Stay-home has been continuing for almost 2 months. How are you doing in these days? During cleaning up my house, I found out my mother's many old books related to Chanoyu. I enjoy reading them.
Yamaboshi (Japanese dogwood)
For this time, I would like to pick up the question; for what purpose "Tabakobon" (Tobacco tray or box) is used. With chinese characters, Tabacco is written with 煙草(smoke grass) or 莨(good flavor grass). According to Zabosai Oiemoto (Urasenke16th grand tea master) , taking a break with smoking good flavor grass does change the air in a tea room and also soften the atmosphere. Unfortunately, I have never seen a guest who is smoking in the tea room, but Tabacobon is served in the tea room, with meaning "Please relax and make yourself at home."
Hydrangea at Shoto Park
In Chaji (a formal tea gathering), 3 different tabakobons are provided in the waiting room(machiai), at the outdoor waiting bench (koshikake), and in the tea room at the time for thin tea (usucha). In Tabakobon, a fire container (hiire) at left side and an ash receptacle (haifuki) at right are placed. A tobacco container (tabakoire) and 2 smoke pipes (kiseru) are also provided in the formal case. In hiire, a lit charcol is placed with ash to light a tobacco pipe or chigarettes. A charcoal is lean to left side with Urasenke style, right side with Omotesenke, and put straight with Mushanokoji-senke style. (I wonder if it was consulted and decided by 3 Sen families in old days.)
A small amount of water is put in the ash receptacle. Special attentions are needed for hosts to provide 3 tabakobons in different 3 places with a good condition of charcoals with fire. But, it represents a warm-hearted hospitality to the guests.
At the time of Koicha (thick tea), both hosts and guests are earnest for a cup of Koicha, but at the time of Usucha (thin tea), they are relaxed and the guests enjoy usucha like coffee or tea. To make the guests relaxed, the host provide not only sweets, but also zabuton(cushions) and tabakobon. After providing them, the host start the thin tea preparation, The guests appreciate them and sit on a zabuton if it is provided. When I visited Ohashi Saryo, I had a chance to sit on a zabuton made by Yuko, one of Senke-jisshoku (10 craftsmen lines of Sen families) It was so comfortable to sit on it and I realized that any kinds of utensils made by Yuko are wonderful.
When leaving the tea room, I view and appreciate the display in the alcove and in the utensil place, and I also enjoy viewing tabakobon and the scene in the hiire with feeling of "Ichigo-ichie" (today's meeting can never be repeated.)
To my regret, many of chanoyu related events are cancelled, and I have no chance to visit them in these days. I hope that they will resume soon.