中天竺舍衛國祇洹寺圖經 2.36

2.36

Next to the north, the sixth courtyard is called the Flowing Privy. It has a great tall building, three tiers high, with twin flying bridges ascending, exceedingly pure and clean. Below is a privy pit, built with an underground conduit, fashioned by the hands of the Lord of Devas, so that no foul odor rises above. A large canal flows westward from the north of the Great Courtyard, turns south into the Privy Courtyard, flows concealed into the conduit, and exits north to meet the great river, unseen by anyone. All bhikṣus relieve themselves here. Hearing this description, I deeply rejoiced in its characteristics. Thus in the ancient monasteries south of the Yangtze and Huai rivers, a single 'All-Cleansing' privy is always established, whereas from the Central Plains northwards, people squat around screen-walls and foul the courtyard with overflowing stenches—how can it even be spoken of? Once, north of the city of Bingzhou, a single 'All-Cleansing' privy was set up with a staircase ascending to a tower, resembling that of India. That pavilion itself was not exceedingly high, but served to prevent the monks' residences from being muddied or leaking through. Erecting such a building does not resemble a great stench; yet if someone says that merely establishing a single 'Cleansing' place is deceitful and faulty, they in the Wude era had so many latrine screens in the various quarters—was that out of reverence, to refuse to establish an 'All-Cleansing' facility? From the above down to here, the east and west are roughly finished.