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The origins for these rituals and customs are found in the Mishnah and Talmud, and have been codified in various codes of Jewish law and tradition, such as Maimonides's Mishneh Torah (12th century) and Joseph Karo's Shulkhan Arukh (16th century.)

These customs are most commonly observed within Orthodox Judaism. Those within Conservative Judaism widely observe the riturals related to Netilat yadayim; using a mikvah when converting to Judaism, washing one's hands during the Passover seder, and tahara.

1. Negel vasser ("Nail water"), when getting up in the morning after a full night's sleep, or even after a lengthy nap, there is the custom to wash one's hands ritually by pouring a large cup of water over one's fingers, alternating three times.
2. Netilat yadayim ("Raising [after ritually washing] the hands") which is done prior to eating any bread with a meal. A special blessing is said. This washing is also done, without any blessing, after touching something deemed "impure" (such as one's private parts, leather shoes, or an insect or animal, or after paying a visit to a cemetery).
3. Mayim acharonim ("After-waters") a minor custom of ritually washing off the tips of one's fingers after a meal, symbolising the removal of material impurity.
4. After blessing of Asher yatzar ("Who created [the man]"). After having gone to the bathroom (and having either urinated or defecated), the ritual washing of one's hands as a symbol of both bodily cleanliness and of removing human impurity - see Netilat yadayim above.
5. Every Kohen present has his hands ritually washed in synagogueA synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer and study. The Hebrew term for synagogue is Beit Knesset (House of Assembly) or Beit Tefila (House of Prayer). There are usually separate rooms for prayer (the main sanctuary) and smaller rooms for study. Rooms set by the Levi'imThis article discusses the Jewish tribe. For Levi Strauss the inventor of jeans, see Levi Strauss. Levi or Levy "Attached", Standard Hebrew Levi Tiberian Hebrew Lew was the founder of the Levite tribe of ancient Israel. He was a son of Jacob, also known a before uttering the unique priestly blessings on Jewish holidaysThe Jewish calendar has a number of festival days, fast days and days of remembrance, collectively known as Jewish holidays . The denominations of Reconstructionist Judaism and Reform Judaism generally regard Jewish laws halakha relating to all these holi in front of the entire congregation.
6. MikvahA Mikvah (or Mikveh ) is a Jewish ritual bath used for immersion in a purification ceremony. Its main use nowadays is by women to achieve ritual purity after menstruation or childbirth. Immersion in a mikvah is also required for completion of a traditiona ("[Immersion in a] pool of water"), when a married Jewish woman immerses herself a week after her menstrual period concludes and she wishes to resume conjugal relations with her husband. This requires special preparation.
7. The ritual of immersing in a Mikvah is also required when converting to Judaism.
8. During the PassoverPassover also known as Pesach or Pesah ( pesa , is an eight-day Jewish holiday (seven days in Israel) that commemorates the exodus and freedom of the Israelites from Egypt; it is also observed by some Christians to commemorate the deliverance from sin by SederThe Seder (pronounced 'say-der', meaning 'order' in Hebrew) is a special Jewish ceremonial dinner revolving around the story of Exodus. The Seder is held on the first evening of Passover in Israel and the first and second evenings outside Israel. The Sede the participants ritually wash their hands twice as part of the meal. (Once without a blessing in order to eat some vegetables in "purity", and once with a blessing prior to the eating of the matzah - see Netilat yadayim above.)
9. Tahara, ("Purification"), the ritual washing and cleansing, and immersion in a mikva if possible, of a Jew's body prior to burial.

See also Ablution, Ritual purification