Address: 1075 Budapest, Kazinczy street 16.
For women: +36 (20) 448 0164
One of the cornerstones of Jewish family life is the tarhat hámispáchá, that is, ritual purity. The complex rules and conditions for the construction of the ritual bath, the mikveh, are detailed in the Talmud Mikvaot treatise. The water used for ritual purification must be living water of natural origin, so stagnant water like a lake is not suitable for the formation of mikveh, but a river is. The Kazinczy Street mikveh is fed both by the rainwater collected at the top of the building and by the spring water from the borehole in the yard.
It is customary for women from the wedding after the seven clean days following the monthly cleansing, for men in the morning and before the holidays. It is also a requirement to immerse newly purchased kitchen utensils before use.
The plot was purchased by the Autonomous Orthodox Jewish Community of Budapest in 1923 with the aim of building a modern ritual bathhouse. Several plans were made for the implementation of the mikveh, until finally, in 1928, the community chose an Art Deco style path, which plan is most harmonized with the facade of the nearby central Orthodox synagogue. The ritual bath, which is connected to the residential house, started its operation in 1930 with a separate women’s and men’s section, as well as a vessel immersion room. The women’s section underwent a complete renovation in 2004, making it one of the most fastidious ritual baths in the world.
