法苑珠林 99.36

99.36

The Mahāsāṃghika-vinaya also says: "When monks rise in the morning, they should wash their hands thoroughly clean. They must not merely wash the five fingers cursorily, nor must they wash all the way up to the armpits; they should wash cleanly up to the wrists. They must not wash roughly, nor rub so hard as to cause bleeding. They should wash their hands with pulverized juma grass or ash and earth (or bath powder and soap-pods), rubbing until it makes a sound. If, after washing the hands clean, one rubs them together again, it is termed impure, and one should wash the hands again. Before eating, a monk must guard his hands. If he touches his head or grasps his robes, he must wash them again. (If this is so for monks, it is likewise for laypeople.) The same standard applies when reading sūtras, receiving food, and the like. If hand cleanliness is treated with such care, how much more so for those who kill living beings with their hands, drinking blood and devouring flesh to defile their body and mouth! Even if they wish to transmit the Dharma, their minds will likewise not be pure."