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{{Short description|Jewish ritual bath}}
{{Redirect|Mikva|the U.S. Representative and federal judge|Abner J. Mikva}}
[[File:Mikvah Mei Chaya Mushka in Crown Heights.jpg|thumb|Mikvah Mei Chaya Mushka in [[Crown Heights, Brooklyn]]]]
{{Judaism}}
A '''mikveh''' or '''Mikvah ''' ({{Hebrew name|מִקְוֶה / מקווה|mīqve|mīqwe}}, {{abbr|pl.|Plural}}&nbsp;''mikva'ot'', ''mikvot'', or ([[Ashkenazi Hebrew|Ashkenazic]]) ''mikves'',<ref>{{cite book|last=Sivan|first=Reuven|author2=Edward A Levenston|title=The New Bantam-Megiddo Hebrew & English dictionary|url=https://archive.org/details/newbantammegiddo008800|url-access=registration|publisher=Bantam Books|location=Toronto; New York|year=1975|isbn=0-553-26387-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Lauden|first=Edna|title=Multi Dictionary|publisher=Ad Publications|location=Tel Aviv|year=2006|isbn=965-390-003-X|page=397}}</ref> {{lit.|a collection}}) is a bath used for [[ritual washing in Judaism#Full-body immersion|ritual immersion in Judaism]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.religiousrules.com/Judaismpurity02general.htm |title=Concerning Ritual Purity and Cleanliness}}</ref> to achieve [[Tumah and taharah|ritual purity]].

In [[Orthodox Judaism]], these regulations are steadfastly adhered to; consequently, the mikveh is central to an Orthodox Jewish community. [[Conservative Judaism]] also formally holds to the regulations. The existence of a mikveh is considered so important that, according to [[Halakha|halacha]], a Jewish community is required to construct a kosher mikveh even before building a [[synagogue]], and must go to the extreme of selling [[Torah]] scrolls, or even a synagogue if necessary, to provide funding for its construction.<ref>Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, ''Meshiv Dabar'', 1:45</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.kollelmenachem.org/media/pdf/433/juNS4330495.pdf |title=understanding Mikvah |author=Rabbi Shneur Zalman Lesches }}</ref>

Outside of Judaism, mikveh has its counterpart in Christianity, called [[baptism]], though Christian baptism is one of the main requirements for conversion to Christianity, while the Jewish mikveh focuses mainly on ritual purity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=ISRAEL |first=ONE FOR |date=2016-06-02 |title=The Jewish Roots of Baptism - ONE FOR ISRAEL Ministry |url=https://www.oneforisrael.org/bible-based-teaching-from-israel/was-baptism-originally-jewish/ |access-date=2025-07-22 |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Etymology==
Formed from the [[Semitic root]] ק-ו-ה (''q-w-h'', "collect").<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Jastrow?tab=contents |title=Jastrow Dictionary of the Talmud and Targumim |last=Jastrow |first=Marcus |date=1883–1903 |website=Sefaria |access-date=March 23, 2024 |quote=}}</ref> In the [[Hebrew Bible]], the word is employed in the sense of "collection", including in the phrase מקוה המים (''miqwêh hammayim'', "collection of water") in [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]] 1:10; [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 7:19; and [[Book of Leviticus|Leviticus]] 11:36.<ref name="Jewish Encyclopedia">{{Cite Jewish Encyclopedia|title=MIḲWEH|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/10827-mikweh|first1=Cyrus|last1=Adler|author-link1=Cyrus Adler|first2=Julius H.|last2=Greenstone|volume=8|page=588|access-date=Feb 23, 2016}}</ref> [[Ben Sira]] is the earliest author to use מקוה as a word for "pool" (Ecclus 43:20, 48:17), and the [[Mishnah]] is the earliest text to use it in the sense of "ritual bath".

