安溪铁观音 Anxi Tieguanyin

一、“魏说”--观音托梦

相传，1720年前后，安溪尧阳松岩村(又名松林头村)有个老茶农魏荫(1703-1775)，勤于种茶，又笃信佛教，敬奉观音。每天早晚一定在观音佛前敬奉一杯清茶，儿十年如一日，从未间断，有一天晚上，他睡熟了，朦胧中梦见自己扛着锄头走出家门，他来到一条溪涧旁边，在石缝中忽然发现一株茶树，枝壮叶茂，芳香诱人，跟自己所见过的茶树不同……第二天早晨，他顺着昨夜梦中的道路寻找，果然在观音仑打石坑的石隙间，找到梦中的条树。仔细观看，只见茶叶椭圆，叶肉肥厚，嫩芽紫红，青翠欲滴:魏荫十分高兴，将这株条树挖回种在家小一口铁鼎里，悉心培育。因这茶是观音托梦得到的，取名"铁观音"。

二、“王说”--乾隆赐名

相传，安溪西坪南岩仕人王土让清朝雍正十年副贡、乾隆六年曾出任湖广黄州府靳州通判，曾经在南山之麓修筑书房，取名“南轩”。清朝乾隆元年(1736年)的春天，王与诸友会文于“南轩”。每当夕阳西坠时，就徘徊在南轩之旁。有一天，他偶然发现层石荒园间有株茶树与众不同，就移植在南轩的茶圃，朝夕管理，悉心培育，年年繁殖，茶树枝叶茂盛，圆叶红心，采制成品，乌润肥壮，泡饮之后，香馥味醇，沁人肺腑。乾隆六年，王士让奉召人京，谒见礼部侍郎方苞，并把这种茶叶送给方苞，方侍郎间其味非凡，便转送内廷，皇上饮后大加赞誉，垂问尧阳茶史，因此茶乌润结实，沉重似铁，味香形美，犹如“观音”，赐名“铁观音”。

三

唐末宋初，有位裴姓(俗名)高僧住在安溪驷马山东边圣泉岩的安常院，他自己做茶并传授乡人，乡人称茶为圣树。元丰6年(1083)，安溪大旱，请来普足大师祈雨果验，乡亲留普足大师于清水岩，他建寺修路恩泽于乡民，他听说圣茶的药效，不远百里到圣泉岩向乡民请教种茶和做茶，并移栽圣树。一天，普足大师(清水祖师)沐浴更衣梵香后前往圣树准备采茶，发现有一只美丽的凤凰正在品茗红芽，不久又来有山羌(俗称小黄鹿)来吃茶叶，他眼见此情景，非常感叹:“天地造物，果真圣树”。清水祖师回寺做茶，用圣泉泡茶，他思忖:神鸟、神兽、僧人共享圣茶，天圣也。此后，天圣茶成为他为乡民治病之圣方。

清水祖师也将自己种茶及作茶的方式传给乡民，南岩山麓，一位退隐打猎将军“乌龙”，因他上山采茶追猎无意发明摇青工艺及发酵工艺，做出的天圣茶香气更足，味更甘醇。乡亲向他学习，以后，用此工艺做的茶大家都叫乌龙茶。魏荫爱茶，所做之茶都争相品茗，王士让告假回乡访亲会友，到南岩山麓游览得品此茶。乾隆六年(1741年)，王士让奉召赴京师拜谒礼部侍郎方苞，携茶相赠。方苞品后，自感为茶中珍品，遂转献乾隆，乾隆召见王士让询茶来处，王细说茶之来源，乾隆细观茶叶形似观音脸重如铁，便赐名为“铁观音”。

