The tea-plant, a native of southern China, was known from very early times to Chinese botany and medicine… and was highly prized for possessing the virtues of relieving fatigue, delighting the soul, strengthening the will, and repairing the eye-sight. It was not only administered as an internal dose, but also often applied externally, in the form of a paste, to alleviate rheumatic pains. The Taoists claimed it as in important ingredient of the elixir of immortality. The Buddhists used it extensively to prevent drowsiness during their long hours of meditation.

Mug: from set of Do Not Alight Here.

Messenger exchange: with Kuei-ju, dear friend, former flatmate, resident of Taiwan and Chinese translator

Text: Lu Yu, The Classic of Tea: Origins and Rituals 1974 (quoted in Green Gold, Macfarlane and Macfarlane)