==History==
[[File:Mikva.jpg|thumb|250px|Excavated mikveh in [[Qumran]]]]
Before the beginning of the 1st century BCE, neither written sources nor archaeology gives any indication about the existence of specific installations used for ritual cleansing.<ref name=JVL>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Jewish Practices & Rituals: Mikveh. History and Archaeology |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Judaica |publisher=Thomson Gale |date=2008 |via=Jewish Virtual Library |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/mikveh.html |quote=Although water purification is referred to in the Old Testament, in regard to rituals and the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, with washing, sprinkling, and dipping in water, we do not hear of specific places or installations that people would constantly frequent for the purpose of ritually cleansing their flesh. The term mikveh was used in a very general sense in the Hebrew Bible to refer to a body of water of indeterminate extent (cf. Gen. 1:10; Ex. 7:19), or more specifically to waters gathered from a spring or within a cistern (Lev. 11:36) or waters designated for a large reservoir situated in Jerusalem (Isa. 22:11). None of these places are mentioned as having been used for ritual purification in any way. Hence, the concept of the mikveh as a hewn cave or constructed purification pool attached to one's dwelling or place of work is undoubtedly a later one. |access-date=14 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title= Manifest Identity: From ''Ioudaios'' to Jew: Household Judaism as Anti-Hellenization in the Late Hasmonean Era |series=Journal of Ancient Judaism. Supplements – Band 011 |author=Andrea M. Berlin  |year=2013 |publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht |page=169 |isbn=978-3-525-55051-9 |quote=.... both ''mikva’ot'' and the new vessels.... "household Judaism".... specific behavior carried out via material objects. .... ''the specific objects are new'', first appearing in the early years of the last century BC, but not before. |url= https://berlinarchaeology.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/berlin-manifest-identity.pdf |access-date= 14 December 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author= Henry Curtis Pelgrift |title= 2,200-Year-Old Duck-Shaped Shovel Unearthed in Ancient Galilee |newspaper= Bible History Daily |publisher= Biblical Archaeology Society |date= 10 December 2015 |url= http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/duck-shaped-shovel-ancient-galilee/?mqsc=E3819646 |quote= “Archaeologically, it's very hard to tell who's a Jew in the third or second century BC.”, excavation director Uzi Leibner explained to ''[[The Times of Israel]]'', because the later indicators like mikvaot (Jewish ritual baths) and certain ritual objects were not present at that time. |access-date=14 December 2015 }}</ref> Mikvot appear at the beginning of the 1st century BC, and from then on, ancient mikvot can be found throughout the [[Land of Israel]], as well as in historic communities of the [[Jewish diaspora]]. Hundreds of mikvot from the [[Second Temple period]] have been discovered so far across the Land of Israel,<ref>[https://www.antiquities.org.il/article_heb.aspx?sec_id=17&sub_subj_id=466 מה בין תקופת בית שני לתקופת המשנה מנקודת המבט של שמירת הטהרה]</ref> in locations including [[Jerusalem]],<ref>[https://www.ynet.co.il/environment-science/article/sj7w4rfoc מקווה טהרה מימי בית שני התגלה בחפירות ארכיאולוגיות בירושלים]</ref> [[Hebron]],<ref>[https://www.ariel.ac.il/wp/judea-and-samaria-research-studies/wp-content/uploads/sites/144/2019/02/%D7%91%D7%9F-%D7%A9%D7%9C%D7%9E%D7%94.pdf מקוואות טהרה מימי בית שני בתל חברון]</ref> [[Masada]],<ref>[https://www.daat.ac.il/he-il/mishpacha/hakama/mikvaot-atikim/yadin-hamikve.htm המקווה במצדה]</ref> and [[Hannaton]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/hannaton-mikveh-08907.html |title=Israeli Archaeologists Unearth 2,000-Year-Old Ritual Bath |website=Sci.News |date=1 October 2020 }}</ref>
[[File:Double_entrance_Mikveh.jpg|thumb|A two-chambered mikveh at [[Bir ed-Duwali]], a Jewish village in [[Judea]] destroyed during the [[First Jewish–Roman War]]]]
The absence of dedicated mikvot prior to the 1st century BCE is surprising, given that laws of purification were in fact observed by many Jews in earlier periods, as indicated by Biblical narratives<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Samuel|20:26|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|1 Samuel|21:5|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|2 Samuel|11:4|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|2 Chronicles|30:15,24|HE}}</ref> and the [[Elephantine papyri and ostraca|Elephantine papyri]].<ref name="meitles">Yitzhak Meitles, ''Parshat Derakhim: Archaeology and Geography in the Weekly Torah Reading'', p. 249-257</ref> One suggestion is that Jews used natural water sources such as springs for immersion, rather than building dedicated mikvot.<ref>[https://segulamag.com/articles/new-look-on-mikvah/ חיים של טהרה]</ref> Alternatively, according to many Halakhic authorities the prohibition on using pumped water for a ''mikveh'' is rabbinic, not biblical.<ref>[[Mishneh Torah]], Mikvaot 4:2; [[Tosafot]], [[Pesachim]] 17b s.v. ''ela''; [[Beit Yosef (book)|Beit Yosef]], [[Yoreh Deah]] 201</ref> Prior to the creation of such a rabbinic decree around 100&nbsp;BCE,{{dubious|Same as above: anachronistic.|date=December 2023}} Jews may have immersed in above-ground basins that were built as part of buildings, or affixed to the roofs of buildings, and filled manually.<ref name="meitles" /> Such structures, dating to the [[Solomon's Temple|First Temple]] period, have been discovered in ancient [[Ashdod]] and possibly in [[Dan (ancient city)|Dan]].<ref name="meitles" /> The reason for such a rabbinic decree may have been to distance the practice of ritual immersion from the culture of bathhouses, which spread through the region during the [[Hellenistic period]].<ref name="meitles" />

==Requirements==
The traditional rules regarding the construction of a mikveh are based on those specified in classical [[rabbinic literature]]. Numerous biblical laws indicate that one must "bathe their flesh in water" to become purified from ritual impurity.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Leviticus|14:8|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|15:5|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|15:16|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|17:15|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|22:6|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Numbers|19:7|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Deuteronomy|23:12|HE}}; etc.</ref> The type of bathing is specified in {{Bibleverse|Leviticus|11:36|HE}}, which states that "a spring, or a cistern, a gathering (''mikveh'') of water" is a source of purity. A ''mikveh'' must be built into the ground or built as an essential part of a building. Portable receptacles, bathtubs, whirlpools, or jacuzzis cannot therefore function as mikvot.<ref name="NoJac">{{cite web |title=The Mikvah |website=Chabad.org |url=https://www.chabad.org/theJewishWoman/article_cdo/aid/1541/jewish/The-Mikvah.htm}}</ref>

