Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Tea and Translation: A Catholic Monk in Korea.

Journey into the world of tea and you'll soon find yourself bumping into monks of all creeds and colors. One of my first experiences in the tea world here in Busan was with a Monk BabSan of Beomosa. On a few occasions we'd have tea: a green tea followed by a lighter flower tea as was his custom. Yet, here is another monk, of whom I have yet to make acquaintance.
I ran into this particular monks website earlier this morning as I was researching an old poetic treatise on tea called the 동다송(東茶頌) Dong-da Song (more on that later...).

The Catholic monks of Taize are known for their choral style chanting well, this particular monk of Taize is known for his tea and translation. Brother Anthony, otherwise known as An Sonjae in Korean, has lived in Seoul for over 29 years and has written two books on Korean tea. His website has a most informative section on tea. If you google "An Sonjae" you'll find several articles by him or on him. He has been a very active member in Koreas poetic and tea circles.

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