Cleanliness

The concept of cleanliness emphasizes an ongoing procedure or set of habits for the purpose of maintenance and prevention.

A reaction to an excessive desire for a germ-free environment began around 1989, when David Strachan put forth the "hygiene hypothesis" in the British Medical Journal.

Certain processes in industry, such as those related to integrated circuit manufacturing, require conditions of exceptional cleanliness.

Cleanliness is essential to successful electroplating, since molecular layers of oil can prevent adhesion of the coating.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church prescribes several kinds of hand washing, for example after leaving the latrine, lavatory, or bathhouse, or before prayer, or after eating a meal.

[21] Public bathhouse were common in medieval Christendom larger towns and cities such as Constantinople, Rome, Paris, Regensburg and Naples.

[22] Around the time of Tertullian, an early Church Father, it was customary for Christians to wash their hands (manulavium), face (capitilavium) and feet (pedilavium) before prayer, as well as before receiving Holy Communion.

[24] A major contribution of the Christian missionaries in Africa,[25] Asia and other places was better health care of the people through hygiene and introducing and distributing the soaps.

[28] Cleanliness is also an exalted quality which characterises the Satya Yuga (Golden Age) in Hinduism.

Service of the Devas (gods), holy men, teachers, parents, and wise persons, as also the observance of cleanliness, uprightness, continence, and non-injury—these constitute austerities [tapa] pertaining to the body.Cleanliness or śauca is both internal and external.

Since the minds of devotees (bhakta) are constantly absorbed in the all-pure lord, they become internally cleansed from the defects (kleśa) of lust, anger, greed, envy, ego, etc.

[29] Śrīmad Bhāgavatam explains the internal and external cleanliness as: My dear Uddhava, general cleanliness, washing the hands, bathing, performing religious services at sunrise, noon and sunset, worshiping Me, visiting holy places, chanting japa, avoiding that which is untouchable, uneatable, or not to be discussed, and remembering My existence within all living entities as the Paramatman — these principles should be followed by all members of society through regulation of the mind, words and body.

To invoke the presence of the holy rivers, the following mantra is chanted before the daily bath:[citation needed] "AUM gaṇge ca yamune caiva godāvarī sarasvatī / narmade siṇdhu kāverī jalesmin saṃnidhim kuru."

Hindus clean their homes particularly well in preparing to celebrate Diwali each year as they believe that this brings good luck.

Most Hindus also believe that keeping your house clean and great devotion are gestures to welcome the Goddess Lakshmi to their abode to stay.

Tamil people also keep their homes clean in preparation for Diwali, Pongal, or Bhol.

[34] A basic form of the contagion/germ theory of disease found in the medieval Islamic world, was proposed by Persian physician Ibn Sina (also known as Avicenna) in The Canon of Medicine (1025).