The Magic of Tea
We all know that blissful moment of putting our feet up at the end of a hard day and sipping a hot cup of soothing tea. Relaxing, calming and apparently the answer to every situation: ‘Have a cup of tea, it will make you feel better.’ But tea can also be extremely magical, especially if you create the blends yourself and tie them in with your magical intent.
I have a beautiful teapot that has a built in infuser, but you can get small metal infusers for individual cups of tea and these are brilliant for popping your tea blends into or just use a normal teapot and a strainer. You will want to use one of these methods otherwise you will be spitting bits of herb and spice out…
I think there is something very magical about the whole process of making tea, especially if you make a bit of an effort rather than just throwing a teabag into a cup and filling it up. It can become a small ritual in itself.
The Japanese have a tea ceremony called Chanoyu, Sado or Ocha. The whole event from preparation to serving and drinking the tea (a green tea called Matcha) is part of the ritual. It isn’t all about drinking the tea, it is about the care and attention that goes into it, the serving of it and the appreciation. The Japanese tea ceremony is for creating relaxation, communication (if you are serving guests), connections with your surroundings and the elements, to create harmony, but
ultimately the aim is to make that deep spiritual connection that you get from drinking the tea in silent contemplation. Almost as if the process from preparation, serving and drinking is all part
of a ritual to send you into a meditative spiritual state. The Japanese tea ceremony philosophy is one of harmony, respect, purity and tranquillity.
I like to take the idea of the Japanese tea ceremony and make it a very magical one. This is easily done and can involve the whole ritual process of casting a circle, calling the quarters and even requesting the presence of deity if you so wish, but it can also just be kept very simple and run along the lines of casting a spell or simply spending time in meditation.
Create your space, the ambience and the setting – this could just be sitting in your garden or at your kitchen table, but maybe put a vase of fresh flowers on the table and a nice tablecloth. You could put on some nice plinky plonky meditation music if you are indoors. Select your tea blend. There are a huge amount of fantastic herbal tea blends in the shops, but herbal teas are also super easy to make for yourself using herbs and spices you have in your kitchen or garden.
Your usual cup of black tea has magical properties itself and is good for bringing courage and strength, but you can also use it as the base for tea blends if you don’t fancy the herbal ones on
their own. If the taste of herbal tea on its own makes your face twist up in disgust you can try adding a teaspoonful of honey to sweeten the blend. And if you really can’t stand the taste of a blend don’t waste it… use it as magical floor wash. Experiment with your ingredients, go with your own instincts, have fun and be creative with it.
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