A mikveh is a pool of water, used by men and women, for immersion. In the Jewish tradition, immersion in the mikveh leads to a state of ritual purity.

No other religious act touches every aspect of life as it washes away what was and gives birth to the new. Mikveh has been a central feature of Jewish homes and communities for millennia. In ancient days in Jerusalem, mikveh prepared each person to enter the Temple grounds in a spiritually pure state appropriate for the Holy Temple.

Throughout Jewish history, women have immersed in the mikveh prior to their wedding and continued to use mikveh at the end of each monthly menstrual cycle, elevating the level of spirituality in their relationship and infusing their family life with holiness.

Another major function of the mikveh is for conversion to Judaism. The rabbis understood our ancestors’ immersions at Mt. Sinai, before revelation, as completing the conversion process they had begun in Egypt with circumcision. To this day converts to Judaism immerse in a mikveh, symbolically emerging as if from amniotic waters to a new life and identity. Today mikveh has become a focus in the creation of new rituals and the desire to mark moments in one’s life as meaningful, or to fill it with meaning.

Beth David Synagogue is pleased to maintain a clean and heated kosher mikveh for spiritual and ritual use by the Jewish community. It is available to women and men for regular or occasional use, and to rabbis for the purpose of conversion of their students. Adults using the mikveh must be Jewish or candidates for conversion; babies must be at least 4 months old, in good health and able to hold their head up.

Please click on the following documents for more information and instructions on using the mikveh.

The Mikveh at Beth David Brochure

The Mikveh Preparation Checklist

The Mikveh Release Form