Aesthetic and religious aspect of the tea ceremony as a theatrical performance: contemporary insights in the classical culture of Japan

The purpose of the study is to highlight the main theatrical and sacred actions of its participants based on a detailed analysis of the formation of an ancient ritual action as a codification of the ritual tea ceremony, one of the components of the traditional ritual culture of Japan. In accordance with the purpose, the tasks were set to consider the evolutionary process of its formation and formation, considering it through the prism of modernity. The research methodology is based on a system of general scientific principles, methods and scientific approaches that provide for the use of a complex of general scientific and special methods that provide a multi-vector study of the object and subject of research, as well as an opportunity to cover in detail the aesthetics of the tea ceremony as an important component of classical Japanese culture.

Main research material

Trends in globalisation and the rapid development of market relations in society often lead to an imbalance in the ratio of material and spiritual in human life. The modern world, characterised by high achievements in the field of science and technology, is experiencing a significant crisis in the spiritual and moral aspect. In Japan, these problems were also somewhat complicated to a certain extent by the specifics of socioeconomic processes that have developed as a result of its historical development.

The crisis of Japanese society in the post-war period, first of all, manifested itself in the loss of some value foundations of life, and the reason for the violation of continuity in culture-in a certain gap that for some time was formed between the modern and traditional culture of the Japanese, which since ancient times was built on the basis of religious, spiritual values. However, the people of the Land of the Rising Sun tried in every possible way to overcome it in the shortest possible period of time (and achieved the goal), cultivating those patriotic traits that allow them to feel like a nation of patriots. That is why the problem of preserving national cultural identity, traditions, and national uniqueness, which is expressed in the classical culture of Japan, was urgent. Not the least role in this is played by one of its organic components - tea ritual and ceremonial action, which is considered the national pride of the country and is reverently passed down from generation to generation.

There are many legends about the origin of this ancient cult ritual, the appearance of which is associated with the name of the first patriarch of Buddhism Bodhidharma. One of them says that once, while sitting in meditation, he felt that his eyes were closing and against his will he was sleepy. Angry with himself, he snatched his eyelids and threw them to the ground. In this place, they say that an unusual bush with juicy leaves soon grew, which later his students began to brew in boiling water and drink a miracle drink that helps to keep up with the mood for a long time (Rybalko, 1999, p. 4).

However, among them, there are also some legends from the national oral traditions, which also deserve attention and can be another valuable source for scientists. In particular, that in fact the tea customs, and later the tea ritual ceremony, originated in China long before the advent of Buddhism. Some sources tell us that it was introduced by Laozi. According to legend, it was he who, somewhere around the 5^th century BC, allegedly first proposed the ritual with a cup of "golden elixir", which appeared in this state almost before the Mongol invasion. However, the Chinese reduced the "golden elixir ceremony" to simply brewing tea bush leaves dried in a certain way in boiled water, the drink of which was then consumed during meditation to cheer up its participants (Veniaminov, 1905, pp. 92-93). However, there is another opinion, which is held by some Western Orientalists, claiming that tea came to Japan in the 8^th century. It could have been brought to the country by Buddhist monks from China, Korea or India, as well as Japanese travellers visiting China. It is believed that the first small areas of tea were broken up by a Saisho monk in Kyoto back in 802 at the foot of Mount Hieizan. His compatriots, having appreciated the healing qualities of this drink, began to show a keen interest in it. But in those years, there was no question of any mass participation. It continued almost until the 12^th century, until the use of tea in Japan became widespread in the country. This phenomenon is associated with the active work of priest Eisai (1141-1215), who brought the first batch of tea bush seedlings from China and, as a gentle gardener, began to care for and cultivate them at a Zen Buddhist monastery (Rubel, 1997, pp. 32-33).

According to one of the ancient legends, tea, as a miraculous drink, was allegedly presented to the Buddha. It was used during various religious rituals and meditations. Eisai, convinced of its healing qualities, in his works that have come down to the present day, especially emphasised the outstanding benefits of a fragrant tea drink for preserving and promoting health.

