A long time ago, long before Tea as we know it today, before people shared it in their homes and drank it socially, Tea was medicine for Shamans and Healers. They took its leaves to guide them to deep states of meditation in which to connect with nature and receive its wisdom.
In those times tea was consumed in the simplest way, simply by adding hot water and letting it steep. Sometimes it was taken directly from the trees, sometimes the leaves were left to dry in contact with air and sun and were consumed over time.
There were no cultivated crops and the trees were not domesticated. Finding a tree was something sporadic, and even more so finding young leaves in those ancient trees lost in the density of the Himalayan forests.
In this ancient territory, more than 5,000 years ago, doctors, shamans, healers, and mystics observed health in terms of how physical well-being, longevity, mental serenity, and spirituality were in harmony with Nature and the Cosmos.
Popular history mentions an ancient sage, suddenly an emperor, to whom the origin of Chinese medicine and agriculture are attributed. Shennong, they say, considered Tea as the master plant of all herbs. It is said that one of them, Shennong, was the one who identified it. Shennong translates to Divine Farmer. It is said he was a man, part human and part nature, who entered the forests and mountains to learn about plants. They say he had horns, like goats, and wore a cloak of leaves that changed with the seasons. Shennong could create antidotes with his metabolism and it is said that his stomach became transparent so he could see the effects of the plants he studied.
One day during one of his walks through the misty forests, Shennong discovered Tea accidentally by drinking hot water that had been infused by a camellia sinensis leaf that had fallen into his cup. He entered a trance, felt the roots, ancestral wisdom and connection with all beings of nature.
There is another version in which Shennong takes a lethal poison that he could not transform with his internal alchemy. About to die, he asks to learn one last lesson. He sees a tree he did not know, Tea, and takes three leaves, chews them and meditates. He feels how they cleanse and free him from toxicity. After prayers, pleas and offerings he dedicates himself to the study of this plant.
These Cloud Walkers meditated, practiced martial arts, calligraphy and cultivated their energy. The best doctors knew what was happening to someone just by looking at them or feeling them. The vital energy, Qi, of the one who healed was very important.
For some, tea refreshes and accompanies, for others it is a hobby or an art. Tea is also a possibility to create time, calm, and space. For us, Tea is medicine and spirituality. It is a lifestyle, a way of living the beauty of the present moment. Just as with all plants, words fall short and it is experience and feeling that guide us in this wonderful subtle world.
Every time we prepare a cup of Tea we are connecting with that ancestral knowledge. Drinking tea socially is valid, but it is also key to remember the origin and virtues of this plant and ancestral preparation. Let us prepare each cup with a serene mind and vitality.
