Niddah

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Halakhic sources
Note: Not meant as a definitive ruling. Some observances may be rabbinical, or customs, or Torah based.
Texts in Jewish law relating to this article:
Bible:	Leviticus 15:19-30 18:19 20:18
Mishnah:
Babylonian Talmud:	Niddah
Jerusalem Talmud:
Mishneh Torah:	Kedushah (Holiness): Issurei Biah (forbidden sexual relations): 4-11
Shulchan Aruch:	Yoreh De'ah 183-202

Niddah (or nidah, nidda, nida; Hebrew:נִדָּה), in Judaism, is technically a state of marital separation when a woman is menstruating and seven subsequent days until she immerses in a ritual bath known as a mikvah. By extension, a woman is said to be a niddah (menstruant) when she is in this state.

Niddah is the main category of a group of laws and customs that is generally called by the euphemism family purity (taharat hamishpacha).

Niddah is also the name of a tractate (volume) in the Talmud, which deals almost exclusively with this subject.

In the description of the Red heifer ceremony in Numbers Chapter 19, the word niddah is used in the context of mei hanidah, waters of niddah, variously translated as "waters of sprinkling," "waters of lustration", or "waters of purification" Numbers 19:13, 19:20, 19:21. In the ceremony, the waters of niddah purify.

[edit] Basic principles

[edit] Textual sources

The Torah describes niddah, the ritual impurity due to menstruation, and the prohibition of having relations with a niddah (Leviticus, which incurs the penalty of kareit, excision of the soul from G-d: 15:19-30, 18:19, 20:18). Niddah, as defined in the Torah, lasts for seven days. The Torah also describes a long or irregular discharge of blood, called zavah (Leviticus 15:25-30), which requires that seven blood-free days be counted from the last day of the irregular discharge of blood before immersion.

These two forms of blood-related ritual impurity were combined during Talmudic times. The Talmud relates that women took the obligations of zava in addition to the obligations of niddah, so that after the menstrual period stopped, women would count seven blood-free days (Niddah 66a, 67b). The reasons for the stringency are subject of a debate between medieval commentators.

As shall be described below, as currently practiced, the period of niddah lasts as long as the menstrual flow, or 4-5 days (depending on custom), whichever is longer. The seven blood-free days are then counted in accordance with the laws of zavah.

The extent to which these laws are followed differ. Sephardic women, even apparently secular ones, are reputed to follow them strictly; these laws tend not to be followed by secular Ashkenazi women. These laws are strictly followed in the more traditional Orthodox Judaism, and are often reinterpreted in the progressive movements such as in Reform Judaism as a mechanism of rediscovering female spirituality.

[edit] What is Niddah?

A woman becomes a niddah when blood comes from her womb due to her monthly period known as the menstrual cycle or for other reasons, such as following childbirth or due to sexually transmitted disease. She might see the flow, or she might see a stain on her clothing. There must be some indication that the blood has come from her womb; if she finds a stain just after cutting her finger, she does not become a niddah, as the blood is obviously not uterine. If she finds blood on her underclothing, and she does not know if it is from a cut or from her womb, she needs to check with someone who knows the relevant laws such as a learned rabbi who studied the sections of niddah in the Talmud and the Shulkhan Arukh. Knowledge of these laws is essential for rabbis - without it they cannot attain ordination.

Jewish law states that a woman enters a state of "tum'ah" when she is "niddah" (menstruating). During this time a couple refrains from physical contact, especially sexual relations. Technical terms like "tahor" and "tameh" are often poorly translated; they have nothing to do with physical cleanliness. Rather, they describe a state of ritual purity in regard to fulfilling Biblical commandments. The terms Tahor and Taharah actually mean "ritually pure" and Tamei and Tum'ah mean "ritually impure".

[edit] Status of obligation

Orthodox Judaism regards the Biblical prohibition against sexual intercourse with a woman in the niddah state, including ones spouse, as one of the small number of prohibitions requiring martyrdom (yehareg ve'al ya'avor, "die rather than transgress") under the laws of Self-sacrifice under Jewish Law, along with murder, idolatry, adultery, and certain types of incest and homosexual conduct. Accordingly, abservance of these laws is regarded as one of three cardinal practices (including Shabbat/Jewish Holidays) and Kashrut) central to being an observant Jew, and more important than prayer.

