Yim Yaŋ Canon of Tea : a book on Traditional Chinese Medicine
Yim Yaŋ Canon of Tea 茶道经 is a book introducing the approach of Traditional Chinese Medicine on tea culture. Written by Li Hui 李辉, the book is a modern canon of tea presented in a bilingual Chinese-English edition, combining historical study, philosophical reflection and the daily practice of tea drinking and providing guidelines to enrich personal daily consumption with deeper awareness and intentionality.
The author Li Hui explains Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as a philosophical and energetic framework for understanding tea and its daily use.
Tea has been at the core of Chinese culture for millennia and has evolved its role from food to medicine to drink, without losing its relevance as each one of the roles is played.
This book is an introduction to the medicinal role of tea, presented as a gentle but influential player in regulating 气, the Qi or body energy, in this book translated as "pneuma". Tea balances Yin and Yang and interacts with the organ system in our body according to the nature of different leaves and their method of processing.
Different kind of tea are categorised in the spectrum of Yin and Yang, introducing the sub-categorisation of grand, middle and little Yin and Yang, to describe their energetic effects and suitability for different constitutions and needs.
This perspective makes the book especially valuable for individual everyday tea practice, offering practical guidance that goes beyond taste and technique.
The time of the day, the kind of tea and how we brew it are all elements to be considered in parallel with body constitution and seasonal changes.
The book encourages us tea lovers to choose our leaves more consciously, paying more attention to the desired energetic effects, and approach tea drinking as a mindful ritual that supports well-being. Not intended as a clinical approach, the book emphasises moderation, prevention, and harmony between body and mind, positioning tea as a daily practice of self-cultivation that supports health through balance rather than intervention.
In the foreword of the book, written during yellow tea making season in Guizhou, Li Hui states: "A healthy body for everyone around the world is my best wish, and also the wish of this book".
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Yim Yaŋ Canon of Tea 茶道经 by Li Hui, published in July 2023 by Shanghai University Press and Fudan University Press.
Language: Chinese and English
Number of pages: 146
About the author
LI Hui-Zichen, PhD, Professor of human biology and anthropology at the School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, dean of MOE Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology, vice president of the Institute of Scientific Archaeology, is major in molecular anthropology, focusing on the origin of human populations and civilizations in East Asia.
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Note: in this book the term 发酵 fāxiào indicating the process of transforming the leaves into the six categories of tea, is translated as "fermentation", but it is to be intended as "oxidation" for teas like green, yellow, white, wulong and red. "Fermentation" refers only to dark tea and Pu'er tea.