Achōzubachi (手水鉢), or water bowl, is a vessel used to rinse the hands in Japanese temples, shrines and gardens. Usually made of stone, it plays an important role in thetea ceremony. Guests use it to wash their hands before entering the tearoom, a practice originally adapted from the custom of rinsing one’s mouth and cleansing one’s body in thechōzuya before entering the sacred precincts of aShinto shrine or aBuddhist temple.^[1]

Prior to modern plumbing, Japanese homes contained a chōzu-bachi with a dipper, and provisions for drainage of wastewater, placed so that it could be used from theengawa (veranda or corridor). A towel was often hung nearby. One would be placed near the entrance of alatrine, though there might also be chōzu-bachi elsewhere.^[2]

There are many types of chōzu-bachi; for instance, a low chōzu-bachi, with attendant stones, is called atsukubai and is often found intea-gardens. Chōzu-bachi are usually stone, but may be made of other materials, such as ceramic or bronze.^[1]

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  A famoustsukubai
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  A chōzubachi atAso Shrine
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  A chōzubachi atTōdai-ji
• A continuous stream of water enters
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  AHishaku

• Chōzuya

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