FOCUS : Enshu Sado School

46 June 2002 · Families in Business

In Japan THERE ARE over 100,000companies with histories of more than100 years and 700 companies withhistories of more than 200 years. Most ofthese companies are assumed to befamily businesses. The oldest amongthem is a construction company said tobe founded in 578AD and still viabletoday. Enshu Sado School, one of theoldest established tea schools in Japan,dates back 400 years. Sado (teaceremony) is a national culture forJapanese people and avidly pursued evenin this hectic 21st century.

Today, the Enshu Sado School is runby Mr Sojitsu Kobori. He became the13th Grand Master of Enshu School lastyear, succeeding his father when he wasjust 44 years old. As Grand Master he isin charge of 20 staff members; 30,000nationwide practitioners; 53 localchapters throughout Japan; internationalchapters in Holland and Seoul; a school

GekkeikanBy Sonia Totten and Suzy Bibko

in Singapore; and all the related works ofexhibitions, lectures and demonstrationsas well as production of various teautensils including pottery and artisticworks on scrolls. He also consults on the

design of tea rooms and gardens, some ofwhich are conducted through theschool’s Foundation or relatedcompanies. As Tea Master, his mainexercise as well as source of income isgiving lessons in tea ceremony. But he isalso like a comprehensive art producer:the Grand Master is expected to be

almost an art form himself.How did Sojitsu manage to acquire

such diversified talents in art? “I learnedeverything from my father, the 12thGrand Master, and from all the previousGrand Masters, my ancestors”, Sojitsusays. Thus, each morning after gettingup, he goes to the ancestor room to paythem respect. It is a fairly large room byJapanese standards where ancestors’mortuary tablets are enshrined. ForSohitsu, ancestors are a source ofinexhaustible inspiration.

The Zen monks who brought tea toJapan laid the spiritual foundation forSado, which explains the close tiesbetween tea and spirituality. Sen Rikyuand other tea masters established Sado bybringing tea drinking to the level of an art.

HistoryFour hundred years ago, Lord EnshuKobori (1579-1647) founded a new style

As the 13th Grand Master of Enshu School, Sojitsu Kobori hasinherited the 400-year old legacy of his forefathers in the businessof the tea ceremony – a Japanese art form steeped in tradition. Heis already preparing his son for the next 400 years...

Enshu Sado SchoolBy Setsuko Sakakibara

“I learned everything from my

father, the 12th Grand Master,

and from all my ancestors”. For

Sojitsu, ancestors are a source

of inexhaustible inspiration

Enshu.qxd 30/5/2002 10:59 am Page 46

FOCUS : Enshu Sado School

June 2002 · Families in Business 47

of tea ceremony, which is now called theEnshu Sado School. However, theancestorship can be traced to KodoKobori who lived around 1400. It is saidthat the spirit of Enshu School lies inkireisabi, or gracefulness and simplicity.Enshu served as the official teainstructor for the second and thirdShogun and was overwhelminglyversatile. He served as the constructioncommissioner in charge of building thefamous Nagoya and Osaka castles. Also,the garden of Nanzenji Temple was builtunder his supervision and planning,where he succeeded in stylising nature.Enshu was richly talented in calligraphyand waka, 31-syllable Japanese poetry.He also rendered great services ininstructing pottery making such asShigaraki ware.

There were many ups and downs inthe history of Sado reflecting the socialconditions of the days: the hardest timebeing right after the Meiji Restoration of1986 and after World War II when societypaid little respect to tradition. However,Sojitsu considers “Stay with the style, yetgo beyond it”, the motto of Enshu, aninnovative approach responding tochanges over time that has contributedto the successful continuation of Enshu.

Responsible for another 400 yearsGrand Master Sojitsu is only 44 years old,but he might well be 400 years oldbecause he has inherited the DNA andknow-how of his forefathers. He ispositive about the fact that this kind ofbusiness is handed down along thefamily line. This is a profession thatrequires immense sensitivity and thuscommands cultivation since childhood.

