Tea Ceremony Space in New Home for CBS
Our new home in the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine will include a conference room with a custom-built space for tea ceremonies. We are excited that this facility will allow for the synthesis of Buddhist practices like tea drinking into the health and wellness curriculum at the University of Arizona. Many scientific studies have documented the health benefits of drinking tea, including the prevention of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and even cancer: https://cutt.ly/Bf9A9Pl.
Tea culture and Buddhist practice have been intertwined for centuries. Legend tells us that tea leaves grew from Bodhidharma’s eyelids when he cut them off to remain awake. Monks residing in Buddhist monasteries would pick tea leaves from the surrounding countryside, dry or roast them in the temple, and drink tea to maintain wakefulness during long meditation sessions.
One famous example is Longjing, or “dragon well tea,” which is produced in the area around Hangzhou, China. The tea received imperial status during the Qing dynasty after a visit to the Hu Gong Temple by the Kangxi emperor’s grandson Qianlong. Today, the tea is highly prized for its high quality and taste.
We look forward to hosting tea ceremonies and special events in our new home, which is planned to be completed in 2021. For more information about the building and ways you can support us, please visit: https://cbs.arizona.edu/give/andrew-weil-center.
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