Questions tagged [mikvah-ritual-bath]

Questions pertaining to the construction, immersion, and requirements of a mikvah (ritual bath), as well as understanding the requirement of people (ex: ritual purity after menstruation, a convert) and objects (newly acquired utensils) to immerse.

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Can I make a mikvah using artificial rain?

If I have a mikva which needs filling, and there is no rain, can I use the following mechanism - I have a Mikva in a closed room. On top of this Mikva, there is a cooling system (let's say that this ...
ertert3terte's user avatar
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19 votes
2 answers
703 views

Why Not Eight Days Until a Convert's Circumcision?

Why doesn't a convert dip in the mikveh and then wait eight days until he gets his circumcision? The gemara (Yevamot 97b) says ger shnitgayeir kekatan shenolad dami (A convert is like a newly-born ...
Adam Mosheh's user avatar
  • 6,025
17 votes
2 answers
4k views

Mikvah - Non Jewish Husband

Can a woman use a Mikvah if her Husband is not Jewish (She is currently on the road to becoming a BT)
user avatar
16 votes
3 answers
7k views

Menstruating on Wedding Day

What happens in the case of a bride menstruating on her wedding day or her menstruation ending a few days before her wedding day and cannot go to the mikvah? Does the rabbi refuse to perform the ...
Paula's user avatar
  • 161
15 votes
3 answers
603 views

Halachic Source for Women-Only Mikvaoth?

Some (actually many) Mikvaoth are designated for women's use only, generally for reasons of cleanliness. Is there Halachic literature supporting (or urging) this? (This question is not asking for ...
Seth J's user avatar
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14 votes
1 answer
9k views

Shower or Mikvah on a Fast Day

Are you allowed to take a shower on a fast day, and is it suggested? Once we are talking about bathing, what about going to the Mikvah on a fast day? Does it make a difference if one goes daily, and/...
simchastorah's user avatar
  • 9,061
13 votes
1 answer
2k views

Mikvah erev Yom kippur

Do you have an obligation to go to the mikvah erev Yom Kippur.
cookie monster's user avatar
13 votes
1 answer
309 views

Is a quarry a kosher mikva?

I live near a rock quarry that was discontinued and somehow filled with water. I don't know exactly how this one was filled but from looking online it seems that usually what happens is that while ...
Desert Star's user avatar
  • 3,393
12 votes
4 answers
7k views

Does the act of masturbation cause a change in one's spiritual/religious status vis-a-vis what he may and may not do?

Obviously masturbation is a very serious sin. However, if someone has already transgressed that sin, does his status change vis-a-vis things like learning Torah or davening? Does he need to go to a ...
asdjkl's user avatar
  • 313
12 votes
2 answers
703 views

If a convert goes off the derekh, must he go to the mikvah again after he repents?

A female convert I know, who had stopped observing mitzvos for a few years, but then sought to return to the fold, was led to believe by someone that she would have to go again to the mikvah to ...
Bruce James's user avatar
12 votes
4 answers
2k views

A woman with dreadlocks going to the mikveh

In regards to the dinim of chatzitza by the tevillah of a Niddah the SA (Rema) in YD Siman 198 Sif 6 speaks about an interesting situation where a woman's hair was tied together by a Shin-Daled ("...
Yehoshua's user avatar
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11 votes
5 answers
3k views

Taking a Shower after the Mikvah

Is there any problem with taking a shower after dipping in the Mikvah? I once heard there was.
yydl's user avatar
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11 votes
3 answers
2k views

Can I convert a pool into a kosher mikvah (for wife)

With Covid and the health concerns about going to a mikvah. I was wondering if it's feasible to convert our pool into a fully kosher mikvah (for the wife to use). Given that tzniyus concerns are ...
Chaim's user avatar
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11 votes
2 answers
320 views

Forbidden to immerse, as opposed to doesn't work?

I was learning Pesachim, and on 17b I saw Tosafos say the following: דבתוך הכלי ודאי אסור לטבול מדאורייתא It is definitely biblically forbidden to immerse something within a vessel (as opposed ...
robev's user avatar
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10 votes
1 answer
523 views

Where does Ramban discuss OCD and the mikvah?

I was told that the Ramban writes regarding women who have awful problems using the mikvah because they keep worrying they're not clean enough -- in today's terms, we call that obsessive-compulsive ...
Shalom's user avatar
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10 votes
3 answers
1k views

May a couple forgo relations out of convenience?

In my chassan classes I was taught that it is important to have relations on the night a wife returns tahor from the mikvah. I do not know the source of this idea. My question is: May the couple ...
user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
5k views

Mikvah in Shower

I know there is a way to do Tevilas Ezra( and hence erev yom Kippur Tevilah) in the Shower how is it done?
SimchasTorah's user avatar
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10 votes
3 answers
402 views

Whose minhag does a Kalla follow in neiros shabbos and mikvah?