However, many Sephardic communities, as well as Ashkenazi Jews in America before World War 2, customarily allowed mikvehs to be filled using municipal water. Bans on such practices only became common in the US after an influx of European Ashkenazi rabbis, who saw the use of municipal water as too lenient. Some rabbis considered permitting spas to be used, but ultimately decided against it as it may encourage women to prefer warm water during immersion instead of prioritizing cold water.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Blogger |first=New England |date=2017-08-10 |title=Mikveh in Every Home, by Rabbi Haim Ovadia |url=https://merrimackvalleyhavurah.wordpress.com/2017/08/10/mikveh-in-every-home-by-rabbi-haim-ovadia/ |access-date=2025-08-21 |website=Merrimack Valley Havurah |language=en}}</ref> According to Rabbi Isaac Esrig, in 1957 most American mikvaot were filled using municipal water.<ref>The Use of Municipal City Water for a Mikveh and a Case Study of the Seattle Rabbinate in the 1950s by Rabbi Yossi Azose</ref>

===Water transport===
''Mikveh'' water must have collected naturally (''bidei shamayim'') rather than by human action. Thus, ''mikveh'' water must flow naturally to the ''mikveh'' from the source (rain or a spring).<ref>{{cite wikisource |ספרא על ויקרא יא |[[Sifra]] on Leviticus 11:36 |he}}</ref> This essentially means that it must be supplied by gravity or a natural pressure gradient and cannot be pumped there by hand or carried. As a result, [[Tap (valve)|tap]] water cannot be used as the primary water source for a mikveh, although it can be used to top the water up to a desired level provided the minimum amount (40 ''seah'') of ritually appropriate water is in the ''mikveh'' first; in practice, this means that for a pool of at least 80 ''seahs'' (approximately 1,150 litres) the majority of its volume can be tap water.<ref name="Mikvaot 3"/> The water is also forbidden to pass through any vessel which could hold water within it or is capable of becoming impure (anything made of metal); however, pipes open to the air at both ends are fine so long as there is no significant curvature).<ref>{{cite wikisource |שולחן ערוך יורה דעה רא לו |Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 201:36 |he}}</ref> Frozen water (snow, ice and hail) is exceptional in that it may be used to fill the ''mikveh'' no matter how it was transported.<ref>{{cite wikisource|משנה מקואות ז א|[[Mikvaot]] 7:1|he}}.</ref>

Although not commonly accepted, at least one American Orthodox rabbi advocated a home ''mikveh'' using tap water, for those women who did not have access to a standard ''mikveh''. As water flows through only pipes that open at both ends, the municipal and in-home plumbing would be construed as a non-vessel. So long as the pipes, hoses, and fittings are all freestanding and not held in the hand, they could be used to fill a ''mikveh'' receptacle that met all other requirements.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://hebrewbooks.org/2920|title=The Secret of the Jew: His Life, His Family / סוד נצח ישראל|last1=מיללער|first1=דוד|last2=Miller|publisher=Rabbi David Miller|year=1930|edition=Third|volume=1 / חלק א|location=127&nbsp;Sheridan Rd, Oakland, CA|access-date=2017-10-10}}</ref> The use of tap water for such a ''mikveh'' was controversial<ref name="Mikveh Magic">{{Cite web |last=Tannenbaum |first=Rabbi Gershon |date=9 April 2015 |title=My Machberes |url=https://www.jewishpress.com/sections/community/my-machberes/my-machberes-16/2012/05/09/0/?print |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202183522/https://www.jewishpress.com/sections/community/my-machberes/my-machberes-16/2012/05/09/0/?print |archive-date=2 December 2024 |access-date=2 December 2024 |website=JewishPress.com |language=en-US}}</ref> and was rejected by the majority of [[Posek|rabbinic authorities]] at the time and afterwards.<ref name="Mikveh Magic"/>

The laws for a ''mikveh'' are slightly different from those of a spring. ''Mikveh'' water must be at rest, while spring water can still be flowing. Thus, flowing rivers may only be used for immersion when most of their water comes from springs, rather than rainfall or [[snowmelt]]. Seas may be used (even if waves are present).<ref>[https://ph.yhb.org.il/category/%D7%98%D7%94%D7%A8%D7%AA-%D7%94%D7%9E%D7%A9%D7%A4%D7%97%D7%94/18-10/ פניני הלכה - מקוואות]</ref>

[[File:Modern mikveh.PNG|thumb|350px|Modern ''mikveh'' – schematic illustration]]

===Size and practical arrangements===
A mikveh must contain enough water to cover the entire body of an average-sized person; based on a mikveh with the dimensions of 3 [[cubit]]s deep, 1 cubit wide, and 1 cubit long, the necessary volume of water was ''estimated'' as being 40 ''[[Seah (volume)|seah]]'' of water.<ref>{{cite wikisource |עירובין ד ב |[[Erubin|Eruvin]] 4b |he}}</ref><ref>{{cite wikisource |יומא לא א |[[Yoma]] 31a |he}}</ref> The exact volume referred to by a ''seah'' is debated, and classical rabbinical literature specifies only that it is enough to fit 144 eggs;<ref>[[Numbers Rabbah]], 18:17</ref> most Orthodox Jews use the stringent ruling of the [[Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz]], according to which one ''seah'' is 14.3 litres, and therefore a mikveh must contain at least some 575 [[litre]]s.<ref>about 3 [[Koku]], about 116 [[Maltese units of measurement|qafiz]], about 126 Imperial [[Gallons]], about 143 [[Burmese units of measurement|Burmese tins]], and about 150 U.S. liquid gallons</ref> This volume of water can later be topped up with water from any source,<ref name="Mikvaot 3">{{cite wikisource |משנה מקואות ג |Mikvaot 3 |he}}.</ref> but if there were less than 40 seahs of water in the mikveh to begin with, then the addition of 3 or more [[pint]]s of water that did not meet the strict requirements would render the mikveh unfit for use, regardless of whether more water from a natural source was added later; a mikveh rendered unfit for use in this way would need to be completely drained away and refilled in the prescribed way.<ref name="Jewish Encyclopedia"/>

