Maimonides

In Maimonides' introduction to the Sefer Hamitzvot ("The Book of Commandments"), he states the goal he set to accomplish with authoring this work. The Talmud (end of Tractate Makkot) tells us that there are 613 biblical precepts—248 of which are "positive...

1 We already explained that washing one's hands and/or immersing them is a Rabbinic requirement. Hands that must be immersed may be immersed solely in an acceptable mikveh that contains 40 se'ah. For only in a place where a person immerses his body may he...

1 What is meant by an unresolved doubt regarding drawn water that our Sages ruled as pure? A mikveh about which one was unsure whether drawn water fell into it. Or even if one was certain that drawn water fell into it, but was in doubt whether there were ...

1 There are six categories of mikveot, one superior to another. The first is the water of pit, cisterns, storage trenches, storage caverns, and the like, where water is collected on the earth. Even though the water was "drawn" and even though there were l...

1 Any body of water that is in contact with a mikveh, is considered as the mikveh itself and it can be used for immersion. When cavities that are next to the opening of a mikveh or the footprints left by animals share a point of contact with the water of ...

1 A mikveh is not disqualified, neither because of a change of its water's taste, nor a change of its smell, only because its color changes. Any substance that may not be used to constitute a mikveh initially disqualifies one, if it causes its color to ch...

1 Whenever water passes over keilim that contain a receptacle or water falls into them, it is considered as drawn water and disqualifies a mikveh, provided that the receptacle was made to serve that purpose. Even containers that are not susceptible to rit...