A woman may not be a sofer. Even though women are obligated in the commandments of megila, they may not be sofrot for megilot nor for the Prophets (nevi'im) section of the Torah.
 

If you own any chametz, you must burn some of it in order to fulfill the commandment of burning chametz: this is a mitzva from the Torah! 

 

1. What Makes a Woman a Nida

 
Introduction to What Makes a Woman a Nida
Vaginal Blood Flow
Only vaginal blood flow makes a woman nida. 
 
Nida D'Oraita
According to Torah law (d'oraita), a woman becomes a nida when she experiences a flow of uterine blood, preceded or accompanied by a hargasha. Because uterine blood flow is difficult to distinguish from the more general vaginal blood flow, we assume that a vaginal blood flow is from the uterus--unless a medical person (it could be a midwife) determines that the blood flow is not uterine.
 
Nida D'Rabanan
 
By rabbinic law (d'rabanan), a woman can become a nida even with only a qualifying stain (see below).

Hargasha
A hargasha is anything that signals that the woman's period is imminent. There are three classical hargashot, as well as possible hargashot that pertain only to an individual woman.
Note Many women today do not have hargashot.
 
Classical Hargashot
There are three classical hargashot:
1) Body Tremor
2) Petichat HaMakor
Some women, at petichat ha'makor (“opening of the uterus”), have a sensation of release similar to when one's bladder opens to urinate.
3) Zivat Davar Lach
Sensation of wet discharge that comes only with her period; this is not the wet discharge that every woman normally feels multiple times daily.
Note She does not necessarily need to feel it coming from her cervix in order for it to make her a nida.
 
Individual Hargashot
What Is an Individual Hargasha
The individual hargasha can be any physiological occurrence (pimples on her face, a bout of yawning, a bloated feeling in the belly, etc.) that correlates with a woman's getting her period within 24 hours. To become established as a hargasha, it must have happened three times in a row.
 
Note Cramps for most women may be a hargasha, since they may mean that the woman is about to have her period.
 
When a woman has a hargasha, we assume that her period has started, and she should immediately stop what she is doing and check internally with a bedika cloth. If she does a bedika as soon as possible and the cloth shows a forbidden color, or shows no discharge at all, she immediately becomes nida for at least 12 days, after which she goes to the mikva. 
Note If she had a hargasha and finds no blood and no discharge, she becomes a nida, since we assume there was blood and she just didn't find it.  If the bedika cloth shows brown, magenta, salmon, brick, amber, orange, etc., the rabbi will want to see the cloth to determine her status.
Note Most medium browns are OK.
 
What To Do If Not Sure
If she is not sure she has had a hargasha, she asks a rabbi and together they will sort out the answer.
 
 
Nida D'Rabanan
 
Stain (without Hargasha)
 
Stain Colors
A rabbi should be consulted in all matters of questionable colors of stains.  Some may seem to you to be forbidden but turn out to be permissible, and vice versa.
 
Stain Location
A stain of a color that could make a woman a nida can be on material or on the woman's body. None of the following lenient conditions apply if the woman is nida d'oraita:
   

1. Not positively attributable to another cause, AND
2. At least the size of a gris. For small, unconnected spots, she must evaluate whether, together, they equal the size of a gris (on material, the spots DO NOT get combined). If yes, she should consult a rabbi.

 
 
II. HARCHAKOT: How Do the Couple Conduct Themselves while the Wife is a Nida?
 
According to Torah law, when a woman is a nida, she and her husband are prohibited not only from having intercourse, but also (“lo tikrav”—Vayikra 18:19) from having any physical contact of a passionate or romantic nature (negiya shel chibuk v'nishuk)--those patterns of physical contact that often lead to intercourse. Since the penalty for violation is kareit, husband and wife should live separately during the nida period, but because we don't, we use “distancers” (harchakot) as reminders of distance while living together in the same home. The harchakot sensitize us to the smallest gestures of love. The couple who know that in a finite amount of time their union will not only be permitted, but even be davar sh'bekedusha--a thing of sanctity--will have the willpower to wait it out.
 
