Zen Flowers Chabana for Tea Ceremony

By Henry Mittwer

This Zen flower arranging book teaches the delicate art of Japanese Chabana--the precursor to ikebana.

Up to now, with the exception of Okakura Kakuzo's excellent account of flowers used in the art of Chanoyu in his delightful The Book of Tea, almost nothing has been available on the subject. To my knowledge, the present volume is the only book written in English that is wholly devoted to the special form of flower arrangement called Chabana.

Chabana is a type of flower arrangement that originated in the tea room . Chabana is not only for decoration, for symbolic representation, or for abstract expression of the self. 2,500years ago, Chabana has something in common with one of Shakyamuni Buddha's sermons. Buddha lightly picked a single bloom from a basketful of flowers offered to Him by one of the multitude who came to hear His sermon. Buddha slowly, silently, held up the flower before the congregation. Among the gathering was one of His disciples, Mahakasyapa, who gently smiled as he apprehended the Buddha's gesture. Chabana may not be a flower arrangement having a Zen-like mission, but it certainly is a flower arrangement appreciated by a mind nourished with the Zen principles of simplicity and directness.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Release date: Dec 18, 2012
• ISBN: 9781462901470

Book preview

ZEN FLOWERS

hana (flower) calligraphy by Zen Master Roshi Nakagawa, Soen of Ryutaku-ji, Mishima Oita, Shizuoka.

Published by the Charles E. Tuttle Company, Inc.

of Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo, Japan

with editorial offices at

Osaki Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141-0032

© 1974 by Charles E. Tuttle Publishing Co., Inc.

All rights reserved

Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 73-93226

ISBN: 978-1-4629-0147-0 (ebook)

First edition, 1974

First gift-book edition, 1992

PRINTED IN JAPAN

This book is respectfully dedicated

to the late Zen monk

Senzaki Nyogen

who showed me the path to a life of simplicity

Chabana means flowers for tea. It is a type of flower arrangement created in the spirit of the aestheticism of wabi (see p. 34).

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

COLOR PLATES

  1. February—Sanshu and camellia in a pottery vase 51

  2. March—Saxifrage in a hanging bamboo boat 55

  3. April—Apple bough and camellia in a bamboo vase 59

  4. May—Bog-reed, thistle, evening primrose, spirea, and trumpet honeysuckle in a fisherman's creel 67

  5. June—Lady's slipper, thistle, and loosestrife in a pottery vase 75

  6. July—Burnet, clematis, morning-star lily, billberry, and bush clover in a bamboo basket 81

  7. August—Evening primrose, aster, and Indian poke in a vine basket 89

  8. September—Eulalia, burnet-bloodwort, smartweed, pigeonberry, and Pink in a bisk-ware vase 95

  9. October—Okera and Chinese begonia in a bamboo basket 105

10. November—Job's tears, shrubby althea, aster, agrimony, and butterfly bush in a bamboo chopstick basket 111

11. December—Witch-hazel and Judith camellia in Iga pottery 115

12. January—Narcissus in Chinese bronzeware 119

SKETCHES

  1. Sanshu 53

  2. Red-berried elder 53

  3. Flower-of-the-butterbur 57

  4. Rape flower 57

  5. Little handball 61

  6. Cucumber tree 62

  7. Equinox cherry 62

  8. Camellia 63

  9. Wistaria 69

10. Trumpet honeysuckle 71

11. Fairy bells 71

12. Weigela 72

13. Columbine 73

14. Loosestrife-of-the-field 77

15. Bell flower 77

16. Dogwood 79

17. Thistle 79

18. Spirea 79

19. Burnet 83

20. Bindweed 85

21. Burnet-bloodwort 90

22. Indigo 91

23. Shrubby althea, rose of Sharon 92

24. Longpurple, willowweed 96

25. Bush clover 96

26. Arrowroot, 98

27. Smartweed, knotweed 99

28. Pink 99

29. Patrinia 101

30. Touch-me-not, jewel weed 103

31. Toad lily 107

32. Aster 107

33. Winged spindle tree 113

34. Job's tears 113

35. French daffodil, narcissus 117

36. Honeysuckle 121

37. Foxtail grass 126

38. Umbrella sedge 126

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My study of the art of Chabana was made possible by the generosity of Mr. Sen Soshitsu xv of the Ura Senke School of Chanoyu in Kyoto. I wish to express my sincere thanks to him and to all the instructors associated with the school. Through their kindness, I was able to understand the significance of the aesthetic ideal of the art of the tea ceremony, Chanoyu.