Inasmuch as water that collects naturally according to halachic prescriptions is hard to come by in urban areas, various methods are employed to establish a valid mikveh. One is that tap water is made to flow into a kosher mikveh and through a conduit into a larger pool in which users actually bathe. A second method is to create a mikveh in a deep pool, place a floor with holes over that and then fill the upper pool with tap water. In this way, it is considered as if the person dipping is actually "in" the pool of rain water. Additionally, the ''hashoko'' method involves using two pools: one filled with at least 40 ''seahs'' of natural water and one filled with tap water. A hole at least {{Convert|5|cm|abbr=on|sigfig=1}} wide on the wall of the pool filled with tap water connects it to the pool filled with natural water. When these two collections of water touch, the tap water pool is okay to use for ritual immersion.

Most contemporary mikvot are indoor constructions involving rainwater collected from a cistern and passed through a duct by gravity into an ordinary bathing pool; the mikveh can be heated to make the experience of bathing more comfortable, taking into account certain rules, often resulting in an environment not unlike a [[spa]].

==Background==
===Laws===
[[File:Medieval mikveh old Synagoge Sopron Hungary.jpg|thumb|250px|Medieval Mikveh room in the old Synagogue of [[Sopron]], [[Hungary]], which dates to the 14th century]]
[[File:14440 The mikve in besalu.jpg|thumb|250px|A medieval mikveh in [[Besalú]], Spain]]
[[File:Mikveh inside house - Boskovice.jpg|thumb|250px|A mikveh from Boskovice in the Czech Republic]]
Traditionally, the mikveh was used by both men and women to regain ritual purity after various events, according to regulations laid down in the [[Torah]] and in classical rabbinical literature.

Cases where Jews commonly immerse in a ''mikveh'' nowadays, in order to fulfill a requirement of Torah or [[Halakha|rabbinic law]], include:
* a woman who wishes to become purified from the status of [[niddah]] (menstruation) or the related status of [[zavah]] (abnormal discharges of body fluids).<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|15:19|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|15:25-28|HE}}</ref> In particular, a married woman must immerse in order to resume [[sexual intercourse|marital relations]] with her husband after menstruation or childbirth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1217817/jewish/Laws-of-Childbirth.htm|title=Laws of Childbirth}}</ref> (The male equivalent of zavah, known as [[zav]], cannot be purified in a ''mikveh'' but rather must immerse in running spring water.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Leviticus|15:13|HE}}; [[Mishneh Torah]], Mikvaot 1:5</ref>)
* one who is [[conversion to Judaism|converting to Judaism]], regardless of gender.
* Newly acquired utensils used in serving and eating food must be immersed ([[Tevilat Kelim]]).

Other cases where immersion in a ''mikveh'' would be required to become pure, but have not generally been practiced since [[Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE)|destruction of the Temple]] (as a state of purity is generally not required outside the Temple), include:
* a man who has experienced [[keri]] (normal emissions of semen, whether from [[sex|sexual activity]], or from [[nocturnal emission]]).<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|15:16|HE}}</ref> Immersing due to ''keri'' is required by the Torah in order that one should be allowed to eat [[Terumah (offering)|terumah]] or a [[Korban|sacrifice]]; [[Ezra]] instituted that one should also do so in order to be allowed to recite words of Torah.<ref>{{cite wikisource |בבא קמא פב ב |[[Bava Kamma]] 82b |he}}</ref> The latter case is known as ''tevilath Ezra'' ("the immersion of Ezra"). In modern times it is no longer considered obligatory, but some perform it as a custom or act of piety.
* one who has come into contact with a ''niddah'' or ''zavah'', or their clothes or articles<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|15:19-23|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb|Leviticus|15:25-27|HE}}</ref>
* after [[tzaraath]]<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|14:6–9|HE}}</ref>
* a [[Kohen]] who is being consecrated<ref>{{bibleverse||Exodus|29:4|HE}}, {{bibleverse||Exodus|40:12|HE}}</ref>
* the [[Kohen Gadol]] on goes to Mikvah five times on [[Yom Kippur]];<ref>Mishnah Yoma 3:3.</ref><ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|16:24|}}, {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|16:26|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|16:28|HE}}</ref>
* the Kohen who performed the [[red heifer]] ritual;<ref>{{bibleverse||Numbers|19:7–8|HE}}</ref>
* one who has contacted a corpse or grave,<ref>{{bibleverse||Numbers|19:19|HE}}</ref> in addition to having the ashes of the red heifer ritual sprinkled upon them;
* one who has eaten meat from an animal that died naturally.<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|17:15|HE}}</ref>
* one who wishes to visit the [[Temple Mount]] (this is still practiced by some modern Jews whose rabbinic authorities follow a minority opinion to permit such visits)

