Comments for the-leaf.org http://the-leaf.org/Issue3 tea Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:09:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 Comment on Q & A by gimpochin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=7#comment-327 gimpochin Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:53:37 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=7#comment-327 I learn alot from your magazine. I reside in Lao ,they are not big tea drinkers and good tea is difficult to get. I must order out to HK,Yunnan or Taiwan,or have my girlfriend (vietnamese)pick some up when she visits home(Hue). Really liked the story on ancient trees. Do you know where i could get some legitimate "old tree tea"? Ever consider an article on Vietnamese tea?The french as well as the chinese and japanese have all contributed. best regards, gimpochin I learn alot from your magazine. I reside in Lao ,they are not big tea drinkers and good tea is difficult to get. I must order out to HK,Yunnan or Taiwan,or have my girlfriend (vietnamese)pick some up when she visits home(Hue).
Really liked the story on ancient trees. Do you know where i could get some legitimate “old tree tea”?
Ever consider an article on Vietnamese tea?The french as well as the chinese and japanese have all contributed.
best regards, gimpochin

]]> Comment on Discussion of Issue 3 by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=5#comment-309 admin Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:50:10 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=5#comment-309 www.sagacitea.com http://www.sagacitea.com

]]> Comment on Gong Fu Tea Tips With Master Ling Ping Xiang, Part 2 by Nagy Szilard http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=62#comment-290 Nagy Szilard Mon, 23 Mar 2009 10:06:10 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=62#comment-290 Today I tried the experiment nr. 2 from the leaf magazine issue 3, that is heavy showers predicted, and it makes a huge diffrence, I picked a deep dish and put my yixing inthere, and I poured the water circulary around the rim, so that hot water can gather at the base of the pot, and I also poured some water over the lid. I didn`t use pitcher, I poured directly from the pot, the tea was much more full bodied with a great gan, and parfumed, all in all the was better throughout all the infusions. PS i tried all those experiments, and the best way to prepare for me is sofar, a seasoned yixing, and a bowl and use shower on the lid, Kam from funalliance said the great truth about gong fu method> it is all about high heat brewing and mainainig high heat, the best way is to use a teaboatand shower on the lid, and preferably everything shoul be made out of clay. Today I tried the experiment nr. 2 from the leaf magazine issue 3, that is heavy showers predicted, and it makes a huge diffrence, I picked a deep dish and put my yixing inthere, and I poured the water circulary around the rim, so that hot water can gather at the base of the pot, and I also poured some water over the lid.
I didn`t use pitcher, I poured directly from the pot, the tea was much more full bodied with a great gan, and parfumed, all in all the was better throughout all the infusions. PS i tried all those experiments, and the best way to prepare for me is sofar, a seasoned yixing, and a bowl and use shower on the lid, Kam from funalliance said the great truth about gong fu method> it is all about high heat brewing and mainainig high heat, the best way is to use a teaboatand shower on the lid, and preferably everything shoul be made out of clay.

]]> Comment on Gong Fu Tea Tips With Master Ling Ping Xiang, Part 2 by Nagy Szilard http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=62#comment-289 Nagy Szilard Sun, 22 Mar 2009 12:51:59 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=62#comment-289 Today I tried the experiment nr. 2 from the leaf magazine issue 3, that is heavy showers predicted, and it makes a huge diffrence, I picked a deep dish and put my yixing in there, and I poured the water circulary around the rim, so that hot water can gather at the base of the pot, and I also poured some water over the lid. I didn`t use pitcher, I poured directly from the pot, the tea was much more full bodied with a great gan, and parfumed, all in all the was better throughout all the infusions. No heat should escape, so using pitcher and strainer, and thin wide mouth porcelain cups all result in heat loss. PS I tried all those experiments, and the best way to prepare for me is sofar, a seasoned yixing, and a bowl and use shower on the lid, Kam from funalliance said the great truth about gong fu method> it is all about high heat brewing and maintainig high heat, the best way is to use a teaboat and shower on the lid, and preferably everything shoul be made out of clay. And also put only as much leaf so that all can open up equally so that the taste becomes smooth, generally 1/4 full with ball shaped oolongs, they can be tricky as they expand a lot Today I tried the experiment nr. 2 from the leaf magazine issue 3, that is heavy showers predicted, and it makes a huge diffrence, I picked a deep dish and put my yixing in there, and I poured the water circulary around the rim, so that hot water can gather at the base of the pot, and I also poured some water over the lid.
I didn`t use pitcher, I poured directly from the pot, the tea was much more full bodied with a great gan, and parfumed, all in all the was better throughout all the infusions. No heat should escape, so using pitcher and strainer, and thin wide mouth porcelain cups all result in heat loss.
PS I tried all those experiments, and the best way to prepare for me is sofar, a seasoned yixing, and a bowl and use shower on the lid, Kam from funalliance said the great truth about gong fu method> it is all about high heat brewing and maintainig high heat, the best way is to use a teaboat and shower on the lid, and preferably everything shoul be made out of clay. And also put only as much leaf so that all can open up equally so that the taste becomes smooth, generally 1/4 full with ball shaped oolongs, they can be tricky as they expand a lot