These harchakot are applied during the nida period:
                                 
III. Tahara after Nida:    

1. Wash or cleanse lower regions of the body.
2. Do an internal check/bedika: Insert a white cloth into vagina and circle it around to make sure to get every nook and cranny.
3. Moch dachuk: Insert a bedika cloth within two halachic hours of sunset and leave it in until after dark.

 

1. Bedika

 

2. White Underpants

 

3. No Hesech Da'at

A woman does not need to think about the seven clean days all of the time, but she must keep in mind, during the entire nida purification process, that she is not in an active nida state.  
Situation A woman found a stain and asked a rabbi about it. She assumed she was definitely nida.
What To Do Once she assumes that she has become a nida during that seven-day period, she must begin her count again--even once she has found out that she was not, in fact, a nida. 
Note If she asked the rabbi while not yet assuming that she was definitely a nida, she may continue her original count after the rabbi determines that she was not a nida.

• Full body cast.
• Being covered with sand.
• Being sweaty from head to toe.

• Moisturizer that covers most of her body.
• Adhesive that is left on her skin after a band-aid has been removed.
• Imperfect manicure, if she would not go to an interview like that.

         
 

• Shalom Bayit (in this case, she is not permitted see her husband until after dark Friday night).
• Dangerous Neighborhood.
• Infertility Issues (if she will miss ovulation if she does not go Friday night).

    Kosher immersion/tevila requires simultaneous immersion of every exposed part of the body (not bet ha'starim).   Here is the best way to accomplish simultaneous immersion:

• Enter the water until it is about 12 inches above the navel. 
• Make sure that every part of your body is relaxed (if you squeeze anything, you create crevices and cracks that impede complete access to your skin). 
• “Flesh”/basar is exposed to the water when standing while leaning a little forward.
• Exhale and push yourself under the water until you are certain that all of your body and all of your hair are submerged. 
• Once your head is above the surface of the water, say the blessing and then immerse again, the same way.

 
IV. Anticipating the Next Period/Veset
 
What To Anticipate
In anticipating the time of the month when her period is most likely to occur (onat ha'veset), a woman must determine both:

1. The day of the month, and
2. Whether it will begin during the daytime period (sunrise to sunset) or the nighttime period (from sunset to sunrise)

 
Regular and Irregular
Every woman needs to be able to anticipate her next period, whether she is a) regular or b) irregular. “Regular” is determined by any pattern to one's menstrual cycle that occurs three times in a row.
Note It is very uncommon for a woman to maintain her regular period for a long time.
 
Anticipating a Regular Period
Here are the five most classic regular patterns:

1. Veset HaChodesh (Monthly Cycle)

   

2. Veset Haflaga (Intervals Cycle)

 

3. Veset HaGuf (Body Symptoms Cycle)

 

4. Veset HaMurkav (Combination Cycle)

    A woman with an irregular period may have to abstain from relations and affectionate intimate contact (negiya shel chibuk v'nishuk) during these three onot/time periods:

1. Yom HaChodesh

 

2. Haflaga

 

3. Ona Beinonit

Do not check tzitzit on Shabbat or Jewish festivals.
Reason If there is something wrong, you might untangle them and thereby untie a knot, which is prohibited from the Torah.

Generally, you may not go into a business if an existing business owner will go out of business or cannot survive on what income he/she will have remaining.

Exception If a better Torah teacher is available than the current one, the better one may be hired.

Here is when to pause or join the minyan during general prayer services:

• Ashrei

• Torah Reading 

• Kaddish

• Alenu

Remove tefilin before hallel on chol ha'moed.