The current theme of Enshu School is“By exploring the old, one becomes ableto understand the new”. Sojitsu says, “Iconsider tradition a refinement.Throughout the history of 400 years,each Grand Master preserved what heconsidered important, and removed whathe considered unimportant or wastefulelements, and added something uniqueof their own. One Grand Master mighthave obtained inspiration from the ideasof a Grand Master a few generationsbefore him. You know tradition is notconsumable”.

Sojitsu confessed that as heapproached adulthood, he came to worryif he could really be a good Master. Buthe never thought of shirking theresponsibility of this important missionof bridging the family tradition, handingover the know-how of his forefathers tohis successors. He is keenly aware that ifhe were to say no to this important role,it would create a chasm in what hasbecome an important cultural traditionof this country, and in his view, this cannot possibly be allowed to happen.

“I feel increasingly indebted toeverybody around me. I can do my workas Grand Master thanks to ancestors, andall the people around me who support

me. This is the message I would like toconvey to my children and society atlarge.” Sojitsu continued, “Since I have400 years before me, I feel responsiblefor another 400 years. Though it may notbe practical, I would at least like to makesure that my concept, along with what Ihave learned, be transferred to the 14thGrand Master – that will be my son – andto make sure that the transition to the15th Grand Master will be done properly.I have to live long!”

Training and cultivation sincechildhoodTypical traditional Japanese performingarts include the Kabuki play, Kyogencomedy or Japanese dancing. Training forsuccessors starts quite early. Would-besuccessors experience their first stagearound 3 or 4 years old. Most of themrecall how hard their training had been.One recalls that even during winter, in astark cold room with no heating, thelesson went on and on until the Master(father) said it was finished. “Oftenfather’s fan was thrown at me if I madesame mistakes”, he said. Anotherremembers how he envied ordinarychildren enjoying baseball – because asthe destined successor, he was eitherbusy with a series of lessons or was onstage.

But for Sojitsu this was not the case.He did not begin formal tea lessons ofSado until he was 14 years old and priorto this, his upbringing was quiteordinary. Unlike the traditionalperforming arts the tea ceremonyrequires the participation of guests, andcommunication with guests is crucial, soit requires personality-building. “But”, he

Far left: The extended family of

Sojitsu Kobori, including his

parents (front centre), his brother

and wife (back centre), and his

own wife and children.

Centre: Lord Enshu Kobori, the

founder of Enshu Sado School.

Left: An outside view of one of

the Enshu tea rooms.

I can do my work as Grand Master

thanks to ancestors and all the

people around me who support

me. This is the message I would

like to convey to my children and

society at large

Enshu.qxd 30/5/2002 10:59 am Page 47

FOCUS : Enshu Sado School

48 June 2002 · Families in Business

says. “Come to think of it, Sado hasalways been a part of my life sincechildhood. Since I was 4 or 5 years old, Iwas asked by my father, the 12th GrandMaster, to deliver tea bowls to the guestsattending the ceremony. Through theseexperiences I learned a lot. I learnedabout timing, keeping harmony with theactions of guests, how to respond to theircomments and the like. When we wereon vacation, father took out a portabletea set and all the family members didtea. Since my father was an embodiment

of culture, a real tea person, to be withhim undoubtedly cultivated mysensitivity. I might not have startedlearning innumerable actions andgaining the knowledge required for Sadountil later on in my life, but in hindsightI believe all these childhood experiencesseeped into and molded me”.

After graduating from university witha degree in law, he attended a small ZenTemple for one year of learning, as theonly disciple of the priest. He got up at4am, swept the gardens and vast rooms

of the temple, and then prepared a mealfor the priest and himself prior tostudying sutra. He also started to studycalligraphy, using text that hisforefathers had used hundreds of yearsago. He studied the history of Sado byreading the documents of hisforefathers. After one year of self-teaching in this way at the temple, hisfather formally took him in to hisestablishment as a Grand Mastercandidate and provided training himself.For flower arranging, for example, hisfather just told him to watch. So,throughout one year he observed howthe 12th Grand Master did the displays,sometimes being allowed to help bychoosing the proper vase, and the like.After one year his father finally toldhim, “Now, you do it”. Before long, andwithout realising it himself, Sojitsu hadbegun to possess knowledge on so manythings – including the cuisine requiredfor various occasions served at teaceremony, the connoisseurship ofantiques and Japanese history. He alsosucceeded in obtaining a rank at the Zentemple. Finally, one day his fatherdecided he was ready as 13th GrandMaster and for the first time in thehistory of Enshu, a new Grand Masterwas born while the previous GrandMaster was still alive – a remarkablemoment in the history of the business.