]]> Comment on Seeking Tea, Finding Dao * By Erick Smithe by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=30#comment-252 admin Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:36:34 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=30#comment-252 The movement towards insight is an inner one, as is the course the tea travels after it passes your lips. Where in the world your are is far less important than the attitude you bring to your tea. Even the greatest quietude is an inner one--a silence that is unruffled even in a commotion like LA. The ancients Daoist cloudwalkers you alluded to said the heart was the deep, dark stillness beneath the surface of the windswept lake. In the tea space you can indeed travel through the leaf to the very same mist-shrouded peaks and craggy clefts as the ancients, and the bamboo grove, the serenity and its wisdom, will all be within your mind. Stay on the path. It leads somewhere. The movement towards insight is an inner one, as is the course the tea travels after it passes your lips. Where in the world your are is far less important than the attitude you bring to your tea. Even the greatest quietude is an inner one–a silence that is unruffled even in a commotion like LA. The ancients Daoist cloudwalkers you alluded to said the heart was the deep, dark stillness beneath the surface of the windswept lake.

In the tea space you can indeed travel through the leaf to the very same mist-shrouded peaks and craggy clefts as the ancients, and the bamboo grove, the serenity and its wisdom, will all be within your mind.

Stay on the path. It leads somewhere.

]]> Comment on Seeking Tea, Finding Dao * By Erick Smithe by Neil R in LA http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=30#comment-251 Neil R in LA Sat, 29 Nov 2008 06:50:51 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=30#comment-251 I am a novice in tea. I am rather poor and I can't travel to Asia....I buy most of my tea and teaware off the internet. Am I decieving myself if I feel I can really "taste" the tea if I do it here in the US? I love tea, but I somehow feel that I am just cheapening the expericence if I don't go to the misty mountians where the sages live. I am in Hollywood, the land of illusion and delusion. Can tea really be had here? I am a novice in tea. I am rather poor and I can’t travel to Asia….I buy most of my tea and teaware off the internet. Am I decieving myself if I feel I can really “taste” the tea if I do it here in the US? I love tea, but I somehow feel that I am just cheapening the expericence if I don’t go to the misty mountians where the sages live. I am in Hollywood, the land of illusion and delusion. Can tea really be had here?

]]> Comment on Tea Wisdom by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-139 admin Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:48:55 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-139 Drink tea Drink tea

]]> Comment on Discussion of Issue 3 by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=5#comment-138 admin Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:46:23 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=5#comment-138 A point Jo: the art in the Artwork section is mine, while these small paintings that highlight the bottom categories of Issue 3 were not painted by me, but the Korean master Lim (discussed in Issue 2). I was not sure whether you were commenting on the artwork here or in the other section of the site and just responded mindlessly. Sorry. Just wanted to clarify and give kudos where they are due, should you--or anyone else--have misunderstood the two small paintings to be mine. :) Peace Aaron A point Jo:
the art in the Artwork section is mine, while these small paintings that highlight the bottom categories of Issue 3 were not painted by me, but the Korean master Lim (discussed in Issue 2). I was not sure whether you were commenting on the artwork here or in the other section of the site and just responded mindlessly. Sorry. Just wanted to clarify and give kudos where they are due, should you–or anyone else–have misunderstood the two small paintings to be mine. :)

Peace
Aaron

]]> Comment on Tea Wisdom by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-114 admin Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:31:30 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-114 There are great tea sessions occurring all over the world as you read this, and you are welcome at so many of them. Great teas are being brought down from secret shelves, jars and cans and being freely poured. The greatest teas in the world are always free. What are you doing to find them? As the person seeks the tea, the tea seeks the person. Open up and be willing to flow, and you'll arrive. There are great tea sessions occurring all over the world as you read this, and you are welcome at so many of them. Great teas are being brought down from secret shelves, jars and cans and being freely poured. The greatest teas in the world are always free. What are you doing to find them? As the person seeks the tea, the tea seeks the person. Open up and be willing to flow, and you’ll arrive.

