On July 19th, Chen Zhongbang (Yan Wei), the president of the Shaolin Martial Arts Association in Gothenburg, Sweden, and his delegation began their second day of in-depth experience of traditional Chinese culture at our temple. On that day, the temple held a "Kung Fu Zen Tea" tasting and Buddhist exchange event specifically for Swedish friends who came from afar, allowing everyone to experience the Eastern Zen charm and spiritual wisdom in the fragrance of tea.
01 History of Zen Tea
In the evening, international friends were invited to the Pure Heart Tea Room of the temple. Master Yan Cheng first introduced the long history of Southern Shaolin Zen tea - the temple is located in Jiulian Mountain, and has produced tea since ancient times. During the Northern Song Dynasty, "Mountain Lin Cloud Tea" was once a tribute. The thousand year stone trough in the temple was engraved with "Arhat Bath Tea Powder", which witnessed the deep source of Zen tea and martial medicine health. The monk specifically pointed out that the Southern Shaolin Temple upholds the four Zen cultures of "Zen, Martial Arts, Tea, and Medicine". Zen tea is an important carrier for cultivating the mind and realizing the Tao, as well as a way of connecting traditional and contemporary life meditation.
02 Tea ceremony for cultivating the heart
Subsequently, Master Yancheng took out four types of Kung Fu Zen teas named "Observing Heart", "Initial Heart", "Purifying Heart", and "Awakening Heart" and brewed them one by one. The tea soup is clear and the aroma is distant. The master used tea to explain the four truths of "suffering, concentration, extinction, and Dao" and their corresponding relationship with the cultivation of the mind through tea ceremony, quoting the verse of Master Yanlian: "The original mind is pure and pure, and one thought leads to ignorance; one thought leads to enlightenment; one thought leads to a pure mind, and the ten directions form a Bodhi connection. The foreign guests calmly savored their drinks, from the initial bitterness to the lingering sweetness, and under the guidance of the monk, experienced the tranquil state of "tea carries the meaning of Zen, and Zen is stored in tea".
03 Communication and Interaction
During the communication session, Swedish friends enthusiastically asked questions and engaged in conversations with the monk on topics such as tea and meditation, daily spiritual cultivation, etc. The monk summarized the spirit of Zen tea culture with "righteousness, clarity, harmony, and elegance", encouraging everyone to integrate gratitude, tolerance, sharing, and bonding into their lives. Chen Zhongbang (Yan Wei), the president of the Gothenburg Shaolin Martial Arts Association in Sweden, sighed and said that this trip not only showcased the essence of martial arts in southern Shaolin, but also gained insights into the wisdom of Chinese culture's "internal and external cultivation" through Zen tea, which was deeply touching.
This Zen tea experience is a vivid practice of South Shaolin Temple using tea as a medium to promote cultural exchanges between China and Switzerland. The temple uses Zen tea as a carrier to transmit the millennium old Buddhist wisdom and aesthetic of life to foreign friends, showcasing the inclusiveness and depth of traditional Chinese culture, and building a peaceful and warm bridge for spiritual dialogue between China and foreign countries. Tasting tea is like savoring one's heart. This cross-border tea agreement will surely leave a lasting and sweet memory for both parties.
