Ethical Guidelines
At Camellia, we take cultural respect and integrity seriously. These guidelines apply to all students and shape how we approach teaching and learning.
Foundational Guidelines
We operate under and hold our students to an explicit code of ethics for studying and serving tea.
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We embody the values of humility and appreciation. We help inexperienced servers feel more comfortable and show experienced tea masters the respect they deserve. We know how to be gracious guests who bring out the best qualities in those who pour us tea.
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Whether in the same room or not, we always say kind things about other members of the tea community. It doesn't matter whether they lack integrity or behave differently from how we are trained. We address all actions with kindness.
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We will not be part of appropriation culture or the romanticization of Eastern practices in the West. We can spot appropriation, knowing that it is not always necessary to call it out. Discernment and compassion go hand in hand.
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When we are teaching tea, we acknowledge the presence of Chinese and Taiwanese people in the room. We check in with them and do not assume we know more about their culture than they do. We invite them to share their experience and knowledge when appropriate. We show respect and humility, knowing that we are a bridge, not the source.
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Tea practice calls for humility. We refrain from criticizing others for the tea they serve, the water they use, or the tools they have available. Around the world, many people love tea without access to high-quality leaves, teaware, or formal training. We remain grateful for whatever conditions allow tea to be shared.
We appreciate tea in many forms: whole leaf, bagged, or ground; plantation-grown or forest-grown. While we cultivate discernment and develop preferences about what is most honoring to serve our guests, we do not look down on others for the tea they drink. All tea flows from the same source.
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Sharing tea with friends and community is always welcome. Serving tea publicly for compensation or exposure requires proper training and a teacher’s blessing. Teaching tea requires the same.
The title “Tea Master” is not self-declared. It is bestowed by others in recognition of decades of study.
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While we respect tea traditions from many cultures, our practice in this cohort focuses on Chinese and Taiwanese tea. We aim to use terminology, methods, and cultural references appropriately and avoid mixing unrelated traditions in ways that create confusion about their origins.
Common Misperceptions
The romanticization and mystification of Eastern culture have led to mistranslations and misunderstandings outside their original context. Below are a few common examples in tea, paired with a corrective realignment.
There is a universally agreed-upon form of “traditional” Chinese tea. Tea processing and brewing techniques are vast and diverse. There are as many different methods and means as there are tea people. It is impossible to distill tea into a single “tradition.” Even during distinct periods, such as an emperor's rule or a dynasty, the practice varied across geographies and social classes. Commonalities exist across different traditions, but none are better or worse than the others.
Every setting that serves tea is about tea. Tea is a beautiful pairing and accompaniment to different philosophies and cultivation practices. Someone can serve tea and talk about TCM, go on about the teachings of Shiva and Shakti, or fill their tea room with Buddhist altars. These experiences are not about tea, but what tea can do to deepen a set of teachings and spark insight. A setting that honors tea centers everything from the decorations to the selection of teaware to the food pairings around tea itself. The focus on tea is uncluttered and unmistakable.
Tea alone is a cultivation practice. Tea is a guide and a partner, but, like corn, wheat, or mushrooms, it is not a complete cultivation practice on its own. It is a plant ally and a teacher that pairs beautifully in a support role to a true cultivation practice. It is an experience, evolved through a complex, rich, and fraught history, that carries wisdom and medicine to match the times.
All Tea Masters have lineages. Most Chinese tea masters, tea experts, and tea teachers do not have lineages, but they do have traditions. They studied with different schools and teachers, then combined that knowledge with their own preferences, education, and lived experiences to birth a unique expression of tea. You are the first and last student of your own lineage. If there is a lineage associated with tea, it’s likely Japanese, Korean, or linked to a cultivation practice such as Taoism or Buddhism. A question you can ask is, “Are they teaching tea, or are they teaching X through tea?”