[edit] Reasons for practice

[edit] Need for Tahara ("purity")

A woman is a niddah until she undergoes taharah ("purification"). The taharah process involves a minimum of eleven days (twelve for Ashkenazi Jews). These are divided into two sets of time, the "first five days", and "seven days of taharah", after which she must immerse properly in a mikvah (ritual bath).

A woman who does not go through the taharah process cannot become tehorah ("pure", the "opposite" state from niddah), even if an extended period of time has elapsed since her last period.

It may happen that if she swam naked, or in very loose fitting clothes, in a lake, river, or the sea, which all serve as natural mikvahs then she becomes tahor until her next menstrual period. Consultation with a rabbi is required to determine if this is sufficient.

[edit] Reasons for the niddah laws

The traditional view has been that these are "Laws of Holiness", and serve to elevate the physical to the highest spiritual level. It takes a physical aspect and adds holiness to it, using the physical for spiritual gain. While the progressive movements had previously abandoned practice of the niddah laws, some groups are now adopting them to varying extents.

[edit] In practice

[edit] Calculation of the niddah period

The day when a woman first sees her monthly vaginal blood flow is day one. She counts from the beginning of the flow, and continues until the flow stops. If it takes less than five days for her flow to stop, she still has to wait until five days are over. Even if she saw blood for only one day, she must wait five days until she can begin counting the seven blood-free days. The five days need not be complete five days. The first day might start in the middle of the day, if she first saw her flow in the afternoon. But whenever they began, they end on the night after the fifth day.

If she sees blood for more than five days, the "five days" end when she has definitely stopped seeing blood. Once she has stopped seeing blood, she can begin the count of the seven blood-free days. The cessation of menstruation is verified with a bedika (verification) called the hefsek tahara. Before sunset, the woman takes a shower or bath, and cleans herself thoroughly everywhere. She then waits a few minutes, and inserts a white cloth and checks herself at the opening of her vagina with her finger. If it comes out clean, then the next day is the "first day" of the "seven blood-free days". During the seven blood-free days, the woman conducts a bedika every morning and evening (before sunset), or at least on the first and last day of the seven day period.

[edit] Checking with a white bedikah cloth

After menstruation has stopped, or after 4-5 days from the start of menstruation, whichever comes last, a woman verifies that menstruation has indeed ceased using a clean piece of white cloth known as a bedikah ("checking") cloth. Such cloths are about two by four inches, and are available at local Judaica stores, the local mikvah, or may be cut from clean all-white soft cotton cloth.

This verification immediately after the end of menstruation is called the hefsek tahara. If no additional blood is found, she may start counting the 7 blood-free days.

Close to sunset, the woman takes a bath or shower, cleaning herself everywhere. She waits a few moments and checks the bedika cloth very carefully to make sure it is clean of any marks, colored threads, or specks. She then wraps the cloth around her fingers, and gently swipes the vaginal circumference inside to the depth of the second knuckle. She removes the cloth, and checks it very carefully. If the discharge is white, yellow, or clear, she may start counting the seven blood-free days. If the discharge is bright red mark, it is blood. Black, brown, gold, pink, and any other color are subject to further inquiry. Women usually decide from their own experience which color it is. If there is any doubt and the woman is unsure of how to proceed, she is supposed to consult her rabbi. In practice, there are many women who do not consult with rabbis, and tend to err on the side of stringency, even though overstringency in niddah may lead to unnecessary separation between her and her husband.

After the bedika, there is a custom to insert a cloth or tampon, called a moch dachuk, for 18-60 minutes to ensure that there is no uterine blood. If the moch dachuk is forgotten, the hefsek tahara is usually valid anyway. The moch dachuk must be done carefully to avoid irritation of the mucous membranes, which may cause blood which is not niddah blood.

If the hefsek tahara is valid, the woman counts seven days starting with nightfall after the hefsek tahara. On each of these days -- a minimum on the first and last days -- the woman conducts two bedikas, one in the morning after sunrise and one in the afternoon/evening, before sunset. During the seven blood-free days, the woman traditionally wears white underwear and uses white bed sheets. Women with difficulties with spotting may be advised to wear colored underwear and use colored toilet tissue since a stain seen on colored material does not have any halachic status and cannot render her a niddah.

