He Cut Every Single Flower: What Rikyu's Morning Glory Tea Ceremony Teaches Us
Rikyu cut every morning glory in his garden, leaving just one in the tea room. Why? The philosophy of 'one is enough for beauty' in one unforgettable story.
A deep read
When Hideyoshi came to see Rikyu’s celebrated morning glories, he found a bare garden — every flower had been cut. But in the tea room, a single perfectly chosen morning glory waited in a vase. ‘One is enough for beauty.’ This story captures the essence of wabi: stripping away all but the essential.
Sen no Rikyu — the tea master of the Azuchi-Momoyama era who embodied the philosophy that one is enough for beauty
Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Sekkatei teahouse at Rokuonji — a typical example of the simple rustic teahouse style Rikyu favored
Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Tea ceremony flower arrangement — Rikyu's morning glory story is one of the origins of Japan's aesthetic of finding beauty in a single flower