Although I had the great privilege of studying Chabana under the most favorable circumstances, I feel I have only caught glimpses of this expressive art. This book does not attempt to cover all that can be said of the subject. However, if I am able to arouse any interest in the reader about the art of Chabana, and if I can make new friends through this book, I will consider myself fortunate.

For the preparation of this work, innumerable persons have given me their valuable assistance. I am especially grateful to Mr. Yamafuji Sozan, a man whose lifetime devotion to the art of Chabana has earned him the reputation of being one of the foremost masters in this art. He kindly arranged the twelve monthly Chabana to be used for illustrations, and provided much valuable information for Part Two dealing with the various flowers of the seasons. Also, I am grateful to Mrs. W. H. Johnstone of New York for her careful reviewing of the manuscript; to my daughter, whose secretarial efficiency and untiring fingers organized this material through her typing; and last, but not least, to my wife, who watched over this work as if an umbrella of kindness were lifted above me.

FOREWORD

by SEN SOSHITSU

fifteenth descendant of Sen Rikyu

Up to now, with the exception of Okakura Kakuzo's excellent account of flowers used in the art of Chanoyu in his delightful The Book of Tea, almost nothing has been available on the subject. To my knowledge, the present volume is the only book written in English that is wholly devoted to the special form of flower arrangement called Chabana.

Chabana is a type of flower arrangement that originated in the tea room (called chashitsuj) for the appreciation of those partaking of cha, or tea. Chabana is not only for decoration, for symbolic representation, or for abstract expression of the self. If I may cite an episode that took place 2,500 years ago, Chabana has something in common with one of Shakyamuni Buddha's sermons. Buddha lightly picked a single bloom from a basketful of flowers offered to Him by one of the multitude who came to hear His sermon. Buddha slowly, silently, held up the flower before the congregation. Among the gathering was one of His disciples, Mahakasyapa, who gently smiled as he apprehended the Buddha's gesture.

Chabana may not be a flower arrangement having a Zen-like mission, but it certainly is a flower arrangement appreciated by a mind nourished with the Zen principles of simplicity and directness.

Life with Flowers, which Mr. Mittwer has titled the first part of this book, is very appropriate. In this age of environmental pollution and exploitation of nature, we are overwhelmed by the stress and struggle of society. We should find the room and the time in our minds for a bowl of cha and simple flowers. Life with Flowers means to see and to live with flowers, and to find humanity in a bowl of cha.

Along with Noh, haiku, sumi paintings, karesansui gardens, raku ceramics, and other beautiful Japanese arts and crafts, Chabana quietly blossomed in the ancient cultural city of Kyoto. The art of Chabana is one of Japan's proud heritages because it is an art form that transcends all national and cultural boundaries.

Kyoto, Japan

Part One

LIFE WITH FLOWERS

1

MAN AND NATURE

Sad is a home, however practical and economical, when decorated with plastic flowers. Yet it is touching to realize what motivation is behind those artificial blooms—a longing for the beautiful.

The love of flowers is universal. This has been so ever since man separated himself from the brute. Flowers are so much a part of us that we cannot envision life without them. We garland our days from birth to death with flowers. Cities, states, and countries are symbolized by flowers. We name our children after flowers. They are used for medicine and food; they are dissected and mutilated; they are desired by all, but are often mistreated.

The flowers of the field, of the woods, and even the nameless little flowers along the wayside that go unnoticed, speak; their simple but mysteriously