]]> Comment on Vegetable Tea * By Thomas Leons by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-64 admin Sat, 20 Sep 2008 08:35:01 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-64 You are correct about things that affect your mouth strongly, like certain spices, herbs, etc., also decreasing one's sensitivity of flavor. On the level of Qi meat and alcohol do play a large roll in one's ability to not only recognize the presence of Cha Qi, but to utilize it as an aspect of spiritual work. Still, I agree that the best tea tasters also are careful what passes through their mouths, at least near to the time when they will be drinking tea. Garlic and Onions goes back before Buddhism; it's roots are in Hinduism. And while many people refrain from eating them without understanding why, the real reason was because they excite sexual energies; and yogis, ascetics and Buddhist monks were all practicing chastity. Refraining from eating them may also be beneficial to your meditation and/or tea drinking. I don't think it is a weird connection. A lot of the best tea shops here in Asia are also run by Vegetarians. I can think of at least 5 great examples right off the top of my head. I think there may be some people who just drink tea because they are health conscious, but I also believe the answers are deeper; and it seems you already have found them. Great commentary! You are correct about things that affect your mouth strongly, like certain spices, herbs, etc., also decreasing one’s sensitivity of flavor. On the level of Qi meat and alcohol do play a large roll in one’s ability to not only recognize the presence of Cha Qi, but to utilize it as an aspect of spiritual work. Still, I agree that the best tea tasters also are careful what passes through their mouths, at least near to the time when they will be drinking tea.

Garlic and Onions goes back before Buddhism; it’s roots are in Hinduism. And while many people refrain from eating them without understanding why, the real reason was because they excite sexual energies; and yogis, ascetics and Buddhist monks were all practicing chastity. Refraining from eating them may also be beneficial to your meditation and/or tea drinking.

I don’t think it is a weird connection. A lot of the best tea shops here in Asia are also run by Vegetarians. I can think of at least 5 great examples right off the top of my head. I think there may be some people who just drink tea because they are health conscious, but I also believe the answers are deeper; and it seems you already have found them. Great commentary!

]]> Comment on Vegetable Tea * By Thomas Leons by Will http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-61 Will Sat, 20 Sep 2008 04:11:29 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-61 One other thing at work (on a pretty much entirely surface level) might be that Buddhist vegetarians following a completely vegetarian diet typically don't eat garlic, onion, leek / chives / ?? (jiu cai), cilantro, as well as avoiding meat and eggs. A lot of these are things I imagine could dull down your palate or make it harder to taste things. I don't avoid these foods, but if I'm going to do a lot of serious tea drinking, I do try to avoid really strongly flavored foods. Here in the US, at least, I think there is some weird connection between vegetarianism and tea - a few of the places that helped get me into tea initially are vegetarian restaurants, and I know a lot of other vegetarians who are into tea. Maybe it's because tea is considered healthier than coffee, so it just overlaps because vegetarians are often more health conscious. One other thing at work (on a pretty much entirely surface level) might be that Buddhist vegetarians following a completely vegetarian diet typically don’t eat garlic, onion, leek / chives / ?? (jiu cai), cilantro, as well as avoiding meat and eggs. A lot of these are things I imagine could dull down your palate or make it harder to taste things. I don’t avoid these foods, but if I’m going to do a lot of serious tea drinking, I do try to avoid really strongly flavored foods.

Here in the US, at least, I think there is some weird connection between vegetarianism and tea - a few of the places that helped get me into tea initially are vegetarian restaurants, and I know a lot of other vegetarians who are into tea. Maybe it’s because tea is considered healthier than coffee, so it just overlaps because vegetarians are often more health conscious.

]]> Comment on Tea Wisdom by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-54 admin Fri, 19 Sep 2008 06:14:51 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-54 "We are not <em>in </em>nature; we <em>are </em>nature. But as masters of technical weapons we are fighting the environment as if we still believed ourselves to be strangers on the earth, sent down into this world from a purely abstract, ideational and spiritual heaven. Oddly enough, people who call themselves naturalists and materialists are, when judged by their actions, the most devout abstractionists and the most dedicated violators of material." <strong>--Alan Watts--</strong> “We are not in nature; we are nature. But as masters of technical weapons we are fighting the environment as if we still believed ourselves to be strangers on the earth, sent down into this world from a purely abstract, ideational and spiritual heaven. Oddly enough, people who call themselves naturalists and materialists are, when judged by their actions, the most devout abstractionists and the most dedicated violators of material.”
–Alan Watts–

]]> Comment on Tea Wisdom by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-42 admin Tue, 16 Sep 2008 06:33:02 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-42 It is difficult to find the teacher when the students are up and about, talking loudly and confusing the classroom. It is difficult to find the teacher when the students are up and about, talking loudly and confusing the classroom.

]]> Comment on Tea Wisdom by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-41 admin Sat, 13 Sep 2008 01:11:07 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=18#comment-41 The tea's story is in the cup, not written on the container or passed on by the vendor. After a sip, there's nothing left to discuss. The tea’s story is in the cup, not written on the container or passed on by the vendor. After a sip, there’s nothing left to discuss.

]]> Comment on Vegetable Tea * By Thomas Leons by admin http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-40 admin Sat, 13 Sep 2008 01:03:57 +0000 http://the-leaf.org/Issue3/?p=42#comment-40 I think the suggestion to try is really worth it, and we are all very excited to see what your insights are and how you feel the lifestyle change affects your sensitivity, well-being and ability to drink tea. I think the suggestion to try is really worth it, and we are all very excited to see what your insights are and how you feel the lifestyle change affects your sensitivity, well-being and ability to drink tea.

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