The mass spread of the cultivation of tea plants and tea drinking was also promoted by the founder of another direction of Zen Buddhism priest Dogen (1200-1253) in Japan, who not only initiated the ceremonial and ritual actions of tea drinking in the warm period of the year "in nature", in a secluded place but also was well versed in the cultivation of high - quality varieties of tea leaf, whose plantations in those ancient times were concentrated mainly on monastic lands that belonged to the temple grounds.

Since the middle of the 13^th century, due to the increasing influence of Zen Buddhist monasteries on the public life of the country, the tea drink has become popular not only among monks, but also among samurai, wealthy citizens, aristocrats and some other strata of society. Moreover, its use took on a ceremonial and sacred connotation, which was completely in line with the preachers of Buddhism, who saw in the magical ritual of tea drinking an opportunity, delving into themselves, to think about the meaning of life and try to find its truth.

The best conditions for this could be sacred temple locations, where a person, being alone, could plunge into the depths of his soul in search of truth. It was these fundamental issues that many years of his life were devoted to the cleric of one of the Buddhist temples, Takeno Joo, who was an ardent supporter of Zen Buddhism. Believing that this sacred place could be a tea pavilion, he decided to start by "modernising" one of Japan's first rather primitive shrines for tea drinking, which was built back in 1473. For his project, he chose a lightweight design, in which he paid special attention to the lighting that penetrated the room. It was surprisingly "soft" and inspired a certain mystical mood among the participants of the ritual tea party. It is worth saying that the design and design of the small, evergreen garden adjacent to it were organically connected with the Wabi-Sabi aesthetic categories, denoting a harmonious fusion of the seemingly incompatible-refined and simple, calm and sad, hidden beauty and conciseness. All this is reflected in this sacred and magical complex.

As a representative of Zen Buddhism, he tried to convey his basic principles to the participants of the sacred cult rite, which was based on the principle of focusing only on "one's own strength", that is, on the experience of a person, making it clear that neither the knowledge of the Buddha - a great teacher nor the teachings of a particular mentor in themselves will help in any way. A person should look for a way to a sudden insight himself. And the expression "I do not know" is an important leitmotif for immersion in Zen Buddhism because the world is changeable, and the truth that is not known by reason is constantly slipping away; representatives of this religious trend believed. This spiritual search has led the inhabitants of this country to that sacred place where they can fully experience real peace and tranquillity. They believed that everything in this world has a living soul, even individual objects. Therefore everything should be treated with extreme caution because they have magical power and aesthetic qualities.

Another great master, the consistent creator of the Japanese tea ceremony, Mu- rata Juko (1422-1502), sought to embody the participants' inner concentration and spiritual consent in the aesthetics of the art of ritual and ritual tea drinking. In many ways sharing the point of view of his predecessors, he significantly enriched this magical, mysterious art of tea drinking with the philosophy and aesthetics of Zen Buddhism. Murata Jukopreached that the truth of the Buddha can be revealed and can be learned even in some subtle "stingy" gestures, accompanying, for example, even filling a tea bowl with a hot-smelling drink (sign language is of great importance in Buddhism, as, indeed, in many other religions,) and the magical actions of the Tea Master (Okakura, 1906, p. 65). He argued that the tea ceremony is not just the use of a healing drink but a way to engage in the philosophy of this ceremonial meditation artfully. To convey this truth, he began using the tiny, modest doujinshi room at the court of Shogun Ashikaga Murat, drowning in luxury.

Of course, now it is difficult to compare contrasting, at first glance, sacred rooms of the rich and modest rooms for tea drinking because, even though they are different, but still things on the same side of the coin. Japanese military leaders and wealthy merchants, demonstrating greatness and abundance according to their social status, also wanted to live in an atmosphere of calm contemplation with their hearts and soul. And the tea room was precisely the place where peace, trust and friendship rule, which in those days, as well as could not be better suited to the desires of the powerful.