In cases of unusual "spotty" and unpredictable bleeding beyond the end of what should be a woman's regular period, the rabbi may advise the woman to visit a gynecologist to check if there is a medical problem needing attention.

[edit] Immersing in the mikvah

On the night after the seventh blood free day, the woman goes to the mikvah. This is the same day of the week the seven blood-free days began. To prepare for the mikvah, after checking, the woman takes a bath, followed by a shower, and other careful preparations. She cleans and cuts all her nails, both finger and toe, as well as making sure there is no food between her teeth. She cleans her ears, and every body cavity. She removes all makeup and contact lenses and combs her hair completely. Many women take the bath at home, and do the follow-up shower at the mikvah.

When going to the mikvah, she may not have anything between her and the water at any part of her body. Therefore she must remove all jewelry, makeup, and things regarded as a chatzitza or obstruction. There is usually a woman attendant at the mikvah to help the woman check that she is ready to immerse. During the immersion, the woman makes sure that she is completely immersed (including all hair). After the first immersion, she says the blessing "Baruch atah Ha-Shem, Elokainu Melech Ha'Olam, asher kidshanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu al ha-tevila (Blessed are you, Ha-Shem, our G-d, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and has commanded us regarding immersion)". The woman usually includes a short prayer and adds a number of other immersions. There are different customs of three, seven, and other numbers of immersions.

This is seen as a time of extreme closness between the woman & the Creator. Many women look forward to this point in the process and comment that they feel very close to the Creator at this time.

[edit] Guiding marital relations

Any act that could lead to sexual relations whilst a woman is a niddah is forbidden according to the Torah and rabbinic law. Since a husband and wife are very accustomed to being physically intimate with each other, therefore they must take great care during the time the woman is niddah. They must relate completely on a non-physical level. They may not hug or kiss each other, or even pass each other items from hand to hand. These laws are termed "harchakot" ("spacers"), to ensure "one thing will not lead to another".

[edit] Resuming conjugal relations

The woman then returns home, and informs her husband that she is now in the tahora ("purified") state. Sexual relations are then permitted, and traditionally take place that night. Biologically speaking, the best night to conceive is usually "mikvah night", as it often coincides with the woman's ovulation. The sperm count of her husband is said to be increased during the abstinence, which improves the chances of successful conception.

[edit] Other separation days

Torah law also forbids sexual relations on the day that a woman expects her period, called her veset. She should know when to expect her period by keeping a careful record. On three days the veset is in force: on the same day of the month since the start of her period, 30 days after the last period, and a on the day when the same interval of time between periods as the previous one has passed. Generally, these more-or-less coincide, unless a woman's period is often longer than 30 days. The rules for calculating these can be complicated. Under certain circumstances a veset from previous months can be carried forward and repeated in following months in addition to those of the current month. Other more unusual vesets can occur. However, if a women's husband is leaving town and she knows that when he returns she will have already begun her period, relations are permitted.

[edit] Interconnected topics

[edit] Other related traditions

Traditionally, a vital factor of the Laws of Family Purity is the concept of tzeniut (meaning "modesty" or "hiddenness"). A woman's personal matters are nobody's business but hers, her husband's, her doctor's, and her Rabbi's. Women do not discuss these matters with others, nor are private bedroom matters supposed to be the subject of jokes or light conversation.

[edit] Sex in Judaism

See Religion and sexuality: Judaism and sexuality.

In Judaism, marital relations are considered to be a gift from God. They are neither shunned nor avoided. However, they are not debased either. Rather, Judaism provides a way to use sex to elevate the human being, by following self-control and discipline that can lead to holiness. During the time that a man and woman are forbidden to have sexual relations in traditional Judaism, they are forced to relate to each other in non-physical ways. They must see each other in other terms, and develop their relationship with each other on a spiritual and emotional level.

