Japanese Tea Ceremony and Kimono
Tea was introduced to Japan from China around the 8th Century. In the 16th century, during times of civil unrest, drinking tea developed into a ritual form by Zen monks, and was appreciated by Samurai. Every movement of both the host and guest is choreographed to allow them to communicate without words in carefully staged settings. Tea ceremony is the appreciation of silence and natural beauty. It is also a form of self-examination and discipline, a concentration of Japanese aesthetics and a total art that includes gardening, architecture, pottery, flower arrangement and cuisine.
Kimono literally means a thing to wear. However, kimono is not so simple. There are levels of formality for kimono, and factors to determine the formality. Wearing kimono is even more complicated. It is not just put it on and tie. According to my husband (an American), only the Japanese make complicated procedures out of simple things.