Satsubako

Okeiko-Glenn-2020-07-05 and Satsubako (茶通箱) are the only notes I have on satsubako right now. I really need to write this out properly.

• TODO Should you take haiken dougu at kensui or at chawan (is shikaden or no?) ask-glenn ➕ 2023-05-20 ✅ 2023-05-21
  • At kensui (it’s like konarai)

Cliff notes

Setup

• Chaire facing shomen, natsume in otsubukuro facing rear

Nakadachi

• Take out chaire, rotate otsubukuro to front
  • No box turn
  • Lid kake L
  • Chaire sit right

Temae

Make koicha like usual, including turning for conversation. At suikiri:

• Shibori + refold chakin like Irekodate
• Koshi fukusa (no mizu)

Once free (still during chawan haiken), shokyaku asks “o-cha wo mo isshu onegaishimasu”

• Take out natsume from box
  • Box turn 90º hidari-mawari
  • Lid kake front
  • Otsubukuro to rear
• Fukusa snap (no yoho), kiyome, natsume to himado-mae

Bowl comes back. Oyu, kosusugi, wipe etc. Make koicha like normal from natsume. (No mizu). After placing bowl out, stay facing imai.

• Ofukukagen?
• Add mizu
• Kaiwa from imai

On suikiri, guest asks for chaire + shifuku haiken.

• Irekai
• Haiken as usual, place out.

Guests return bowl, get haiken-mono. Once they get back to their seats:

• Sorei, oyu, ichiyo oshimai
• Then guests view haiken-mono

Teishu closes like usual for hira-demae. Shokyaku asks for haiken like usual.

• Do everything like usual for otsubukuro.
• Hako goes out last

Guests return chaire-mono, take natsume-mono when teishu stands with kensui.

• Teishu comes back for chawan, leaves.
• Teishu comes back empty-handed, takes chaire + shifuku, leaves.
• Teishu comes back with mizutsugi, leaves.

After haiken, teishu returns with usuchaki. Answer questions (including chaire + shifuku even though it’s gone), exit.

• Bring box heriuchi, lid flat geza
• Natsume into box
• Close lid, chashaku on box diagonally
• Otsubukuro on chashaku like blanket

Overview

Dougu

All standard koicha hira-demae except for the satsubako itself. This should only be done in a 4.5-mat room, as there’s a ton of stuff for kyaku to carry otherwise.

• TODO What are the three satsubako kinds? Rikyu-konomi (what we have), gengensai (corner inset cut), then another one? ask-glenn ➕ 2023-05-19 ✅ 2023-05-21
  • Rikyu-konomi is called something like kabuse-buta
  • Gengensai is san-deai-buta (?) or something
  • Missing one is SOTAN konomi, san-buta

Traditionally, there is a chaire (main) and a natsume in Otsubukuro, although it is possible to wrap the natsume as Tsutsumibukusa.

• You end up with two fukusa, one on your left (the normal one) and the tsutsundabukusa (that ends up on your right). You only use the tsutsundabukusa to deal specifically with that natsume. So kiyome at the beginning, then kiyome at the end. When you exit for the mizuya for the first time while taking out the kensui, then you should remove the fukusa from your obi and leave in the mizuya.

Another note: it is possible to do this hakobi!

• Bring the box in first, leave it high-up karioki.
• Otherwise, everything is the same.
• TODO If you do satsubako without a tana, my notes say to bring the satsubako in and leave it high-up in karioki. Is this right? ask-glenn ➕ 2023-05-16 ✅ 2023-05-21
  • This is right. In furo, it goes to the usual karioki position (left, below the shikiita). Chawan karioki then goes below that, so rather low (kinda same vibes as Nakaoki).
  • I didn’t ask for ro, but I would assume something similar. Maybe place even a little higher, because you have more room.

The chaire and natsume are placed inside the satsubako facing away from each other. The chaire faces front, and the natsume faces rear.