[edit] Conservative Judaism

The official stance of Conservative Judaism is that Niddah applies to Conservative Jews, and Conservative Judaism expects married couples to refrain from sexual relations during the Niddah period, but there is a difference of opinions over whether other strictures, such as a complete prohibition on touching during the Niddah period, need to be observed. Isaac Klein's A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice described the obligations and rituals of niddah in detail, and in December 2006, the Conservative Movement Committee on Jewish Law and Standards's passed 3 responsa discussed the applicability of certain Rabbinic prohibitions on Niddah for Conservative Jews.^[1] In that meeting, the CJLS approved 3 different responsa: two majority opinions, one by Rabbi Susan Grossman^[2] and one by Rabbi Avram Reisner^[3], and a minority opinion by Rabbi Miriam Berkowitz^[4]. Each responsum advocated different standards of observance. The general thrust of the responsa was to reaffirm the underlying practice while adopting leniencies including reducing the period of time in which a women is in the niddah state, permitting relations to women experiencing stains or bleeding outside the niddah period as a result of infertility treatments and certain other circumstances, and permitting some physical contact short of intercourse during the niddah period. Some responsa also re-articulated the religious rationale for observance of niddah in order to distance it both from the practices of the Temple worship and from connotations of ritual purity or impurity associated with Temple practices.

Rabbis Grossman and Berkowitz no longer frame these laws in the language of purity and impurity, a framework which they consider applicable only to Temple times. They focus on the holiness of relationship aspect linked to Leviticus 18, and thus suggest neutral language such as Hilkhot Niddah, Hilkhot Kedushat Yetzirah (Grossman) or Hilkhot Kedushat Mishpahah (Berkowitz).

Rabbi Grossman permits resumption of relations after seven days from the beginning of the menstrual period (assuming bleeding has stopped), based on the reasoning and teaching of Rabbi Joel Roth, who sees the stringencies as a custom from which people may be released, citing as support an opinion by Maimonides that voluntary stringencies on male ejaculants, adapted in the time of Ezra, were subsequently found to be unsustainable and could be permitted to lapse. She permits relations during mid-cycle staining (especially for fertility purposes) since according to her outlook, such blood does not necessitate abstention and immersion. In doing so, she argued that the biblical concept of zavah (women with irregular vaginal discharge) can be narrowed to the point of functional irrevelvance, using a line of argument which she found similar to the way the Biblical concept of zav (man with irregular penile discharge) was narrowed in the Talmud by the rulings of Rabbi Akiva. She also allows some physical closeness during the time of separation, limiting it to the sign of affection societally acceptable between siblings and encourages mikveh use for a variety of alternative purposes.

Rabbi Grossman views the extra seven days of waiting as originating in an optional custom for the especially pious. In her view, its incorporation into the Jewish law codes stemmed from the fact that the rabbis were unaware of the exact duration of menstrual cycles. She claims that contradictory statements in the Talmud and in the works of Nachmanides and Maimonides led to the seven days becoming mandatory rather than optional. Individuals proposing this view include Joel Roth, Michael Gold, Susan Grossman, Daniel Kohn and JTS Talmud Professor David C. Kraemer.

Rabbi Reisner agrees with Rabbi Grossman about the permissibility of immersing after only seven days, though he arrives at this conclusion through different reasoning (that the addition of seven clean days applies only in the absence of a regular period). He agrees with Rabbi Berkowitz about retaining the theoretical category of zavah, but unlike both of the others he retains the biblical term tumah and hence also the terminology of Tohorat HaMishpahah.

Rabbi Berkowitz, the minority opinion, affirms most of the traditional observance, including the seven additional days, affirming them as entrenched rabbinic law. She does provide flexibility on non-sexual physical contact during the time of separation, and she determines the seven “clean” days can be counted as soon as the period ends, even if this is sooner than the traditional five day minimum. She argued for retention of the biblical category of zavah. In general, Rabbi Berkowitz recommends education, creation of positive environments for mikveh experiences, and reframing of attitudes toward these laws for increasing popular observance.

While the practices related to family purity are not widely followed among its laity, Conservative Judaism nonetheless teaches that these practices are obligatory and just as important as other parts of Jewish law.

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] See also

Role of women in Judaism
Bais Yaakov (yeshiva schools for girls)
Jewish view of marriage
Negiah (guidelines for physical contact)
Shalom bayit (peace and harmony in the relationship between husband and wife)
Shidduch (finding a marriage partner)
Tzeniut (modest behavior)
Yichud (prohibitions of secluding oneself with a stranger)
Rebbetzin (rabbi's wife)

[edit] External links

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