===Customs===
[[minhag|Customs]] exist to immerse in a ''mikveh'' in some of the following circumstances, with the customs varying by community:
* By a bridegroom, on the day of his wedding
* By a father, prior to the [[bris|circumcision]] of his son<ref>{{cite web
   |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/144124/jewish/Final-Preparations-Before-the-Circumcision.htm
   |title=Final Preparations Before the Circumcision – The day of the brit milah
   |author=Dovid Zaklikowski}}</ref>
* Before Yom Kippur,<ref name="ReferenceA">''Shulchan Aruch'', Orach Chayim, 581:4 and 606:4</ref> sometimes including married women as well as men
* Before [[Rosh Hashana]]<ref>{{cite web  |website=OU.org [[Orthodox Union]]|title=Hilchos U'Minhagei Rosh Hashanah Orthodox Union|date=24 September 2014|url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/rosh-hashanah/hilchos-uminhagei-rosh-hashana}}</ref>
* By a kohen, prior to a service in which he will recite the [[Priestly Blessing]]
* Before a [[Jewish holiday]],<ref name="ReferenceA"/> either as an extension of the custom of kohanim to immerse before holidays when they would recite the priestly blessing or in order to purify oneself before a holiday as was required in the times of the Temple.
* At some point during the ninth month of pregnancy<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chabad.org/theJewishWoman/article_cdo/aid/484409/jewish/Are-There-Jewish-Customs-for-Pregnancy-and-Birth.htm|title=Are There Jewish Customs for Pregnancy and Birth?|website=www.chabad.org|language=en|access-date=2019-03-17}}</ref>
* Before each [[Shabbat]], especially prevalent in [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] custom
* Every day, in Hasidic custom
* Some Jewish [[funeral home]]s have a mikveh for immersing a body during the purification procedure (''[[Bereavement in Judaism#Preparing the body — taharah|taharah]]'') before burial.
* Modern customs also use the mikveh for times of transition, so some women visit the mikveh when they reach menopause or when they enter a different time of transition <ref>{{cite web  |website=reformjudaism.org [[Reform Judaism]]|title=Reimagining the Mikveh Union|url=https://reformjudaism.org/beliefs-practices/lifecycle-rituals/conversion/reimagining-mikveh}}</ref>

Immersion for men is more common in Hasidic communities, and done rarely in others, like [[German Jewish]] communities, where it is generally done only before the [[High Holidays]].

==Requirements during use==
[[File:MikveMontpellierEte2022 1.jpg|thumb|Montpellier (France) mikveh in 2022]]
There is supposed to be no barrier between the person immersing and the water. The person should be wearing no clothes, jewelry, makeup, nail polish, fake nails, false eyelashes, contact lenses, or grooming products on the hair or skin.<ref name="washingtonpost"/> The person should carefully wash the hair and the body, removing calluses and dead skin prior. Some trim nails prior to immersion. Hair on the head and body is to be thoroughly combed, although exceptions are sometimes made for hair styled in dreadlocks. The mouth should be thoroughly cleaned and removable dental appliances are usually taken out. The person should carefully check their body after preparation, and sometimes an attendant will also check to ensure these requirements are met.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What Is A Mikveh? |url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-mikveh/ |access-date=2023-04-25 |website=My Jewish Learning |language=en-US}}</ref> Showering or bathing and carefully checking the whole body is, therefore, part of the religious requirements before entering the water of a mikveh.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://dinonline.org/2015/12/29/shower-before-mikvah |title=Shower before Mivah |date=29 December 2015 |quote=If the entire bathing process is not being done in the mikvah, common custom is to take another quick shower and comb out the hair before the tevila}}</ref> Although technically the requirements are the same for men and women, the common practice is that men do not go to great lengths to clean themselves before immersion since the immersion (with rare exceptions) is not Halakhically obligatory.

According to rabbinical tradition, the hair counts as part of the body, and therefore water is required to touch all parts of it, meaning that braids cannot be worn during immersion. This has resulted in debate between the various ethnic groups within Judaism, about whether hair combing is necessary before immersion. The [[Ashkenazi Jews|Ashkenazi]] community generally supports the view that hair must be combed straight so that there are no knots, but some take issue with this stance, particularly when it comes to dreadlocks.{{citation needed|date=May 2011}} A number of rabbinical rulings argue in support of dreadlocks, on the basis that
* dreadlocks can sometimes be loose enough to become thoroughly saturated with water, particularly if the person had first showered
* combing dreadlocked hair can be painful
* although a particularly cautious individual would consider a single knotted hair as an obstruction, in most cases hair is loose enough for water to pass through it unless each hair is individually knotted<ref name=Kitzure>Kolel Menachem, ''Kitzur Dinei Taharah: A Digest of the Niddah Laws Following the Rulings of the [[Rebbe]]s of [[Chabad-Lubavitch|Chabad]]'' (Brooklyn, New York: Kehot Publication Society, 2005).</ref>

==Modern practice==
{{Tumah and taharah}}
===Orthodox Judaism===
Orthodox Judaism generally adheres to the classical regulations and traditions, and consequently Orthodox Jewish women are obligated to immerse in a mikveh between niddah and sexual relations with their husbands. This includes brides before their marriage, and married women after their menstruation period or childbirth.

