Chado or The way of Tea, originated in China and was brought to perfection in Japan. In essence, it involves artistic creativity, a sensitivity to nature, religious sensibility, and a place for profound and refined social interchange. Each aspect of the tea ceremony is experienced or tasted, so to speak, to the fullest: the tea, the ceramic bowls, the confections, the calligraphic saying or flower arrangement in the alcove, the various utinsils, the tea house itself, the exquisite sound of the boiling water,, the company, etc. The ultimate goal, spiritually speaking, is to simply drink tea; that is, to achieve a state of utter simplicity and to affirm things as-they-are. The authentic tea house that used to stand in the Pasadena Temple's garden was a gift from the Urasenke School Headquarters in Kyoto in 1961. The construction was completely undertaken by the members of this temple. For more information please go to the Invisible Tea House webpage. (Rev. Tetsuo Unno)