The Four Great Tea Schools of China.

1.Scholarly Tea Ceremony
Scholars and tea have an inseparable relationship in ancient China, and it can be said that there is no Chinese tea ceremony without ancient scholars. The Scholarly Tea Ceremony is a well-established school of Chinese tea ceremony. The tea drinkers are mainly ancient intellectuals, with the majority being “scholars” who entered the imperial court, as well as less successful scholars and members of prominent families with certain cultural and artistic accomplishments. Drinking tea is not mainly for quenching thirst, aiding digestion, or refreshing the mind, but rather to guide people’s spirits into a state of transcendence and elegance. The tea people care about the landscape, the beauty of nature, poetry and literature, fame and fortune, hoping to discover something, have something to rely on, and forget something. “Elegance” is reflected in the following aspects: first, the pleasure of tasting tea; second, tea enhances poetic inspiration; third, using tea to make friends; fourth, refining tea culture.
It is precisely because of the participation of literati that tea art has become an art and a culture. Scholars have closely combined this special skill with culture, cultivation, and education to form the Scholarly Tea Ceremony.

2.Everyday Tea Ceremony
Tea is elegant, but also common. Once tea enters the household, there are household tea ceremonies. Tea is a common item, a daily necessity. When guests come, making tea helps to connect feelings; when family members drink together, they share the joy of family ties. There is warmth in tea. The importance of the tea ceremony entering the home lies in its casualness and freedom. The tea does not need to be exquisite, as long as there is enough for the family; water does not need to be expensive, as long as the method is correct; the utensils do not need to be exquisite, suitable for the tea is better. In wealthy families, tea ceremonies strive for exquisite perfection and can show off wealth and elegance, which is not surprising. In middle-class families, they do not dare to compare, but follow the correct method. Even in ordinary households, as long as the tea is brewed properly, even with coarse tea and pottery cups, one can still enjoy the pleasure of tea.

3.Chan Buddhism Tea Ceremony
Monks have a long history of drinking tea, and because tea has “three virtues” that are beneficial to jungle cultivation, the Chan Buddhism Tea Ceremony was born from the “virtue of tea”. Monks grow tea, make tea, drink tea, and develop famous teas, making an indelible contribution to the development of Chinese tea production, tea studies, and the formation of tea ceremony. The Tea Sage, Lu Yu, came from a Buddhist background. His work “The Classic of Tea” systematically summarized the experiences of tea collection, production, and consumption at that time, comprehensively discussing issues related to tea origin, production, and consumption, spreading scientific knowledge about tea, promoting the development of tea production, and blazing a trail for Chinese tea ceremony. Moreover, most famous teas are related to Buddhism, such as the well-known West Lake Dragon Well Tea. According to “The Classic of Tea,” it is produced in Qiantang and Lingyin Temples in Hangzhou. Feng Shike recorded in “The Chronicles of Tea” during the Ming Dynasty that “there was no tea in Huizhou, and the most fashionable tea was Songluo Tea.” It was said that tea began with a monk named Dafang, who lived on Tiger Hill for the longest time and developed the method of picking and processing tea. Later, when he arrived at Songluo Temple, he roasted mountain tea in the temple, which quickly became popular and was called Songluo tea. There are also supreme teas like Huangshan Mao Feng, Tie Guan Yin, Putuo Buddha Tea, etc.

4.Aristocratic Tea Ceremony
The aristocratic tea ceremony evolved from tribute tea. The tea people in the aristocratic tea ceremony are high-ranking officials, wealthy merchants and tycoons, and other figures in the upper-class society. They do not necessarily need to be proficient in poetry, music, calligraphy, painting, but they must have wealth and status. They pursue the four essentials of tea art: “exquisite tea, pure water, live fire, and exquisite utensils.” In everything they do, they seek a “high level of taste,” using “power” and “money” to achieve the goal of showing off their wealth and elegance, as if it is not done this way, it will damage the principle of “supremacy of imperial power” and the essence of “money first.” There are many irrational elements in the aristocratic tea ceremony, such as valuing money and fame too much, losing the noble and elegant qualities of tea itself. However, because of its profound cultural background, this tea ceremony has become an important school that has been