In accordance with [[tzniut|Orthodox rules concerning modesty]], men and women immerse in separate mikveh facilities in different locations, or else use the mikveh at different designated times.

===Conservative Judaism===
[[File:MikvehAJU.jpg|thumb|250px|The mikveh at the [[American Jewish University]] in [[Los Angeles, California]]]]

In a series of responsa in 2006, the [[Committee on Jewish Law and Standards]] of [[Conservative Judaism]] reaffirmed a requirement that Conservative women use a mikveh monthly following the end of the niddah period following menstruation, while adopting certain leniencies including reducing the length of the nidda period. The three responsa adopted permit a range of approaches from an opinion reaffirming the traditional ritual to an opinion declaring the concept of ritual purity does not apply outside the [[Temple in Jerusalem]], proposing a new theological basis for the ritual, adapting new terminology including renaming the observances related to menstruation from ''taharat hamishpacha'' family purity to ''kedushat hamishpaha'' [family holiness] to reflect the view that the concept of [[tamei|ritual purity]] is no longer considered applicable, and adopting certain leniencies including reducing the length of the niddah period.<ref name="RabbiIntro">[http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/docs/Mikveh_Introduction.doc Rabbi Miriam Berkowitz, Mikveh and the Sanctity of Family Relations, Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, Rabbinical Assembly, December 6, 2006] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320161101/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/docs/Mikveh_Introduction.doc |date=March 20, 2009 }}</ref><ref name="RabbiGrossman">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080407061730/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/docs/Grossman-Niddah.pdf Rabbi Susan Grossman, Mikveh And The Sanctity Of Being Created Human, Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, Rabbinical Assembly, December 6, 2006]</ref><ref name="RabbiReisner">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080407061721/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/docs/Reisner-Niddah.pdf Rabbi Avram Reisner, Observing Niddah In Our Day: An Inquiry On The Status Of Purity And The Prohibition Of Sexual Activity With A Menstruant, Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, Rabbinical Assembly, December 6, 2006]</ref><ref name="RabbiBerkowitz">[https://web.archive.org/web/20090320161047/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/docs/Berkowitz-Niddah.pdf Rabbi Miriam Berkowitz, RESHAPING THE LAWS OF FAMILY PURITY FOR THE MODERN WORLD, Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, Rabbinical Assembly, December 6, 2006]</ref>

[[Isaac Klein]]'s ''A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice'', a comprehensive guide frequently used within Conservative Judaism, also addresses Conservative views on other uses of a mikveh, but because it predates the 2006 opinions, it describes an approach more closely resembling the Orthodox one, and does not address the leniencies and views those opinions reflected. Rabbi Miriam Berkowitz's recent book ''Taking the Plunge: A Practical and Spiritual Guide to the Mikveh'' (Jerusalem: Schechter Institute, 2007) offers a comprehensive discussion of contemporary issues and new mikveh uses along with traditional reasons for observance, details of how to prepare and what to expect, and how the laws developed. Conservative Judaism encourages, but does not require, immersion before Jewish Holidays (including Yom Kippur), nor the immersion of utensils purchased from non-Jews. New uses are being developed throughout the liberal world for healing (after rape, incest, divorce, etc.) or celebration (milestone birthdays, anniversaries, ordination, or reading Torah for the first time).

As in Orthodox Judaism, converts to Judaism through the Conservative movement are required to immerse themselves in a mikveh. Two Jews must witness the event, at least one of which must actually see the immersion. Immersion into a mikveh has been described as a very emotional, life-changing experience similar to a graduation.<ref>Freudenheim, Susan. [http://www.jewishjournal.com/cover_story/article/becoming_jewish_tales_from_the_mikveh "Becoming Jewish: Tales from the Mikveh."] ''Jewish Journal''. 8 May 2013. 8 May 2013.</ref>

===Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism===
[[File:Mikveh.jpg|thumb|250px|Restored mikveh in [[White Stork Synagogue]], [[Wrocław]], Poland]]
[[Reform Judaism|Reform]] and [[Reconstructionist Judaism]] do not hold the halachic requirements of mikveh the way Conservative and Orthodox Judaism do, but some Reform and Reconstructionist rabbis recommend a mikveh ceremony. However, there are growing trends toward using mikveh for conversions, wedding preparation, and even before holidays.<ref name="Reform Mikveh">{{cite web |url=http://reformjudaismmag.org/Articles/index.cfm?id=1387 |title=Sue Fishkoff, Reimagining the Mikveh, Reform Judaism Magazine, Fall 2008 |publisher=Reformjudaismmag.org |access-date=2012-12-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121122065116/http://reformjudaismmag.org/Articles/index.cfm?id=1387 |archive-date=2012-11-22 }}</ref> In the 21st century the mikveh is experiencing{{According to whom|date=June 2025}} a revival among progressive Jews who view immersion as a way to mark transitions in their lives.{{Cn|date=June 2025}} By 2001, the [[Central Conference of American Rabbis]] began to recommend a mikveh ceremony for converts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://reformjudaism.org/beliefs-practices/lifecycle-rituals/conversion/reimagining-mikveh |title=Reimagining the Mikveh |publisher=[[ReformJudaism.org]] |accessdate=2024-03-26}}</ref>