I was told by my mother-in-law that my wife should follow all of my minhagim except for shabbat candle lighting and mikveh, for which she will follow her mother's. Is there any halachic authority who ...
Yishaq's user avatar
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10 votes
1 answer
2k views

Can a woman converting to Judaism go to the Mikvah during her period?

When Gentiles convert to Judaism, they are "like a newborn". If I understand correctly, there is no such thing as Niddah vis a vis non-Jews. So, if I add those two together, I am inclined to assume ...
Seth J's user avatar
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9 votes
6 answers
9k views

A wife wants to stop going to the mikva. What does that mean for the husband?

If a wife sees no value in keeping the laws of family purity, and wants to stop going to the mikva, what are the halachic ramifications for the husband? The answer that I'm looking for is what ...
Yitz's user avatar
  • 99
9 votes
4 answers
2k views

Does a coffee grinder require Tevillah (immersion) in a Mikvah?

I recently bought a coffee grinder with non-removable burrs (rather than a blade). The only parts of the machine that is actually of a substance that requires Tevillah are the burrs themselves. I ...
Seth J's user avatar
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9 votes
2 answers
869 views

Can you fulfill Netilat Yadayim by dipping your hands in a sink?

According to the Gemara in Hullin on 107a, if there's a vessel with a hole in it, and there's a "stream" (more than a drip but not necessarily the "sheffoferet hannod" required for a real mikveh) ...
Baal Shemot Tovot's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
181 views

Why are Mikvas built low to the ground?

I have noticed that almost all Mikvas are built into the ground (either as a basement or on the first floor). Why is that? I have heard that it could be an ease-of-use issue (one doesn't have to climb ...
Rabbi Yaakov's user avatar
  • 1,058
8 votes
2 answers
273 views

May one immerse in a body of water that was used for baptism?

Is there a problem with a Jew immersing him/herself in a mikvah or river area (such as the area in the Jordan River) that was previously used for avodah zarah, e.g. for baptizing? I am talking about ...
DanF's user avatar
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8 votes
3 answers
537 views

Can you use carbonated water for washing?

Inspired by this question but I believe different because its not related to drinking. Can you use carbonated, and even flavored clear water (seltzer) to do things that require water such as washing ...
not-allowed to change my name's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
1k views

Filling a Mikvah from the Faucet

I read a book by Rabbi David Miller (1869 – 1939) ( he had semicha from Rabbi Isaac Elchanan of Kovno ) , The Secret of the Jew, which says you can fill an empty mikveh straight from a faucet (see ...
alice fine's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
131 views

Discrepancy in section headings between Tur and Shulchan Aruch

Over here I asked about the source of the section headings in the Tur. In a comment it was indicated that the Tur himself assigned these headings. In most Shulchan Aruchs that I have checked, the Tur ...
Y     e     z's user avatar
7 votes
4 answers
3k views

Do permanently unmarried women need to go to the mikvah?

Is the purpose of a woman's going to the mikvah so that she can permit herself to a man (be he her husband or any potential husband), or is it for her own sake? The nafqa mina is that of a woman who ...
Shimon bM's user avatar
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7 votes
3 answers
1k views

Why don't women go to the mikvah before rosh hashanna and yom kippur?

AFAIK it is common practice for Jewish men to go to the mikvah erev rosh hashanna and erev yom kippur, but not for women to do the same. Why don't women also go? I'm asking about both married and ...
please remove my account's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
2k views

Taharas hamishpacha practices during pregnancy

I am basing this question on this quote from the Wikipedia page on Hasidic childbirth customs: At the beginning of pregnancy, a woman's separation behavior depends on the regularity of her ...
SAH's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
2k views

Sex-less Marriage

Do we allow an asexual man to marry an asexual woman with the understanding that there will be no conjugal relations?* And while we're at it: Does a woman have to go to mikve if her husband is home, ...
Adám's user avatar
  • 6,801
7 votes
5 answers
2k views

Is a bathtub a good mikvah on a Biblical level?

The Torah requires a mikvah to be used for specific cases of tumah. I heard in a lecture that there is one opinion who thinks that it is good even halachikly, but I don't know the reason for that. ...
Emet v'Shalom's user avatar
7 votes
4 answers
5k views

Can a woman delay going to the Mikvah?

Can a woman delay going to the Mikvah on her Mikvah night? That is, if it is the seventh day and she is scheduled to go to the Mikvah, but it turns out to be inconvenient (for example if a friend's ...
user3141's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
495 views

Why do women wear ponytail elastics on Shabas?