Three kinds of satsubako

• Rikyu-konomi (the kind we have): lid wraps all the way around the outside
• Sotan-konomi: Two flat strips inset
• Gengensai-konomi: Wrapped-around strips inset

Special characteristics

The scenario

• In the past, tea could only be purchased once a year. One tsubo would contain (some number?) of bags of koicha tencha, each bag capable of serving 10 kyaku.
• If you didn’t have much money, you may get a smaller tsubo worth of tea.
• One half bag (“5 mome” size iirc) was capable of serving 5 guests. It used to happen that kyaku would bring one half bag for the teishu at zenrei, giving them sufficient time to grind the koicha tencha for the chaji the next day.
  • Note: This was rather costly, and had a direct impact on the number of chaji you could do in the year. So, it really was quite a treasure to be giving a chaji’s worth of tea, and it was more meaningful to use it than today.
• As the story goes, Rikyu used a kayoi-bako (traveling box?), either what the guest brought the tea in or a box from somewhere in the mizuya.
• Present-day, tea is already ground, so it may be given on the day. Because of this sudden-ness though, it is permissible for the teishu to decline to use the tea for satsubako.
  • Practical note: For some toriawase etc, it’s easy to quickly incorporate the hako. But for others (daitenmoku, kasanejawan, etc), it’s not!

It’s konarai

• No gyo-no-te for the door
• No “no abbreviations”
• No te-wo-suite
• Dougu is taken when standing with the kensui

Number of sweets

Glenn-sensei opinion

You serve two sweets, an omogashi and a Mizumono. From glenn:

This is not a half-step toward Shikaden’s usual three sweets or anything.

Practically, this is a lot of tea, and that necessitates a lot in your stomach. Given that this temae is usually done on short notice, it’s good to have something that is commonplace in the house (fruits).

• TODO Follow up with satsubako number of sweets. This feels suspect. glenn-shiranai ➕ 2023-05-21 ✅ 2024-08-31

Shimura-sensei opinion

Just one sweet shimura .

Satsubako atsukai

Tip

When the satsubako has things inside, it is handled L → R. When it is empty, it is handled R → L.

There doesn’t seem to be a hard rule, but it’s nice to support the side of the box when taking out chaki.

To turn satsubako:

• Thumbs up first
• Then fingers down in a C shape
• Then turn
• Then undo in reverse

Lid placement cheat sheet:

• At nakadachi, kake L
• During temae, kake front
• At the end after haiken, bring box heriuchi then lid flat to R (geza)
• Kyaku, flat on the ground following shokyaku / non-shokyaku up/down rules. Lid is naname on hako when passing, hako always herisoto.

Nakadachi

• TODO When does the satsubako go out to the tana? Is it there during sumi? Or do you bring it out after sumi, same time as you would bring the natsume? Or, just during nakadachi? ask-glenn ➕ 2023-05-19 ✅ 2023-05-21
  • We didn’t have a straight answer.
  • His notes say that, if the usuki is already present, you remove it during nakadachi and replace with the hako, then bring it back at the end of temae.
  • However, we think that’s weird. Why would you bring the usuki back after sumi, then remove it right away? Our preference, if it’s something like marujoku that can’t handle both hako and usuki at the same time, would be to bring the hako out after sumi-demae.

(Assume the satsubako is sitting atop the tana).

• Sit tana shomen, bring box down in front of you.
• Take off lid and lean kake to L of box.
• 1H remove chaire, place to R of box.
• Turn otsubukuro around so it faces shomen.
  • It starts facing away from you. Take from an angle, thumb way right. This is turn one.
  • Place on palm, then turn one more time on palm.
  • Rehold after last turn, place into box.
• Return lid to box, box to tana, chaire to koicha position.

Temae

Make first koicha exactly like usual. Shifuku goes to L of box, slightly forward to be visible behind box.

Make the tea a little thinner

You won’t get the chance to sara-sara like in Daien no Sou, just kosusugi, so a thinner tea will make cleaning easier.

First guest drinks, ofukukagen. Teishu turns, regular conversation happens, then teishu turns back at suikiri.

• CHAKIN → FUKUSA.
  • Teishu shiboru’s and refolds chakin like Irekodate, returns to kama no futa.
  • TODO In ro, after the first bowl is served, what do you do to re-open? Open everything including mizusashi, then shiboru? ask-glenn ➕ 2023-05-19 ✅ 2023-05-21
    • There is actually a really natural way to do this in ro.
    • First deal with kama etc. Then, you take the chakin and place it on the kama-no-futa before dealing with the mizusashi. Instead of placing it directly, do shibori here, then place on kama no futa.
    • Then, finish opening the mizusashi, but no mizu.
  • Then fukusa koshi. No mizu.
• Shokyaku asks “今お茶をも一服お願いします” or something.
  • (This is while chawan haiken is happening).
• Take out the natsume.
  • Teishu moves to tana shomen, picks up box, then moves back to imai.
  • Turn box 90º hidari-mawari.
    • (Otsubukuro should face right)
  • Open lid, rest kake against front of box.
  • Take otsubukuro with R, atsukai, place directly behind satsubako.
  • Close box, un-rotate. Return back to tana shomen, then come back to imai.
• Bring otsubukuro forward, then kiyome.
  • Otsubukuro goes on top of shifuku.
  • SNAP, NOT YOHO-SABAKI.
• Natsume to himado-mae.
  • (Same rank as chaire)
  • Glenn worries to have shin-nuri so close to himado. So maybe a bit back.

