I love a simple Tea Meditation every morning. It awakens me to the new day, engages each of my senses, prepares me for yoga, and fills me with gratitude for being alive.
A Tea Meditation has many benefits:
- It is a beautiful way to start your day (or is equally lovely at any other time)
- Brings peace and clarity to your moment
- Gives pleasure to the simpler things in life
- Helps you to recognise that you choose what you focus on
- Teaches you to set intention
- Rewards you with all the health benefits of your tea (1)
Tea Meditation does not have to be ritualistic. I personally find simplicity a perfect accompaniment to meditation. However, do give meditation your own personal touch. Add incense, soft music, ring a little bell to start and end your meditation… It really should be about whatever calms, clarifies and energises you, as long as the focus is on being completely present.
Tea Meditation
Make your tea ~ immerse yourself in the moment; bring each of your senses to the process. Listen to the sound of the water boiling. Choose your favourite green (or other) tea. Choose a pot and cup that you love to drink from. Enjoy the scent of the tea leaves as you measure them… the sound of the pouring water over the leaves… the joy of the leaves unfurling and the colour of the water change as the tea takes hold… relish the aroma as your tea brews… If your mind wanders just keep bringing it gently back to the tea.
Find a place ~ sit in a quiet, comfy nook where you won’t be disturbed, with an outlook that delights you.
Be grateful ~ give thanks for this moment, the quiet, the tea, your own company.
Set an intention ~ the tea itself… calming your mind… honouring self… connecting with the birds… saying ‘be gone’ to all that has come before…
Savour ~ the fragrance of the tea, the colour, the steam, the warmth of the cup in your hands, the taste of the first, and each subsequent, sip. Again, if your mind wanders, invite it back to the tea.
Appreciate ~ that this is the only moment you have for sure. It will never come again, this cup of tea, this moment of calm, this pause in the bustle, this connection to self.
Meditation is for the purpose of adding peace, calm and connection to your life. Treat the above purely as a guide, the only necessity is being present in your moment.
‘Tea Meditation’ as a philosophy, can be applied to anything you do regularly ~ cooking meditation, bath meditation, candle meditation, gardening meditation, walking meditation ~ tis simply mindfulness and gratitude.
As folk feel more and more rushed in their everyday lives, burdened with the stress of juggling too many roles, or overwhelmed with the uncertainty of their place in the world, it becomes increasingly important to practice mindfulness and calmness; to give the body, mind and spirit a chance to slow down, de-stress and re-establish equilibrium.
Learning to be more in the moment gives all of us greater joy and energy, teaches us to connect more to self and all beings around us, and in turn, hopefully, increases our want to share kindness and love. And as usual, sharing love always starts with self first. ~ GreenWitch Tea
Treat every moment as your last; it is not preparation for something else. ~ Shunryu Suzuki
(1) Health benefits of green tea
Useful links on meditation
(2) Meditation and the brain (3) Get started with meditation
2 Comments. Leave new
Excellent article with some great ideas. I can’t wait to get some of your tea and start trying them out!
And thanks for making the order process so simple.
Thanks Wolftalker… and thanks for acknowledging the order process, that was exactly what I was trying to do, make it as simple and user-friendly as possible. I look forward to your order… Have magick in your day…