Zen is a type of Buddhism that focuses on a continuous state of mindfulness and awareness which is simply being in the present moment without attachments, judgement, fears, or anxieties related to the past or the future.
When you enter a Zen temple, you remove your shoes. The belief is “where you leave your shoes, you leave yourself too.” This means, you leave your ego, your judgement, your fears, and your perspectives behind. By letting go, you open yourself to a new awareness.
To the Zen Masters, tea is also very symbolic. In the practice of Zen, tea is not just a drink, it’s a meditation. When someone says “have a cup of tea” it means “have a cup of awareness”.
The cup is symbolic of the body. The tea is awareness.
When you empty your cup, you empty your mind of attachments, judgements, fears, anxieties, and your perspectives. And you ingest awareness.
In Kara’s Tea Meditation Collection, she illustrates a teacup in each painting…this is an invitation for you to empty your cup and bring in awareness and the wisdom of the herbs.