On 'Harmony, Reverence, Purity, Stillness'

wa kei sei jaku — Harmony, Reverence, Purity, Stillness.

On the origin

A core principle of the way of tea, transmitted as the “four regulations” (shiki). Attributed to Sen no Rikyū, though unattested in his lifetime; it is held to have formed within the meeting of Rinzai Zen (Daitoku-ji) and tea, with no source in a Chinese Zen collection or sutra. As a four-character maxim, recent scholarship traces its shaping to Daishin Gitō (1657–1730), the 273rd abbot of Daitoku-ji, in the Edo period.

On the reading

Wa, to be in accord with one another. Kei, where host and guest hold each other in equal regard. Sei, the vessels, the room, and the heart kept clean. Jaku, a stillness that nothing disturbs. Four regulations laid over a single gathering for tea.

On the garment

The seal for this phrase was hand-carved in Tokyo by the artist Satake Hōsen. The front carries this phrase’s seal; the back and inside label carry the Hōsen seal (寳千), printed in vermilion.

The garment is Bella + Canvas 3001 (short sleeve) or Gildan 2400 (long sleeve). A vessel for the word, not the subject itself.

― hosen, tokyo