Ro and Its Foundations: An Introduction
In Japan’s ancient realm of Cha-no-yu, 茶の湯, Tea’s hot water, ma-tcha, 抹茶, powdered-tea, ryoku-cha, 緑茶, green-tea, is whisked together with hot water. First, water is heated in a kama, 釜, kettle, that is placed over a sum-bi, 炭火, charcoal-fire, burning in a portable fu-ro, 風炉, wind-hearth. Tea is placed in a heated cha-wan, 茶碗, tea-bowl, hot water is added and the tea is blended with a cha-sen, 茶筅, tea-whisk, and served.
In the cold half of the year, the kama is placed over a charcoal fire contained in a ro, 炉, hearth, that is sunk in a square opening in the floor of the cha-shitsu, 茶室, tea-room.
The floor of the tokonoma is raised higher than the floor of the room, because of its elevated spiritual nature. Its origin stems from placing an additional tatami where the nobility would be seated. Therefore, a wooden molding called a toko-gamachi, 床框, floor-framework, conceals the unsightly side of the tatami. This feature has a wide variety of styles, including a beveled edge, men-tori, 面取り, face-take. The word bevel in Japanese is mentori and is found in other objects, such as the men-tori usu-ki, 面取り薄器, face-take thin[tea]-container, and in some toko-gamachi, 床框, floor-framework, moldings.
The opening of the ro in the floor has a wooden frame called a ro-buchi, 炉縁, hearth-edge, that conceals the unsightly sides of the surrounding tatami. The inner aspect of the frame has a beveled edge, mentori, on all four sides, that presents a kind of an inviting proscenium.
The height or thickness of a standard Kyō tatami is 1.8 sun kane-jaku or 5.5 cm. The number 18 in Japanese is jū-hachi, 十八, ten-eight, and is symbolic of life, especially when the two Kanji 十 and 八 are combined together, the written form becomes the Kanji for ki, 木, wood.
The square opening in the wooden floor of the tearoom measures 14 x 14 sun kane-jaku. This is the same measurement as the robuchi. The height of the robuchi is 2.125 sun kane-jaku or 1.7 sun kujira-jaku or 6 cm. This measurement is determined by the thickness of the tatami and the thickness of the board floor. The square piece of wood flooring cut for the ro opening is retained, so that it can be replaced on the floor when the ro is covered over
The robuchi can be measured using two different iterations of ‘rulers’ or mono-sashi, 物差し, thing-distinguish. The two types of measurement are kane-jaku and kujira-jaku, different artists use each depending on the work they are creating. When the robuchi is measured in kane-jaku the measurements are 14 x 14 sun kane-jaku. When the robuchi is measured using kujira-jaku the measurements are 11.2 x 11.2 sun kujira-jaku. In the diagram above, the robuchi is the average size and shows measurements in both kane-jaku and kujira-jaku.
The width of the upper surface of the robuchi is 1 sun kane-jaku, however, Japanese lacquer artists use the kujira-jaku as a measure, so the upper surface width is 8 bu kujira-jaku. The same is true for the fabric heri, 縁, edge, of the tatami because weavers also use the kujira-jaku. The upper flat surface of the robuchi appears as though it is an extension of the tatami fabric heri, 縁, edge.
The collective, visible kane-jaku surface measurements total 3.3 sun kane-jaku.
There is an undeniable identification with the thirty-three different manifestations of Kan-non Bo-satsu, 観音菩薩, See-sound Grass-buddhas. These are called Kan-non San-jū-san Jū-ō-jin-su, 観音三十三応身図, See-sound Three-ten-three response-body-image: nirmanakaya, form taken by a buddha according to the capabilities of those who are to be saved. It is important to remember that Kannon is one of the several Buddhist guardians of the Tearoom. Though Kannon is often closely associated with water, Kannon, in more than one manifestation, has a deep connection to the ro that enhances understanding.
The full article will be issued for February 28th.
for further study, see also: Ro:The Sunken Hearth Collection
