The Japanese tea ceremony.

Lesson 1: what the tea ceremony is

Chanoyu (茶の湯) means hot water for tea. Chadō (茶道) means the way of tea. Both name the same practice: a host prepares matcha for guests, slowly and with care, in a set order of movements.

It looks like a ritual about tea. Students learn it is really about attention. Every movement has a reason: to clean, to show respect, or to make the next movement easier.

These four words, wa kei sei jaku (和敬清寂), are attributed to Sen no Rikyū and are still taught by the tea schools. Another phrase you will hear is ichigo ichie (一期一会): one time, one meeting. This gathering will never happen in the same way again.

Lesson 2: what happens, step by step

Lesson 3: how to drink as a guest

1. Bow to the next guestSay osakini, excuse me for going before you.
2. Bow to the hostRaise the bowl slightly in thanks.
3. Turn the bowlHold it in your left palm and turn it with your right hand, usually twice, so its front faces away from you. You do not drink from the bowl's best side.
4. Drink in a few sipsUsucha is finished in about three sips. A small slurp on the last sip is polite: it says you enjoyed it.
5. Wipe the rimWith your fingertips, where your lips touched.
6. Turn it back and admire itReturn the front to face you, set the bowl down, and look at it before handing it back.

Lesson 4: usucha and koicha

Koicha concentrates everything, including bitterness. Only the sweetest first flush matcha, from young, well shaded leaves, tastes good that thick. Tea houses in Japan often label their best matcha as suited to koicha.

How to make koicha

1. Sift 4 g of matcha into a warmed bowlSifting matters even more here.
2. Add about 15 ml of waterHalf the water first.
3. Knead slowlyMove the whisk in slow circles and folds, pressing the matcha into the water, not whipping it.
4. Add the restAbout 15 ml more. Knead until glossy and smooth with no lumps.
5. Drink slowlyIt should coat the bowl and taste deep, sweet and savoury.

Lesson 5: eight centuries of tea

Okakura's book begins: "Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage." It is still one of the best short books on the subject, and free to read online.

Lesson 6: the utensils

Lesson 7: seeing a tea ceremony in Australia

Several Japanese tea schools have practising groups in Australia. Demonstrations often appear at Japanese cultural festivals, Japanese gardens and university Japanese societies. Watching one is the best way to understand why the movements, the bowls and the silence matter as much as the tea.

Want to practise at home? You do not need a tea room. A bowl, a whisk, good matcha and ten quiet minutes is the beginning of the way of tea.