宗慕 Sōbo
Mulan Sun

Architect ETH and Tea Master of Urasenke Tea School

I grew up in a Zen Buddhist temple residence in China, where my early life was shaped by the rhythms of temple life and Chinese tea culture. During my Bachelor’s studies in 2000 at Tianjin, I was deeply inspired by the tea house at Nankai University - a present from Hōunsai Soshitsu XV- which marked my first encounter with Japanese tea ceremony.

In 2005, I moved to Switzerland to pursue my Master’s studies in Architecture at the ETH Zürich. Since 2015, I have been learning the Japanese Tea Ceremony with Prof. Soyu Mukai and in 2024 I was honored with the title of Tea Master and the position of Sennin Kōshi (Senior lecturer) by the Urasenke Tea School. Since 2025, I have been serving on the board of the Urasenke Tankokai Zürich Association.

Chazen Ichimi, Tea and Zen are deeply intertwined in my life, and I regularly practice Zazen at Zendo Inneres Lind under Kathrin Stotz Sensei. As an architect, tea master and Zen meditator, I am devoted to creating tea-related spaces and investigate how the tea ceremony discloses the essence of space through behaviourology, a field where Architecture, Tea, and Zen merge into one.

向心庵 Kōshin-an 


I have been teaching Japanese tea ceremony in the Urasenke tradition since 2020. Kōshin-an (向心庵) is the name of our tea group as well as our tea room.

Our tea courses take place in Winterthur and Zurich, welcoming students at different stages of their tea journey — from the beginner level, Konarai (小習), through the intermediate level, Shikaden (四ヶ伝), to the advanced level, Okuden (奥伝).

It is my pleasure to teach and accompany each student along the way of tea, discovering together the broad and deep dimensions of Chanoyu (茶の湯).

• Okeiko (regular course): Thursday and Friday afternoons in Winterthur

• Kagetsu (group course): Once a month at Suetsugu House in Zurich

• Tea Ceremony for private and public event: Available upon request

Languages: Chinese, German, English, partial Japanese

Contact: 


Mulan Sun
ms@tankokaizurich.ch

Coming events:

• Sat. 26.9.2026: Japanese architecture & tea ceremony, with Nico Colic in Vitra Design Museum

• Sat.24.10.2026: Tea ceremony “TRANSITION” at mep in Lucerne

Past events:

• 8.8.2026: Liqiu Tea ceremony at mep in Lucerne

• 7.6.2026: Tea ceremony for wedding at The Dolder Grand, with team Isshin-an of Museum Rietberg

• 14.4.2026: Tea ceremony and lecture at Zen Forum, Zürich

• 14.3.2026: Tea ceremony for Sinokultur at Teehaus Liu, Bad Ragaz, Registration

• 31.3 / 4.4.2026 Kirschblüte auf dem Vitra Campus – Japanische Architektur & Teezeremonie, with Nico Colic in Vitra Design Museum, Registration

• 7.11.2025: Tea ceremony at Suetsugu Haus, Zurich

• 7.2025: Tea ceremony and curator guided tour at the exhibition “TWO LAKES – Lake Lucerne und Lake Biwa: A Comparative Study on the Culture of Water”, ZAZ Bellerive, Zürich

• 6.2025: Tea ceremony in Pathumbah Park, Prof. Maria Conen, ETH Zürich

• 5.2025: Chado workshop in Sekundarschule Büelwiesen, Winterthur

• 11.2024: Lecture “Way of Tea and Ritual” and Tea ceremony, Prof. Sascha Roesler, Academy of Architecture, Mendrisio

• 6.2023: Lecture “Water, Tea and Architecture” and Tea ceremony, ETH Circle, ETH Zürich

• 5.2021: Lecture “Die Form des Tees - Teekultur und Architektur in China und Japan”, Historisches und Völkerkunde Museum St.Gallen