The ceremonial action that Murata conducted personally was an attempt to abandon the worries and "hardships" of the mortal world, to escape from the harsh reality of life in a state of silence and tranquillity. It is believed that it was he who first formulated the four basic principles of the tea ceremony: harmony ("Wa"), reverence ("Kei"), purity ("Sei") and, silence, tranquillity ("Seki"). Moreover, peace and quiet were understood by him as enlightened solitude. Murata Dzyuko considered the metaphorical image of a single sprig of plum blossom in a snow-covered forest to symbolise the "wabi" principle as a desire for simplicity and naturalness (Powell, 2004, p. 198).

In the 15^th century, the ritual tea ceremony went beyond the walls of temples with an accelerated gait and gradually absorbed social life, gaining popularity among the social elite, particularly the Japanese aristocracy, samurai and wealthy citizens. All this was evidence that was slowly getting rid of its religious connotation and turned into a kind of system of joyful, carefree, secular leisure recreation from the everyday worries of a wider range of Japanese citizens. In particular, those in power from the military nobility and merchants, gathering for political and trade discussions, often took the opportunity to offer or drink a bowl of fragrant tea hospitably. It was considered a refined pleasure to sit nobly at your leisure in a quiet tea room with soft natural light, detached from everyday worries and worries, and listen, enjoying, to the sounds of water boiling over the fire.

It should be noted that in the second half of the 15^th century, simultaneously with the increase in the scale of our own "tea" products from China to Japan, many competitive "surrogate fakes" of real fragrant tea also penetrated. And this significantly undermined the" temple" monopoly of its cultivation and distribution and, to a certain extent, reduced its quality and, accordingly, disrupted the technological process of its "artisanal" cooking. The search for a way to counter this "invasion" began, as a result of which, according to researchers, the custom of organising a kind of mass entertainment in the form of tea gaming tournaments arose.

At first, they were conducted by monks in monasteries, which were sometimes joined by samurai - supporters of Zen Buddhism. But gradually, the circle of their participants began to expand. During such a competitive tasting event, participants had to use the testing method to determine better and less high-quality, that is, "good" and "not quite" varieties. The one who correctly guessed the largest number of varieties was awarded an incentive prize (Surak, 2012, p. 270).

Representatives of other social groups from among the poor citizens, lower middle class, and peasants did not stand aside. At that time, ritual and ceremonial tea parties also began to be introduced in their circles according to a somewhat simplified procedure. Murata Juko is believed to be one of the initiators of these so-called "tea meetings". Unlike the pomp of the luxurious tea tournaments of the aristocrats, these were not entertaining but rather modest, sometimes even silent meetings of middle-class people, united by the desire to have a good time after meditation during their leisure hours in the friendly company of lovers of healing, fragrant greens (Saito, 1985, pp. 239-240). In other words, he tried to contrast the luxurious feasts of the tea tournaments of the rich with the naturalness and simplicity, which was more characteristic of the representatives of his religious views.

A quick insight into that time shows that then in the country, among tea lovers, there was a tendency to a noticeable increase in the number of supporters of the simplified scheme. However, the boom of classical ritual tea ceremonies still flourished and gained strength in society despite a significant number of people involved. His supporter Sen no Rikyu (1522-1591), who was a follower of the great Masters of the tea ceremony Takeno Joo and Murata Juko, decided to organise this magical and sacred action somewhat. Continuing the traditions of his famous teachers, he also began by improving the tea house. It should be said that before, the tea house looked like a tiny, poor hut of ancient oriental sages, very modest both outside and inside.

It was believed that simplicity better created a sense of beauty, and its comprehension of meaning was achieved through a philosophical understanding of reality. Some difficulties had to be overcome to get inside, and from today's point of view, it is even difficult to imagine this discomfort. In particular, to get into the secret and magical "kingdom", it was necessary to "crawl" through a narrow and rather low entrance - about one meter in height and width.

The sacred idea of such a reduced entrance had a deep philosophical meaning: anyone who wants to join the high art of the tea ceremony, regardless of rank, must certainly bend because everyone is equal here. In addition, such an ancient design did not allow aristocrats from the highest military class to enter armed - long swords had to be left outside. And this was not only symbolic but also in line with the basic religious tenets: "Let all the adversities of life and worldly turmoil leave you, let nothing disturb your consciousness here, where you need to focus only on the beautiful" (Kawabata, 1969, p. 58).

