NEW EVENT: Tea Meditation: Seasons
NEW EVENT: Seasons, April 19th, at Hold Space. An invitation to rest and flow into the changing Seasons – into…
Mindful tea meditations to fill your cup
A leaf. A vessel. A connection to Nature and Self.
Sit
Invite yourself to pause.
Breathe.
Observe.
The curls of steam.
The sound of boiling water.
The gentle pace of the infusion.
The aromas and flavours of hand-picked leaves that blossom with each steep.
Allow me to guide you through a moving meditation with the ritual of Gong Fu Cha. A way of rest, to fill your cup.
Ways to practice tea meditation
Tea Meditation in Nature
A nourishing blend of shinrin yoku (Japanese for “forest bathing”) and Gong Fu Cha ritual. Invite a restful pause with 5 senses, immersed in nature.
Gong Fu Cha Guided Meditation
Be guided through the conscious meditative movements of a deeply grounded Gong Fu Cha ritual. Sample 3 curated teas, matched with the seasons to enhance the connection to the tea leaf, and to open a connection to Self.
A Beginner's Mind Guided Meditation
Learn to pause with the Buddhist concept of a Beginner’s Mind while using the daily ritual of brewing tea. Invoke self-compassion and curiosity as you immerse in the 5 Senses with quiet calm.
Gatherings
Tea Meditation at HUM
Studio on Dharug-Gadigal
Land
A gathering for rest. A combination of nature and Gong Fu Cha ritual to invite a connection to self through all 5 senses.
3 curated teas were served.
The tea leaves were savoured before brewing, to note the aroma and fragrance, and to enjoy their evolution over each infusion.
Each steep blossomed new flavour, colours and fragrances. The leaves unfurled over the steeps, demonstrating the confluence of nature and elements. And our connection to the Earth, Elements and Self.
"Sacred Presence" Guided
Tea Meditation on Wonnarua
Country
Hosted by the ACMM (Australian Centre for Meditation and Mindfulness).
Location: Wonnarua Country, Hunter Valley Retreat. May 2024. “Annikanya” – “Hello” in the Wonnarua language. An offering to the Land. An acknowledgement, an invitation to the ancestors and the community.
32 attendees, contemplation in 8 groups. Each table was set with delicate tea vessels for the mindful brewing of 2 curated teas.
Each attendee was invited to participate with “Sacred Presence”: to act as both guest and host – to offer and to receive. To meditate upon the past and present. To connect with Land, the Self and Community.
Hello, friend
“To enjoy our tea, we have to be fully present and know clearly and deeply that we are drinking tea. When you lift your cup, you may like to breathe in the aroma.
Looking deeply into your tea, you see that you are drinking fragrant plants that are the gift of Mother Earth.
You see the labor of the tea pickers; you see the luscious tea fields and plantations in Sri Lanka, China, and Vietnam.
You know that you are drinking a cloud; you are drinking the rain.
The tea contains the whole universe.”
― Thích Nhất Hạnh, “How to Eat”
Thank you for joining me, friend. You are welcome here.
Tea has always been an invitation to connect. To Self. To Community.
Before shared language, tea was an offer of peace. To sit with others in safety. In belonging.
To acknowledge the journey, to invoke the path ahead, to rest in the present. To heal.
In this spirit, I acknowledge the Traditional Owners and custodians of the lands where I live. The Dharug & Gadigal people.
I acknowledge their living connection to land, sea and culture. And as I practice my culture and heritage on their lands, I offer them my respect and commitment to learn from them, to uplift their voices, stories & knowledge. They are respectfully welcomed at my tea table.
I am an accidental corporate, a clumsy Buddhist, and a compassionate beginner. I am Australian. My heritage is ethnic Chinese diaspora, 4th-generation Malaysians.
I have loved tea since I was little – from Jasmine to Earl Grey. In adulthood, it has expanded: from Darjeeling to Nepalese Tokla CTC, Sencha to Pu’Er to Hwang Cha. My world of tea has grown. And with it, my knowledge of global history, culture and connections.
Over the years of practising Buddhist philosophy, Gong Fu Cha, animism and mindfulness, I remain a humble student.
I hope to share with the broader East Asian diaspora. An invitation to collectively weave the threads of our shared experiences as we honour our past, mourn our loss, reclaim our heritage and celebrate belonging.
I wish to extend respectful learning to the pan-Asian and global tea community. From rivers to the seas, from Asia to Africa to Europe. Tea is a global connection that has the power to invite peace and solidarity.
The venerable Thích Nhất Hạnh is my inspiration to consciously learn from the global tea cultures around the world.
To consciously cherish nature.
To respectfully share the simple act of drinking tea.
To actively invite and make space for all at my tea table.
You are welcome here, friend. I hope you’ll join me for a mindful cup.
~ Po-Tien
Invitations & Brewings
Reach me here for future events, queries or invitations. There is
always something brewing.
Memories
Where your tea meditation experiences are shared...
What is Gong Fu Cha?
Gong Fu Cha is the Chinese method of brewing tea. Focusing on short infusions, it allows the tea to awaken over multiple steeps.
The tea is savoured in small vessels to fully imbibe flavour, scent, colour, texture and sound.
The Gong Fu Cha method is neither mysterious nor romanticised. It can be a casual session on a street corner, a grounding moment in a garden, a celebration with friends, a deep profound silence in a temple, an elegant accompaniment or a sanctuary of solitude.
Like music, it can be played at different paces, to different beats, for different occasions.
When practised as a moving meditation, it can be a restful contemplative practice that engages all 5 senses, amplifies the appreciation of Nature, opening a connection to Self and Others.
NEW EVENT: May Tea Meditation
When stillness can be too much, the ritual of tea may be a gentler way to rest. Let this mindful…
Mindful Words on Mindfulness Day
Hello, friends. It’s Mindfulness Day today, and with that comes an awareness of self-care and connection to our surroundings. To…
I wanted to express my gratitude to Po-Tien for a beautiful Tea Meditation today. It was a pleasure to attend your class and I feel so grateful to have enjoyed some relaxation while basking in the ritual and gift of drinking tea, a beautiful process which I will now enjoy even more after your guidance.
Samantha Wynn Integrative Mindfulness Practioner & Owner of "The Still Space"If anyone is in Sydney and able to travel to Dee-Why I highly recommend this beautiful class.
May this be a gentle reminder for us all to fill up our own (selfcare) cups this week. 😊
Love, Sammy ❤️