Hi love.
If you're here, thank you for answering Tea's call.You're ready.
It's time.
W E L C O M E H O M E
"SYOTP opened the doorway for me to slow down, soften and remember. The reverence in which Mariana holds this container and her connection with Tea is deep medicine for us all as we reconnect to our own hearts, ceremony, and Mother Earth. For me, this was a journey home to Soul."
- Kylie McBeath
“This tea course is life changing. I'm so grateful Mariana brought the sacredness of tea into my life. My morning tea practice is like my active meditation. It wakes me up and fills me with such a delightful energy. I've even transformed my living room into a place for tea ceremonies! I am beyond grateful for my new tea journey and highly recommend starting your own tea practice with Mariana."
- Michael Armstrong
“This experience has left me feeling a strong sense of trust. I feel like everything happened in this divine way for Tea to come into my life. It was everything I needed at this moment in time. What I'm taking with me the most is a revived reverence for nature”
- Rachel Brathen
Start Your Own Tea Practice is about remembering what it means to be a human, what it means to be in relationship to all beings and how to live with an open heart.
Tea is the medicine of our times
In a society that is super yang & masculine, Tea teaches us to be yin & feminine
In a world ruled by rigidity, Tea teaches us how to flow
When we don't know ourselves, Tea provides us with an unbroken mirror
When we can no longer meet the expectations of life, Tea reminds us that we don't have to
She is a powerful yet gentle teacher that brings me into right relationship with myself & all that is
She is a powerful yet gentle teacher that brings me into right relationship with myself & all that is
Every day when I sit for Tea, she reminds me that:
Everything is OK.
I am loved, I am worthy & I am Nature.
And from that place, I can take on the world.
From that place, I am excited to be myself and to be all that I can be.
From this place, I stop compromising my needs, I stop feeling guilty for being myself, I allow myself to feel & be held & I learn to receive the beauty of this human life.
This is what we've forgotten and what we so desperately need to remember.
This is the part of your healing journey that has been missing
The Course: Let’s Get Into The Nitty Gritty
The course takes place over 22 days and is a bit of an intensive. We're developing a daily practice, so we go DEEP off the bat and you get tons of support.
Each student receives a tea bowl and a mystery tea prior to the beginning of the course, which is ALL you need to start a practice (well...you need a kettle too, but everyone has a kettle!)
Each student receives a tea bowl and a mystery tea prior to the beginning of the course, which is ALL you need to start a practice (well...you need a kettle too, but everyone has a kettle!)
The next round of Start Your Own Tea Practice will be in late 2022 or early 2023. Timing is TBD, but we have a beautiful extended payment plan to allow for financial ease. This course will have 4 lectures & 11 Tea sits.
In addition, we have an active community group with daily support.
Timing is TBD. We'll begin in either late 2022 or first thing 2023! Here's the flow:
Class 1, Sunday Morning
In Tea class one, I'll teach you an Earth-based ritual for sitting with Tea on a daily basis. We'll also have an opening circle to set the intentions for our time together and talk a little bit about what we're here and who this beautiful plant named Tea is.
Week 1, Monday through Saturday Morning
Virtual tea practice with the group. We will sit together and share our tea practices for 30 minutes, then have 30 minutes of sharing and Q&A.
Class 2, Sunday
In Tea class two, we'll dive into the connection between humans & nature to understand why we're here, how to relate to the non-human world & how Tea can help us show up more fully in our life & purpose.
There will be 3 Tea sits in between class 2 & 3.
Class 3, Sunday
In our third class together we'll go deeper on all fronts and talk about tangible ways that we can connect with Tea in our daily lives.
There will be 2 Tea sits in between class 3 & 4, timing TBD.
Class 4, Sunday
Our last tea class together, we’ll unveil the mystery Tea and I will guide you through all of the ways to continue on your tea journey. We’ll end with a closing circle ❤️
So...in case you're wondering...
What is a tea practice?
Quite simply, having a daily tea practice means sitting in meditative silence with tea as a plant medicine—often this happens every day, but of course you can sit with tea as often or as little as you like. In this ritual, you drink many bowls of tea (usually anywhere from 3 to 7+) and connect deeply with the spirit of tea.
Why Tea?
Tea is a beautiful, heart opening plant medicine. She is a powerful and gentle teacher. In ceremonial tea practice we drink what are known as living teas. These are teas cultivated from their natural environments in forests where tea has lived in communion with humans for thousands and thousands of years. So, let’s just say it’s not your average tea. Even the average tea we drink in the world has the power to connect us to others and soothe our souls…so imagine what it’s like to drink tea cultivated with reverence and heart!
In the course I’ll go over more about why tea, but through your unique experience and relationship with tea, the answer to this question will deepen with each bowl you drink.
How will this practice enhance my life?
Put quite simply, drinking Tea in ritual will bring you into right relationship with all life, including yourself.
Tea will connect you with nature, yourself and your community. As you sit in noble silence with this heart-centered plant medicine you are able to tune inward, uncovering the whispers of your heart and soul. During each sit you will cultivate an awakened sense of presence and harmony.
Tea has the ability to change your life by helping reconnect you to your role on this Earth & to the spirit of the Mother. This practice is rooted in Earth-based wisdom. The sense of peace that comes with this deeper knowing is unbelievable.
What makes this offering unique?
Having grown up in Hong Kong and been around tea my whole life, I have a relationship with tea that goes much deeper than just my time relating to tea as a Dao (way of life). Over the past five years I have studied the Way of Tea with my teacher, Wu De, and traveled to Taiwan & China to visit the tea plants. I have held ceremonial tea space in my home for ceremony & education.