Second bowl

• Then, bowl is returned. Sorei, oyu, kosusugi, rewipe, etc.
• Make tea like normal.
  • Chashaku from chaire, scoop kakidashi. Chashaku back to chaire.
  • Don’t add mizu (like Kasane-jawan).
• After placing bowl out, stay facing imai. Ofukukagen → MIZU → CHAMEI.
  • Ask ofukukagen
  • Then add mizu
  • Then conversation

!NOTE for two bowls
A little weird, but glenn’s notes say that guests may reuse the same kojakin for the second bowl (becase it’s potentially unexpected ← my addition). Or, a chakin otoshi may be provided by the host.

First haiken

• On suikiri, guest asks for chaire + shifuku haiken.
• Irekae.
  • Chashaku to mizusashi
  • Chaire to temae
  • Natsume (with L) to mizusashi
  • Chashaku to natsume
• Turn to kyakutsuki, chaire haiken like usual and place out.
• Turn back, shifuku, place out from imai.
  • Otsubukuro is on top. Put shifuku in L, move otsubukuro back to tana, then place shifuku out.

If irekae feels unstable

Two options. First option, hold chashaku in your hand while doing irekae.

• Take chashaku with R, pass to L
• Chaire to temae with R
• Pass chashaku to R
• Natsume to tana shomen with L
• Chashaku to natsume

Other option is to place chashaku on ten-ita like Daien no Shin.

(Kyaku portion of haiken)

• Once haiken dougu is out, kyaku deai with bowl.
  • Shokyaku takes haiken dougu, brings to them (kamiza karioki).
  • Tsume gives bowl to shokyaku, shokyaku returns bowl to teishu.
  • Shokyaku brings dougu back to their spot heriuchi.

Shimai

• Once kyaku return from deai: sorei, oyu, ichiyo oshimai.
• After ichiyo oshimai, guests begin viewing haiken dougu.
• Teishu closes as usual.

Second haiken

• Shokyaku asks for natsume → chashaku → otsubukuro → hako. Teishu does the usual.
  • Note: This is not like Tsuzuki Usucha where the natsume is lower than the chashaku. Both natsume and chaire were used for koicha, both are important.
  • So, the order is “like usual”, ie natsume → chashaku → otsubukuro.
• After placing out otsubukuro, also place the box out.
  • Teishu goes to tana shomen, takes box, turns to kyakutsuki, turns box in the air, then places out as lowest item.
• Teishu leaves like usual with kensui.
  • You can leave the hishaku/futaoki, Leaving the hishaku etc usual rules apply.
• As teishu stands with kensui, guests deai.
  • Same vibes as orisue in kagetsu, chaire and shifuku must be out of the room by the time the mizutsugi arrives.
  • Guests swap chaire-mono with usuki-mono.
• Teishu exits with chawan etc. Instead of returning with mizutsugi, teishu enters empty-handed and takes chaire-mono.
  • No bow, just sit → pick up → leave.
• Then mizutsugi.
• After haiken, teishu returns with filled usuchaki.
  • Not natsume. We used one already.
  • Daikai chaire is fine to use (as it’s the original tea container).
    • Note: Glenn says that if your tana supports it, you should already have your usuki out anyway.
• Answer questions, exit.
  • Open the box and place the lid flat geza
  • Place the natsume into the center of the box
  • Close the lid
  • Put the chashaku on the box diagonally, tsuyu by the upper left corner of the box
  • Place the otsubukuro on top of the chashaku (like a blanket! it’s actually cute af)

Kyaku final haiken

• Viewing:
  • Natsume and chashaku stay heriuchi, hako stays herisoto
  • When looking at the box:
    • Lid follows shokyaku / renkyaku rules, ie lid goes flat on tatami kamiza when open for shokyaku, geza for renkyaku.
  • Lid stays naname when passing.
• Questions:
  • Chaire → shifuku → natsume → chashaku → otsubukuro → hako.