Chadō

Chadō (茶堂, “tea pavilion”) is a small roadside pavilion where local people offered tea to pilgrims and travellers, and where they could sit and rest. It is one of the old forms of o-settai.

They are found mostly in the mountains of western Ehime and Kōchi: small wooden buildings, often thatched, open on three sides, with a raised wooden floor to sit on. The city of Seiyo (Ehime) has more than 170; in Yusuhara (Kōchi), 13 remain, and local tradition dates them to the early 17th century. They were also a meeting and prayer place for the village.

The Gūchadō (遇茶堂) of temple 22. At temple 22, Byōdō-ji, it is the first building on the right as you pass through the gate. This pavilion, unique to this temple, is a place of welcome where pilgrims are offered tea and a space to rest: it keeps the spirit of o-settai alive. The character 遇 means “to meet”, and also “to receive someone”.

Not to be confused with 茶道 (sadō or chadō), the tea ceremony. Both words can be read “chadō”, but 茶堂 is a building (堂, “hall”) and 茶道 an art (道, “the way”). At a roadside chadō there is no ritual: you sit down, drink the tea you are offered, and set off again.