As for the training of his own son and

Text here new products and

branching out with offices in

the US and Korea. In 1987 the

company officially rename

I would like to make sure that

what I have learned is

transferred to my son and to

make sure that the transition

will be done properly –

I have to live long!

Above: Top – Sojitsu Koburi, the 13th Grand Master of

Enshu School; Bottom – Sojitsu preparing tea.

Right: The Tokyo headquarters of Enshu Sado School,

which includes the private quarters of the Kobori

family.

Far right: Guests enjoying a meal at the tea

ceremony.

Enshu.qxd 30/5/2002 11:00 am Page 48

FOCUS : Enshu Sado School

June 2002 · Families in Business 49

successor, Sojitsu would like this to be alittle better organised than his ownexperience had been. He relishes theprospect of telling his son about the joy ofstudying Sado and of being Grand Master.

Role of the family creedIn Japan there were many kakun (familycreeds), recorded – the oldest knowndates back to the 8th Century AD. Thesewere products of a time when the familywas an economic unit as well anemotional one. These creeds are stillviable today because they reflect thewisdom of ancestors on how to live, howto do business and how to educatechildren. They still serve as a centripetalforce for the family and for the business.“Teaching of Enshu Kobori”, the creed forEnshu, is just one page long and starts bybeing courteous to everybody accordingto Sojitsu’s interpretation; literally it says:royalty to master and filial piety. Next,the creed exhorts diligence in one’s workand heart to heart communication withfriends. Then it goes on to say: “Suchphenomena as spring mist, cuckoo underlush summer leaves, lonely sunset ofautumn, dawn of snowy winter(illustrating susceptibility to seasonalchanges and nature) will be occasionswhen you do Tea”. Lastly it says: “Thesound of boiling water should not cease”– meaning always be ready to welcomefriends. Sojitsu can recite every line of

the Enshu creed and it is evident that thecreed is very alive in his everyday life.

Sojitsu is very assertive about hisrole in the society. “As illustrated in ourcreed, the essence of Sado is heart toheart communication. This, I believe, isvery much lacking in contemporaryJapan. Relationships between peoplehave become shallow and people havebecome indifferent to each other, whichis not unrelated to the increasing

incidences of violence and apathy,especially among young people. Here,maybe as Sado Master, I can make acontribution to society. After all, everyaction of Sado is based on havingconsideration for others and being intheir shoes”. �

Setsuko Sakakibara is the President of Albero

Sacro Limited, a consulting company for high

net worth individuals and their corporations.

She has authored books on investment and

financial education.

Text here new products and

branching out with offices in

the US and Korea. In 1987 the

company officially rename

As illustrated in our family creed,

the essence of Sado is heart to

heart communication. This, I

believe, is very much lacking in

contemporary Japan

• Step 1: When tea is served, excuseyourself to the next guest by saying,"Excuse me for drinking before you"

• Step 2: Pick up the tea bowl withyour right hand

• Step 3: Place the bowl on the palmof your left hand and then bow lightly

• Step 4: Lower your tea bowl to theheight of your chest. With the bowlstill resting on your left palm, graspthe rim of the right side with yourright thumb and forefinger and turnthe bowl about 90˚ clockwise

• Step 5: Take a sip and then bowlightly, saying the words, “Thistastes really good”. Then drink theremaining tea in several sips

• Step 6: When you have drunk thelast sip, keep the bowl in the palm ofyour left hand and wipe the rim ofthe bowl lightly with the tips of yourright thumb and forefinger

• Step 7: Gaze at the bowl andappreciate its shape

• Step 8: Turn the bowl 90˚ clockwiseso the front of the bowl faces the host

• Step 9: Use your right hand to putthe bowl down gently on the tatami(mat)

HOW TO DRINK TEA

Enshu.qxd 30/5/2002 11:00 am Page 49