A rare Shōwa 24 (1949) instructional manual of the Ogawa-ryū (小川流) school of sencha-dō (the art of steeped-leaf tea), titled
「略盆手前 一」(Ryakubon Temae I) – “Simplified Tray Tea Procedure, Volume I.”
This edition, the third volume in the Ogawa-ryu Sencha Temae Collection (煎茶手前集 其三), was authored by Ogawa Kōraku (小川後楽) and published by Ogawa Kōrakudō (小川後楽堂) in Kyoto.
It presents the “Ryakubon”, a graceful, simplified method of preparing sencha using a tray and compact utensils — designed for intimate tea gatherings and everyday practice while preserving classical etiquette.
The interior is beautifully printed on warm washi paper with a fold-out diagram illustrating the full setup of the tray service, including utensils such as chabin (teapot), yubin (hot-water pot), chataku (saucer), sumikago (charcoal basket), chabana (tea flower arrangement), and byōbu (folding screen).
The handwritten-style calligraphy describes each movement with spiritual attention to natural harmony (陰陽五行 – yin-yang and five elements), reflecting the aesthetic philosophy of sencha-dō as both daily discipline and art.
Postwar Japan saw a revival of traditional sencha-dō schools, as tea masters sought to preserve prewar refinement and reintroduce the calm discipline of tea culture.
This 1949 manual captures the Ogawa school’s transmission of literati tea (文人茶) — an art form emphasizing simplicity, balance, and inner tranquility, inherited from Chinese literati traditions and harmonized with Japanese wabi-sabi.
Authentic postwar sencha-dō manuals are exceedingly scarce, as most were issued in limited runs for disciples of specific lineages.
This Ogawa-ryu edition, with its complete text and diagram intact, represents both a practical teaching tool and an artistic artifact of Japan’s mid-20th-century cultural restoration — ideal for collectors of tea ceremony, Kyoto arts, or Zen literature.
