The Purple-Sand Road

Yixing Feature The Purple-sand Road Wu De Wu De had the fortune to go on an amazing journey to Yixing last year and learn from Master Lin, Henry Yiow and Master Zhou. Long before he left, he knew he'd write this article, and so prayed to carry us all along on the trip in spirit. onths before flying to readiness to absorb and learn all that Master Zhou and I had spent time Yixing, I knew it was I could about my favorite teapots. together in Wuyi and at tea events, going to be one of the Yixing pots have taught me so much, always joking back and forth that most important trips I’d ever take. and are some of my oldest and most the flight to or from Taiwan is so This wasn’t the ordinary tourist stint, precious friends and teachers on my short: “Why haven’t you visited?” poking my head into ceramicists’ journey. So before I left Taiwan, I and then lovingly, “No, why haven’t workshops, sniffing through shelves held an old pot and smiled, imagin- you visited?” And so, this trip was of pots and sculptures in the market ing the trip to come… a great opportunity to get to know or taking photos with friendly locals. Two weeks is a long time to him, his family and to see the way At the station waiting for me, down a spend in the small town of Yix- he lives. We had three days with long and drab corridor, was my own ing, but I was no ordinary tour- my master and Henry, followed master Lin Ping Xiang, a dear brother ist. Sure, there’s not a lot to see by by around ten days together alone. and mentor Henry Yiow and Master way of attraction, and most people They surrounded me with delicious Zhou Qi Kun. Master Zhou is one can learn what they need to about vegetarian food, great tea, put me of the best teaware makers alive, teapots from just a few days. But I up in a nice hotel and made sure I and certainly my favorite person in wanted a deep immersion, especially wanted for nothing. When I look Yixing! I was being welcomed by the given the opportunity to do so at a back on how much love Master best possible guides one could ask for: time in my life when my Chinese Zhou and his family showered on My master has decades of experience has reached a decent fluency and I me, making me feel at home and studying Yixing teaware and traveling would be surrounded by such amaz- taking me around to learn about there, and so does Henry, and Master ing wisdom in the form of the gen- the history and production of tradi- Zhou is one of the most knowledgea- eration of tea brothers above me. tional Yixing crafts, my eyes moisten ble experts on Yixing history, art and I also had a second, more heartfelt with nostalgia and love. Such gen- production in the world. And so the reason for going: to bond with a erosity is rarely met with in this hugs at the end of that corridor were dear brother and friend. world, and worthy of a deep bow. the culmination of a long-standing It always takes a while to get I tried to go there without a dream—one that I’d spent months used to the overwhelming kindness notebook—without any plan or preparing for, emptying myself in a and hospitality of a Chinese friend. pre-determined idea about what I 17 could or should learn. I knew there tual. We would talk and drink tea at voir, but rather a flowing river of Tea were some gaps in my knowledge, his house—me asking questions and wisdom that he shares with passion but I didn’t want to approach the him answering in greater depth than and love to anyone who asks. I saw trip as if I were some kind of expert I could have possibly imagined over the respect, gratitude and love I felt with a solid understanding of Yixing cups of tea. Then as we talked about for him mirrored in every one of the that only needed patching up here clay, for example, at some point in people we visited. or there. Rather, I wanted to show the teaching, he would put his cup Long before I went to Yixing, up with a beginner’s mind: know- down and smile at me, emphati- I knew that I would write an arti- ing nothing, receptive and ready to cally grabbing his keys: “Let’s go!” cle like this, sharing some of what I be guided to the lessons I need, and And off we’d go to one of his many, learned with all of you. As a result, ready to renew my contract with many friends’ or students’ places to you all traveled there with me. You things I think I know. My cup was see whatever we’d been discussing in were in my heart, and even dis- empty, in other words. And over person and get our hands into the cussed at length with Master Zhou, hundreds of cups of strong “Yixing matter. who now understands more of Gongfu Red Tea”, the lessons started In going around to hundreds of what our community is about. He unfolding each day... the pottery studios of Master Zhou’s expressed a pride to be involved. Master Zhou was the best students, ore collectors, clay makers, In the end, I felt like I success- teacher I could hope for. He gen- kiln workers, wood-fired kiln work- fully deepened a lifelong friend- uinely loves tea and teapots. With ers, teapot collectors/vendors, etc., it ship and bond with Master Zhou true tea spirit, his eyes beamed with became very clear to me that all the and his family and also made some glee whenever I’d ask him about loving-kindness that Master Zhou new friends as well. Beyond that, I anything that came up. He’d imme- was showing me day after day wasn’t learned more than I could ever type diately dive into the topic with for me alone. Everywhere we went, in a few hours (more than just fill- enthusiasm, talking slowly when eyes lit up and people expressed ing in the gaps of my understanding necessary, or repeating himself, to honor at the visit. I could tell that of Yixing, I feel a bit more experi- make sure I understood. Like any the deep and vast knowledge he was enced). Despite finding my cup so good teacher, he also knows that real sharing with me wasn’t coming from very full by the end of the trip, the understanding can’t be just intellec- a dammed up and protected reser- encounter with Master Zhou’s end- 18 Yixing Feature less treasury of knowledge, both balance of plates, bowls, vases and their skills would really set the town information and experience, defi- some teaware. One city, on the other apart from say porcelain teaware nitely left me feeling like there are hand, very quickly got busy mak- from Jing De Zhen, which can be lifetimes more to learn when it ing teapots. And when I say busy, I painted with glazes of so many col- comes to Yixing teaware and Tea in mean every man, woman and child ors and refined to its own great ele- general! But we have to start some- in the town were somehow involved gance. Purple-sand teaware has great where, so why not here. I thought in mining the ore, refining the clay, aesthetic value, but that is not what I would share with you some of the making pots or selling them! Art- married it to Tea, nor the reason things I learned on my trip as well as ists from far afield also moved there why it eclipsed all other kilns in the some of the experiential highlights, to help carve calligraphy or designs production of teapots for tea lovers thereby fulfilling my earnest desire into teapots, paint on them with throughout the empire and eventu- to take you all with me in spirit… glaze, etc. That town was Yixing, the ally beyond in export to other coun- teapot capital of the world. tries. For that we have to turn to the There are many reasons for Yix- ore. Episode IV, A New Hope ing teapots’ success. While the aes- There is a magic relation- Like anything in this modern thetics of purple-sand teaware may ship between the ore from Yellow world, you can find all the condi- be on that list, it is nowhere near the Dragon Mountain and its surround- tions for a positive or negative expe- top. Most Chajin definitely gravitate ings that changes the nature of tea rience within the experience itself— towards simplicity in their tea jour- liquor. This is incredibly obvious dependent on your orientation. I ney, and the subtle decorations of to almost anyone, no matter how usually take a balanced approach, Yixing ware very much suit a wabi far they have progressed in their exploring the truth in both the tea spirit. But many people gravitate tea journey. If you but take three problems/challenges and the active, towards more elegant and refined grams of a tea you are familiar with as well as potential solutions. That is teaware. Of course, Yixing masters and put it into a purple-sand teapot Zen.

Load more