Today I am so excited because Ia m bringing you on a tour of a Mikveh / Mikvah Jewish ritual
bath and show you what really happens inside the Mikvah I will also answer questions like:
who can use a Mikveh / Mikvah ? what makes it so special ? what kind of water is used to make it
kosher ? and why I love it so much as a Jewish Orthodox woman ? if you're new here hi my name
is Sara Malka and on my channel I share all facets of my orthodox Sephardic Jewish Life
as a full-time working mom with small kiddos so don't forget to leave this video a big Thumbs
Up And subscribe to our Channel let me put on a pretty Tichel (head scarf) and let's jump into it
the first step is to explain what is a Mikvah / Mikveh and if you're wondering what is the
difference between the word Mikveh and Mikvah there's none it's just a different way of
pronunciation and I will use them interchangeably during the video Mikvah / Mikveh in Hebrew means
a collection and more specifically in this case a collection of water when people see a modern
day in Mikvah / Mikveh many think it looks like a miniature swimming pool but it is far
far from it it is so important to the Jewish way of life that the Halacha or Jewish law
states that constructing a Mikvah / Mikveh takes precedence over building a synagogue as without
a Mikveh a Jewish Community cannot flourish the Mikveh / Mikvah can be any of the world's natural
bodies of water so oceans rivers and spring fed lakes are all Mikvah / Mikveh in their
most Primal form as they all contain Waters of divine Source or Live Water called Mayim Chayim
these natural Mikvah / Mikveh are perfectly kosher but often they
lack privacy and also they cannot be used all year long especially in cold countries
like Canada, Most European countries,... therefore we have to build our own indoor
Mikvah / Mikveh and for that we're going to use another kind of mayim chayim Rainwater
briefly to be a kosher Mikvah / Mikveh it must be built into the ground or built as an essential
part of a building so regular bathtubs pools or jacuzzis can never be considered as a kosher
Mikvah to be kosher a Mikvah / Mikveh must contain a minimum of 40 Séah which is a Biblical measure
which is equivalent to about 200 gallons of water 40 in the Torah has a very powerful significance
and it is associated with spiritual transformative power for example the Jewish people stayed 40
years in the desert Moshe / Moses stayed 40 days on Mount Sinai to receive the tablets with the Ten
Commandments in the story of Noah the Deluge or flood lasted for 40 days and 40 nights all these
events Mark to significant spiritual change in the people who lived through these experiences
already the mere quantity of water necessary to make a Mikvah / Mikveh kosher is indicative of
one of the goals of the Mikvah / Mikveh which is to transform spiritually the person who uses it
when we enter the Mikvah / Mikveh we often see only one pool the one used for the immersion in
reality most Mikvah / Mikveh are comprised of two sometimes even three attached pools
in these lower or side pools the rainwater is kept while the upper immersion pool is drained
and refilled regularly with tap water the side then lower pools are connected via hole on the
bottom or the side of the upper pool this hole is also called hashaka which means kissing of waters
between the different pools which allows for the free flow of the rain water pools into the
immersion pool creating a kosher Mikvah / Mikveh and if you're wondering if the Mikvah / Mikveh are
sanitary the answer is yes as modern day Mikvah / Mikveh are equipped with filtration and water
purification systems the other question you may ask yourself is when do we use a Mikvah / Mikveh
the Mikvah / Mikveh can be used as part of our Jewish customs and rituals and or as per Halacha
or Jewish law because our Holy Temple is not rebuilt for the Jewish men the Mikvah / Mikveh is
used as a custom for the moment for example they will use the Mikvah / Mikveh the day before Yom
Kippur some will use it every erev Shabbat or Friday before Shabbat and some will use it
every day before praying in certain occasions women also will use the Mikvah / Mikveh as a
tradition or custom for example when we go to the Mikvah / Mikveh in our ninth month of pregnancy
we will also dip our metal porcelain and glass utensil in a separate small Mikvah / Mikveh only
used for that purpose it is called the Mikvah / Mikveh Kelim and that needs to be a completely
different video all together and please let me know in the comments below if you would like for
me to do another video on the Mikvah / Mikveh kelim ( utensil mikveh) we also used an event
as part of the conversion process according to Halacha or Jewish law but overall the vast
majority of the time the Mikvah / Mikveh will be used by Jewish women whether before their wedding
or married woman as part of the Jewish laws of Taharat HaMishpacha or family Purity we use the
Mikvah / Mikveh after a birth a loss of pregnancy and after our monthly cycle if we did not conceive
because usually each month as women our body prepares for the possibility of conception
our uterine lining builds up to serve as a cradle for life in anticipation of a fertilized egg this
potential of life within us fills our body with spiritual Holiness and Purity with the beginning
of our periods and the shedding of our lining it marks the end of this possibility and we then
become Nidah when these status of Holiness and Purity have departed only the immersion
in Mikvah / Mikveh following the requisite preparation has the power to change our spiritual
status and bring back this intrinsic potential of Holiness during my periods and seven days
after I will separate physically from my husband by sleeping in my own bed and avoiding physical
contacts I absolutely love this little Hiatus not only because during my periods I am usually
in a bit of a crabby mood maybe it's just me but also this period of physical separation from my
husband allows us to connect more spiritually and makes our hearts grow fonder in anticipation to be
together again after the cycle is completed and this brings us to what really happens inside of
a Mikvah / Mikveh and how I prepare myself spiritually and physically to immerse in the
Mikvah / Mikveh usually Mikvah / Mikveh cannot be recognized from the outside as it looks like
any other building there are no signs on the door indicating it is a Mikvah / Mikveh Each Mikvah is
different but this particular one when I enter the building I am greeted by a beautiful staircase and
a magnificent foyer with sofas to wait or turn if there are many ladies coming at the same time it
is quite rare to have ladies waiting because we take appointments online to be sure that we are
always modest and nobody knows beside our husband ourselves and to Mikvah / Mikveh attendant that it