Over the years I've served tea to hundreds of people and most of them were sitting their first ceremony ever. This has given me a unique perspective and understanding about how to introduce tea to a newcomer and educate them on exactly what we’re doing. This offering was actually born out of the fact that I was already giving away tea and teaware to people who were looking to start their own relationships with tea, but then they needed to learn what to do with them!
However, about two years into my practice I felt a lull...I felt like I couldn't go deeper without starting to read Tea books and learning more about Tea in human society, but honestly I just wasn't interested. This is when my spiritual teacher came into my life and started teaching me about the Nature Ways. These teachings are from the indigenous tribes of the Americas and are all based in the natural flow & rhythms of this Earth. All of a sudden, Tea started talking to me even more. All of a sudden, my tea sits weren't being guided by human knowledge, but rather by Tea herself and the elements and the spirit of everything involved including my own.
However, about two years into my practice I felt a lull...I felt like I couldn't go deeper without starting to read Tea books and learning more about Tea in human society, but honestly I just wasn't interested. This is when my spiritual teacher came into my life and started teaching me about the Nature Ways. These teachings are from the indigenous tribes of the Americas and are all based in the natural flow & rhythms of this Earth. All of a sudden, Tea started talking to me even more. All of a sudden, my tea sits weren't being guided by human knowledge, but rather by Tea herself and the elements and the spirit of everything involved including my own.
It was through these teachings that my Tea practice has become what it is today. And it is through the Nature Ways that Tea & I have co-created Start Your Own Tea Practice.
This is the only course that shares Tea in this way, rooted in Earth-based wisdom.
This is the only course that shares Tea in this way, rooted in Earth-based wisdom.
Lastly, this course is NOT about connecting to Tea with our minds. It's about reconnecting to Nature with our hearts and shifting our understanding of Tea from beverage to medicine. In our time together we'll dive into exactly what that means & how to reconnect to all that is larger than ourselves.
We will explore all of this through the lens of our humanness, the natural world & how to live in alignment with the cycles & rhythms of Nature.
What people are saying about Start Your Own Tea Practice
I am blown away by how Tea has changed my life and I feel like I've barely scratched the surface. I've had many different spiritual rituals and practices, but tea has simply elevated everything else. It was amazing to learn how to share the magic of tea with others, and the container was so sacred and special. It is so great that this lasts for a lifetime - far beyond the 3 week course! Mariana brings a calming, grounding energy to the practice and really made me feel like I couldn't mess it up - no matter what.
- Kelly Carlone
"Mariana, thank you for being the most incredible guide, I am so so thankful for the gift that is Start Your Own Tea Practice. This class was everything that I needed and more than I could have possibly imagined when I signed up. Being in the presence of your deeply embodied wisdom and the way in which Tea Spirit flows through you is a transformative experience in itself. Through this practice I have gained an understanding of how I can connect more deeply with nature, with other beings, and with myself that I know will continue to unfold in ever evolving layers for the rest of my life. This is the gift that you offer to everyone who enrolls in SYOTP and I am profoundly grateful for this experience."
-Kristen Wesenberg
My intention for this class was for tea to heal my soul and to really be present to what she was bringing into my life and I feel I have done exactly that. I am really blown away at the transformation that's happened for me in such a short amount of time. The healing I have created with Tea has literally transformed my life. It has created so much for me in 22 days. I’m beyond grateful and am really excited to see where my life goes.
- Elizabeth Baxter
Let's get into some FAQs
What do I need in order to start my practice?
All you really need is an open heart.
But, if you're asking about what you physically need, it's really just to sign up for SYOTP and get a thermos or kettle for hot water! Everything else is provided in the course. This is about keeping things simple and not overwhelming you as you invite Tea into your life. Just trust your YES and then go with the flow :) Once you join you'll have access to a pre-course video two weeks before the course starts, sharing with you different ways you can start to connect with Tea before we officially begin.
I already have a tea practice–is this course still right for me?
Yes! Start Your Own Tea Practice is great for people who are new to tea, and it's also an amazing way to come back to beginner's mind and deepen your already existing tea practice.
I don't live in the US, can I still join?
Yes!! We've had students join from all over the world. My advice if you live abroad is to sign up ASAP so that we can get your tea and bowl shipped out right away. It's OK if you can't join the course live, all videos are posted soon after the class finishes. Some of the deepest experiences have come from students on the other side of the world who couldn't join live.
What's your favorite part about SYOTP?
Mmmm I love this question!! Honestly, it's that it is different every time. The mystery tea, the group of people who come together, the theme and intentions anchoring the course. I do not prepare much in advance, I just show up and speak from the heart and it is a humbling experience for me each time. I feel so in love with every person who has embarked on this journey. Watching your hearts open & witnessing your unraveling is some serious medicine for me!
When will you offer SYOTP again?
Start Your Own Tea Practice runs once (maybe twice) a year depending on the year. Enrollment is currently open for people who know they want to learn this way of being in the next year...this course will begin in either late 2022 or early 2023 and after that, will not run for 9 to 12 months.
How long do I get access to the course?
If you can't join the course live, THAT'S TOTALLY OK! Some people can't and it doesn't make their experience any less profound. All class videos are posted onto our online portal soon after they finish and you have access to the course for a full year. Many students go back and rewatch classes and retake the course a few times :)
I loved connecting with people around the world and getting to see their unique practices. It was really amazing to see everyone connecting with this practice and nature. It was truly incredible
- Heather Jaffe
Here I am a month later, feeling so wildly contained and anchored. I am seeing myself for the first time as a rose–a little bud as she likes to tell me. I ultimately feel that I can trust myself and that my longings are valid and worthy.
- Victoria Gentry
I love you, and there are no refunds once you sign up.
Marianna Rittenhouse- All Rights Reserved | Contact