When the Chinese first started drinking tea, they didn't use teapots. Instead, they put tea leaves and hot water into a small bowl with a cover. Drinkers would bring the bowl to their lips and lift the cover very slightly with their forefinger, just enough to drink the liquid but not the leaves. People drank tea in this way regardless of the occasion, and it was always offered to guests.
Tea drinking was an important part of Chinese life, but nowhere in the world did people drink tea with more ceremony than in Japan. There, a strict ritual was set down in the fifteenth century by the first great tea master, Shuko. This tea ceremony is still performed today. Guests must wash their hands and faces and remove their shoes before entering the restroom through a low doorway that forces them to stoop and appear humble.