英语翻译

1. "Wei Shuo"-Guanyin Tuomeng

According to legend, around 1720, there was an old tea farmer Wei Yin (1703-1775) in Songyan Village (also known as Songlintou Village) in Yaoyang, Anxi. Every morning and evening, I will offer a cup of tea in front of the Guanyin Buddha. He has been like a day for ten years, without interruption. One night, he fell asleep and dreamed of walking out of the house carrying a hoe in a hazy dream. He came to a stream beside a stream in the stone. Suddenly found a tea tree in the cracks, with strong branches and lush foliage, attractive fragrance, different from the tea trees he had ever seen... The next morning, he followed the road in his dream last night and found him in the stone pit in Guanyinlun. Between the rocks, I found the tree in my dream. Watching carefully, the tea leaves are oval, the leaf flesh is plump, the buds are purple, and the green is dripping: Wei Yin is very happy, dug this tree back and planted it in a small iron pot at home, and cultivated it carefully. Because this tea was obtained from the dream of Guanyin, it was named "Tie Guanyin".

2. "Said by the King"--the name given by Qianlong

According to legend, Wang Turang, an official of Nanyan in Xiping, Anxi, served as a vice tribute in the tenth year of Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty and in the six years of Emperor Qianlong. In the spring of the first year of Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty (1736), Wang and Zhuyou met in "Nanxuan". Whenever the setting sun falls, he lingers beside Nanxuan. One day, he accidentally discovered that there was a tea tree in the middle of the stone deserted garden. It was transplanted in the tea garden of Nanxuan. Fat and strong, after soaking, the fragrance is mellow and refreshing. In the 6th year of Qianlong, Wang Shirang was called to Beijing to see Fang Bao, the servant of the Ministry of Rites, and gave this tea to Fang Bao. After Fang Bao had an extraordinary taste, he transferred it to the inner court. After the emperor drank it, he praised it and asked about the history of Yaoyang tea. Therefore, the tea Wurun is strong, heavy like iron, and has a fragrant taste and beautiful shape, just like "Avalokitesvara", giving it the name "Tieguanyin".

three

At the end of the Tang Dynasty and the beginning of the Song Dynasty, there was a monk surnamed Pei (common name) who lived in Anchangyuan at Shengquanyan on the east side of Sima Mountain in Anxi. In the 6th year of Yuanfeng (1083), there was a severe drought in Anxi. Master Puzu was invited to pray for Hugo experience. The villagers stayed Master Puzu at Qingshuiyan. He built temples and repaired roads to benefit the villagers. He heard about the medicinal effects of holy tea. Not far from a hundred li to Shengquanyan to ask the villagers to grow tea and make tea, and transplant sacred trees. One day, after taking a bath and changing his clothes, Master Puzu (the founder of Qingshui) went to the sacred tree to pick tea. He found a beautiful phoenix was tasting the red buds, and soon there was a mountain Qiang (commonly known as the little yellow deer) coming to eat tea. Seeing this scene, I very much sighed: "Heaven and earth create things, really sacred trees." Patriarch Qingshui returned to the temple to make tea and used the holy spring to make tea. He thought: Divine birds, divine beasts, and monks share holy tea, and heaven is holy. Since then, Tiansheng Tea has become his holy prescription for treating illnesses for the villagers.

The ancestor of Qingshui also passed his own method of planting tea and making tea to the villagers. At the foot of Nanyan Mountain, a retired hunting general "Oolong", because he went to the mountain to pick tea and hunt for tea, he did not intend to invent the shaking process and fermentation process. Tiansheng tea has a fuller aroma and a more mellow taste. The folks learned from him, and in the future, the tea made with this technique is called oolong tea. Wei Yin loves tea, and all the tea he makes are vying to taste tea. Wang Shirang takes leave to visit his relatives and friends in his hometown, and visits the foothills of Nanyan Mountain to taste this tea. In the sixth year of Qianlong (1741), Wang Shirang was summoned to visit Fang Bao, the servant of the Ministry of Ritual, and brought tea as a gift. After Fang Bao tasted it, he felt it was a treasure among teas, so he presented it to Qianlong. Qianlong summoned Wang Shi to inquire about the source of the tea. The king elaborated on the source of tea. Qianlong looked at the tea leaves as Guanyin and his face was as heavy as iron, so he gave it the name "Tieguanyin".