Adherence to these important principles was the basis of the building conceived by the outstanding master of the tea ceremony Sen no Rikyu. He decided to radically organise the ritual and ceremonial complex with the additional construction of a utility room for ceremonial utensils and a sacred garden attached to them. At first glance, it seemed too simple, even too small, and not much different from its predecessors. The size of the "treatment" room for a ceremonial tea in those days ranged from about 8 m². According to ancient sources and legends, such a room one day in ancient times, by some miracle, seemed to hold a vast number of Buddha's disciples. It is difficult even to imagine, but the basic tenets of Buddhism allow the reality of such an event since the "truly enlightened" do not have the weight and volume of the body (Oldenberg, 1905, p. 117).

It must be said that the reconstructed room was planned very thoughtfully, with all the subtleties of the case, down to the smallest details. In particular, it was decorated with "sliding" doors covered with snow-white translucent Japanese paper, which made it possible, if necessary, to increase or decrease the size (depending on the number of participants) of the already small room. The ceiling was decorated with bamboo or reeds, and the open texture of the walls in those days (by the way, as now) was highly valued. The pillars were mostly made of wood while maintaining even their natural bark texture. The house was usually dominated by a surprisingly soft semi-darkness, created by the dim light from small windows near the ceiling and the reflection of light from the walls decorated with dark grey clay (Fenlei, 2008, p. 94).

To create the effect of a modest hermit's dwelling when decorating a tea room, all unnecessary and excessive decorations were removed in advance. Only a scroll with a philosophical saying in the tokonoma, an old painting, and a bouquet of ikebana flower arrangements were allowed as decorations in the tea house. That is, the entire interior of the then classic tea houses fully corresponded to the aesthetic canons and national character of the Japanese, who strive in every possible way to achieve the inner harmony of the guests.

Arranging the so-called "cradle" of the ceremonial tea event, he added a small utility room for various ritual utensils. This extra utility room with sacred objects reflected the main ideas of Zen Buddhism. All participants of the ceremonial event, immersed in this ritual and formal atmosphere, felt a calming state of pleasant loneliness of a person who seems to be mentally resting in a virtual shadow after exhausting days.

In addition, the great reformer of the tea ceremony also detailed the basic principles of garden design (chanoyu, roji) as a mandatory attribute of the tea house complex. So, a path led through it to the ceremonial pavilion, for the arrangement of which stones and partially large pieces of valuable white paper were first used, which covered the wet grass. It was done so that the dew would not soak the long clothes of Shogun Yoshimashi Ashikaga when he went to the tea procedure, and later it began to be paved with stones. And allegedly, in memory of this ancient historical event, the Japanese garden path is called roji, the land moistened with dew. And when it was laid out of various stones, the word "roji" began to denote not only a path of stones, around which there were stone lanterns and, as if naturally scattered, moss-covered stones, but also the entire garden. Anyone entering the path paved with large shapeless stones that led to the magically sacred tea house had to leave at this moment all their worldly worries and focus only on waiting for the mysterious ceremonial procedure.

Pines, cypresses, sakura, bamboo, and evergreen shrubs were usually planted in the garden. All the tea ceremony garden elements were supposed to create a special mood of complete concentration and alienation. By the way, thanks to Sen no Rikyu, the principle of "sabi" was understood as a new type of beauty, embodied not only in the tea house architecture and in the design of the exterior of the adjacent garden but also in the selection of all necessary sacred objects. In the tea ceremony, according to Sen no Rikyu, everything should have harmoniously formed a single artistic and aesthetic ensemble (Powell, 2004, p. 204).

By creating this sacred complex, he achieved his goal. The complex construction of the building, the design of the adjacent sacred garden, and ceremonial auxiliary "tools" with an obvious touch of antiquity were closely related to the aesthetic categories of "sabi" and "wabi", which signify a harmonious fusion of refined and simple, calm and sad, hidden beauty, laconism, muted colours. This classic version is now taken as a basis for the foundation of new pavilions for tea theatrical and ceremonial events.

