the tea room. This garden is called ''roji'' ({{lang|ja|露地}}, "dewy ground") and is divided into two parts by a gate called ''chumon''.<ref name=":0" /> Along the path is a waiting bench for guests and a privy. Aside from its own garden, the ''chashitsu'' is arranged – along with other pavilions such as the ''zashiki'', ''oku no zashiki'', and ''hanare zashiki'' – around a larger primary garden.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Fieve|first1=Nicolas|title=Japanese Capitals in Historical Perspective: Place, Power and Memory in Kyoto, Edo and Tokyo|last2=Waley|first2=Paul|date=2003|publisher=RoutledgeCurzon|isbn=9780700714094|location=Oxon|pages=89}}</ref> There is a stone water-basin near the tea house, where the guests rinse their hands and mouths before entering the tea room through a low, square door called ''nijiriguchi'',<ref name=":0" /> or "crawling-in entrance", which requires bending low to pass through and symbolically separates the small, simple, quiet inside from the crowded, overwhelming outside world. The ''nijiriguchi'' leads directly into the tea room. The tea room has a low ceiling and no furniture: the guests and host sit ''[[seiza]]''-style on the floor. All materials used are intentionally simple and rustic. Besides the guests' entrance, there may be several more entrances; at minimum there is an entrance for the host known as the ''sadōguchi'', which allows access to the ''mizuya''. Windows are generally small and covered with [[shōji]], which allows natural light to filter in. The windows are not intended to provide a view to the outside, which would detract from the participants' concentration. There is a sunken hearth ({{lang|ja|炉}} ''ro'') located in the tatami adjacent to the host's tatami, for use in the cold months; this hearth is covered with a plain tatami and is not visible in the warm months, when a portable brazier ({{lang|ja|風炉}} ''furo'') is used instead. There will be a ''[[tokonoma]]'' (scroll alcove) holding a scroll of calligraphy or brush painting, and perhaps a small, simple, flower arrangement called a ''chabana'' ({{lang|ja|茶花}}), but no other decoration. [[File:Tearoom layout.svg|right|thumb|Layout of an ideal 4.5 tearoom with tokonoma and mizuya dōko]] [[File:Ajg 0136.jpg|right|thumb|View of a similar interior, with some utensils]] ''Chashitsu'' are broadly classified according to whether they have a floor area larger or smaller than 4.5 tatami, a differentiation which affects the style of ceremony that can be conducted, the specific type of equipment and decoration that can be used, the placement of various architectural features and the hearth, and the number of guests that can be accommodated. ''Chashitsu'' which are larger than 4.5 mats are called ''hiroma'' ("big room"), while those that are smaller are called ''koma'' ("small room"). ''Hiroma'' often are [[shoin]] style rooms, and for the most part are not limited to use for ''chanoyu.'' Other factors that affect the tea room are architectural constraints such as the location of windows, entrances, the sunken hearth and the tokonoma, particularly when the tea room is not located within a purpose-built structure. The other factors that influence the construction of the ''chashitsu'' as a space in the ''[[iemoto]]'' are the [[iconography]] of the past and the memory of particular individuals.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Cox|first=Rupert|title=The Zen Arts: An Anthropological Study of the Culture of Aesthetic Form in Japan|date=2003|publisher=RoutledgeCurzon|isbn=0700714758|location=New York|pages=160}}</ref> Not all tea rooms can be made to conform to the ideal seen in the image.
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)