Tao and Tea

Hillsborough’s new Tao Center is a peaceful setting for achieving a Zen-like state of ‘no mind.’

By: Susan Van Dongen

"Eva
Eva


Hsu, of the Tao Center for Yoga and Tai Chi in Hillsborough, prepares oolong
tea.

Staff photo by Frank Wojciechowski

   If you listen carefully, you can hear the waterfall.
   Even though it’s in a small storefront in a suburban shopping center about a mile off Route 206, Eva Hsu is creating a miniature natural setting, pouring sweetly scented water from a modest teapot into a matching bowl. With a traditional bamboo spoon, she scoops a small amount of tightly furled tea leaves into a Raku porcelain teapot and lets them steep for a few minutes.
   She then pours the oolong tea into cups, criss-crossed with natural flaws. The sound is like a tiny rushing river.
   "This is the waterfall," she explains, inviting her visitors to savor the subtle broth. "It’s like tasting wine. You hold the liquid in your mouth and let it sit there for half a minute. Then you swallow, to better appreciate the aftertaste."

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"This is the waterfall," Ms. Hsu explains as she pours the oolong tea into cups and invites her visitors to savor the subtle broth.

Staff photo by Frank Wojciechowski

   It’s all part of a tea ceremony at the Tao Center for Yoga and Tai Chi at the Kingsbridge Shopping Center in Hillsborough. Ms. Hsu, who also runs the Tea Gallery in Franklin, says she performs the tea ceremony after each yoga class, to enhance the Zen-like experience and further introduce her American clients to Asian culture.
   The Tao Center opened in August, offering different styles of traditional Asian exercise and meditation, even Zen archery. The center hosts classes in Asian crafts, such as Chinese knot-making and origami. On Oct. 13, the center will sponsor an excursion to a Buddhist monastery in the Catskills with yoga master Sasson Seo.
   Mr. Seo travels to the mountains every week to meditate and confer with the monks as part of his lifelong training. Ms. Hsu says levels in yoga mastery are measured from 20 through zero. As you progress, you work backwards numerically, toward zero — and beyond.
   "Sasson is in the negative numbers," she says.
   After 10 years of teaching, Mr. Seo had gathered a large number of students in North Bergen and was searching for space to accommodate more.
   "One day he was driving through the area looking for a potential space and dropped in to my tea shop," Ms. Hsu says. "Since I was established in the community, he asked if I would help him set up a yoga center."

"Ms.
Ms. Hsu with implements of the tea ceremony.

Staff photo by Frank Wojciechowski

   Mr. Seo has blended his lifelong learning to teach a kind of yoga that combines Indian, Korean and Chinese stretching and calisthenics with tan tien breathing, a type of focused respiratory exercise that incorporates Zen or mindfulness meditation.
   "Our (yoga) master’s philosophy is ‘no mind’," she says. "If you can ’empty’ your mind you are more close to Taoism."
   Tao is one of those "if you have to ask, don’t bother" areas of Eastern philosophy. In a nutshell, Taoism essentially defies description and doesn’t adhere to the usual dogma of organized religions, except for a poetry-like book of 5,000 words written by sixth century B.C. philosopher Lao Tzu.
   "The first sentence in the book reads ‘I cannot explain the universe because the universe has its own way,’ " Ms. Hsu says. "Taoism is about the natural movement and flow of the universe, sunrise to sunset, the relationship between the sun and the moon. It’s really based on your own experience as an individual, and it changes at different stages in life."
   Chinese arts and crafts also have a meditative quality. The hands perform a repetitive task, such as origami or knotting, giving the logical side of the brain a rest. Intuitive, spiritual guidance and even enlightenment can occur once the busy side of the mind is quieted, according to meditation masters.

"Origami
Origami swans are also sold at the Tao Center for Yoga and Tai Chi.

Staff photo by Frank Wojciechowski

   However, Ms. Hsu says very few reach that divine state of pure wisdom. "We are human and it is very hard to attain Tao. But we work toward it with yoga and meditation."
   The 35-year-old Taiwan native and her mother teach the traditional knotting, once simply a way to adorn clothing and interior decorations. Ms. Hsu has also taught Chinese decorative knotting in night classes at North Brunswick High School. She came to the United States with her family about 20 years ago, graduating from Rutgers with a degree in computer science. Since her extended family in Taiwan owns a tea farm, it seemed natural for Ms. Hsu to go into the tea-importing business. Her family’s special oolong tea has won international acclaim.
   "We get the best tea at discount prices," she says with a laugh.
   Ms. Hsu brings her intimate knowledge and appreciation to the tea ceremony.

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"We are human and it is very hard to attain Tao," says Ms. Hsu. "But we work toward it with yoga and meditation."

Staff photo by Frank Wojciechowski

   "You don’t have to let it steep for long. Just wait until the leaves uncurl from the buds. The color should be a pale yellow or green," she says.
   In addition to the soothing aesthetics of the tea ceremony, black and green Chinese teas contain a bounty of antioxidants, all-natural cancer fighters.
   Slowing down to savor a cup of tea, or practicing the deliberate movements of tai chi, or cultivating healthful, meditative breathing might be just the thing to do for stressed-out, worried Americans. Especially after being inundated by a wave of violence and worry.
   Thankfully we have the freedom to embrace our differences, and the Tao Center is the perfect place for an introduction to an engaging, peaceful culture.
   "We want to introduce Oriental philosophy to Americans," Ms. Hsu says. "Most Americans are curious about the Orient. It’s mysterious to them and they might not understand us. We know our culture and we want to share the good things with others."
The Tao Center for Yoga and Tai Chi is located at 378 South Branch Road, Kingsbridge Shopping Center, Hillsborough. Hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-2 p.m. For information, call (908) 371-9550