Tea is a combination of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Why so?
The TV series “Chicken Feathers to the Sky” features a classic scene:
“Tea, a fine tree of the south.” The opening words of Lu Yu's “The Classic of Tea” are telling, indicating that tea belongs to wood.
Here, when we refer to tea, we mean the tea plant, not the finished product.
So, what is the relationship between tea and the five elements? How can the five elements achieve yin-yang harmony? What considerations should be given to how teaware is placed?
01 Tea has the Five Elements, the Way of Nourishing with Tea
Metal: “Pan-fried to halt oxidation,” it belongs to “metal.”
Fire: Tea is pan-fried using fire, which defines its character.
Water: Tea is brewed with water, which unfolds its leaves and reveals its aroma.
Earth: Brewing requires vessels, typically made of clay or porcelain teaware.
“Harmony” is the soul of Chinese Tea culture. Harmony adjusts yin and yang, harmony generates the five elements, harmony is the middle path, and harmony embodies “unity of heaven and humanity.”
According to traditional Chinese medicine, if a person's five elements are balanced and their generation and control are appropriate, they can enjoy robust health and good fortune. After repeated processes of generation, control, synthesis, and assimilation, tea absorbs the quintessence of yin and yang and the five elements, which is the root of its many Health benefits.
Tea Nature and Constitution
Generally speaking, the drier the tea and the greener the leaves after brewing, the stronger the yin element. Conversely, the redder and darker the leaves, the weaker the yin element.
The human body also has yin and yang aspects. Generally speaking, those who tend to be gentle and cold have a constitution biased towards coldness, classified as yin. Those who are usually assertive and irritable have a constitution biased towards heat, classified as yang.
How to Drink Tea According to Different Constitutions?
After understanding the basic yin and yang attributes, it becomes clear who should drink what tea and when.
For those with a balanced constitution and relatively harmonious yin and yang, during the summer at noon (11 AM to 1 PM), which is a positive time in a positive season, it is suitable to choose teas with a stronger yin element.
Examples include: newer white teas, green teas, lightly fragrant Tieguanyin, newer raw Pu'er teas, etc….
If it is a warmer season in spring or autumn, during the hours of 9 AM to 11 AM (morning) or 3 PM to 5 PM (afternoon), when the climate and time are slightly positive, individuals with a more balanced yin and yang can select teas with a weaker yin element.
Examples include: pan-fried green teas, Oolong teas, black teas with a golden hue, aged white teas, raw Pu'er, and dark teas.
Tea goes through repeated processes of generation, control, synthesis, and assimilation, absorbing the essence of yin and yang and the five elements. This is the source of tea's many health and purifying effects.
Therefore, what you drink is not just tea, but metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Drinking tea helps balance the five elements and ensures proper generation and control.
02 Do Teaware and the Five Elements Relate?
A tea setting encompasses all five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
A tea room is also a place to enhance energy.
In the layout of the tea environment, vessels, tea, tea utensils, tea flowers, flower vases, and other elements resonate with each other. No wonder scholars and artists in ancient times loved to chat and enjoy tea at tea houses.
Even now, some businesspeople in the south do not discuss business over alcohol but rather in tea houses, sipping tea while conducting business, calmly and unhurriedly, finishing both tea and business satisfactorily.
What is the relationship between teaware and the five elements?
Metal
There are two aspects of tea belonging to “metal.”
First: Freshly picked tea leaves (young leaves) are pan-fried in a hot iron wok, where wood is controlled by metal, implanting metal into the process. The nature of the tea undergoes a significant change, giving the tea a form resembling metal, forming the second life of the tea leaf.
Second: Kettles used for boiling water, whether made of iron, silver, or Stainless steel, belong to metal.
Wood
There are two aspects of tea belonging to “wood.”
First: “Wood” refers to the essence of tea itself. Growing between heaven and earth, tea plants experience their first life. As the saying goes, “Tea is a fine tree of the south,” it naturally belongs to wood first. This wood is a living, yin wood, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon, receiving the spirit of mountains and rivers, nurtured by water and soil, flourishing in spring and dormant in winter, positioned in the east like Azure Dragon, corresponding to the position of Zhen in the Eight Trigrams.
Second: In ancient times, charcoal was used to boil water, such as charcoal from olive or lychee trees.
Water
“Water nourishes downward,” everything that is cool, moist, and moves downward is categorized under water.
Water used for brewing tea, including tap water, purified water, mountain spring water, etc.
Earth
“Earth brings forth growth,” anything that fosters growth, carries, and receives is categorized under earth.
In ancient times, stoves were made of clay, supporting kettles on them.
Brewing tea requires vessels, typically made of clay or porcelain. Their nature is earth.
Fire
“Fire burns upward,” anything that is warm and rises is categorized under fire.
The roasting and Drying of tea, as well as the boiling of water for brewing, require the attack of fire. Fire defines its nature and shapes its aroma.
Ceramic tea ware, fundamentally, is shaped from clay and fired, combining earth and fire in the five elements.
Regarding colors, black represents water, red represents fire, green represents wood, white represents metal, and yellow represents earth.
03 How Should Teaware Be Placed?
In feng shui, everything is based on yin and yang and the five elements.
Wood is