The first comprehensive book-length study in over half a century of the celebrated Japanese tea master Rikyu, considered the father of the Tea Ceremony (cha-no-

This provoking new study of the Japanese tea ceremony (chanoyu) examines the ideological foundation of its place in history and the broader context of Japanese

"Elegant representations of nature and the four seasons populate a wide range of Japanese genres and media. In Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons, Haruo

The tea ceremony persists as one of the most evocative symbols of Japan. Originally a pastime of elite warriors in premodern society, it was later recast as an

"Talk doesn't cook rice." —Chinese Proverb According to Socrates, knowledge is "food for the soul." That's all well and good for the Socratic but, according t