It is worth noting that the Japanese do not like bright, shiny ceremonial objects; they are more impressed by the matte finish. In this regard, Ju. Tanizaki writes: "Europeans usually use cutlery made of silver, steel or nickel, polishing it to a dazzling shine, but we can't stand such gloss. We also use silverware, but we never polish it. On the contrary, we rejoice when this shine disappears from the surface of objects, and they, darkening over time, acquire a touch of antiquity. We love things that bear traces of human flesh, oil soot, weathering, and rain swellings" (Tanaka et al., 2000, p. 222). Reflecting on these words, one can understand more why the auxiliary sacred utensils are marked with time - a simple teapot, a wooden tea spoon, a rough ceramic bowl, etc., the sacred actions of a tea magician in the mysterious semi-darkness of the room and silence - all this magically fascinates those present, bringing them to a state of peace of mind.

It is worth adding that, while improving the art of tea ceremony, he first switched to the widespread use of ceramic dishes and typical "container" vases for traditional ikebana flower arrangements, which Japanese craftsmen made in the areas of Bizen, Seto, Shiga. These complementary innovations not only, to a certain extent, popularised the national sacred tableware and auxiliary utensils of local producers but also the tea ceremony procedure in the society of that time, making it both a religious and secular event. Over the years, it has acquired a massive normalised character. But perhaps the most important thing that Sen no Rikyu achieved with his innovations is that he managed to bring the usual tea ceremony to a theatrical sacred and mystical art that covered wide segments of the population (Shelestova, 1970, pp. 2-3).

Arranging the ritual procedure of the tea ceremony and developing etiquette rules for its participants, he even determined the nature of the conversations in the formal process, which were supposed to create a mood of alienation from everyday life and the desire to know beauty. All participants of the tea ceremony, enjoying this theatrical action, in which everyone carries out their mission, usually conduct a heart-to-heart conversation, sitting in a classical pose, with their feet tucked under them (on their heels), within the agreed framework of the classical ritual (Goro, 1957, p. 89). All this led to the fact that in the 16^th century, the tea ceremony turned into a kind of staged theatrical ritual, in which every detail, object, and order of things (as in a theatrical performance) had its own special, unique meaning. Many different canonised rules of the tea ceremony have appeared, which, by the way, are still valid in our time. Mostly, they mainly relate to the ikebana flower arrangement, water boiling, tea brewing, the order and priority of tea pouring, and so on.

All this search for "standart" pursued a single goal - to evoke a sense of naturalness from this cult procedure, or even an understanding of the art of its perfect mastery, which is not artificial. When asked how he achieved such high ceremonial perfection, Sen no Rikyu, the great master of the tea ceremony, briefly replied: "Very easy. Boil water, brew tea, and strive to achieve the desired taste. But at the same time, do not forget about the flowers of ikebana, which should always look like alive... That is, summer creates a feeling of coolness and pleasant warmth in winter. As you can see, everything is very simple, but show me someone who has achieved all this, and I will be happy to become his disciple" (Okakura, 1906, p. 42). These are wise words, and there is no point in denying them. However, the years have done no good for various reasons, both objective and subjective. And of the many tea rooms he created during his lifetime, only the tea room Tai-an in the Myoki-an temple (in the area near Kyoto) has survived to this day. Today, it is considered one of the most valuable national historical and architectural monuments of medieval Japan and is protected by law.

Having made an excursion into the distant past, the authors try to trace the phenomenon of survivability of this organic segment of traditional Japanese culture, which today continues to play an essential role in its people's spiritual and social life for several centuries. Its innermost meaning is revealed, in our opinion, in the well-known saying of Sen no Rikyu: "Tai-an is the worship of beauty in the grey light of everyday life" (Saito, 1985, p. 241). Therefore, it is not surprising that even in the rapid flow of modern life, which captures and completely absorbs people, the Japanese find time for tea ceremonies.

