Putting Away Bowls

When collection of rinse water is finished, wipe nested bowl used for it, and, with bowl wiping cloth squeezed in right hand, stack it together with nested bowl already inside oryoki. Also stack remaining third and fourth nested bowls. Steadying bowls (oryoki) with left hand, wipe top of placemat.

Next, turning over left hand, lift up bowls (oryoki). Turn right hand palm down, still squeezing bowl wiping cloth, grasp edge of placemat nearest to body, and place it on top of bowls (oryoki). Set bowls (oryoki) down in middle of covering cloth and, using both hands, fold up placemat and lay it on top of bowls. Next, grasping corner of covering cloth nearest one’s body, wrap it over bowls (oryoki), then take corner of covering cloth that hangs over platform edge, lift it toward one’s body and wrap it too over bowls.

Fold up wiping cloth (fold twice horizontally, three times vertically), place it on top of half wrapped bowls, and put utensil bag and water board on top of wiping cloth. Next, stretch out bowl wiping cloth to get rid of wrinkles, and lay it on top, covering those. Then, using both hands, lift right and left corners of covering cloth over bowls (oryoki) and tie them together in the middle. Having knotted those two ends together, both should hang down to the right (this is so one can immediately tell which is left and right on bowls—oryoki, and also to make them easy to untie). When bowls (oryoki) have been wrapped up, gassho and sit silently. Servers, upon seeing that assembly has finished putting away bowls, take wiping cloths and wipe platform edge.