“Lu yu’s Autobiography”: a Translation and a Questioning of the Authenticity

There are a lot of legends about the celebrated Chinese “tea saint” Lu Yu, also known as Lu Hongjian. Universally known for his “Classic of Tea” or “Cha jing”, he however remains a mystery when it comes to his background. In an attempt to separate the myth from reality we analyze his “autobiography” to find whether it was indeed written by Lu Yu or it was edited or even composed in a later period by one of his peers. The analysis is accompanied by a translation into Ukrainian with comments on some of the debated issues within the text.