However, the study will be incomplete if we do not consider the protocol procedure for inviting to the tea ceremony, which has been noticeably modernised over the years. Now it complies with modern etiquette rules and looks something like this. The host sends invitations to his friends, who, two or three days before the tea ceremony, thank him for his attention and honour to be invited, confirming their consent. On the appointed day and time of the tea ceremony, guests gather 15-20 minutes in advance in a specially designated room and choose a guest of honour (shokyaku), which, as a rule, is a "status" person or an older person. They also clearly define the further hierarchy of subsequent actions: who will be the second, third, and so on. In this order, the traditional hand washing procedure and the sequence of entering the room and seating take place (Zhukov & Kuchuk, 2012).

By the way, such a social hierarchy existed several centuries ago, which is evident from the study materials or historical sources related to the proposed issue. The generations of Master-reformers of the tea ceremony have changed, and the traditions laid down in the ancient times and basic trends, only slightly transformed, remain one characteristic feature of the modern Japanese lifestyle. However, over time, the ritual of the classical tea ceremony has tended to simplify, including invitations to celebrations. Still, the procedural requirements for its premises, design, sequence of ritual actions, and classical behaviour of all its participants remain constant (Suzuki, 1959, p. 26). As in ancient times, as soon as entering the courtyard of the garden through a simple wooden gate, guests are immersed in a special world, leaving everything worldly behind and obeying only the laws of magically charming action. They walk slowly along the alley leading to the tea house in silent concentration. As they moved slowly along the path, their inner concentration increased. It should be noted that to some extent, it is facilitated by the same old lantern, the dim light of which also illuminates the path in the evening and night, and the stone basin (tsukubai), in the hollowed-out recess of which there is running water for washing hands and rinsing the mouth. There is usually a small bamboo scoop with a long handle next to it. Traditionally, each guest was required to wash their hands and face, rinse their mouth, and then rinse the scoop handle. By the way, water vessels are an indispensable traditional detail not only of the tea garden but also of any Japanese temple.

As in ancient times, there are evergreen trees, sakura trees, shrubs and grass, and in some places, charming flowers, including many chrysanthemums and a small pond. All garden elements are designed to create a particular mood of concentration and complete alienation among the participants of the sacred tea procedure. Due to this, the principle of "sabi" was understood as a new type of natural beauty, embodied not only in the primitively simplified architecture of the tea house and its utility room with the surrounding "sacred" garden but also in the selection of all ritual and ceremonial objects: teapots, a pot for boiled water, a bowl for tea, etc.

When entering the tea pavilion, guests immediately take off their shoes, leaving them at the entrance. Traditionally, after making a bow, they go inside and also sit in silence on a special mat, concentrating on admiring a scroll with a painting or with some calligraphic inscription and enjoying the refined naturalness of the ikebana flower arrangement in tokonoma, where now there is also a smoking room with incense.

By the way, the scroll for tokonoma, as in ancient times, is selected with special care, traditionally remaining an indispensable attribute of the theatrical and ritual tea ceremony. As always, the lighting of the room is very important. As a rule, the house has six to eight windows, different in size and shape, which gives optimal-moderate lighting. In some cases, you can push the window frames apart, and then guests have the opportunity to admire the charming part of the garden, the mountain against the background of the evening sky or the sky in the cyclical period of full moonlight. But most often, the windows in this sacred building are darkened for a certain period of time, during which guests have the opportunity to examine and evaluate the objects displayed in the tokonoma carefully.

Not far from it, in the back of the room, next to a burning fire, traditionally, there is a small stand with a complete set of sacred attributes for holding a tea ceremony, as if waiting for guests. Among them are a teapot, bowls, and bamboo whisk, which somewhat resembles a shaving brush, a box for storing tea, goodies, and the like. It seems that all of them were also designed to create a fantastic mood of concentration and, at the same time, alienation among the participants of the magical tea procedure.

