Urasenke

However, following her death, Sōtan remarried, having two sons (Kōshin Sōsa (1613-1672) and Sensō Sōshitsu (1622-1697)) and a daughter (Kure, dates unknown) by his second wife.

Due to the untimely death of Gentaku, however, Sensō returned home in 1645, and thereafter, with his father Sōtan's support, trained as a chanoyu expert, similarly to his older brother, Kōshin Sōsa, the heir to the family.

Sōtan's second son, Kan'ō Sōsetsu, had in contrast been adopted by the Yoshioka family in Kyoto, known for specialising in lacquerware under their business name of Yoshimonjiya.

In his later life, however, Kan'ō returned to the Sen family, establishing a tea room named "Kankyuan" at his residence on Mushakōji street, and retrained as a chanoyu expert.

[5] Before the Meiji Restoration (1868), the heads of the three families served as chadō magistrates under various daimyō, respectively receiving a yearly stipend from them as payment for their services.

Sensō Sōshitsu, fourth son of the family and leader of the branch that would eventually be known as the Urasenke, served the Maeda clan of Kaga.

However, following the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1868, the daimyō lost their positions, and the hereditary stipends which the three Sen families had been receiving came to an end.

[6] The entire historical Urasenke estate, located in the Kamigyō-ku ward of Kyoto, is referred to by the name of its representative tea room, the Konnichian.

From the mid-1960s onwards, Sen Sōshitsu XV (Hōunsai) began to dispatch qualified Urasenke chanoyu instructors to live overseas and, operating out of Urasenke Foundation branch offices or liaison offices, to teach the growing numbers of individuals who desired to pursue the practice of chado.

Its stated aims are to ensure the standardization of the Urasenke chanoyu rules and tea-making procedures (temae), support research, encourage cooperation and exchange among all members, promote the practice of the principles laid down by the grand master, and expand the chadō population around the world.

Each district has a liaison council for the Gakkō Chadō (Tea Training in the Educational System) program sponsored by the organization.

Twice a year, in the spring and autumn, it calls together a national meeting of chapter presidents, to decide upon general policies and activities.

In 1999, the International Division of the Urasenke Foundation was moved under the umbrella of this office, effectively extending the organization to overseas regions.

Its creed is "Train (修練) in order to better oneself; Serve (奉仕) your community; Friendship (友情) toward the world and among members."

In 1974, the organization's first chartered Urasenke Youth Ship (裏千家青年の船) friendship mission, with 418 participants, sailed to Okinawa and Hong Kong.

It is located on the same neighborhood block as the Urasenke home in Kyoto, and is the only accredited school in Japan specializing in chadō education.