small Japanese garden pavilion or room within a house, specifically designed for the tea ceremony. Ideally, the cha-shitsu, or tea house, is separated from the house and is approached through a small garden called a roji (“dewy path”), the first step in breaking communication with the outer world. The tea house is usually a small, thatched-roof structure with plain plaster walls, whose several openings, placed at different heights and filled with shoji (sliding panels of wooden lattice covered with translucent paper), admit a soft, diffused light. A small, “kneeling-in” entrance, about 75 cm (2.5 feet) square, set above a stepping stone, is intended to inculcate humility in all who enter. The interior is large enough to accommodate five kneeling guests, which is the ideal number. The cha-shitsu is completely bare except for the tokonoma, the alcove in which paintings, pottery, flower arrangements, and other forms of art are displayed.