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Thesis
Section 6 is not really about “晋时吴兴太守陆纳谢安来访纳所设惟茶果而已”; it is about how Lu Yu turns tea from a local product into an object of argument.
Text
“In the Jin, Lu Na, governor of Wuxing, when Xie An came to call, set out only tea and fruit.”
Context
吴兴:今浙江湖州。陆纳:东晋名臣。谢安:东晋名相。茶果:茶与果品。
Evidence
- Collation: 各本一致。此典为"以茶待客、清廉简朴"的著名范例。
- Existing readings: 吴觉农评此典:陆纳以茶果待谢安,不以酒肉铺张,是"俭德"的具体实践——后世"茶礼"之重俭,源头正在于此。
Analysis
Formally, the section gives a judgment, adds material detail, then returns to human practice. 吴兴:今浙江湖州。陆纳:东晋名臣。谢安:东晋名相。茶果:茶与果品。 That is why the Classic of Tea reads as an argued book rather than a miscellany.
Conclusion
The section does not give a universal rule. It demonstrates a method: read the text, the annotation and the Tang context together before making a modern claim.
Source: The Classic of Tea, Chapter VII · The History, section 6; the original is in the public domain.
Get the character right before the taste.