Lit. hand water bowl. A water basin used to rinse the hands or as a decorative element in gardens. Usually made of stone, although there are rare bronze or ceramic examples. The basin plays important functional, symbolic, and artistic roles in the tea gathering chakai 茶会. Before entering the tearoom *chashitsu 茶室, guests rinse their hands and mouths at the chōzubachi, a practice adopted from the Shinto custom of purifying oneself with water before entering a shrine.
The combination of chōzubachi and attendant stones in rustic *sōan 草庵 style tea gardens *roji 露地 is called *tsukubai 蹲踞. In tsukubai, the stone water basin is usually low and often made from a natural stone. The combination of chōzubachi and attendant stones near the verandah in *shoin 書院 style tea gardens is called hachimae 鉢前. The hachimae chōzubachi 鉢前手水鉢 are tall and cylindrical, and are usually called *ensaki chōzubachi 縁先手水鉢. Chōzubachi made of cut stones which previously had a different function, for example as part of building or lanterns, are known as *mitatemono chōzubachi 見立物手水鉢. A good example of mitatemono chōzubachi are basins with Buddhist images on each side, made from the base stone *soseki 礎石, shaft tōhin 塔身, and coping *kasa 笠 of old stone pagodas *sekitō 石塔. Water basins made from natural stones are called *shizenseki chōzubachi 自然石手水鉢. A third type, termed creative water basins or sōsaku chōzubachi 創作手水鉢, were expressly crafted as water basins.
Chōzubachi acquired names based on physical resemblance or on metaphorical association. For example, natural chōzubachi in a conical shape are called Fuji-type *fujigata chōzubachi 富士形手水鉢, those resembling the character "ichi" 一 are called *ichimonji 一文字, those thought to resemble boats are called *funagata chōzubachi 舟形手水鉢 or boat type, those resembling kimono 着物 sleeves are called *sodegata chōzubachi 袖形手水鉢, while those resembling a broken jar are called *shibaonkōgata chōzubachi 司馬温公形手水鉢 after the story of Sima Guang (Jp; *Shiba Kō 司馬公). In all cases, the defining feature of the chōzubachi is the water pool *mizuana 水穴, present in both functional and decorative examples. The word chōzubachi is sometimes abbreviated to mizubachi 水鉢.