"Open" mikvot welcome Jews to consider immersion for reasons not necessarily required by Jewish law; they might immerse following a divorce or medical treatment, to find closure after an [[Judaism and abortion|abortion]], or to celebrate a life transition, among other reasons.<ref name="washingtonpost">{{Cite news |last1=Markoe |first1=Lauren |date=16 April 2023 |title=What is the mikvah all about? |url=https://wapo.st/4giw0dn |url-access= |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> Progressive Jews may also use the mikveh for conversion.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hoffman |first=Allison |date=August 13, 2012 |title=The New American Mikveh |url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-life-and-religion/109120/the-new-american-mikveh |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230618054403/https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/belief/articles/the-new-american-mikveh |archive-date=Jun 18, 2023 |website=Tablet Magazine}}</ref>

==Interpretations==
[[File:Judenbad Speyer 6 View from the first room down.jpg|thumb|250px|Pool of a medieval mikveh in [[Speyer]], dating back to 1128]]
Rabbi [[Aryeh Kaplan]] connects the laws of impurity to the narrative in the beginning of [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]]. According to Genesis, by eating of the fruit, [[Adam]] and [[Eve]] had brought death into the world. Kaplan points out that most of the laws of impurity relate to some form of death (or in the case of niddah the loss of a potential life). One who comes into contact with one of the forms of death must then immerse in water which is described in Genesis as flowing out of the [[Garden of Eden]] (the source of life) in order to cleanse oneself of this contact with death (and by extension of sin).<ref>''Waters of Eden'' by Rabbi [[Aryeh Kaplan]]. {{ISBN|978-1-879016-08-8}}.</ref>

According to Rabbi [[Abraham Isaac Kook]], by immersing in the mikveh, "we are forced to recognize our existential estrangement from the physical universe. How long can we survive under water? The experience of submerging drives home the realization that our existence in this world is transient, and we should strive towards more lasting goals."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Morrison |first1=Chanan |last2=Kook |first2=Abraham Isaac Kook|title=Gold from the Land of Israel: A New Light on the Weekly Torah Portion – From the Writings of Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaKohen Kook' |date=2006 |publisher=Urim Publications |isbn=965-7108-92-6 |page=188}}</ref>

A custom exists to read the seventh chapter of the [[Mikvaot]] tractate of the [[Mishnah]] following a [[Bereavement in Judaism|funeral]]. This tractate covers the laws of the mikveh, and the seventh chapter starts with a discussion of substances which can be used as valid water sources for a mikveh—snow, hail, frost, ice, salt, and pourable mud. This alludes to the belief in resurrection, as "living water" in a lifeless frozen state (as ice) can still become living water again (after melting).

===Allegory===
The word ''mikveh'' makes use of the same root letters in Hebrew as the word for "hope", and this has served as the basis for homiletical comparison of the two concepts in both biblical and rabbinic literature. For instance, in the [[Book of Jeremiah]], the word ''mikveh'' is used in the sense of "hope", but at the same time also associated with "living water":
{{Blockquote |O Hashem, the Hope [mikveh] of Israel, all who forsake you will be ashamed... because they have forsaken Hashem, the fountain of living water<ref>{{bibleverse ||Jeremiah|17:13|}}</ref>}}
{{Blockquote |Are there any of the worthless idols of the nations, that can cause rain? or can the heavens give showers? Is it not you, Hashem our God, and do we not hope [nekaveh] in you? For you have made all these things.<ref>{{bibleverse||Jeremiah|14:22|}}</ref>}}

In the Mishnah, following on from a discussion of Yom Kippur, [[Rabbi Akiva]] compares ''mikveh'' immersion to the relationship between God and Israel. Akiva refers to the description of God in the Book of Jeremiah as the "Mikveh of Israel", and suggests that "just as a mikveh purifies the contaminated, so does the Holy One, blessed is he, purify Israel".<ref>{{cite wikisource |יומא פה ב |[[Yoma]] 85b |he}}</ref>

