Adam Sōmu Wojciński

Adam is a direct disciple of, and official English translator to Ueda Sōkei, the 16th Grandmaster of the Ueda Sōko Tradition of Chanoyu. He is the principal instructor of the Sōmu Shachū branch of the Ueda Sōko school. He is of Polish-Australian heritage and is based in Marseille, France.

Adam graduated with Honours in Japanese and Philosophy from the University of Melbourne. He worked as an interpreter, translator and project manager before dedicating his life to tea and art. In 2011 he was awarded the 'Outstanding Achievement in Japanese Art and Culture' from the Junior Chamber International of Japan. In 2015 he conducted a series of chanoyu gatherings and workshops representing the Japanese Government in Zimbabwe, then again in Ghana in 2016. 

He is the first non-Japanese person to receive a tea name in the Ueda Sōko Tradition. His tea name 'Sōmu 宗夢' links him to Nomura Kyūmu 野村休夢, the first Grand Retainer of Ueda Sōko's teachings of chanoyu.

Adam teaches globally, with students in Australia, Europe, Scandinavia, the Americas and Japan.

He has translated numerous works published by the Ueda Tradition including 'Pearl Among the Clouds', 'Wafūdō the Home of the Ueda Ryū', the Ueda school Introductory Manual, lectures by Ueda Sōkei, articles by Rinzai Zen priest Itteki Dōjin (Harado Rōshi), genealogies of the Ueda and Asano Clans, samurai class chanoyu history, comparative aesthetics studying Rikyu, Oribe and Sōko, and extensive temae procedures. He also translates the formative manuscripts of chanoyu such as the 100 Poems of Chanoyu, Oribe's 100 Precepts, the Nampō Roku and Learning the Way of Tea with Furuta Oribe.

Adam is interested in exploring how aesthetic and moral values of chanoyu can be inspired, and inspire in turn, the arts of disparate cultures around the world. Through this he aims to make a sincere contribution to a flourishing global culture that furthers the arts, human understanding and peace.