Taharot

Taharot, also spelled Tahorot, is a term used in Jewish rabbinic literature to denote the laws and the tractate governing ritual purity and impurity. The word itself means “purities” in Hebrew and refers to a broad system of purity rules that classify objects, spaces, and people according to their ritual status.

In the Mishnah, the tractate Taharot belongs to the order Tahorot (Purities) and collects discussions about how impurities arise, how they are transmitted, and how purification is achieved. It addresses various sources of impurity, including contact with a corpse, bodily discharges, and other conditions that render things or people ritually impure. The tractate also outlines purification procedures, most notably immersion in a mikveh (ritual pool) and the timing or waiting periods associated with certain impurities. The material is primarily juridical and methodological, focusing on definitions, classifications, and procedures rather than narrative content.

Textual tradition surrounding Taharot includes the Mishnah as its primary source, with later elaborations and discussions found in the Babylonian Talmud and, to a lesser extent, the Jerusalem Talmud. The tractate reflects a broader ancient Jewish legal framework of purity that shaped temple-era practice, as well as domestic and communal life in earlier periods. After the destruction of the Second Temple, these purity laws continued to be studied and interpreted by rabbinic authorities, though their practical application in daily life diminished and varies among communities.

In modern usage, Taharot is chiefly a subject of academic study in Jewish law and history. The concept of ritual purity remains a reference point for comparative theology and for understanding historical practices within Judaism. See also Taharah, Mikveh, Tumah, and Niddah.