Tsuda Sōgyū facts for kids

Tsuda Sōgyū (died 1591) was a very important Japanese tea master. He was known for his skill in the chanoyu, which is the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. He lived during a time when powerful leaders ruled Japan.

Tsuda Sōgyū: A Famous Tea Master

Tsuda Sōgyū came from a rich family of merchants in a city called Sakai. Their family business was known as Tennōjiya. Sōgyū worked with his father, Tsuda Sōtatsu, to make their family business one of the most successful in Sakai. They became very powerful by making friends with important leaders.

Working for Powerful Leaders

Around 1574, Tsuda Sōgyū became one of three special tea masters for Oda Nobunaga. Nobunaga was a very strong leader who was trying to unite all of Japan. These tea masters were called chatō, which means "tea head." They were in charge of all tea ceremony matters for Nobunaga. The other two famous tea masters were Imai Sōkyū and Sen no Rikyū.

Sōgyū knew Akechi Mitsuhide well. In 1582, Mitsuhide caused Nobunaga's death. This event made Sōgyū's reputation a bit difficult. However, Toyotomi Hideyoshi took over after Nobunaga. Hideyoshi also hired all three of Nobunaga's tea masters, including Sōgyū, to work for him. Sōgyū even attended Hideyoshi's very large Grand Kitano Tea Ceremony in 1587.

Important Tea Records

The Tennōjiya kaiki is a special record of tea gatherings. It was put together by three generations of the Tennōjiya family: Sōgyū's father Sōtatsu, Sōgyū himself, and Sōgyū's son Sōbon. This record is very valuable today. It helps us learn a lot about how tea ceremonies were done in those old times.

Tsuda Sōgyū often shared tea ceremony time with Sen no Rikyū. In fact, Sōgyū appears more often than anyone else as having been with Rikyū during these events.