Over time, the guests focused on the interior, exchanging remarks about what they saw and its indispensable aesthetic element - tokonoma, which is always the pride of the owners of the house, the initiator of the tea ceremony (chajin) also appears. He bows low to the guests and sits down opposite them by the fire, over which there is a pot of boiling water (by the way, it should be noted that in the classic "chashitsu", as a rule, it is boiled on coals from sakura twigs). All the traditionally necessary attributes of tea utensils are next to it: a box with green tea, a bowl and a wooden spoon... Each item, carrying an important sacred, aesthetic and philosophical load, is often a real work of Japanese art (Surak, 2012, p. 271). The host slowly pours green tea into a large bowl, then fills it with hot water (not boiling water). After that, with clear, focused movements, he whips this mass with a bamboo whisk until the powder is completely dissolved and there is an olive-coloured matte foam. Guests silently watch the magical mystery that is happening in front of them, listening to the monotonous and rhythmic tapping of the whisk on the edges of the bowl.

Having coped with this, he passes the bowl to the main, most honourable guest with a bow of his head. He takes a fukusa (silk handkerchief, a piece of silk material), puts it on the palm of his left hand, and puts a bowl on it with his right. Nodding to a neighbour (osaki ni - after You), he usually takes three sips of green as if melt-in- the-mouth bitter-tart mass, then puts fukusa on the mat and, slowly wiping the edge of the bowl with his kaishi (paper handkerchief or napkin), passes the bowl to the second guest. Repeating the same ceremonial procedure, the bowl is passed in a circle from hand to hand, so that everyone can also carefully examine its painting, feel its rough surface and even the warmth of the clay from which it was made. Everyone expresses great admiration for this work of decorative and applied art. This aspect of the ritual procedure should contribute to a sense of trust and closeness between all tea ceremony participants. At the same time, the normalised sequence of ritual actions and compliance with the status of those present are strictly maintained.

Shortly after strong tea, liquid tea is served, and a tray of cakes is immediately brought in. It is worth noting that this type of tea is prepared for everyone at the same time in several bowls. Now guests can drink a fragrant drink as they please. After some time, the guest of honour, on behalf of all present, according to the ritual, traditionally asks the host to tell the story of the origin of the bowl that he inherited and everything connected with it. Kindly respond to their requests; he does it a little theatrically with great pleasure and thus arouses the admiration of the guests.

After finishing this "protocol" part of the ceremonial ritual, everyone somehow imperceptibly gets involved in a relaxed, intimate conversation. Talking about politics, everyday affairs, and life problems is not customary. They mostly talk only about the beauty of the scroll in tokonoma, about the elegance of the mysteriously curved pine branch in the flower arrangement of ikebana, and about the natural grandeur of the tea bowl...

The whole ceremonial cycle of the tea ceremony in the tea house and the mystery of the nearby garden, where guests go out to communicate, wordlessly teach (as in ancient times) to feel the aesthetics of natural beauty in the ordinary and simple, to see the beauty in the small, to realise the high value of everything that we have in this life.

However, modern ritual tea ceremonies are sometimes designed to be embodied in the cramped space of a traditional tea house and outside it. Nowadays, they are often held outside it, even in one of the specially adapted living rooms of the house. It should be said that this is not always a classical tea and ceremonial event, but most often, it is some kind of light version with elements of classics. Attention should be paid to the fact that this is mainly done by women. And often the simplified ceremonial procedure takes place in ordinary rooms, where even tables and chairs are arranged for guests. At the same time, the tea ceremony itself, while formally remaining unchanged, is still significantly simplified. However, it is worth saying that the ceremonial and magical cult of tea ceremony developed by Zen Buddhists is still jealously guarded, and a serious deviation from the traditional procedure is considered undesirable in Japan (Sim- mura, 1961, p. 187).

Modern generations of Japanese people recognise and carefully cultivate the traditional canons of the tea ceremony not only because it gives them the opportunity for aesthetic pleasure. In the process of this ceremonial rite, they, having plunged into the depths of their soul, feel themselves internally through the prism of strict regulation of the norms and rules of procedural and ritual behaviour, precisely established reasons for the ritual action, a stable set of sacred and procedural utensils, and so on.