==Controversies==
===Use by non-Orthodox converts===
The Reform Movement's [[Israel Religious Action Center]] sued the state on behalf of the Reform and Conservative/Masorti movements to allow members to use publicly funded mikvot. The case, which took ten years to resolve, resulted in the Israeli Supreme Court ruling that public ritual baths must accept all prospective converts to Judaism, including converts to Reform and Conservative Judaism. In his 2016 ruling, Supreme Court Justice [[Elyakim Rubinstein]] said barring certain converts amounts to discrimination. Until this ruling, Orthodox officials barred non-Orthodox converts from using any mikveh, as their traditions do not {{clarify|text=technically|reason=according to Orthodox and/or State interpretations of Jewish law? Presumably not the case according to Reform and/or Conservative interpretation.|date=April 2025}} conform to Jewish law, and the people they convert are therefore not technically Jews. Rubinstein noted: "Once it established public mikvahs, and put them at the service of the public—including for the process of conversion—the State cannot but be even-handed in allowing their use." He also said. "The State of Israel is free to supervise the use of its mikvahs, so long as it does so in an egalitarian manner."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chabin |first=Michele |date=2016-02-14 |title=Israel's Supreme Court: Public ritual baths must accept non-Orthodox, too |url=https://religionnews.com/2016/02/14/israels-supreme-court-public-ritual-baths-must-accept-non-orthodox/ |website=Religion News Service |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Intrusive questions===
In 2013, the Israeli [[Center for Women's Justice]] and [[Kolech]], an organization committed to [[Orthodox Jewish feminism]], petitioned the Supreme Court to forbid attendants from asking intrusive questions of women at state-funded and -operated mikvot. In response, the Chief Rabbinate said it would forbid questioning of women about their marital status before immersion. The complaint had charged that the practice represented unacceptable discrimination.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Don't Ask, Don't Tell; - the New Mikveh Policy |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/2013-05-10/ty-article/.premium/dont-ask-dont-tell/0000017f-e0c4-d568-ad7f-f3efee7b0000 |date=May 10, 2013 |author=Allison Kaplan Sommer }}</ref> In 2015, however, the ITIM Advocacy Center filed a complaint with the Israeli Supreme Court on behalf of 13 Orthodox women against the [[Chief Rabbinate]] and the [[Jerusalem Religious Council]], insisting that women be allowed to use the mikvah "according to their personal customs and without supervision, or with their own attendant if they wish". The complaint charged that the Chief Rabbinate is ignoring directives passed in 2013 that allow women to use the mikvah facilities without being asked intrusive questions by attendants.<ref>"[http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-ngo-asks-supreme-court-to-protect-womens-rights-at-mikvah/ Israeli NGO asks Supreme Court to protect women's rights at mikvah]", ''Times of Israel'', July 20, 2015.</ref> In June 2016, the Chief Rabbinate agreed to allow women to use a mikveh without an attendant.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Israeli Women to Be Allowed to Bathe in Mikvehs Without an Attendant |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2016-06-23/ty-article/.premium/israeli-women-to-be-allowed-to-bathe-in-mikvehs-without-an-attendant/0000017f-e0a3-d804-ad7f-f1fb84670000 |date=Jun 23, 2016 |first1=Yair |last1=Ettinger }}</ref>

=== Transgender people ===
Some transgender people have adopted the practice of mikveh immersion to mark a gender transition. However, many Orthodox authorities who control mikvot only permit immersions that adhere with their view of Jewish law. Therefore, other Jewish organizations strive to create mikvot that allow for different uses, such as marking any important life transitions. Mayyim Hayyim, an organization in Newton, Massachusetts, collaborated with Keshet, one of Boston's LGBT Jewish organizations, to actively create a mikveh space that felt accessible to transgender people, including training mikveh guides on gender issues.<ref name="Kristan 55–57">{{Cite journal|last=Kristan|first=Ari|date=2006-08-01|title=Opening Up the Mikvah|url=https://read.dukeupress.edu/tikkun/article-abstract/21/3/55/74155/Opening-Up-the-Mikvah|journal=Tikkun|language=en|volume=21|issue=3|pages=55–57|doi=10.1215/08879982-2006-3020|s2cid=184680530|issn=0887-9982|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

There is some controversy within the Jewish transgender community about the use of mikvah to mark gender transitions. Some feel uncomfortable in a space that is traditionally so highly gendered and that requires complete nudity. Others still see mikveh as a place for married women to go after their periods, and therefore a transgender female would be exempt from these requirements as she does not menstruate.<ref name="Kristan 55–57"/>

==See also==
* [[Baptism]], [[Ghusl]], [[Misogi]], [[Masbuta]], [[Tamasha (ablution)|Tamasha]] – similar rituals in other religions
* [[Bath (unit)]]
* [[Ritual washing in Judaism]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* Isaac Klein, ''A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice'', JTS Press, New York, 1992
* Kolel Menachem, ''Kitzur Dinei Taharah: A Digest of the Niddah Laws Following the Rulings of the Rebbes of Chabad'', Kehot Publication Society, Brooklyn, New York, 2005

==External links==
{{Commons category|Mikvaot}}
* [http://www.mikvah.org/ Mikvah.org Global Directory]  
* [http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=1541 The Mikvah], by Rivkah Slonim (Chabad.org)
* [http://www.aish.com/family/rebbitzen/The_Intimate_Road.asp The Mikvah: A Spiritual Experience]
* [http://www.boomerstv.com/episodes_video.php?lid=239 Pathways to the Sacred] video clip with Anita Diamant
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090818174923/http://www.judianity.info/mikvah.html Mikvahs / Mikveh: Immersion in the Bible]
* [http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art421.htm Europe's Oldest Mikveh in Syracuse, Italy]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120330220450/http://dfg-science-tv.de/en/projects/rituals/2011-08-13 Purification Rituals in Mediaeval Judaism – Videos made by scientists of the German Research Foundation for DFG Science TV]
* [https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/17c_Gl5QrmL5QZjrrAtq-URxIMFvA5bIozoiCwoLQTo0/edit?usp=sharing Contemporary Orthodox Women's Use of the Mikveh Slideshow Presentation] 
* [https://www.mayyimhayyim.org/  Mayyim Hayyim] Living Waters Community Mikveh, Resource and Education Center in Boston, MA

{{Jewish life}}
{{Halakha}}
{{Marital life in Judaism}}
{{Women in Judaism}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bathing]]
[[Category:Bereavement in Judaism]]
[[Category:Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish law]]
[[Category:Jewish buildings and structures]]
[[Category:Jewish marital law]]
[[Category:Jewish ritual purity law]]
[[Category:Judaism and sexuality]]
[[Category:Positive Mitzvoth]]
[[Category:Nudity in religion]]
[[Category:Conversion to Judaism]]