Say she'hecheyanu when lighting candles for:

• Both days of Rosh Hashana,
• Yom Kippur,
• First day (if in Eretz Yisrael) or first two days of Sukkot,
• Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Torah,
• First day (if in Eretz Yisrael) or both days of Shavuot, and
• First day (if in Eretz Yisrael) or first two days of Passover.

These holy writings (tashmishei kedusha) may not be thrown directly into the trash, but should ideally be buried with like items (sheimot):

• Holy writings that contain God's name.
• Parts of Tanach (24-book Jewish Bible).
• Explanations of the Torah or commandments.

However, if a printed or written page (in contrast to parchment scrolls such as tefilin, Torahs, or mezuzas) contains God's name plus secular content, it must be double wrapped in plastic before being thrown in the trash.
Do not throw into trash, even if double wrapped:

• Handwritten scrolls of Torah, tefilin, mezuza.
• Printed Torah, Talmud, siddur, books of halacha, or Torah commentaries.

Rather, put them into a sheimot collection box or wrap in plastic and bury in a place where they will not be dug up. It does not need to be a cemetery.

Double wrap and throw into trash:

• Newspapers and flyers that have Torah psukim or Torah commentaries and also have non-Torah content.
  Reason Non-Torah material should not be buried as sheimot. 
• Children's school handouts with psukim from the Torah or halachot that also contain non-Torah content (if they ONLY contain words of Torah, they should be buried as sheimot).

For disposal of items used for mitzvot (tashmishei mitzva), you may wrap in one layer of plastic and throw it in normal garbage:

• Lulav,
• Etrog, or
• Talit/tzitzit (but NOT tefilin!)

Chazal have the authority to make laws, so we say “Who sanctified us with His mitzvot and commanded us” (asher kidshanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu) for Chanuka blessings and other purposes that Chazal instituted after the Torah was given.

If you are not sure if you said ANY blessing in ANY category, don't repeat it.
 

The only type of laws that may sometimes be overridden to help with shalom bayit (promoting peaceful family relations) or kibud av va'eim (honoring parents) is rabbinic law, not Torah law. A rabbi should be consulted in these cases.

These relatives of participants in a Jewish court case or wedding may not be witnesses:

• Parents and their spouses
• Children and their spouses
• Siblings and their spouses
• First cousins and their spouses.

However, it is customary today for Jewish courts to accept relatives as witnesses in some cases.
 

How To Reheat on Hotplate or Blech: Before Shabbat Begins

1. Cover any cooking controls (knobs, switches, etc.) so no one adjusts them during Shabbat.
2. Cover the heat source with a "blech" (sheet of metal). This will help prevent Torah law violations by serving as a reminder not to adjust the heat.                                      Note Some blechs also block the temperature controls, to help with the previous step.                                                                                                                                Note To use a hotplate, remove the control knob before Shabbat.
3. Turn on the source of heat (hotplate, burner under the blech...).
4. Put onto the hotplate or blech at least one utensil containing food or water.

1. Start with food that is fully cooked and solid (no liquids may be heated on Shabbat!). Note"Solid" food includes cooked meat with congealed jelly or cooked fish with jelly.
2. Place the fully cooked dry food on top of the food- or water-containing utensil that had been placed on the heating appliance before Shabbat began. Remember not to put the fully cooked food directly onto the hotplate, blech, or other heat source after Shabbat begins (even if there is a separation between the heat source and food).

Note After sunset on Friday, you may not put any incompletely cooked food (whether hot or cold) onto the heated part of the heating appliance or move it from a cooler part of the blech to a hotter part.
NOteAt some time during Shabbat, someone must eat or drink from the food- or water-containing utensil that had been on the blech since before Shabbat began.

On Shabbat and some Jewish festivals, you might want to fulfill some of the quota for making 100 blessings by:

• Eating extra fruit or other foods,
• Hearing and saying amen to the blessings over the:
  • Torah reading,
  • Reader's repetition of the amida for shacharit and musaf, and
  • Haftara by the maftir.