is our Mikvah / Mikveh Night because to be kosher a Mikvah / Mikveh for Jewish women has to be done
at night when it is time to go to the Mikvah / Mikveh we are ushered in in a preparation room
it is a beautiful room separated in two sections the first section is where we
put our clothes they have a wig stand for women who wear wigs they also have hangers as well as
all the amenities to prepare ourselves like Q-tips makeup remover contact lens solution
and so much more they even give out our little own slippers that we will keep and bathrobes I
prefer to use my own bathrobe because it is lint-free I also bring my own slippers
because I prefer to use something that I'm going to use many times instead of only once
we also find in the first part of the preparation room a folder where we can
find a checklist to make sure we do not forget anything in our preparation they also give us a
copy of a prayer we can do before and after the Mikvah / Mikveh they give all the documents in
Hebrew English and French (Because these are the 3 languages used by women using the Mikvah / Mikveh
)to make sure everyone understand the prayer they are reciting and they can recite it with intention
and if you're curious yes the preparation room in the Mikvah / Mikveh are so clean not only are they
clean before we come but they are clean before and after every person comes into the preparation room
to prepare for the immersion in the Mikvah / Mikveh my goal is to make sure that all parts
of my body are in contact with the Mayim Chayim the live Waters of the Mikvah / Mikveh therefore
I will make sure to remove all hatsitsa or barriers between the water and me I start by
removing all the material hatsitza so my ring my earrings and my watch then I start the fun part
of the Mikvah / Mikveh which is the removal of the all the hatsitza from my body for that part
I am going to go in the second section of the preparation room where you can find a beautiful
and luxurious bathtub I usually soak in the bath for about 30 minutes it is a wonderful time for me
to disconnect from all the challenges at home the deadline from work the laundry that is waiting for
me at home and so much more in a nutshell it is a time I take for myself I usually put on a sheet
mask and read a good book or simply relax while I'm soaking and as you know in Judaism anything
we do has a reason therefore the soaking time is there to allow any rough spots of skin to soften
so I couldn't remove them with my personal pumice stone or exfoliating gloves I do this step while
the bath water drains after exfoliating I also shave if I did not have time to wax previously
once I have baby soft skin I take a shower and rinse my body to remove any skin or debris and
finally I will wash my hair and body making sure to wash every nook and cranny of my body
once that my body is fully clean I'm gonna go back in the first part of the changing room
and I am going to floss my teeth I don't know about you but for years and years I thought I
should brush my teeth first then floss but a friend that is a dentist told me that the
latest studies showed that flossing first then brushing had the best result so I would love to
know do you floss first then brush or do you do the opposite let me know in the comments
below before I remove my nail polish and do a quick manicure and pedicure without putting any
nail polish back on I wanted to share with you my nail polish because so many of you asked me what
was the color and brand so it is from the brand Essie in their collection Couture and my color
is "sheer fantasy" this is an amazing product when I do a manicure with this nail polish, the
nail polish will stay perfect easily for a week and I always finish with their top coat I highly
highly recommend this product and know this is absolutely not sponsored once I have removed
all the nail polish and did a quick manicure the next step is going to be to brush my hair
I brush my hair to make sure that I have no knots I do it the first time with this
brush and the second time with this special comb because it has "tighter comb teeth"
and finally I will verify that I have no loose hair or skin on me as it would be
considered as a hatsitza or a barrier and the water could not be fully in contact with my
skin rendering my immersion not valid once all my preparations are done I'm ready to do my blessing
I will call the Mikvah / Mikveh attendant and as a Sephardic Jew I will make my blessing
outside the Mikvah / Mikveh (not in the mikveh like my Ashkenazi sisters but in a separate to
do the blessing next to the mikveh) then the Mikvah / Mikveh attendant will lead me
to the Mikvah / Mikveh room the Mikvah / Mikveh attendant is there to make sure the mikveh room is
empty so that we respect the privacy of each woman and to make sure our immersion is kosher
on a side note the Mikvah / Mikveh attended never sees me fully undressed as I enter the room with
a robe and only remove it when I am in the Mikvah / Mikveh and the water of the Mikvah / Mikveh is
deep enough that my head is the only part visible of my body out of the Mikvah / Mikveh you will
also notice that this Mikvah / Mikveh like most of the Mikvah / Mikveh will have seven steps leading
to the base of the Mikvah / Mikveh representing the seven days of the creation as after the Mikvah
/ Mikveh will be like a new creation the water of the Mikvah / Mikveh is heated and therefore
so nice and warm once in the water I will immerse myself three times some will immerse only once
some will immerse seven times and more this is such a beautiful and auspicious time to pray
when my tevila or immersion is completed I have this Indescribable feeling of peace and holiness
I go back in the first part of the changing room I will dress myself gather all my belongings then I
will bring back all the towels to the laundry chute I know I could leave everything in the
room but I always feel bad when people have to clean behind me I walk home with trepidation as
I am eager to be greeted by the love of my life with affection marking our spiritual Readiness
to start another cycle of love and physical closeness and hopefully G.od willing to have
the Zechut or Merit of bringing another life in this world and adding a new member to our family
I hope you enjoyed this overview of the secrets and intricacies of a Mikvah / Mikveh and if you
are here with me until the end please write in the comments I love New Beginnings so I know I
was not alone I pray you can have New Beginnings in your life if you need them and made these
new beginnings be fulfilled with ease and may they bring you much love peace and happiness
if nobody told you today know that you are loved and you are enough
just the way you are until next time stay safe stay blessed and don't forget to frum it up