Man[January 2016]

KOBORI Sojitsu (the 13th Grand Master of the Enshu Sado School )

Happy new year. I offer you all my best wishes and happiness and prosperity for the coming year.

The year 2016 has begun. I wish that Japan and the whole world will have a peaceful year.

I watched some television programs and articles that recalled the major events of the past year. This made me think that the last year was not particularly distinctive. I am pretty sure that I will not remember the word selected at the annual buzzwords-of-the-year contest which is telling of just how memorable the last year was. It is also very unfortunate that the bungled cases related to the organization of the Olympics and Paralympics have put a damper on the enthusiasm of the Japanese people.

When looking at the rest of the world, international relations were extremely complex and tangled and on a number of occasions gave rise to conflicts and alliances. The most frightening is obviously the series of terrorist acts around the world. The least we can hope for is that this year these kinds of attacks diminish

The poem theme chosen by the Emperor for this year is "man". In a sense, this is a central theme of the art of tea, because there can be no tea ceremony without the relationship between the host and the guest. Without men, there is no spirit of kindness and hospitality and there is no art of tea.

While some tools such as computers and smartphones have become indispensable in our daily lives, the power of man remains of paramount importance. We must constantly challenge ourselves and be thoughtful of others.

A beautiful spring day, the founding father ENSHU wrote: "I have never experienced a spring as wonderful as this one."

Well, I hope this spring will be as pleasant.