At the same time, for example, when inviting guests to a classic (rather than a simplified "tai-an" ceremony), the Japanese never forget that this is a strictly regulated traditional ritual action, in which the roles of all participants are clearly described. As in a "well-directed" theatrical performance, the main role is played by the tea master (the person who brews and pours tea), and the rest of the invited guests are active participants in the ceremonial spectacle. In fact, the master of tea is like a priest who performs a magical action, and all his guests are directly involved in it. Everyone has their function and specific behaviour style, including the sitting position and almost every movement. Europeans who have visited this sacred meditation procedure for the first time pay attention to the artificially "formed" (even somewhat theatrical) facial expressions of those present and the refined etiquette manners during the ceremonial communication of guests.

It should be noted that, as in ancient times, the tea ceremonial ritual is also a time for conversations about the beautiful, art, literature, painting, and, of course, the miraculous tea bowl, as a work of art, the beauty of the bouquet of ikebana solemnly arranged for the arrival of guests. When starting the flower arrangement, the host even considered that, like everything else in the tea ceremony, the smallest details must correspond to classical principles. In particular, the unity of contrasts, for example, a pine branch - a symbol of perseverance and eternity can "coexist" with a delicate and fragile camellia, and so on. By the way, it can very often be just one rose, wildflower, or even a twig, which are symbols of natural beauty and an indispensable component of the tea ceremony.

Of course, the scroll in the tokonoma deserves special attention. Even in our times does not go unnoticed and is traditionally an indispensable subject of discussion during a classic tea ceremony. However, sometimes the text is written in such archaic calligraphy in the Buddhist style for Zen that its meaning is difficult to understand for the modern generation of Japanese who are uninitiated in this verbal philosophical wisdom. As an example, we can cite the following statements: "Bamboo is green, but flowers are red", "Things are things, and this is great!" or "Water is water" (Aston, 1904, p. 167). Of course, not everyone will immediately be able to comprehend the meaning of what is written on the scroll. Therefore, the host or one of his guests often clearly explained their meaning. At first glance, it is too simple, but at the same time very deep in philosophical terms, if you delve into the history of the religion of the eastern region. By the way, similar ideas can be traced in the poetic form of haiku poems, as it is not difficult to see by getting acquainted with these literary masterpieces of Japan (Rybalko, 1999, pp. 50-51).

It should be noted that today, in modern Japan, there are many forms of the ritual procedure of tea ceremony, but only a few classic ones have strictly regulated: night tea, sunrise tea, morning tea, afternoon tea, evening tea, and special tea (Umebaiasi, 2004, p. 115). It is worth focusing on this issue to have a more complete picture of the traditional culture of tea ceremony in modern conditions. In particular, night tea begins when the moonlight appears in the sky. Guests gather at about half-past eleven, and the tea ceremony continues until about four in the morning. Usually, the powdered tea is brewed, which is prepared in front of guests: the leaves are released from the veins and crushed in a special mortar to a powder-like state. This tea is considered too strong and is not served on an empty stomach. In this case, according to the established procedure, the host first treats guests to specially prepared dishes for this occasion and a small portion of traditional Japanese sake. It is worth noting that they eat very little, otherwise, the tea ceremony will lose its meaning. He tries to tell them some interesting life incident or story, that is, he does everything possible to make the time enjoyable for guests.

Sunrise tea is drunk after three or four o'clock in the morning. Guests stay until six o'clock. As for morning tea, it is usually practiced in warm weather, guests gather around six o'clock in the morning. Afternoon tea is usually served only with cakes around noon. As for evening tea, the tea ceremony begins around six o'clock in the evening. A few words should also be said about a special tea ceremony (rinji chanoyu), which is arranged on the occasion of any special event: a meeting with friends, holidays (there are a lot in the country), a change of season, and so on. Usually, it is preceded by kaiseki, that is, treats with a variety of food: soups and rice, fish, potatoes with seasoning, and so on. As in the old days, there are always goodies on the table, although in a slightly wider range, sometimes even a larger selection of alcoholic beverages is offered. However, the study indicates that despite some ritual and procedural simplification of the classical version of the tea ceremony, the spirit of the traditions of the ancient ceremony remains unchanged: the desire to create an atmosphere of sincerity, move away from vain, everyday worries and affairs.

Conclusions