"Zen Buddhism and Chado (the way of tea)" - with Omar Francis Artwork

Carving the Divine TV Podcast

Come and join our weekly journey on Buddhism and Eastern Religion hosted by filmmaker Yujiro Seki. Carving the Divine TV Podcast is a series of Q&A sessions with Buddhist scholars and practitioners. These Q&A sessions explore the basic concepts and history of Buddhism. The show may not turn you into a self-actualized spiritual guru but it will open the door into this beautiful, profound spiritual tradition. We will start our journey from India and make our way to Japan, covering a wide range of topics in an easy-to-digest style! Each show is between 10 - 30 minutes long. On top of that, we will give you special episodes on Japanese Buddhist sculptures (known as Butsuzo) and Buddhist practioners' episodes. Yes! This series is made to be a supplemental material for the up-and-coming documentary film "Carving the Divine - Buddhist Sculptors of Japan" but you can take your new knowledge with you anywhere in the world to enhance the quality of your life!

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Carving the Divine TV Podcast

"Zen Buddhism and Chado (the way of tea)" - with Omar Francis

May 26, 2021 • Yujiro Seki • Season 1 • Episode 61

Hosted by filmmaker Yujiro Seki, Carving the Divine TV is a series of Q&A sessions with Buddhist scholars and practitioners. These Q&A sessions explore the basic concepts of Buddhism, the history of Buddhism and of course Buddhist sculptures/sculptors (bustuzo/busshi) so that when viewers finally watch the documentary Carving the Divine - Buddhist sculptors of Japan, they will get the maximum value of the documentary.

Today, we will be talking Chado. Chado simply translates to the way of tea. Sometimes it’s referred to as Japanese Tea Ceremony. But as usual, one word translation is never sufficient to demonstrate this rich culture. First we will discuss the simple explanation of Chado and connect Chado with Buddhism, especially Zen Buddhism. Then, we will discuss many different influences on Chado over the centuries. You may be surprised that even Christianity may have influenced Chado! Yes, by studying more about Chado and Buddhism you will understand Japan more!

We will be asking important questions such as:

What is Chado?

What are some of the practices of Chado?

What are the differences between Chanoyu and Chado?

Do we always have to wear kimono when we do Chado?

What is the history of Chado?

Who is Senno Rikyu?
What is the relationship between Chado and Buddhism, especially Zen Buddhism?

How does Chado help people to have a deeper understanding of Zen Buddhism?

Does Chado only influence Zen Buddhism?

Can you show us some examples of Chado so that we can visualize the concept that we’ve talked about?

Can Chado be a form of meditation?

Omar Francis is a licensed instructor in The Urasenke Tradition of Chadō, commonly known as the Japanese Tea Ceremony. First introduced to Chadō at the University of Illinois (USA) in 1992, he was later admitted into the Midorikai program for a year of intensive training at the Urasenke headquarters in Kyoto, Japan. Since then, he has continued his studies as a member of the Chicago Association of Urasenke, taking part in many educational and cultural activities. Francis Sensei is currently teaching at the Japanese Culture Center (japaneseculturecenter.com) in Chicago, IL. http://www.urasenke.or.jp/ Urasenke Konnichian
https://urasenkenorthamerica.org/ Chado Relay (also on facebook)
urasenkechicago.org Urasenke Chicago

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Yujiro Seki

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