So I was studying the start of Bame Isha in the Bavli (Shabas 57), and it seems a woman can't wear a tight strap or string in her hair outside (of an eruv) on Shabas (lest she remove it out of doors ...
msh210's user avatar
  • 73.7k
7 votes
1 answer
621 views

close (male) relatives going to the mikvah together

I know of some people who are particular not to go to the mikveh together with a close relative (father-son , brothers, and even brother-in-laws). On the other hand I also have seen Chassidim and ...
Danield's user avatar
  • 4,393
7 votes
1 answer
227 views

Why does a convert receive bris milah before the mikvah?

Why does the convert have his bris before the mikvah rather than afterwards as a Jew? Seemingly the bris done before is not a mitzvah so why not have him do bris milah after the mikvah?
Dude's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
2k views

Nail polish chatzitzah and mikveh immersion

If someone has a little, almost imperceptible, leftover nail polish, would it be considered a chatzitzah with regard to mikveh immersion? If so, why?
helloworld's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
271 views

Can one use a water butt(s) as a keli mikvah?

In my house we have a water butt connected to the gutter from the roof that fills when it rains. Could we use it as a keli mikvah if we connected two of them by a hose pipe so that the total water ...
930913's user avatar
  • 465
7 votes
2 answers
1k views

Mikvah and illness

My understanding is that, as a general rule, a healthy woman may not delay going to the Mikvah for her own (or even her husband's) convenience. But I'm wondering if there are sources discussing ...
Seth J's user avatar
  • 41.6k
7 votes
0 answers
91 views

Why is there no gemara for Mikvaot? [duplicate]

I've been told that Niddah is the only masechet in Taharot with Gemara because it has practical applications even when there is no temple. But the halachot of Mikvaot are just as important nowadays ...
Daniel Kagan's user avatar
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7 votes
0 answers
101 views

Who's responsible when someone runs into the Mikvah upon my swipe

Many Mikvahs these days have a gate that opens upon swiping a pre-paid card. I've had many times where a person will stand there and wait for me to swipe and go in with me after I swipe my card. Do ...
Moses Davidowitz's user avatar
7 votes
3 answers
7k views

Can I use a Mikvah if I am not Jewish?

Although I was baptised as a Christian, I feel a strong sense of connection to Judaism and would like to use the Mikvah. I understand that some people believe there is no point/need because I am not ...
Curious's user avatar
  • 71
6 votes
2 answers
698 views

Keilim Mikva design

I live in a neighborhood where it is difficult to find a Keilim mikva. Are there any designs available for how to build one? Is it as hard to build as a human mikva?
Rabbi Yaakov's user avatar
  • 1,058
6 votes
1 answer
578 views

How does one create a mikvah in a region without precipitation?

How does one create a mikvah in a desert? (IOW, it never rains or snow here). This is not quite theoretical - IIUC, it is a real problem in, say, some parts of Egypt. PS. The source of drinking ...
sds's user avatar
  • 1,311
6 votes
2 answers
1k views

How is one allowed to say a bracha in a Mikvah?

There's an argument (In Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah siman 200) if women say their Bracha in the Mikva itself. According to the Sefardim, they do it clothed (but can do it with water up until the neck), ...
ertert3terte's user avatar
  • 40.5k
6 votes
1 answer
195 views

Must hand washing be done with pure (fresh) water?

It seems from here both that some types of water are considered too salty to be acceptable for ritual handwashing and that mikvah water is always considered acceptable. I am left wondering what, ...
SAH's user avatar
  • 19.7k
6 votes
0 answers
190 views

Blessing on Immersing Vessels to Purify Them

A Mikvah can be used to purify humans or certain vessels which have contracted ritual impurity (Rambam Mikvaot 1 (English)). When humans use the Mikvah to purify themselves they recite a blessing (...
Double AA's user avatar
  • 98.9k
5 votes
3 answers
5k views

Hair dyeing for women

What are the halachic issues involved in hair dyeing for women? Most importantly, does hair dye constitute a chatzitza for mikvah? Also: are there any communities that forbid hair dyeing altogether? ...
SAH's user avatar
  • 19.7k
5 votes
1 answer
147 views

Why does water purify?

The Torah states that immersion in a mikveh of water purifies a person from Tuma (spiritual impurity). Why does water do this? Is there some kind of spiritual powers imbued in water? Or is this just ...
ray's user avatar
  • 21.2k
5 votes
4 answers
2k views

Is it possible to build a mikvah for personal use as an orthodox Jew?

For example, if your wife would prefer not to use a public one and wants to install one in your house? Is there anything to be aware of if you're considering doing this?
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