Tsukubai: Spiritual Wealth through Simplicity

A tsukubai (蹲踞) is a stone fountain that can be found at the entrance to Buddhist temples in Japan. This fountain is used for visitors to purify themselves through the ritual of washing their hands and rinsing their mouths. The name comes from the verb tsukubau which means “to bend down” or “to bow”, an act of humility.

 

Written kanji appear on the surface of the stone. These are meaningless when read alone, however if each is read in combination with 口 “kuchi” (the shape found in the center of the font) the characters become吾,唯,足,知, which literally translates as ” I only know a lot ” (吾 = ware = me, 唯 = tada = alone, 足 = taru = abundant, 知 = shiru = know).

The literal meaning is ” I only know a lot ” (吾 = ware = me, 唯 = tada = alone, 足 = taru = abundant, 知 = shiru = know). However, it can be variously translated as ” what one has is all one needs “, “if you learn to be content, you are rich in spirit “, or ” learn just to be content “, thus reflecting the basic anti-materialist teachings of the buddhism.

You can carry with you a Tsukubai with our products designed by RoYuMi!