Rikyu’s Morning Glory and Hideyoshi’s Gratitude
When Hideyoshi was rising to power he wanted to sit for tea at the famous tea house of Sen no Rikyu. Rikyu was known to be a great master of the tea ceremony as well as being to known to have one of the more beautiful morning glory gardens around. When Hideyoshi first courted Rikyu he was rebuffed, but finally Rikyu relented.
But when Hideyoshi arrived he found that Rikyu had dug up all of his morning glories. Furious Hideyoshi stomped into the tea house where he found one remarkable morning glory in the vase. He knew Rikyu’s mind in that moment.
Rikyu went on to serve as Hideyoshi’s tea master while he was reuniting Japan, up until the day that he was ordered to commit Seppuku by the Daimyo.
Years after Rikyu gave Hideyoshi a glimpse of enlightenment with his single Morning Glory at Tea, the great Taiko and uniter of Japan ordered his tea master to commit Seppuku for mysterious reasons. Speculation indicates it was either over Rikyu not allowing him to take his daughter as a concubine, or jealousy over Rikyu’s fame. Either way, Hideyoshi had a funny way of showing his gratitude and should be remembered accordingly.
