Friday, November 15, 2024

(3261) A helpful monk

Nihon_Arekore_03292_Tochigi_Daioji_toilet_bozu_100_cl

One of the most original restroom signs I have seen: the statue of a monk pointing to their direction holding a sign that says "restroom" with the usual characters (otearai/お手洗) but also with the special terminology of Zen temples (tousu/東司); in Zen Buddhism and particularly in the Zen Buddhism of the Soto-shu (曹洞宗) sect to which the temple Daioji (大雄寺) in Tochigi where this picture was taken belongs, toilet is a very serious matter.  

(For a bigger version of this picture both in color and black and white, check my "Japan Arekore" set on Flickr).

0 comments: