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Liminal Moments

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Written by Aliza Kline In just a little over a week my family and I will embark on a big adventure – a 10-month sabbatical in Israel. This will be the year that we look back on; the myth that shapes our family’s story. I will return next summer to a strong and healthy Mayyim […]

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The Dream that Never Vanished

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Written by Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein What does mikveh have to do with becoming a rabbi? Even before Mayyim Hayyim existed, I had explored mikveh. After spending one Omer soul searching, I gathered some very close friends at Freeman Lake to witness my own mikveh ceremony. The night before I wondered what was next. An […]

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Judaism's Dark Day

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Written by Elisheva Baskin Tisha b’Av, the ninth day in the Hebrew calendar month of Av, is Judaism’s “dark day.” Ironically, it comes in mid- to end of the summer, when the days are long and the sun shines bright. This makes the matter of fasting, not drinking liquids, and not bathing as especially difficult […]

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Disconnection from the Physical

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Written by Rabbi Emma Kippley-Ogman A few months ago, a well-meaning hasid from Jerusalem was trying to figure out what it meant for the woman he’d just seen lead a traditional mincha-maariv service to be both Jewishly observant and a rabbi.  He asked me: Do you keep shabbes?  Yes, I responded.  You don’t drive?  Right.  […]

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Inside my Soul

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Written by Madeline Mayer As I peered for the first time at the glistening waters of the mikveh at Mayyim Hayyim, I felt as if I was truly seeing inside my own soul—this time with a renewed, lucid state of mind. With its beautiful blue stones and tranquil waters, the mikveh enveloped me with spirit and […]

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Surrender Yourself

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Written by Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin The mikveh has been part of my life for 35 years. I have “taken the waters” in Manhattan, Beer Sheva, the Atlantic Ocean, New Jersey, Baltimore, and just this past spring, at Mayyim Hayyim. I have written healing rituals for post-partum ceremonies, victims of abuse, rape, illness, infertility, separation […]

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Your Mikveh has a Twitter?

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Written by Carrie Bornstein Apparently, they tell me, not all mikvehs are on Facebook.  Or Twitter or YouTube.  Nor do they have blogs, for that matter.  So why do we?  And honestly, isn’t mikveh all about privacy anyway?  Is this really something we should be blasting all over the internet? At our spring benefit this […]

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We're Kvelling: A Mikveh in the Making

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Written by Carrie Bornstein It’s not every day that a mikveh is born. So when a picture like this arrives in our inbox: you can bet it makes us smile.  “Libi Eir” (Awakened Heart) at Beth Meyer Synagogue in Raleigh, NC, is nearing completion. What’s even better?  This is not just any mikveh.  There are […]

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Behind the Sheet

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When a person immerses in a mikveh, s/he does so in as close a state to what s/he was like when he or she was born:  no make up, no prosthetics, no jewelry, no clothes.  When someone comes to Mayyim Hayyim, that person always has the option of having a guide with him or her.  […]

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Immersing with Intention, Creating Mikveh Experience Beyond the Mikveh

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My first mikveh experience took place in early Elul. Shabbat was approaching at my first week-long Jewish Renewal retreat at Elat Chayyim, and I decided to join the group which was going to do “spiritual mikveh” in the swimming pool. Rabbi Phyllis Berman explained, beforehand, the ways in which our mikveh would be atypical: we […]

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Introducing Mikveh to Children

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When I had heard that Mayyim Hayyim offered mikveh      experiences for elementary schoolers and b’nei/ b’not mitzvah, I must admit I was somewhat surprised, given the traditional associations of mikveh with sexuality.  But a recent experience made me change my mind, and even lower the recommended age! I recently had the honor of escorting a […]

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Niddah Anonymous: Keeping a Sacred Act Private

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We were so excited about the new opening of Jerusalem Pita in Brookline.  We ventured out of our apartment in Cambridge with our 2.5 year old and 2 week old to taste what everyone was talking about.  While the dining experience was nothing to write home about, the real experience of the evening came from […]

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  • Closure Notice

    Please be advised that Mayyim Hayyim will be closed starting July 25 through August 7 while we install critical AC units. Existing appointments will occur as scheduled.

    Thank you for your understanding. We will be doing this work to ensure guest comfort during Elul, the month leading up to Rosh Hashanah.

    If you have any questions, please reach out to info@mayyimhayyim.org